PLOT User Guide

AVEVA Solutions Ltd

Disclaimer
Information of a technical nature, and particulars of the product and its use, is given by AVEVA Solutions Ltd and its subsidiaries without warranty. AVEVA Solutions Ltd and its subsidiaries disclaim any and all warranties and conditions, expressed or implied, to the fullest extent permitted by law. Neither the author nor AVEVA Solutions Ltd, or any of its subsidiaries, shall be liable to any person or entity for any actions, claims, loss or damage arising from the use or possession of any information, particulars, or errors in this publication, or any incorrect use of the product, whatsoever.

Copyright
Copyright and all other intellectual property rights in this manual and the associated software, and every part of it (including source code, object code, any data contained in it, the manual and any other documentation supplied with it) belongs to AVEVA Solutions Ltd or its subsidiaries. All other rights are reserved to AVEVA Solutions Ltd and its subsidiaries. The information contained in this document is commercially sensitive, and shall not be copied, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted without the prior written permission of AVEVA Solutions Ltd. Where such permission is granted, it expressly requires that this Disclaimer and Copyright notice is prominently displayed at the beginning of every copy that is made. The manual and associated documentation may not be adapted, reproduced, or copied, in any material or electronic form, without the prior written permission of AVEVA Solutions Ltd. The user may also not reverse engineer, decompile, copy, or adapt the associated software. Neither the whole, nor part of the product described in this publication may be incorporated into any third-party software, product, machine, or system without the prior written permission of AVEVA Solutions Ltd, save as permitted by law. Any such unauthorised action is strictly prohibited, and may give rise to civil liabilities and criminal prosecution. The AVEVA products described in this guide are to be installed and operated strictly in accordance with the terms and conditions of the respective license agreements, and in accordance with the relevant User Documentation. Unauthorised or unlicensed use of the product is strictly prohibited. First published September 2007 AVEVA Solutions Ltd, and its subsidiaries AVEVA Solutions Ltd, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0HB, United Kingdom

Trademarks
AVEVA and Tribon are registered trademarks of AVEVA Solutions Ltd or its subsidiaries. Unauthorised use of the AVEVA or Tribon trademarks is strictly forbidden. AVEVA product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of AVEVA Solutions Ltd or its subsidiaries, registered in the UK, Europe and other countries (worldwide). The copyright, trade mark rights, or other intellectual property rights in any other product, its name or logo belongs to its respective owner.

PLOT User Guide

PLOT User Guide

Contents

Page

PLOT
About this Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
Who the Manual is Meant For . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1 How the Manual is Set Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1 Conventions Used in the Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1

Introducing PLOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1

What PLOT Does . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1 Input Formats That PLOT Can Accept . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1 Output Formats That PLOT Can Generate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:2

How To Use PLOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1

Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1 Running PLOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1 General Command Line Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
Specifying the Plotting Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scaling the Plot to Fit the Paper. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Setting the Drawing Size from the Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Specifying How Arcs and Circles are Represented . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Specifying the Pen Selection Mode and Plotting Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dekink Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Splitting a Large Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Adding a Plot Border . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Adding Cutter Control Markers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3 3:3 3:3 3:3 3:4 3:5 3:6 3:7 3:7

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Creating your Own Device Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:8

Soft Drivers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:8 Soft Driver Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:9 Overriding Built-in Driver Defaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:9

Messages Output by PLOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:10

Normal Run-Time Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:10 Warnings and Error Messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:10 Modifying PLOTs Message File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11

Getting Help about PLOT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11

Checking the Command Syntax. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11 Checking the Program Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11 Checking Driver Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11

Summarising the Contents of Plot Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:12 Running on Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:12

Screen Driver Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:12 Screen Driver and Enhanced Metafile Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:12 Shortcuts and Browsing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:13

Device Drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:1

BENSON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:2 CALCOMP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:2 DXF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5
Output File Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5 DXF Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5

Hewlett-Packard (HP or HPGL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:6 HPGL2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:8 HOUSTON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:10 LASERJET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:10 LIST PDMS PNG SCREEN XDUMP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:21 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:24

PENMAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:13 POSTSCRIPT or PS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:14

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Driver Quick Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:1 Changes to this Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1

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About this Manual

1
1.1

About this Manual

Who the Manual is Meant For
This manual explains how to use the stand-alone graphical plotting utility PLOT. PLOT interprets plot files in a range of pseudo-code formats, as produced by a number of AVEVA (and some third party) programs. It performs a variety of conversions and other operations on the contents of the plot file. This manual is relevant to anyone who needs to translate, plot or view such a file, regardless of the source. The manual is not restricted to users of any specific program that generates plot files, as long as the file format is compatible with PLOTs input requirements. No particular prior knowledge of plotting utilities is assumed, but it is assumed that you are familiar with the basic operating system commands for your computer.

1.2

How the Manual is Set Out

Introducing PLOT summarises the function of PLOT and details the input and output file formats that it can recognise. How To Use PLOT first explains some hardware considerations that you must be aware of before you use PLOT. It then describes the range of facilities available when using PLOT and the commands needed to control them. Device Drivers is a reference section that details the options available for each of PLOTs output formats. Driver Quick Reference is a quick reference guide and summarises the driver specific options and the options that apply to drivers generally. Changes to this Manual describes the recent to changes made to this manual. If you are a new PLOT user, it is suggested that you should read, as a minimum, Introducing PLOT and the first three sections of How To Use PLOT. You will also need to refer to at least one section in Device Drivers, depending on what you intend to use the PLOT output for.

1.3

Conventions Used in the Manual

The following conventions are used in the text: Command words are shown as a combination of uppercase and lowercase characters, for example, COMMandword. The uppercase part of the word (COMM in the preceding example) is the minimum permissible abbreviation. Where a command word is first introduced, or where its use is defined, it will usually be shown in bold type, thus

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About this Manual

COMMandword Command arguments are shown in lowercase italic type, for example argument. Examples of interactive input and output sequences are shown in a special typeface, thus

Example of Input/Output Sequence Typeface

Note: Examples of command syntax throughout the manual use uppercase characters to make them easily identifiable within the body of the main text.

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Introducing PLOT

2
2.1

Introducing PLOT
What PLOT Does
The graphical plotting utility, PLOT, allows you to interpret pseudo-code plot files generated by AVEVA programs and to translate them into a range of standard formats. After translation, the plot file data may be sent either directly to a hardware device, such as a pen plotter or laser printer, or to another file, or to a graphics screen. PLOT handles both the file format translation process and the transmission of the resulting data to a specified hardware device, including interaction with the output device where necessary to ensure that data transmission protocol is correctly observed. PLOT can recognise source files in any of the formats described in the following section and translate them into any of a wide range of output formats by using the appropriate device drivers built into the program.

2.2

Input Formats That PLOT Can Accept

PLOT can recognise the following input pseudo-code formats automatically: PDMS The format generated by default by graphical output modules. This gives a binary format file that can define fully the viewing parameters and line graphics for engineering drawings in device-independent terms. HPGL A Hewlett-Packard plotter code format recognised by a range of commercial plotting and printing devices. This gives an ASCII format file that can define fully the viewing parameters, line graphics, arcs and circles of engineering drawings in device-independent terms. HP-GL/2 This is the standardised version of the Hewlett-Packard Graphical Language. It provides a more consistent functionality between plotters. It supports many types of device including pen, laser and electrostatic. The HP-GL/2 plotter code is compact, especially for vectors that have a special encoding scheme. It is held in binary file format. Although HPGL and HP-GL/2 are related, HP-GL/2 is not a strict superset of HPGL. It is best for most purposes to regard them as entirely different. HP-GL/2 is often available in a dual context with Hewlett-Packards PCL.

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Introducing PLOT

DXF This is the AutoCAD representation of a drawing in their DXF (drawing interchange) file format. It is an ASCII file format, widely used to exchange drawing file data. The file does not define the units that its values are held in, so explicit scaling is needed when these values are not in millimetres. Data from all sections of the DXF file is interpreted. This includes the LTYPE and LAYER tables, and the contents of the Blocks section for expansion of INSERT entities. GPGP (or GP2) This gives an ASCII format file that can define fully the viewing parameters, line graphics, text and symbols for engineering drawings in device-independent terms.

2.3

Output Formats That PLOT Can Generate

PLOT can translate an input plot file into a format suitable for driving a plotter or printer directly, or it can send the translated output to another file in a format suitable for inclusion into, say, a word processor or desktop publishing document. It can, alternatively, send the translated output to a graphical window for immediate viewing. The device drivers incorporated into PLOT, which determine the output format, are as follows: Driver Name BENSON CALCOMP DXF HOUSTON HP HPGL HPGL2 LASERJET LIST PDMS PENMAN PNG POSTSCRIPT PS SCREEN XDUMP Description Pen plotter Pen plotter AutoCAD drawing interchange file Pen plotter Pen plotter Pen plotter Pen and raster plotter HP PCL page description language Displays drawing contents AVEVA plot file Turtle plotter Raster graphics file Postscript page description language Postscript page description language On-screen plot file viewer X-windows bitmap file

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Introducing PLOT

These generic plot drivers determine the general format of the output plot file only. The output generated is compatible with specific hardware devices, as detailed in Device Drivers, but you may need to customise the drivers to suit a particular plotter or printer. PLOTs soft driver facility allows you to do this. You will notice that four of the output drivers (HPGL, HPGL2, PDMS and DXF) match input file formats. This means that you may use PLOT to translate plot files between these formats in either direction. Note: The HPGL format can exist in slightly different dialects. If you wish to input an HPGL file obtained from an outside source, you must ensure that it is fully compatible with the HPGL format that is generated by PLOT. If it is not, you may need to carry out some preprocessing on the file before using PLOT to convert it to an AVEVA plot file.

