GNUPLOT(1)GNUPLOT(1)NAMEgnuplot - an interactive plotting program
SYNOPSISgnuplot [ X11 options ] [file ...]
DESCRIPTION
Gnuplot is a command-driven interactive function plotting program.
If files are given, gnuplot loads each file with the load command, in
the order specified. Gnuplot exits after the last file is processed.
Here are some of its features:
Plots any number of functions, built up of C operators, C library func‐
tions, and some things C doesn't have like **, sgn(), etc. Also sup‐
port for plotting data files, to compare actual data to theoretical
curves.
User-defined X and Y ranges (optional auto-ranging), smart axes scal‐
ing, smart tic marks.
Labelling of X and Y axes.
User-defined constants and functions.
Support through a generalized graphics driver for AED 512, AED 767, BBN
BitGraph, Commodore Amiga, Roland DXY800A, EEPIC, TeXDraw, EmTeX, Epson
60dpi printers, Epson LX-800, Fig, HP2623, HP2648, HP75xx, HPGL, HP
LaserJet II, Imagen, Iris 4D, Linux, MS-DOS Kermit, Kyocera laser
printer, LaTeX, NEC CP6 pinwriter, PostScript, QMS QUIC, ReGis (VT125
and VT2xx), SCO Xenix CGI, Selanar, Star color printer, Tandy DMP-130
printer, Tek 401x, Tek 410x, Vectrix 384, VT like Tektronix emulator,
Unix PC (ATT 3b1 or ATT 7300), unixplot, and X11. The PC version com‐
piled by Microsoft C supports IBM CGA, EGA, VGA, Hercules, ATT 6300,
and Corona 325 graphics. The PC version compiled by Borland C++ sup‐
ports IBM CGA, EGA, MCGA, VGA, Hercules and ATT 6300 graphics. Other
devices can be added simply, but will require recompiling.
Shell escapes and command line substitution.
Load and save capability.
Output redirection.
All computations performed in the complex domain. Just the real part
is plotted by default, but functions like imag() and abs() and arg()
are available to override this.
X11 OPTIONS
Gnuplot provides the x11 terminal type for use with X servers. This
terminal type is set automatically at startup if the DISPLAY environ‐
ment variable is set, if the TERM environment variable is set to xterm,
or if the -display command line option is used. For terminal type x11,
gnuplot accepts the standard X Toolkit options and resources such as
geometry, font, and background. See the X(1) man page for a description
of the options. In addition to the X Toolkit options:
-clear requests that the window be cleared momentarily before a new
plot is displayed.
-gray requests grayscale rendering on grayscale or color displays.
(Grayscale displays receive monochrome rendering by default.)
-mono forces monochrome rendering on color displays.
-persist lets plot windows survive after main gnuplot program exits.
-raise raises the plot window after each plot.
-noraise does not raise the plot window after each plot.
-tvtwm requests that geometry specifications for position of the window
be made relative to the currently displayed portion of the virtual
root.
These options may also be controlled with resources in your .Xdefaults
file. For example: gnuplot*gray: on .
Gnuplot provides a command line option (-pointsize v) and a resource
(gnuplot*pointsize: v) to control the size of points plotted with the
"points" plotting style. The value v is a real number (greater than 0
and less than or equal to ten) used as a scaling factor for point
sizes. For example, -pointsize 2 uses points twice the default size,
and -pointsize 0.5 uses points half the normal size.
For monochrome displays, gnuplot does not honor foreground or back‐
ground colors. The default is black-on-white. -rv or gnuplot*reverseV‐
ideo: on requests white-on-black.
For color displays gnuplot honors the following resources (shown here
with default values). The values may be color names in the X11 rgb.txt
file on your system, hexadecimal RGB color specifications (see X11 doc‐
umentation), or a color name followed by a comma and an intensity value
from 0 to 1. For example, blue,.5 means a half intensity blue.
gnuplot*background: white
gnuplot*textColor: black
gnuplot*borderColor: black
gnuplot*axisColor: black
gnuplot*line1Color: red
gnuplot*line2Color: green
gnuplot*line3Color: blue
gnuplot*line4Color: magenta
gnuplot*line5Color: cyan
gnuplot*line6Color: sienna
gnuplot*line7Color: orange
gnuplot*line8Color: coral
When -gray is selected, gnuplot honors the following resources for
grayscale or color displays (shown here with default values). Note that
the default background is black.
gnuplot*background: black
gnuplot*textGray: white
gnuplot*borderGray: gray50
gnuplot*axisGray: gray50
gnuplot*line1Gray: gray100
gnuplot*line2Gray: gray60
gnuplot*line3Gray: gray80
gnuplot*line4Gray: gray40
gnuplot*line5Gray: gray90
gnuplot*line6Gray: gray50
gnuplot*line7Gray: gray70
gnuplot*line8Gray: gray30
Gnuplot honors the following resources for setting the width in pixels
of plot lines (shown here with default values.) 0 or 1 means a minimal
width line of 1 pixel width. A value of 2 or 3 may improve the appear‐
ance of some plots.
gnuplot*borderWidth: 2
gnuplot*axisWidth: 0
gnuplot*line1Width: 0
gnuplot*line2Width: 0
gnuplot*line3Width: 0
gnuplot*line4Width: 0
gnuplot*line5Width: 0
gnuplot*line6Width: 0
gnuplot*line7Width: 0
gnuplot*line8Width: 0
Gnuplot honors the following resources for setting the dash style used
for plotting lines. 0 means a solid line. A 2 digit number jk (j and k
are >= 1 and <= 9) means a dashed line with a repeated pattern of j
pixels on followed by k pixels off. For example, '16' is a "dotted"
line with 1 pixel on followed by 6 pixels off. More elaborate on/off
patterns can be specified with a 4 digit value. For example, '4441' is
4 on, 4 off, 4 on, 1 off. The default values shown below are for mono‐
chrome displays or monochrome rendering on color or grayscale displays.
For color displays, the defaults for all are 0 (solid line) except for
axisDashes which defaults to a '16' dotted line.
gnuplot*borderDashes: 0
gnuplot*axisDashes: 16
gnuplot*line1Dashes: 0
gnuplot*line2Dashes: 42
gnuplot*line3Dashes: 13
gnuplot*line4Dashes: 44
gnuplot*line5Dashes: 15
gnuplot*line6Dashes: 4441
gnuplot*line7Dashes: 42
gnuplot*line8Dashes: 13
The size or aspect ratio of a plot may be changed by resizing the gnu‐
plot window.
AUTHORS
Thomas Williams, Pixar Corporation,
(info-gnuplot@dartmouth.edu)
and Colin Kelley.
Additions for labelling by Russell Lang, Monash University, Australia.
(rjl@monu1.cc.monash.edu.au)
Further additions by David Kotz, Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, USA
(formerly of Duke University, North Carolina, USA).
(David.Kotz@Dartmouth.edu)
BUGS
The atan() function does not work correctly for complex arguments.
The bessel functions do not work for complex arguments.
See the help bugs command in gnuplot.
SEE ALSO
See the printed manual or the on-line help for details on specific com‐
mands.
X(1).
4th Berkeley Distribution 31 August 1990 GNUPLOT(1)
