An account is given of the development of the SHELX system of computer programs from SHELX-76 to the present day. In addition to identifying useful innovations that have come into general use through their implementation in SHELX, a critical analysis is presented of the less-successful features, missed opportunities and desirable improvements for future releases of the software. An attempt is made to understand how a program originally designed for photographic intensity data, punched cards and computers over 10000 times slower than an average modern personal computer has managed to survive for so long. SHELXL is the most widely used program for small-molecule refinement and SHELXS and SHELXD are often employed for structure solution despite the availability of objectively superior programs. SHELXL also finds a niche for the refinement of macromolecules against high-resolution or twinned data; SHELXPRO acts as an interface for macromolecular applications. SHELXC, SHELXD and SHELXE are proving useful for the experimental phasing of macromolecules, especially because they are fast and robust and so are often employed in pipelines for high-throughput phasing. This paper could serve as a general literature citation when one or more of the open-source SHELX programs (and the Bruker AXS version SHELXTL) are employed in the course of a crystal-structure determination.

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A short history of SHELX

SIR97 is the integration of two programs, SIR92 and CAOS, the first devoted to the solution of crystal structures by direct methods, the second to refinement via least-squares–Fourier procedures. Several new features have been introduced in SIR97 with respect to the previous version, SIR92: greater automatization, increased efficiency of the direct methods section, and a powerful graphics interface. The program also provides publication tables and CIF files.

SIR97: a new tool for crystal structure determination and refinement

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2019/NP/C8NP00092A

Marine natural products.

Inorganic crystal engineering using self-assembly of tailored building-blocks

Helicenes: synthesis and applications.

http://journals.iucr.org/b/issues/1970/03/00/a07371/a07371.pdf

On the application of phase relationships to complex structures. II. Getting a good start

Models for Asymmetric [2+2] Cyclo-additions

Multisolution direct methods for solving crystal structures lead to many plausible sets of phases and some means of determining the correct set is necessary. For centrosymmetric structures, figures of merit are usually quite discriminating and the examination of only one or two E maps is necessary. For noncentrosymmetric structures, figures of merit are unreliable and the necessity of examining a large number of E maps can sometime prove to be an almost insuperable obstacle to finding the correct structure. A procedure is described for overcoming this difficulty. The Cooley-Tukey fast-Fourier-transform technique is used to compute E maps and all peaks greater than a certain height are located. A selection of the highest of these peaks, whose number is chosen by the program user, is then analysed with respect to bond lengths and angles. Favourable projections of coherent groups of peaks are output on the line printer in the form of integers representing the ranking order of the peaks and in positions which represent an undistorted projection of the group. Computing time is of the order of one minute per set of phases and the examination of a set of 32 maps and finding the correct solution takes about 30 minutes.

Gabriel Germain

Papers

On the application of phase relationships to complex structures. II. Getting a good start

Models for Asymmetric [2+2] Cyclo-additions

On the application of phase relationships to complex structures. V. Finding the solution

Azastilbenes .2. photo-dimerization

Azastilbenes. 1. Synthesis, characterization, and structure