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Introducing PLOT

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How To Use PLOT

3
3.1

How To Use PLOT

Before You Begin
If you are going to use PLOT to generate hard copy directly, this can be done by printing from the graphical window created by the screen driver. This method uses a normal Windows Print control to select, configure and use any available print service. It is also possible to send plot files directly to a printer or plotter using the Windows print command. This method allows the user to take full control of the printing operation, and responsibility for the compatibility of the file type with the device. For example the command to send a PostScript file to a printer service that supports and recognises this file format would be as follows for a shared printer: print /d:\\servername\printer_name plotfile.ps

3.2

Running PLOT
The basic information that PLOT needs in order to process a plot file is as follows: The type of processing which is required; that is, the device driver that is to be used for the file translation process. The name of the input plot file that is to be processed. The destination to which the resulting output file is to be sent.

The full syntax for the command to run PLOT is: plot driver plotfile output [options] The command arguments have the following significance: driver = the name of the output device driver. The available device drivers are: BENSON CALCOMP DXF HOUSTON HP or HPGL HPGL2 LASERJET LIST PDMS PENMAN PNG POSTSCRIPT or PS SCREEN XDUMP

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How To Use PLOT

A full description of the functions of each of these is given in Device Drivers. The Hewlett-Packard HP/HPGL and, to a lesser extent, the Calcomp plotter codes have been adopted as industry standards, and many other plotters are designed to emulate one or other of them. The corresponding PLOT drivers may often be used successfully with such plotters, but only when the emulation offers true compatibility with the standard. plotfile = the name of the pseudo-code file which is to be processed. The file name must conform to the file naming conventions for your computer. PLOT automatically recognises the input plot file format used (PDMS, HPGL, DXF or GPGP) by identifying some coding characters at the start of the file, so there is no provision for you to enter this information. output = the destination to which the output data is to be sent. This is either a file name or the command prompt window. If you specify a file name, this must conform to the file naming conventions for your computer. The command prompt window is specified by setting the output to be -0 (minus-zero). The output data file can for instance be sent to a printer or plotter using operating system commands, or it can be viewed with a suitable program, including Plot itself. Plot files can also be sent directly to a compatible printer or plotter using the Windows print command. options = specific options to set values and control processing. These allow you to control aspects of how the output files are produced. Some options are general in their scope and apply to any output device driver; these are described in General Command Line Options. Other options are relevant only to specific device drivers; these are described separately in Device Drivers.

Note: The driver-specific options must be enclosed between quotation marks and if there is more than one option, they must be separated by commas. Some Command Line Examples:

plot pdms plot12 ulay.pl

This command sends data from the file plot12 to the file ulay.pl in pseudo-code format. The latter file could then be used as an underlay in a drawing module, for example.

plot screen plota2 -0

This reads graphical data from file plota2 and displays it in a window on your workstation screen. Remember that line 0 always goes to the command prompt window.

plot hp view.pl view.hp scale=0.8 "CE Y"

Plot reads data from view.pl and writes it to the file view.hp, applying a general option to scale the output dimensions to be 0.8 of those of the input file. Another driver option specifies that the plotter has a physical coordinate origin at the centre of the paper.

3.3

General Command Line Options

The following options are applicable to all drivers and may be combined with any of the driver-specific options described in Device Drivers. You can use all of these options with the soft drivers described in Creating your Own Device Drivers. If an option is specified more than once, the last occurrence is the one that applies.

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How To Use PLOT

3.3.1

Specifying the Plotting Scale

By default, the output plot data represents the plotted drawing(s) on the same scale as the input plot file. To change the plotting scale during the data processing operation, use either of the command line options SCALE=factor SCALE:factor Here, factor is the required scaling factor (output scale)/(input scale). For example, SCALE=0.5 will produce half-size output plots. Note: This option is only valid on the command line, and is not combined in the same string as the other options available with soft drivers. The option has no effect when drivers are scaling a plot to fill an area. Drivers that do this are: Laserjet, PostScript, Screen and Xdump.

3.3.2

Scaling the Plot to Fit the Paper

Instead of predefining the plotting scale, as explained in Specifying the Plotting Scale, you may instruct PLOT to adjust the output plot scale automatically so that it will fit the available paper size. This option allows PLOT to handle oversize input plots; without it (the default situation), processing will be terminated with an error message. To specify automatic reduction of oversize plots, use the option ADJUst

3.3.3

Setting the Drawing Size from the Graphics

This facility causes any drawing size defined in the input file to be ignored and replaced by the size of a rectangle enclosing all graphics in the file. The whole input file is read an extra time for this purpose. To set the drawing size from the limits of the graphics, use the option AUTOsize The AUTOSIZE option applies only to DXF, HPGL and HP-GL/2 input files. It is useful in cases where the drawing size in the file is wrong for any reason.

3.3.4

Specifying How Arcs and Circles are Represented

Most plotters are unable to plot true circular arcs and instead represent them by a series of straight lines (chords). The more chords used, the closer the approximation to a true arc. By default, a complete circle is represented in a plot by 90 chords. To specify a different representation, use the option ARCSize integer Here, integer is the number of chords per complete circle and must be in the range 12 to 175. For example, ARCS 120 will plot smoother arcs than the default setting; ARCS 25 will plot less smooth arcs, but will reduce the plotting time.

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How To Use PLOT

3.3.5

Specifying the Pen Selection Mode and Plotting Attributes

By default, any logical pen numbers (which usually correspond to particular colours), line styles and line widths defined in the source pseudo-code file (plotfile) are passed unchanged to the output file or device (output). You can intercept these settings, and modify them to achieve independent control of the way in which the output is plotted, by using the PENS and associated ATTR (attributes) commands. PLOT can have up to 256 pens, and can operate in the following modes: 'Pens Yes' Mode The default mode, which may be reset by using the option PEns Yes This options causes pen numbers, line styles and line widths to be passes directly from the input file to the output file. To redirect one or more pens, use the command line option ATTR integer1 integer2 This replaces input pen integer1 with output pen integer2. For example, the options:

PENS YES,ATTR 1 4,ATTR 2 5,ATTR 3 6

This sets pens 1-3 in the input file to be replaced by pens 4-6 in the output file, respectively. Line styles and line widths are passed unchanged from the input file to the output file. 'Pens No' Mode The option: PEns No This sets the individual pen numbers from the input file to be ignored and all output to be plotted using pen 1. You might use this mode, for instance, when the output is intended for a single-pen device. To redirect the output to use a pen other than pen 1, use the command line option: ATTR 1 integer Here, integer specifies the required output pen number. For example, the options:

PENS NO,ATTR 1 3
This causes all output to be plotted using pen 3, regardless of any pen settings defined in the input file. Line styles and line widths are passed unchanged from the input file to the output file. 'Pens Attr' Mode The option: PEns Attr This passes only the pen numbers from the input file to the output file. All line style and line width settings in the input file are ignored, the settings for these in the output file being determined by the attributes set for the corresponding pen number. To specify the line style and width corresponding to any output pen, and to redirect pens if required, use the option: ATTR integer1 integer2 linestyle linetype width

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How To Use PLOT

This substitutes output pen integer2 for input pen integer1 and sets its line style to linestyle and its line width to linetype with optional width value. Possible settings for linestyle are SOlid, DOt, DAsh, CHain or DChain. The default, if linestyle is omitted, is SOLID. Possible settings for linetype are Normal or Thick. The default, if linetype is omitted, is NORMAL. THICK is optionally followed by the width value, expressed in millimetres. If width is omitted the default line thickness is set by the driver. For example, the options:

PENS ATTR,ATTR 2 1 DOT,ATTR 3 1 CHAIN THICK

This sets input pen 2 to be output as dotted and normal thickness lines and input pen 3 to be output as chained thick lines, both using output pen 1. 'Pens Same' Mode The option: PEns Same The causes all input pen numbers, line styles and line widths to be ignored. All output is output with pen 1 only (unless redirected), and all with the same line style and line width (solid and normal thickness by default). To redirect the output to use a different single pen, and to specify the line style and line width for all output, use the command line option: ATTR 1 integer linestyle linetype width Here, integer specifies the required output pen number and the other arguments set its line style to linestyle and its line width to linetype with optional width value. Possible settings for linestyle are SOlid, DOt, DAsh, CHain or DChain. The default, if linestyle is omitted, is SOLID. Possible settings for linewidth are Normal or Thick. The default, if linetype is omitted, is NORMAL. THICK is optionally followed by the width value, expressed in millimetres. If width is omitted the default line thickness is set by the driver. For example, the options:

PENS SAME,ATTR 1 4 CHAIN THICK 0.7

This causes all output to be output as chained thick lines with a width of 0.7 mm and pen 4. All pen settings, line styles and line widths defined in the input file are ignored.

3.3.6

Dekink Filter
The Dekink filter can streamline your plot files in a number of ways. Plot files that are produced by some programs can contain instances where the same line is drawn over a number of times (for example, where an original wireline 3D model was involved). This extra information can increase the size of the file unnecessarily. The coincidence removal function of the Dekink filter corrects this problem, and so can reduce the size of output files by a considerable amount. The filter can employ either a travel or a connect method to re-order the graphics. The travel method minimises the total pen travel distance, whereas the connect method maximises the connection between vectors.

