One of the first technical hurdles many molecular modelers face when working with new tools is simply getting their data into the platform. This pain is universal: a structure from the Protein Data Bank, electron microscopy results, quantum simulation outputs – these all often use different file formats. When a piece of software can’t open your data, progress comes to a halt.
In this blog post, we’ll take a closer look at how the SAMSON molecular design platform tackles this problem using a flexible and customizable system of importers.
What are importers in SAMSON?
In SAMSON, an importer is a dedicated module that knows how to read a particular file format and convert it into a molecule or a structure that can be visualized or modified in the platform. Some examples of what importers can read include:
- PDB files (Protein Data Bank)
- Electron density maps
- Other specialized formats used in structural biology or materials science
These importers aren’t static or hardcoded. In fact, you can add new importers on demand by getting them from the SAMSON Connect platform, a curated library of extensions developed by the community and the SAMSON team.
Supported formats out of the box
Out of the box, SAMSON includes support for a number of popular molecular and material science file formats. If you’re not sure whether the format you use is supported, you can check the full list of supported formats.
If your format is not listed: don’t worry. You have multiple options.
Can’t find the importer you need?
If SAMSON doesn’t have the importer you need, there are two things you can do:
- Request it: You can contact the SAMSON team directly at contact@samson-connect.net. They’ve made it easy to suggest new features or ask for support.
- Develop your own: If you have some programming experience, SAMSON provides documentation to help you build your own custom importer. You can learn more in the guide to generating SAMSON Extensions.
Why this matters
Having a flexible approach to importers means SAMSON can adapt to many workflows, instead of forcing users to convert their data into specific formats using third-party tools. This saves time and lowers the barrier to starting new projects.
Plus, with a centralized place to look for modules (SAMSON Connect), and simple documentation to build your own, you’re never really stuck due to a format issue.
Conclusion
Whether you’re parsing PDB entries for structural biology or working with electron densities, SAMSON’s importer system is designed to flexibly handle the challenge of diverse data formats.
Learn more about importers in the SAMSON documentation.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download SAMSON at www.samson-connect.net.