Section: User Commands (1)
Updated: 2 October 2013Index
Return to Main Contents
gnuplot - an interactive plotting program (no-X version)
[options] [file ...]
is a command-driven interactive plotting program (no-X version).
If file names are given on the command line,
loads each file with the
command, in the order specified, and exits after the last file is
processed. If no files are given, gnuplot prompts for
Here are some of its features:
Plots any number of functions, built up of C operators, C math library
functions, and some things C doesn't have like **, sgn(), etc.
User-defined constants and functions.
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.
Many presentation styles for plotting user data from files, including
surface-fitting, error bars, boxplots, histograms, heat maps, and simple
manipulation of image data. There is an on-line demo collection at
Nonlinear least-squares fitting.
2D and 3D plots with mouse-controlled zoom and rotation.
Shell escapes and command line substitution.
Load and save capability.
Support for a huge variety of output devices and file formats.
-p, --persist lets plot windows survive after main gnuplot program exits.
-d, --default settings. Do not read from gnuplotrc or ~/.gnuplot on entry.
-e "command list" executes the requested commands before loading the next input file.
-h, --help print summary of usage
-V show current version
A number of shell environment variables are understood by
gnuplot. None of these are required.
The name of the terminal type to be used by default. This can be
overridden by the gnuplotrc or .gnuplot start-up files and,
of course, by later explicit "set terminal" commands.
The pathname of the HELP file (gnuplot.gih).
The name of a directory to search for a .gnuplot file.
An output filter for help messages.
The program used for the "shell" command.
Specifies a gnuplot command to be executed when a
fit is interrupted---see "help fit".
The name of the logfile maintained by fit.
Additional search directories for data and command files. The variable
may contain a single directory name, or a list of directories
separated by ':'. The contents of GNUPLOT_LIB are appended to the
"loadpath" variable, but not saved with the "save" and "save set"
Several gnuplot terminal drivers access TrueType fonts via the gd library.
This variable gives the font search path for these drivers.
The default font for the terminal drivers that access TrueType fonts
via the gd library.
The font search path used by the postscript terminal. The format is
the same as for GNUPLOT_LIB. The contents of GNUPLOT_FONTPATH are
appended to the "fontpath" variable, but not saved with the "save" and
"save set" commands.
Used by the postscript driver to locate external prologue
files. Depending on the build process, gnuplot contains either a
builtin copy of those files or simply a default hardcoded path. Use
this variable to test the postscript terminal with custom prologue
files. See "help postscript prologue".
When gnuplot is run, it first looks for a system-wide initialization
file named gnuplotrc. The standard location of this file expected by
the program is reported by the "show loadpath" command.
After loading the system-wide initialization file, if any,
Gnuplot looks for a private initialization file in the HOME directory.
It may contain any legal gnuplot commands, but typically they are
limited to setting the preferred terminal and line types
and defining frequently-used functions or variables.
The default name of the logfile output by the "fit" command.
Original authors: Thomas Williams and Colin Kelley.
Starting with gnuplot version 3.8, the project source is cooperatively
maintained on SourceForge by a large number of contributors.
Please report bugs using the project bug tracker on SourceForge.
See the printed manual or the on-line help for details on specific commands.
Project web site at http://gnuplot.info
- SEE ALSO