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The filter travel method reduces the total distance that the pen needs to travel, and the number of times that the pen is raised and lowered. This can speed up the operation of pen plotters. The filter connect method maximises the connection of vectors while retaining all existing connectivity, including directions. Note: For speed of processing, the filter makes most of its changes to the plot file where items concerned are close to each other in the file. Note that it may not remove all coincident lines when they are far apart in the file. The Dekink filter is selected by the option: DEKInk resol coinc travel tabmin tabmax The arguments are as follows and omitted parameters take their default values: resol Resolution value is specified in mm. Used to decide whether lines are coincident or connected to each other. Default: 0.025 coinc This selects whether coincidence removal is active or not. The value is set to Y for yes and N for no. Default: Y travel This selects whether the travel method is active. Otherwise the connect method is used. Y = travel method; N = connect method. Default: Y tabmin This is the minimum size of the working table used by the filter. Must be an even number in the range 10-600. The default value is suitable for most purposes. Default: 50 tabmax This is the maximum size of the working table used by the filter. Must be an even number in the range 10-600. The default value is suitable for most purposes. Default: 200 After the input file has been processed, a report is produced on the effect of the Dekink filter. This gives the change in the total distance that the pen needs to travel, and the change in the number of lines in the output file (both as percentages). For example:

DEKINK reduced pen travel by 68.99% and number of lines by 43.93%

3.3.7

Splitting a Large Plot

The split option is a facility for dividing large plots into sheets. This is particularly useful where an extra large plot needs to be divided into a number of A0 sheets. The option is followed by two values that specify the size of the constituent sheets in millimetres. To split a plot, use the option SPLIt width height

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3.3.8

Adding a Plot Border

Where a plot has no border around its edges, you can add one with the BORDER option. This option has an integer parameter to define the pen number that you want used for the border. Note that this is particularly useful when used with the SPLIT option. To create a border for a plot, use the option BORDer integer

3.3.9

Adding Cutter Control Markers

This feature enables the Dahle 3625 Plot Cutter (or similar) to take roll feed output from a plotter and automatically cut it into individual plots, stacking each plot. The CUTMARK option draws marks at the edge of the paper to control the plot cutter, and repositions the plot away from the edge. This is used with a roll feed plotter and the paper can be fed directly into the cutter (which has sets of knives that operate on both axes). The CUTMARK option can be used with any driver (but is probably only useful with the Calcomp driver). This feature can be used in conjunction with the WINDON option to specify the distance that separates plots along the paper. The CUTMARK option has up to eight parameters: numstart This is the number of marks at the start of the plot. Default: 0 numend pen penwidth offset macross malong msep This is the number of marks at the end of the plot. Default: 0 This is the number of the pen to draw the marks. Default: 1 The pen thickness in millimetres. Default: 0.1mm The distance that the plot is shifted away from the edge of the paper (in millimetres). The mark size across the paper. Default: 5.0mm The mark size along the paper. Default: 2.0mm Separation distance between marks. Default: 5.0mm

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Example

Paper Edge

Drwg No

Paper Edge
Figure 3:1. Cutmarks Example

Figure 3:1.: Cutmarks Example shows six start marks and one end mark. This could be produced by:

CUTMARK 6 1 1 0.1 8.0 5.0 2.0 5.0

3.4
3.4.1

Creating your Own Device Drivers

Soft Drivers
PLOT provides a soft driver facility that lets you define your own named device drivers, each based on a combination of a standard driver and a set of command options appropriate to that standard driver. To define a soft driver, use the following command syntax: soft_driver|standard_driver|option1, option2, ... Here, soft_driver is the name to be allocated to your new driver, standard_driver is one of the driver names listed in Output Formats That PLOT Can Generate and Running PLOT, and option1, option2, etc. are any command line options applicable to standard_driver. The three parts of the command are separated by | (vertical bar) characters. The options (and any associated values) in the third part are separated by commas. If the command line becomes too long, a \ (backslash) character may be used to allow continuation of the command on the next line. Spaces at the start of continuation lines are ignored. The name soft_driver must not be the same as that of any of the standard device drivers. Names are not case sensitive; that is, upper and lower case characters are treated equally. All soft driver definitions are held in the file PLOTDRIVERS. PLOT looks for this file firstly in the directory defined by the CADC_PLOT_DIR environment variable, then in the current directory and finally in the same directory as the Plot Utility Program itself.

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3.4.2

Soft Driver Examples

As an example, the soft driver definition:

PSRGB|POSTSCRIPT|BANNER Y,RGB,\ PTYPE 'statusdict begin 2 setpapertray end'

This defines a soft driver named PSRGB that uses the POSTSCRIPT driver with options to switch on the banner page, select colour output and set page type to select paper tray 2. The PTYPE string used here is a fragment of PostScript that is specific to a particular model of printer. For further details of the POSTSCRIPT driver options see POSTSCRIPT or PS. The following command uses the soft driver definition:

plot psrgb plota22 plota22.out

It has exactly the same effect as the longer version:

plot postscript plota22 plota22.out "BANNER Y,RGB,PTYPE 'statusdict begin 2 setpapertray end'"
As a further example, the following lines illustrate the use of the continuation character (\) to enter a long command that defines all of the former default postscript driver parameters:

PS_OLD|POSTSCRIPT|BA Y,LAY W,MAP 0 0 283.6333 197.2733,\ MONO,IG Y,PT a4,STEPS 300

When a plot driver has an RGB option to set the colour mix of pens, this can be done with a soft driver. For example, the following driver sets the default PDMS colours for the screen: pdmsc|screen|RGB 1 .659 .659 .659,RGB 2 .8 0 0,RGB 3 .93 .604 0,\ RGB 4 .8 .8 0,RGB 5 0 .8 0,RGB 6 0 .93 .93,RGB 7 0 0 .8,\ RGB 9 .647 .165 .165,RGB 10 1 1 1,RGB 11 .803 .569 .62,\ RGB 12 .4 0 .6,RGB 13 0 .75 .8,RGB 14 .2 0 .4,RGB 15 0 0 0 Each line in the PLOTDRIVERS file is the definition of a soft driver or, if it begins with a # character, it is a comment. When a soft driver is used with the command line options, the command line options are placed after those from the soft driver and thus take priority. For example, the command:

plot psrgb plota22 plota22.out "BA N"

This has the same effect as the (similar) command above, except that the banner page is switched off.

3.4.3

Overriding Built-in Driver Defaults

The PLOTDRIVERS file can also provide a method for changing the default options of builtin drivers. This only applies when the driver is used directly. It does not affect its use when used from a soft driver. To change the default options of a built-in driver the usual soft driver definition is used. However, both of the driver names are set to the built-in driver name. For example syntax:

screen|screen|RGB 0 0 0.2 0.2

This definition changes the background colour when the screen driver is used with the plot command. Defaults defined in this way can be modified by command line options.

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The SCREEN and PNG drivers now have PDMS colours set as default using this mechanism and the standard PLOTDRIVERS file. The previous colours can be restored by deleting or commenting-out the screen|screen| and png|png| definitions in that file.

3.5

Messages Output by PLOT

This section summarises the types of message that you may see displayed at your command prompt window while you are using PLOT. The messages are divided into two categories: those that you can expect to see under normal operating conditions and those that you see only under error conditions.

3.5.1

Normal Run-Time Messages

When PLOT begins to interpret a pseudo-code file it displays the message to the command window

----- beginning of plot ----When the file interpretation has finished it displays the message

----- end of plot ----(See Modifying PLOTs Message File for details of how you can change these messages.)

3.5.2

Warnings and Error Messages

Warning messages are displayed for information only. They tell you about any constraints on your use of PLOT or advise you of actions that PLOT has taken automatically. All errors during PLOT's processing operations are fatal. When an error occurs, PLOT displays an appropriate error message on your command prompt window and then terminates its data processing. Typical messages, and suggested responses, are as follows:

Error: Cannot create/open output file

Check that the named output file is valid, is not protected from access, and is not already in use.

Error: Cannot open input file

Check that the file name has been correctly entered, that the file exists, and that you have access rights to read it.

Error: Interpretation or data error

Check that the input file is in one of the acceptable formats: PDMS, HPGL or GPGP. If it is, then the file may have been corrupted.

Error: Plot too large for media

Add the ADJUST option to the PLOT command line (see Scaling the Plot to Fit the Paper). The output plot is too large for the actual paper size (if output is to a plotter or printer) or for the defined paper size (if output is to a file).

Error: Unknown device type

Check that the device driver that you have specified matches one of the standard drivers listed in Output Formats That PLOT Can Generate and Running PLOT, or is a valid soft driver name.

Warning: Plot is adjusted to media size

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This message confirms that the ADJUST option has automatically rescaled the output plot to suit its destination device or file. No action is needed.

3.5.3

Modifying PLOTs Message File

By default, PLOT uses its internally defined messages at relevant stages of its processing operations. If you wish to display different messages, such as messages in a different language, you can copy the standard messages into a file, edit them, and then use this file as the source of future messages. To copy PLOT's default messages into a file, enter the command plot -message This copies the messages into the file PLOT.MF in the current directory. You may then edit this file to change the wording of any of the messages. When PLOT needs to output a message, it looks for the file PLOT.MF, first in the directory defined by the CADC_PLOT_DIR environment variable, then in the current directory. It finds neither file it uses its own default message definitions.

3.6
3.6.1

Getting Help about PLOT

Checking the Command Syntax
To see an on-screen summary of the command syntax, enter the command: plot With no command line arguments this displays the following information:

PLOT Utility usage: plot driver file output [options...] Drivers are: benson calcomp dxf houston hp hpgl hpgl2 interleaf laserjet list pdms penman png postscript ps screen xdump File is a PDMS, DXF, HPGL or other pseudo-code plot file. Output is a file name or the command window. e.g. plot postscript drwg3.plt plotout.ps plot screen drwg3.plt -0 The SCALE=value option provides general plot scaling. An options string is available for most drivers. e.g. plot hpgl2 drwg3.plt drwg3.h2 scale=0.5

3.6.2

Checking the Program Version

To check which version number of the PLOT program you are using, enter the command: plot -version

3.6.3

Checking Driver Options

To check the driver options enter the command:

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plot -drivers This displays the driver quick reference information for PLOT that can also found in Driver Quick Reference of this manual.

3.7

Summarising the Contents of Plot Files

The LIST driver is used to provide a textual summary of contents of the plot file. The information includes: The pseudo-code file format. The file header block, if present. Details of the drawing number, if available.

