Plots View

The Plots view, , displays all plot entities displayed in the current page/window.

The tree contains plot entities grouped within their page and window. For example, a folder for each page is displayed and can be expanded to view all plots on the page. When each window folder is expanded (for example, w1:XY Plot in the image below), all entities for that window are visible (curves, datum lines, headers/footers/legend, titles, and so on). You can select multiple entities of the same type at the same time, but you cannot select multiple entities of different types.

You can select a plot window attribute under the window heading (for example, Legend or X1 in the image below) to highlight the entity in the graphical area. The properties for that entity are displayed in the Entity Editor, located in the lower portion of the plot browser.

If you select Legend, for example, the legend is highlighted and surrounded by a yellow border and the legend's properties are displayed in the Entity Editor.



Figure 1. A sample browser tree with the Plots view selected is shown below:

Likewise, clicking on a curve or vector displays its properties in the Entity Editor. Vectors are shown in the tree under their corresponding curves. To apply a filter to an x or y vector property, right-click on the x or y vector’s property in the Entity Editor and select Add as filter. After a value is given to that filter, all vectors with that value for that property are shown in the Plot Browser, with their corresponding curves. See Plot Browser Filters for more information.



Figure 2. A sample browser tree with the Plots view selected

The following properties are visible and editable in the Entity Editor when Plot view is selected:

Basic

Header Visibility
Displays the unevaluated (Templex) expression for the plot's header.
Header
Check the box to display the header on the page.
Chart Type
Displays the current plot's chart type. Click on the icon to select a different chart type. Options include XY Plot, Bar Plot, Complex Plot and Polar Plot.
Lock Axes
Choose from Never, At Import, or Always.
See Axes for more information.
Cursor Always Visible
Select this option to always display the plot’s cursor, even if you click on another window on the page. This is helpful when you are synchronizing animation, plot, and video windows. The cursor(s) allows you to see the current animation time step on the plot, even when the plot window is not active.
For example, in the image below, the animation window is the active window, but the cursors on the plot are still visible.


Figure 3.
Publish Window
Select Publish Window to publish the current window contents.
Publish Format
If Publish Window is selected, select a format type from the drop-down menu.

Advanced

Invalid Point Mode
If a CSV file contains blank spaces, select Bridge or Gap.
Bridge handles the blank spaces by creating a bridge in the plotted curve.
Gap handles the blank spaces by displaying a gap in the plotted curve.
Axis Background
Axis Background set to Classic Gray displays the gray color in the axes background. This is the default.


Figure 4.
Axis Background set to User-Defined, or off, means that you can select another color for the axis background. Click the color palette next to Background Color to make your selection.


Figure 5.
Background Color
Select a color from the palette to change the plot background's color.
Gridline Transparency
Numeric value that increases or decreases the gridline visibility. 0.50 is the default value. A lower value increases the gridlines' visibility.
Gridline Color
Select a color from the palette to change the gridline color.
Zeroline Color
Select a color from the palette to change the zeroline color.
Style
For bar plots only. Select Cluster or Stack to define how the bars are displayed.

Animation Cursor

Display
Sets the animation cursor display type. Options include:
  • Square
  • Small bar
  • Medium bar
  • Large bar
  • Custom bar - Choose the size of the bar by entering a value in the % Window height field. You can enter a value directly or use the up and down arrows to choose a value.
  • Coordinate marker
Use Curve Color
Sets the animation cursor color to that of the curve that the animation cursor is on.
Use Curve Style
Changes the line style of the animation cursor (solid, dashed, and so on) to match the curve’s style.
Cursor Thickness
Select the cursor thickness by choosing one of the five line style options.
Style (Bar Chart only)
Select Cluster or Stack to define how the bars are displayed.

Labelling (Bar Chart)

Label Visibility
Select to display the value labels on the bars.
Contribution Label
This option is only available if Label Visibility is selected. Select one of the following options:
Hide
Hides the contribution label.
Show Value
Displays the contribution label as a value.
Show Percentage
Displays the contribution label as a percentage.
Label Format
Select Auto, Scientific, or Fixed from the drop-down menu.
Numeric Precision
The number of decimal points to be displayed. Select a number from the drop-down menu.
Label Font Settings
Click in the field to display the Font Selector dialog to edit the label's font type, style, and size.