The dimensions of the drawing. A list of the pens used to plot the drawing. The total numbers of graphical primitives in the file: vectors, arcs, circles, text strings and text characters. For structured files there are the total numbers of definitions and references, the maximum depth of reference nesting and the full list of symbol names and reference counts. For full details see the LIST driver section.

3.8

Running on Windows
PLOT has functionality to use standard Windows facilities and services. The SCREEN driver has the facility to use the Windows printing service, including network printing. PLOT can be launched directly from a shortcut on the desktop so that it can be used independently of other products.

3.8.1

Screen Driver Printing

Start by displaying a view of a plot file by running PLOT with the SCREEN driver. The view window can be selected with the normal pan and zoom controls before a printing. A print is initiated with the keyboard accelerator Control-P, the standard keyboard accelerator used by Windows programs for PRINT. The SCREEN driver displays a Windows print dialog to select the printer and set printing options. The print dialog has a Print range group with the choices All and Selection. Select All to print the whole drawing and Selection to print the current view.

3.8.2

Screen Driver and Enhanced Metafile Output

The screen driver can produce Windows EMF (Enhanced Metafile) output from the current plot file. EMF contains scalable graphics and is a later version of the popular WMF (Windows Metafile) format. EMF output is initiated with the keyboard accelerator Control-S, the standard keyboard accelerator used by Windows programs for SAVE. The SCREEN driver displays a Windows Save As dialog to select the EMF output file name and directory. A copy of the output file is automatically copied to the clipboard.

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EMF output provides a method of inserting or pasting graphics into a variety of document types.

3.8.3

Shortcuts and Browsing

Plot can be run directly from a shortcut from the desktop or menus. Here is an example of a shortcut created on the desktop. Target: Start in: Name: Target C:\AVEVA\pdms\plot\plot.exe screen "*" -0 "AUTOSIZE" C:\temp Plot defines the command line to run Plot with the screen driver. Note that the full pathname of the plot program is used and that the input file is replaced by "*". is set as the directory that is most used for plot files. labels the shortcut.

Start in Name

When this command is run from the shortcut a Multiple-File Open dialog and a Console window are created. Select one or more plot files and plot will view them all in the order specified. At each stage the file can be viewed and printed. Close the graphics window or press Q to move on to the next file. After all files have been viewed Plot returns to the multiple-file open dialog. Click Cancel to finish. Other drivers can be used with the input file set to "*". For example the list driver can be used to display summary information about the graphical contents of the files. Alternatively, the shortcut on the desktop can be used to drag and drop plot files as well as browsing for them if the shortcut target is a small batch file DragDropPlot.bat, containing lines such as the following: set file=%1 if "%file%" == "" set file="*" start /b C:\AVEVA\pdms\plot\plot.exe plot screen %file% -0 "AUTO"

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Device Drivers
This is a reference chapter that describes each of the available PLOT device drivers. The information in each section is organised under the following headings: Models This lists the supported plotters or defines the translation done by PLOT. For plotters, the list gives the definitive models for which the driver was originally written, and any other plotters on which the driver has been tested. The list also gives other models, from the same or another manufacturer, if they are known to be fully compatible with the driver. Description This describes, in broad terms, the plotter device code or the translation. Output This describes the file format output by the driver. Options This describes any additional options or controls for the driver, for example scaling or paper layout. Note that such options must be enclosed between quotation marks in the command line and if more than one option is used they must be separated by commas. Example This shows the minimum command syntax applicable to the driver, using the default settings for all user-configurable options. If applicable, a further example shows the use of some of the more commonly used options. Note: The LIST driver differs in principle from the drivers described in this chapter in that it does not translate input plot file data into a different format, but instead provides summarised information about the overall content of the file. The functions of the LIST driver are explained in LIST.

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4.1

BENSON
Models This driver supports the Benson 1302 Plotter with intelligence level I0. This is a drum plotter with a roll paper feed mechanism. The code-compatible Benson 1322 plotter is also supported. Description The device code for these plotters is based on the relative positioning and drawing commands of the symbolic Benson format. Output The output from this driver is device code that is sent directly to the Benson plotter. This code is easy to read and the vectors are expressed entirely as relative movements.

Files output by this driver are sequential and contain symbolic codes. They are used only for maintenance purposes.
Options None. Example:

plot benson view.pl -1

4.2

CALCOMP
Models This driver produces code for the Calcomp 1040 series plotters using 906/907 plotter code. This data format is acceptable to most Calcomp plotters. The Calcomp 1040 series plotters are drum plotters with either cut sheet or roll feed options, which can take media up to A0 size. Description The Calcomp device code produced by the driver is based on the use of simple positioning, drawing, and pen selection commands. It can select from up to eight pens. Output The output from this driver is device code that is sent directly to the Calcomp plotter. The data is encoded and is unintelligible. The device protocol means that the code is organised to include synchronising sequences and checksums. Transmission is synchronised by waiting for a plotter response after each message. The coded format for each data record is as follows:

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( Preamble) Sync Bia s Data (Checksum) End-of-message (Postamble) Newline (Response Request)

0-10 null padding characters One or two specified synchronisation characters Bias character; always a Space Value of number-encoding radix (64 or 95) Checksum character End-of-message (EOM) marker 1-10 null padding characters

The message $? is output to request a good, 0<cr>, or 1<cr>, response. bad, A ba d response ca uses the da ta to be tra nsmitted a ga in.

Files output by this driver are ASCII coded and record structured. Their content comprises all the data shown above, except for the request for plotter response and its reply. Options The CALCOMP driver allows you to use options to control all low-level detail of the plotter code format (as shown in the preceding table). You can specify these options either directly, as PLOT command line arguments (see Running PLOT), or indirectly, as parameters in a soft driver definition. The syntax for using each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas): [Key: BUffer int CHecksum Y/N int = an integer; val = a real number; Y/N = Yes or No] Sets device to use int data buffers (int must be 2 or 16). Default: BU 16 Specifies whether or not checksum is enabled. Default: CH YEOm intSets the end-of-message character to int (int must be in the range 0-127). Default: EO 3 Specifies whether or not a search address is to be included in the output header. Default: HE Y Sets the line length of the output data field to int characters (int must be in the range 80-125). Default: LI 119 Specifies that a newline code is to be output between lines. Default: NL Y Sets the number of padding characters to be used before SYNC and after EOM to int characters (int must be in the range 0-10). Default: PA 10 Sets the number conversion radix to int (int must be 64 or 95). Default: RA 95

HEader Y/N LIne int NL Y/N PAd int

RAdix int

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[Key: RESponse Y/N SCale int

int = an integer; val = a real number; Y/N = Yes or No] Specifies whether or not a plotter response is expected by the driver for output flow control. Default: RES Y Sets the plotter scaling factor to int. You can use this option with STEPS to compress and expand the data to reduce the size (and accuracy) of the device code. Default: SC 1 Sets the number of plotter steps per mm (i.e. the plotter resolution) to val. Default: ST 80.0 Sets the number of Synch characters to int1 and the Sync character itself to the control character represented by int2 (int1 must be 1 or 2; int2 must be in the range 0-31) Default: SY 1 2 Specifies whether or not the plotter is switched off-line between plots. Default: WA Y Sets the distance to be left blank between adjacent plots to val mm. Default: WI 20.0

STeps val SYnc int1 int2

WAit Y/N WIndon val

The defaults specified in the standard CALCOMP driver are equivalent to the following options string:

"BU 16,CH Y,EO 3,HE Y,LI 119,NL Y,PA 10,PE Y,\ RA 95,RES Y,SC 1,ST 80,SY 1 2,WA Y,WI 20"
As an example, to remove the preamble and postamble padding characters, and to select no response control of the output flow, you would either enter a command line such as:

plot calcomp pdms.plot pdms.code "PA 0,RE N"

Alternatively, you could create the equivalent soft driver to do this. For example:

calcompx|calcomp|PA 0,RE N
The new soft driver can then be used with the command:

plot calcompx pdms.plot pdms.code

Note: PLOT includes an alternative version of the CALCOMP driver known as the CALCOMP64 driver. The latter version has the following option defaults, almost all of which differ from those of the standard CALCOMP driver:

"BU 2,CH Y,EO 13,HE N,LI 125,NL Y,PA 0,PE N,RA 64,RES N,\SC 0,ST 40,SY 2 22,WA N,WI 20"
You may use the CALCOMP64 driver as the basis for your option settings if it is closer to your desired final specification. Example:

plot calcomp view.pl -1 plot calcomp64 view.pl -1 plot calcomp view.pl -1 "HE N,LI 110,PE N,WI 25"

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4.3
4.3.1

DXF
This driver outputs a plot as an AutoCAD drawing in DXF (drawing interchange) file format.

Output File Contents

This is an ASCII file, and is record structured. The records are organised in pairs and these are called groups. Each group contains a group code (an integer), and a group value that is in a format that depends on the group code. A DXF file is made up of four sections: Header. This is preceded by a number of comment lines (as suggested in the NEDC recommendations). This includes the units employed in the drawing, and the date the file was formed. The Header section itself includes the $LIMMIN, $LIMMAX, $EXTMIN and $EXTMAX variables to specify the limits of the drawing and its extents. Tables. This section contains an LTYPE line types table defining the definition of the line patterns available to the Entities section. It also contains a LAYER and a style table. Blocks. This is empty. Entities. This contains all of the graphical elements of the drawing and their attributes. The entity types are LINE, CIRCLE, ARC, TEXT, POLYLINE and VERTEX.

Note: Sometimes the first three sections are omitted, depending on the type of data and the purpose for which it is to be used.

4.3.2

DXF Options
Several options are available that allow you to control the output from this driver. These can be specified as command line arguments, or as parameters in a soft driver definition. The syntax of each option is as follows (NOTE: individual options are separated by commas): HEader filename The contents of the supplied filename are copied into the DXF output file in place of the Header, Tables and Blocks sections that would normally be generated by the driver. If the filename is omitted, or the file cannot be read, the driver will suppress the production of these sections. The file can be a complete DXF file. The copy is stopped before the "0" "SECTION" "2" "ENTITIES" sequence that starts the Entities section. Specifies whether the driver outputs lines and arcs as LINE and ARC entities, or as POLYLINE entities. Default: POLYLINES Y UNits value ZAxis value Sets the type of coordinates in the DXF output file as INCHES or MM. Default: UNITS MM Selects the output of a Z value with all XY coordinates. The value parameter defines the constant Z coordinate value. Default: No Z coordinate.

POlylines Y/N

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Example:

plot dxf view1.pl view1.dxf "UNITS INCHES"

4.4

Hewlett-Packard (HP or HPGL)

Models PLOT incorporates two Hewlett-Packard drivers, HP and HPGL, both of which support all Hewlett-Packard pen plotters and the standard HP-GL file format. The reference device supported by these drivers is the HP7580B plotter, but they also support the HP7586 plotter, with or without a roll feed option, the HP7550 plotter, which has an automatic sheet feed, the IBM 6184 and 6186 plotters, and many other plotters which use HP-GL code. The drivers also support the HP7475 plotter, which has more restricted line style capabilities than the HP7580. Description The difference between the two drivers lies in the type of HP-GL code which each uses: The HP driver uses only vectors and absolute positioning, and uses straight-line chords to simulate arcs and circles. Each draw and move operation is output on a separate line of the file. This makes this form of the code easier to interpret. The HPGL driver uses vectors and relative positioning, and uses true arcs and circles. Draw and move commands are merged together, and as many commands as possible are put into each line of the file. These features make this the more compact code of the two

The drivers derive the plotter model number by interrogating the device, so that they allow for use with the HP7475 with its limited functionality. They similarly determine the paper handling capabilities if used with an HP7586 plotter, to allow it to be used with cut-sheet as well as roll-fed paper. They make special provision for producing long plots on roll feed versions of the latter plotter. Output The output from this driver is device code which is sent directly to the HP plotter. These drivers do not mix the two types of HP-GL command, namely graphical commands and communication commands, within a line of output. Files output by this driver are ASCII coded and record structured. They can be used as input to other conversion programs to produce device code for otherwise unsupported devices. Options Several options are available which allow you to control the output from these drivers. You can specify these options either directly, as PLOT command line arguments (see Running PLOT), or indirectly, as parameters in a soft driver definition (see Creating your Own Device Drivers).

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The syntax for using each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas): [Key: CEntre Y/N val = a real number; Y/N = Yes or No; x y = x,y coordinates in mm] Specifies if the physical coordinate origin for the plotter is at the centre (Yes) or corner (No) of the paper after the default positions of the scaling points P1 and P2 have been established. Plotters that use HPGL can be of either of these types. The driver itself corrects for the type in the output file, by use of the HPGL IP (Set P1 and P2) and SC (Scale) instructions. Default: CE N for both HP and HPGL If selected, this allows the use of high-level commands and compacted output code. If not selected, only low-level commands and one command per line formatting are used. Default:HI not selected for the HP driver HI selected for the HPGL driver Derives the size of the plot from the plot file. Defines the position of the plot on the paper (x and y coordinates of its origin expressed in mm). It derives the size of the plot from the plot file. Defines the position of the plot on the paper (x and y coordinates of its origin expressed in mm). It defines the plot dimensions as val1 wide by val2 high. Default: MA for both the HP and HPGL drivers Sets the number of plotter steps per mm (i.e. the plotter resolution) to val. Default: ST 40.0 WAit Y/N/P Specifies actions to take place between plots. Y selects that the plotter is switched off-line and waits for the operator. P selects that the plotter completes the present plot and then advances to start the next. N selects no special action. Default: WA Y The defaults specified in the standard HP driver are equivalent to the following options string:

High

MAp MAp x y

MAp x y val1 val2

STeps val

"CE N,MA 0 0 1109.5 787.0,ST 40,WA Y"

The defaults specified in the standard HPGL driver are equivalent to the following options string:

"CE N,HI,MA,ST 40,WA Y"

Note: All of the options are applicable when the plot output is sent to a file, but only the HIGH and WAIT options apply when the plot is sent directly to a plotter.

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Example

plot hp view.pl plot1.plt

(output to a file)

plot hp view.pl -1
(output direct to plotter)

plot hpgl view.pl plot1.plt

(output to a file)

plot hpgl view.pl -1

(output direct to plotter)

plot hp view.pl plot1.plt "CE Y,MA"

4.5

HPGL2
This driver supports HP-GL/2, which is the standardised version of the Hewlett-Packard Graphical language. This attempts to provide a consistent functionality between plotters and caters for pen, monochrome and colour electrostatic and other devices. The code is compact, especially for vectors that have a special encoding scheme. HP-GL/2 is a binary format. Although HPGL and HP-GL/2 are related, HP-GL/2 is not a strict superset of HPGL. It is best for most purposes to regard them as being entirely different. HP-GL/2 is often available in Dual-Context plotters that also have Hewlett-Packard's PCL. The HP-GL/2 behaves differently under these conditions and a driver option for PCL is necessary to ensure correct behaviour. Options These options enable you to control the output of this driver. You can specify these options either directly, as PLOT command line arguments (see Running PLOT), or indirectly, as parameters in soft driver definition (see Creating your Own Device Drivers). The syntax for using each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas):

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[Key: Y/N = Yes or No; x y etc. coordinates in mm and other values; n and pen are integers.] COpies n FF Y/N Print n copies of each drawing in the plot file. Default: COPIES 1 Specifies whether the formfeed character is output at the end of the HP-GL/2 file. This is a communication character was required previously for direct operation of the plotter but may need to be omitted when a print spooler is being used. Default: FF Y Enables the automatic cutter that operates after each plot is completed. Default: ECUTTER N If selected the driver outputs higher level graphical primitives such as arcs, circles, and line styles. Default: HIGH is not selected. Derives the size of the plot from the plot file. Defines the position and size of the plot on the paper. The default is to use the plot given in the plot file. Default: MAP Specifies that the plotter is operating HP-GL/2 with PCL in a dual context. Default: PCL Y Specifies the widths of the thin and thick lines in mm. The thinnest line width possible is selected by specifying it as zero. Default: PWIDTH 0.0 0.35 Sets the percentage quality level required from the plotter. Where this is available the plotter will trade quality for speed or reduced toner usage. Default: QUALITY 100 Selects colour mode and defines the red/green/blue colour mix for the specified logical pen number (pen must be in the range 0-256). The colour values are in the range 0 to 1. Default: Monochrome Rotate the plot by 0, 90, 180, 270 degrees counterclockwise about the plotter coordinate system origin. Default: ROTATE 0

ECutter Y/N HIgh

MAp MAp x y w h PCL Y/N PWidth w1 [w2]

QUality n

RGb pen r g b

ROtate n

The defaults specified in the standard HP-GL/2 driver are equivalent to the following options string:

"CO 1,EC N,MAP,PCL Y,PW 0.0 0.35,QU 100,RO 0"

Example:

plot hpgl2 view.pl plot1.plt plot hpgl2 view.pl plot1.plt "COPIES 3,ROTATE 90"

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4.6

HOUSTON
Models This driver supports the Houston Hiplot DMP-40 and DMP-42 pen plotters. These are drum plotters with media movement and registration controlled by knurled gripping areas of the drum; they take A3 and A1 media sizes, respectively. These plotters use Houston DM/PL III firmware, which is upwardly compatible with DM/PL and DM/PL+. Description The DM/PL device code produced by the driver for these plotters is based on simple absolute positioning and drawing commands and assumes that there is a single pen. Output Files output by this driver are not record structured, but contain ASCII codes. They are used only for maintenance purposes. Options None. Example:

plot houston view.pl view.out

4.7

LASERJET
Models This driver produces output suitable for any printer that can interpret Hewlett-Packards PCL page description language, such as the Laserjet Series II devices. Laserjet printers have a maximum resolution of 300 dots per inch (dpi), but can also work at 150, 100 or 75 dpi Description Laserjet and compatible printers may be used to produce black and white hard copy from graphical plot files. The PCL language has no facilities for expressing graphical elements such as vectors; it provides instead a group of raster graphics commands. Output The output from this driver is in device code that may be sent directly to any PCL-compatible laser printer. Where the output is to a file, it contains the complete PCL code needed to reproduce the printable document defined by the pseudo-code plot file. This comprises a mixture of PCL command escape sequences and 8-bit data that is not formatted and not easy to inspect.

The Laserjet driver uses compression techniques to reduce the size of its output files and, hence, the time needed to send them to the printer. Further reductions in file size and dat a transfer time may be achieved by specifying a lower raster

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graphics resolution (i.e. a lower dpi setting).

When multiple copies of a drawing are required, use of the COPIES option gives increased speed by using the inbuilt printer facilities rather than by repeated data transmission. The drawing is scaled to a size that fills the printable area of an A4 sheet. It is drawn automatically in portrait or landscape orientation to make the best use of the available area. Options You can specify the LASERJET driver options either directly, as PLOT command line arguments (see Running PLOT), or indirectly, as parameters in a soft driver definition (see Creating your Own Device Drivers). The syntax for using each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas): COpies integer DPi integer This prints integer copies of each drawing in the plot file. The default is 1 copy. Sets the printer resolution to integer dots per inch, where integer may be 300, 150, 100 or 75. The default is 150 dpi, which usually gives a suitable compromise between image quality, file size and data transmission speed.

Example:

plot laserjet view.pl plot1.plt

(output to a file)

plot laserjet view.pl -1

(output direct to printer)

plot laserjet view.pl -1 "CO 3,DPI 300"

(print 3 copies of each drawing at 300 dpi resolution)

4.8

LIST
The LIST driver differs from the others in that it does not translate input plot file data into a different format, but instead provides summarised information about the overall content of the file. The information derived from the file includes: The pseudo-code format in which the file is written (PDMS, HPGL, HP-GL/2, DXF or GPGP) The file header block Details of the drawing in the file, namely: The drawing number, with its identifying number in brackets if it is a GPGP file The dimensions of the drawing, in mm

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The total number of vectors that make up the drawing The number of arcs and circles The numbers of text strings and text characters The numbers of block definitions, block references (or inserts), and the maximum depth of block reference nesting. The DXF input file format can contain blocks. A list of the pens needed to plot the drawing The full list of symbol names. Symbols are shown with a prefix character to indicate how often they are referenced: References unreferenced once one or more times

Prefix none + *

The information may be sent to an ASCII file, or it may be listed at your command prompt window (by specifying output to line 0). For example, the command:

plot list pdmsplot.pl -0

This would list the content of the pseudo-code plot file avevaplot.pl, containing an A1 drawing, thus:

Interpreter: PDMS File Header: piper 18/07/04 12.25 Drawing: 1 Size 841 by 594 MM Vectors 3403 Pens 1 2
The list driver does not use any options but will display any that are specified on the command line or from a soft driver as a combined options string.

4.9

PDMS
Models This driver generates output in PDMS plot file format. Description This file format (which is also one of PLOTs valid input formats) is intended primarily for transferring graphical data between the modules of PDMS. PLOTs output driver also allows you to transfer data to PDMS from other sources that generate HPGL or GPGP formatted graphics. Output Files output by the plotting driver are in binary format and comprise a textual header block followed by the graphical data. The header block contains:

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A user identifier - up to 6 characters - derived from the login user name (truncated if longer than 6 characters). The current date - in the format DDMMYY. The current time - in the format HHMM.

The graphical data is a sequence of coded items, including pen moving and drawing commands, pen changes, and paper size definitions. The code is made more efficient by the provision of special codes for short line drawing and moving operations, and for drawing horizontal or vertical lines. Options None. Example:

plot pdms view.pl ulay2.pdms

(output must be to a file)

4.10

PENMAN
Models This driver outputs directly to the Penman Turtle Plotter. Description The Turtle plotter has a pen with an up/down mechanism mounted on a wheeled carriage that is connected for power and control via a flying cable. It uses a home marker that it can detect optically to register its origin. Output The output from this driver is device code that is sent directly to the Turtle plotter. The device code uses simple absolute positioning and drawing commands. Periodic returns to the origin, to re-establish a datum point, limit the build up of positional errors during plotting. Files output by this driver are ASCII coded and record structured. They are used only for maintenance purposes. Options None. Example:

plot penman view.pl -1

4.11

PNG
Models This driver generates output in PNG file format.

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Description The PNG (Portable Network Graphics) format is a patent-free replacement for GIF and can also replace many common uses of TIFF. It provides a means for the lossless, portable storage of well-compressed raster images. PNG is designed to work well in online viewing applications, such as the World Wide Web, and for user interface and general usage. Note that the standard PLOTDRIVERS file changes the default for this driver to use PDMS colours. To find out how to restore the colours to their previous state and other details about modifying the default options of the built-in drivers see the section on creating your own device drivers. Output Files output by the PNG driver are in binary format. Options The syntax for each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas): BItmap width height Defines the size of the bitmap image in pixels. Sizes should be greater than 16 x 16 and the upper size limit is 8000 x 8000. The default size is 600 x 400. Defines how the image is placed in the bitmap, where type is one of the following: FIT reduces the width or height of the bitmap so that it fits the image exactly. This is the default. CENtre places the image in the centre of the bitmap. CORner places the image at the top left corner of the bitmap. RGb pen r g b Selects colour mode and defines the red/green/blue colour mix for the specified logical pen number (pen must be in the range 0-15). The colour values are in the range 0 to 1. The background colour of the image is black by default but this can be changed by defining pen 0, e.g. RGB 0 1 1 1 sets it to white. Defines the minimum plot size in millimetres that is scaled to fill the bitmap image. Increasing the size of a number of plots to a common value means that their pixel scaling is also the same. This is important if the bitmap files are to be manipulated by other programs. Sets the image background to be transparent.

LAyout type

SIze width height

TRan

Example:

plot png in.dxf out.png

"BITMAP 32 32"

4.12

POSTSCRIPT or PS
(The POSTSCRIPT and PS drivers are identical.)

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Models These drivers produce output suitable for any printer that can interpret the Postscript page description language. The driver default options give output suitable for immediate use with the commonest laser printers, which take A4 paper and which produce monochrome and grey-scale output at a resolution of 300 dots per inch (for example, the QMS-810 printer). The drivers provide a very wide range of options that may be used with PLOTs soft driver facility to create drivers for other forms of Postscript output (see Creating your Own Device Drivers). For example, printers with different paper sizes or with paper tray selection. Description Postscript is a widely used page description language that efficiently describes the appearance of text, images and drawings on the printed page. Output The output from these drivers is an ASCII record structured file that conforms to the standard structuring conventions for Postscript multiple page documents. It contains the complete Postscript program needed to print the document defined by the input pseudo code file. The output is in device code that may be sent directly to the laser printer or may be included in another document as an illustration. The laser printer is treated as a plotter with a single pen, grey-scale pens or colour pens, which can draw vectors in all line styles for both normal and thick lines. The drawing is scaled to form an image that fills the specified paper size, with options to set margin widths, page orientation, and so on. Other options allow you to control features such as a summarising banner page, page headers and footers, and page layout. It may be useful to override the parameters of this driver in the PLOTDRIVERS file, for example to use PDMS colours by default. See the description of this file for further details. Options The POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers provide many options. You can specify these either directly, as PLOT command line arguments (see Running PLOT), or indirectly, as parameters in a soft driver definition (see Creating your Own Device Drivers). For convenience, the descriptions of the driver options are split into two functional groups: Layout options, which control the overall page presentation. General options, which control the banner page and the detailed graphics plotting (including monochrome/grey-scale/colour, scaling, resolution, etc.).

The syntax for using each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas): [Key: int = an integer; string = a text string]

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Layout Options LAyout type Drawing Defines the output page layout as type, where type is one of the following: this produces a PostScript file that takes dimensions from the input plot file and the output is matched to the input. It is unscaled and is not rotated. This layout is suitable for use when a PostScript file is to be used later to produce a pdf file. uses the whole page for graphics. The drawing is rotated by 90 degrees and is positioned into the bottom right-hand corner of the image area of the page. If the width and height allow it the drawing will be output unscaled and the message '1:1 SCALE' is displayed and is repeated in the annotation of the output file. If the drawing is oversize it will be rescaled to fill the page (retaining the original width/height ratio). The output file is a complete PostScript document that may contain many pages and may start with a banner page. The values from the MAP option are used directly with this option. There are no margin or other adjustment factors. The positioning is applied before the rotation, its x values increase to the right, and y values increase upwards. Portrait this is identical to the Landscape layout except that it is positioned into the bottom left-hand corner of the image area of the page and there is no rotation of the drawing. uses the whole page for graphics, except for a 7 mm margin on all four sides. The drawing is rescaled (retaining the original width/height ratio) and rotated to fill the page as efficiently as possible. The output file is a complete PostScript document that may contain many pages and may start with a banner page. uses the whole page for graphics, except for a 26 mm margin on all four sides (to allow for punch holes and header/footer texts, etc.). The drawing is rescaled (retaining the original width/height ratio) and rotated to fill the page as efficiently as possible. The output file is a complete Postscript document that may contain many pages and may start with a banner page. this layout is identical to MARGIN, except that the drawing is not rotated. produces a file suitable for inclusion in another PostScript document. The layout is identical to FIGURE, but the file contains none of the general Postscript commands to print pages etc. (since these will be provided by the document in which the file is included).

Landscape -

Whole -

Margin -

Figure Include -

The LAYOUT MARGIN and LAYOUT FIGURE settings provide locations for three header texts and three footer texts at the left, centre and right of the page, in the top and bottom

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margins, respectively. These are set as follows: TL string Sets the left-hand header text (TL=Top Left) to string. Default: empty string. TC string Sets the central header text (TC=Top Centre) to string. Default: empty string. TR string Sets the right-hand header text (TR=Top Right) to string. Default: empty string. BL string Sets the left-hand footer text (BL=Bottom Left) to string. Default: empty string. BC string Sets the central footer text (BC=Bottom Centre) to string. Default: empty string. BR string Sets the right-hand footer text (BR=Bottom Right) to string. Default: empty string. Note: If a header or footer text is to include spaces, string must be enclosed between single quotes. You may include the following special characters within header and footer texts:

# %

is replaced in the printed output by the current page number (with pages being numbered automatically, starting from a number which you may define). is replaced in the current date (in the format day, month, year).

PAge int

Defines an initial page number for the translation of the # character when using automatic page numbering. The default is PAGE 1.

As an example of the page layout options as part of a command:

plot ps drg.pl drg.out "LA M, TL 'Page #', TR Figure, BC %"

This sets the page layout as follows: Layout is of the type 'Margin' (i.e. 26 mm margins all round). Left-head header reads 'Page 1', 'Page 2', etc. Right-hand header text reads 'Figure'. Centred footer shows the current date.

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General Options

BAnner Y/N EOt Y/N

Specifies whether or not a banner page is output at the head of the document. Default: BA Y Specifies whether the EOT character is output at the end of the PostScript file. This is a communication character required previously for direct operation of a printer but may need to be omitted when a print spooler is being used. Default: EOT Y Allows the use of the initgraphics command. (You should not normally need to change this setting.) Default: IG N Sets page type to string. Where string is a sequence of printer specific PostScript commands to be inserted into the output file at the point where paper size and tray selection might take place. This option does not affect anything else (e.g. scaling). For example, below is an example of the PostScript command to set up a printer to select a particular paper try, perhaps one containing A3 sized paper. The PostScript string used with PTYPE is not standard and needs to be obtained for each model of printer. Below are two examples showing how the printer specific commands might look like to select a particular tray and to select manual feed. PTYPE 'statusdict begin 2 setpapertray end' PTYPE 'statusdict begin /manualfeed true def end' Default: PT

IGraphics Y/N PType string

MAp x y val1 val2

Defines the position of the plot on the paper (x and y coordinates of its origin expressed in mm). It defines the plot dimensions as val1 wide by val2 high. Default: MA 0 0 283.6 197.3 Sets the printer steps per inch (i.e. the printer resolution) to val. Default: ST 300 Selects grey-scale output to represent colours. MOno Selects monochrome output. RGb Selects RGB colour output (using default colour definitions

STeps val GRay

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BAnner Y/N

Specifies whether or not a banner page is output at the head of the document. Default: BA Y Default colour representation: MONO

RGb pen r g b

Selects RGB colour mode and defines the red/green/blue colour mix for the specified logical pen number (pen must be in the range 0-15). Default: The colours of the graphics screen device (see following table).

Number 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Colour White Black Orange Green Red Blue Magenta Yellow Sand Yellow Cyan Indig Violet Light Grey Mid Grey Dark Grey

Red 1 0 1 0 1 0 0.78 1 1 1 0 0 0.5 0.75 0.5 0.25

Green 1 0 0.5 1 0 0.78 0 1 0.78 1 1 0 0 0.75 0.5 0.25

Blue 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0.5 0.75 0.5 0.25

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FOntname string

This specifies the font name to be used for text. It is present in the plot file (not as vectors) if the HIGH option is selected. This font is also used for the user name on the banner page. Default: FONT Courier Changes the format of the output file so that a new line is used for each graphical primitive instead of packing each output line. The resulting output file is slightly larger as a result. Default: Not selected. Specifies that higher-level primitives may be used for text and other output. Default: Not selected.

FLush

HIgh

As an example a command with the general Postscript control options:

plot ps drg.pl drg.out "BA Y,MA 5 5 250 175,ST 400, RGB 9 0 1 0.5"
This has the following effects on the printed output: The banner page is printed. The graphical plots have their origins moved 5 mm in each direction from the page origin and the plot sizes are reduced to 250 mm wide by 175 mm high (landscape format). The printer resolution is set to 400 dots per inch. The colour for logical pen number 9 is redefined as the colour mix (0 red)/(1 green)/(0.5 blue).

The overall default settings for all POSTSCRIPT/PS driver options (both layout and general options) are equivalent to:

"BA N,LA L,MA 0 0 283.6 197.3,MO,IG N,PT,ST 300"

Example:

plot ps view.pl fig1.ps

(Output to file, e.g. for inclusion in another file)

plot postscript view.pl fig1.ps

(Output to file, e.g. for inclusion in another file)

plot postscript view.pl -2

(output direct to printer)

plot ps view.pl -2 "LA M,BR 'Page #',MA 10 40 100 70"

(Note nested quotation marks. These are needed as 'Page #' is all one string)

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4.13

SCREEN
Models The SCREEN driver displays plot files on a workstation graphics screen. Description This driver provides a convenient plot file viewing facility, allowing you to preview your plot files before plotting or printing hard copies. Output This driver always creates a new graphics window to view the input plot file. There is no output file and -0 takes its place on the command line. If the output drawing comprises more than one page, the display pauses at each page until you press a key or button. User Interaction The SCREEN driver is an interactive plot viewer with zoom and pan actions under mouse control with appropriate cursors and 'rubber-banding'. To use the viewer: To pan the view by a specified distance, press and hold down the left mouse button while you move the mouse. Release the button to pan the view by a specified distance. A cursor 'rubber-band' shows you the move while you are holding the button. As an alternative to scroll bars press and release the left mouse button without moving the mouse to 'snap' the current point under the cursor to the centre of the screen. To select a new view, press and hold down the middle button of your mouse while you move it between the opposite corners of its boundary. To snap the current point to the centre of the screen and then zoom in by a fixed amount, press and then release the middle mouse button (without moving the mouse). Snap the current point to the centre of the screen and then zoom out by a fixed amount, press and release the right mouse button without moving the mouse.

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Command Summary Key/button Description View all of the drawing Refresh the window Pan down/left/right/up by 10% of window Pan down/left/right/up by 2% of window Pan down/left/right/up by 50% of window Display help text Toggle cursor style, small cross and crosshair Toggle cursor style, ISO and crosshair Next drawing from plot file Quit viewer Set cursor colour (1=white) Press/Move/Release pans around drawing. Press/release (no move) centres this position in the window. Press/Move/Release zooms in on the box cursor. Press/ release (no move) centres this position in the window and zooms in by 20%. Press/Move/Release zooms in on the box cursor. Press/ release (no move) centres this position in the window and zooms out by 20%.

Home Shift-Home Arrow keys Control-Arrow Shift-Arrow H or ? X / N or Space Q or Return 0 to 9 Mouse 1 Mouse 2

Mouse 3

Note: For a 2-button mouse the effect of the middle button can be achieved by pressing both buttons together. Options Note that the standard PLOTDRIVERS file changes the default for this driver to use PDMS colours. To find out how to restore the colours to their previous state and other details about modifying the default options of built-in drivers see the section on creating your own device drivers.

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The syntax for using each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas): MAp x y val1 val2 Defines the position of the plot on the screen (x and y coordinates of its origin expressed in pixels). It defines the graphics window dimensions as val1 pixels wide by val2 pixels high. Default: To match the graphics screen device. Sets the long cursor pen number and must be in the range 1-15. The default value is 4. Defines the red/green/blue colour mix for the specified logical pen number (pen must be in the range 0-15). Default: The colours of the graphics screen device (see following table).

CUrsor n RGb pen r g b

Number 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

Colour Black White Orange Green Red Blue Magenta Yellow Sand Yellow Cyan Indigo Violet Light Grey Mid Grey Dark Grey

Red 0 1 1 0 1 0 0.78 1 1 1 0 0 0.5 0.75 0.5 0.25

Green 0 1 0.5 1 0 0.78 0 1 0.78 1 1 0 0 0.75 0.5 0.25

Blue 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0.5 0.75 0.5 0.25

Example:

plot screen logo.plt -0 "CUR 10,MA 20 40 250 150"

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4.14

XDUMP
This driver outputs the plot to a specially formatted bitmap image file, such as that produced by the X-Windows utility, xwd and displayed by xwud. Description This driver produces a bitmap image file. This is always a single plane image that represents the plot in monochrome, with the graphics from all pens drawn in the foreground colour. This form of output file can be used to compare whether two plots look the same, regardless of overdrawing and the order in which the graphical elements are drawn. Output Files output by this driver are in binary format and consist of a header and data sections. See the X-Windows and xwd utility for references to its format definition. The drawing is scaled to a size that fills the bitmap. It is automatically rotated by 90 degrees if this makes better use of the available area. Options The syntax for each option is as follows (individual options must be separated by commas): BItmap width height Defines the size of the bitmap image in pixels. Sizes should be greater than 100 x 100. The default size is 1000 x 800, and the upper size limit is 9600 x 5000. Defines the minimum plot size in millimetres that is scaled to fill the bitmap image. Increasing the size of a number of plots to a common value means that their pixel scaling is also the same. This is important if the bitmap files are to be manipulated by other programs.

Size width height

Example:

plot xdump view.pl view.px "BITMAP 200 200"

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Driver Quick Reference

PLOT DRIVERS AND PARAMETERS
The following options apply to drivers generally. Options can be abbreviated to a minimum of 4 characters, except where specified otherwise. This summary is also displayed if plot -drivers is entered on the command line. option ADJUST ARCSIZE n ATTR n s [s] [s] [v] BORDER [n] CUTMARK ... DEKINK ... PENS [s] SPLIT w h description Scale the plot to fit the paper Set the circle and arc approximation Set pen attributes Draw the plot border using the pen number Draw marks for automatic cutters Select the dekink output filter Set the pen selection mode (Abbreviation PE) Split drawings into sheets

The drivers are listed below in alphabetic order. The driver specific options can be abbreviated to 2 or more characters, except where specified otherwise.

BENSON Driver
No options

CALCOMP Driver
Default BU 16,CH Y,EO 3,HE Y,LI 119,NL Y,PA 10,PE Y,RA 95, RES Y,SC 1,ST 80,SY 1 2,WA Y,WI 20 option BUFFER n CHECKSUM [Y|N] EOM n description Number of data buffers Checksum enabled End of message character

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option HEADER [Y|N] LINE n NL [Y|N] PAD n RADIX n RESPONSE [Y|N] SCALE n STEPS v SYNC n n WAIT [Y|N] WINDON v

description Include search address in header Line length Output newline after each line Number of padding characters Data conversion radix, 64 or 95 Plotter response used for flow control (Abbreviation RES) Plotter device scale factor Plotter device steps per MM Number of sync characters and the sync character Plotter to wait at the end of each plot Wind-on distance between plots in MM

CALCOMP64 Driver
This is equivalent to the CALCOMP driver with the options BU 2,CH Y,EO 13,HE n,LI 125,NL Y,PA 0,PE N,RA 64,RES N,SC 0, ST 40,SY 2 22,WA N,WI 20

DXF Driver
Default POLY Y,UNITS MM option AUTOSIZE HEADER [s] POLYLINES [Y|N] UNITS [s] ZAXIS v description Set drawing size from extent of graphics File supplying header, tables and blocks sections Lines and arcs are output within polyline entities Define units as MM or INCHES Define the constant Z-axis value

HOUSTON Driver
No options

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Driver Quick Reference

HP Driver
Default CEN N,MAP,STEPS 40,WAIT Y option AUTOSIZE CENTRE [Y|N] HIGH MAP x0 y0 [w h] STEPS v WAIT [Y|N|P] description Set drawing size from extent of graphics Physical coordinate origin position Use higher level graphics primitives Define the position and size of plot Plotter steps per MM End of plot action

HP7580B Driver
This is an alternative name for the HP driver.

HPGL Driver
This is equivalent to the HPGL with the following options CEN NO,HIGH,MAP,STEPS 40,WAIT Y

HPGL2 Driver
Default COP 1,ECUT N,FF Y,MAP,PCL Y,PWI 0.0 0.35,QUA 100,ROT 0 option COPIES [n] ECUTTER [Y|N] FF [Y|N] HIGH MAP x0 y0 [w h] PCL [Y|N] PWIDTH v [v] QUALITY n RGB n r g b ROTATE n description Print multiple copies Enable cutter Formfeed after HP-GL/2 Use higher level graphics primitives Define the position and size of plot Dual HP-GL/2 and PCL context Pen widths for thin and thick pens (MM) Quality level, percentage Define red/green/blue mix for pen number Rotate plot by 0/90/180/270 degrees

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Driver Quick Reference

INTERLEAF Driver
Default option HEADER s HIGH description Select file header, default or RAPPORT Use higher level graphics primitives

LASERJET Driver
Default COP 1,DPI 150 option COPIES n DPI n description Print multiple copies Printer resolution, dots per inch

LIST Driver
No options

PDMS Driver
No options

PEGS Driver
Default LAYERS 11 20 11 20,POLY Y,TSCALE 1.0 option FLAT LAYERS n n [n n] POLYLINES [Y|N] TSCALE v description Output without symbol structure Select Pegs layers for output Lines are output as connected polylines Text size relative scale factor

PENMAN Driver
No options

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PNG Driver
Default BITMAP 600 400,LAY FIT option BITMAP w h LAYOUT [FIT|CENTRE|CORNER] RGB n r g b SIZE w h TRANSPARENT description Set the bitmap dimensions Define bitmap layout of the graphics Define red/green/blue mix for pen number Set the minimum plot size in MM Set the bitmap background transparent

POSTSCRIPT Driver
Default BA N,EOT Y,LAY L,MAP 0 0 283.6333 197.2733,MONO, IG N,PT,STEPS 300 option BANNER [Y|N] BC s BL s BR s EOT [Y|N] FONTNAME s FLUSH GRAY HIGH IGRAPHICS [Y|N] LAYOUT [L|P|W|M|F|I|E|D] MAP x0 y0 [w h] MONO PAGE n PTYPE [s] RGB n r g b description Print banner page Bottom centre label Bottom left label Bottom right label EOT after PostScript Graphical text font Graphical primitives start on new lines Grayscale output, see MONO and RGB Use higher level graphics primitives Include an "initgraphics" command Define the page layout Define the position and size of plot Monochrome output, see GRAY and RGB Set the initial page number Include a page type command Define red/green/blue mix for pen number

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option STEPS v TC s TL s TR s

description Plotter device steps per inch Top centre label Top left label Top right label

PS Driver
This is an alternative name for POSTSCRIPT

SCREEN Driver
Default DEV 13 option CURSOR n MAP x0 y0 [w h] RGB n r g b description Set the long cursor colour Define the window position and size Define red/green/blue mix for pen number

XDUMP Driver
Default BITMAP 1000 800 option BITMAP w h SIZE w h description Set the bitmap dimensions Set the minimum plot size in MM

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Changes to this Manual

Changes to this Manual

This revision of the manual has a number of objectives. It starts by describing a number of new features that have been introduced to the Plot Utility Program. Content that no longer reflected printing and plotting practice on current platforms has been revised replaced or removed. There has also been a general revision of the document to improve details of the layout to make the text easier to read. Here is a summary of the changes: Added Driver Quick Reference to provide a quick reference to all the driver options. Added Changes to this Manual (this one) to summarise the changes to the manual. Driver Defaults: The PLOTDRIVERS file can now be used to change the default parameters of built-in drivers. The directory containing the Plot Utility Program has been added as an extra place to look for the PLOTDRIVERS file. This means that soft drivers are much easier to configure and use. The Screen and PNG drivers are set to the default PDMS colours in the standard PLOTDRIVERS file. The previous driver colours can be restored by commenting out these lines in the file. Screen Driver: The standard PLOTDRIVERS file now changes this driver to use PDMS colours by default. New option to set the cursor pen number. New ISO cursor style is available. Added the description of a desktop drag and drop shortcut. PostScript Driver: Added the LAYOUT D option to the driver to create PostScript files for conversion to PDF files easier. Changed the PTYPE examples to avoid ambiguity. PNG Driver: The standard PLOTDRIVERS file now changes this driver to use PDMS colours by default. The background colour can be changed by setting the colour of pen 0. Details of the PLOT.MF messages file directory search have been corrected. References to the Unix specific run_plot script have been removed. Details about serial line operation have been withdrawn.

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Index

Numerics
1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:8

D
Dates (in Postscript files) . . . . . . . . . . . 4:17 Dekink filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:5 DEKINK command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:6 Dividing plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:6 DPI command (LASERJET driver) . . . . 4:11 driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:12 Drivers, output device See individual named drivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:2, 3:1 DXF driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5 DXF pseudo-code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:2, 3:2

A
Adding a border . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:7 ADJUST command (general) . . . . . . . . . 3:3 ARCSIZE command (general) . . . . . . . . 3:3 ATTR command (general) . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4 ATTR command (general) . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4 AUTOSIZE command (general) . . . . . . . 3:3

B
BANNER command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:18 BC command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:17 BENSON driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:2 BITMAP command (XDUMP driver) 4:14, 4:24 BL command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:17 Border . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:7 BORDER option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:7 BR command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:17 BUFFER command (CALCOMP driver) . 4:3

E
ECUTTER command (HP-GL/2 drivers) 4:9 EOM command (CALCOMP driver) . . . . 4:3 Error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:10

F
FLUSH command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:20 FONTNAME command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:20

C
CALCOMP driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:2 CALCOMP64 driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:4 CENTRE command (HP/HPGL drivers) . 4:7 CHECKSUM command (CALCOMP driver) 4:3 Coincidence removal:Dekink filter . . . . . . 3:5 Connect method:Dekink filter . . . . . . . . . 3:5 Cutter markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:7

G
GPGP pseudo-code . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:2, 3:2 GRAY command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:18

H
HEADER command (CALCOMP driver) 4:3

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HEADER command (DXF driver) . . . . . . 4:5 HEADER option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5 Help with syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11 HIGH command (HP/HPGL drivers) . . . . 4:7 HIGH command (HP-GL/2 drivers) . . . . . 4:9 HIGH command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:20 HOUSTON driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:10 HP driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:6 HPGL driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:6 HPGL pseudo-code . . . . . . . . . 2:1, 2:3, 3:2 HP-GL/2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1 HPGL2 driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:8

I
IGRAPHICS command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:18

PCL command (HP-GL/2 drivers) . . . . . 4:9 Pen numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4 PENMAN driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:13 PENS command (general) . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4 Plot command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1 Plot splitting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:6 Plot option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11 PLOTDRIVERS file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:8 PLOYLINES command (DXF driver) . . . 4:5 POSTSCRIPT driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:14 PS driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:14 pseudo-code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1, 3:2 PTYPE command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:18 PWIDTH command (HP-GL/2 drivers) . . 4:9

Q
QUALITY command (HP-GL/2 drivers) 4:9, 4:14

L
LASERJET driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:10 LAYOUT command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:16 LINE command (CALCOMP driver) . . . . 4:3 Line styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4 Line widths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4 LIST driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:12, 4:11

R
RADIX command (CALCOMP driver) . . 4:3 Reducing file size:Dekink filter . . . . . . . . 3:5 RESPONSE command (CALCOMP driver) 4:4 RGB command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:18 RGB command (SCREEN driver) . . . . 4:23 ROTATE command (HP-GL/2 drivers) . . 4:9

M
MAP command (HP/HPGL drivers) . . . . 4:7 MAP command (HP-GL/2 drivers) . . . . . 4:9 MAP command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:18 MAP command (SCREEN driver) . . . . . 4:23 Messages, error . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:10 Messages, modifying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11 Messages, run-time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:10 MONO command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:18

S
SCALE command (CALCOMP driver) . . 4:4 SCALE command (general) . . . . . . . . . . 3:3 Scaling the plot:to suit graphics . . . . . . . 3:3 Scaling the plot:to suit paper size . . . . . 3:3 SCREEN driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:21 SIZE command (XDUMP driver) . 4:14, 4:24 Soft driver facility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:8 SPLIT command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:6 STEPS command (CALCOMP driver) . . 4:4 STEPS command (HP/HPGL drivers) . . 4:7 STEPS command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:18 SYNC command (CALCOMP driver) . . . 4:4

N
NL command (CALCOMP driver) . . . . . . 4:3

O
Output files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:2

T
TC command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:17 TL command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:17 TR command (POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers) 4:17 Travel method:Dekink filter . . . . . . . . . . 3:5

P
PAD command (CALCOMP driver) . . . . . 4:3 Page numbers (in Postscript files) . . . . 4:17

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U
UNITS command (DXF driver) . . . . . . . . 4:5

V
Version number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:11

W
WAIT command (CALCOMP driver) . . . . 4:4 WAIT command (HP/HPGL drivers) . . . . 4:7 WINDON command (CALCOMP driver) . 4:4

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