gnuplot(1)

1GNUPLOT(1)                  General Commands Manual                 GNUPLOT(1)
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NAME

6       gnuplot - an interactive plotting program
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SYNOPSIS

9       gnuplot [X11 options] [options] [file ...]
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DESCRIPTION

12       Gnuplot is a command-driven interactive plotting program.
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14       If file names are given on the command line, gnuplot loads and executes
15       each file in the order specified, and exits after the last file is pro‐
16       cessed.   If  no  files are given, gnuplot prompts for interactive com‐
17       mands.
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19       Here are some of its features:
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21       Plots any number of functions, built up of C operators, C math  library
22       functions, and some things C doesn't have like **, sgn(), etc.
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24       User-defined constants and functions.
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26       All  computations  performed in the complex domain.  Just the real part
27       is plotted by default, but functions like imag() and  abs()  and  arg()
28       are available to override this.
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30       Many  presentation  styles for plotting user data from files, including
31       surface-fitting, error bars, boxplots, histograms, heat maps, and  sim‐
32       ple manipulation of image data.  There is an on-line demo collection at
33       http://gnuplot.info/demo
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35       Nonlinear least-squares fitting.
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37       2D and 3D plots with mouse-controlled zooming, rotation, and hypertext.
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39       Shell escapes and command line substitution.
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41       Load and save capability.
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43       Support for a huge variety of output devices and file formats.
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OPTIONS

46       -p,  --persist  lets  plot  windows  survive after main gnuplot program
47       exits.
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49       -c scriptname ARG1 ARG2 ..., load script using gnuplot's "call"  mecha‐
50       nism and pass it the remainder of the command line as arguments
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52       -d,  --default  settings.   Do not read from gnuplotrc or ~/.gnuplot on
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55       -e "command list" executes the requested commands  before  loading  the
56       next input file.
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58       -h, --help print summary of usage
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60       -V show current version
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X11 OPTIONS

63       For  terminal  type x11, gnuplot accepts the standard X Toolkit options
64       and resources such as geometry, font, and background. See the X(1)  man
65       page  for  a  description  of common options.  For additional X options
66       specific to gnuplot, type help x11 on the gnuplot command  line.  These
67       options have no effect on other terminal types.
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ENVIRONMENT

70       A  number  of  shell  environment  variables are understood by gnuplot.
71       None of these are required.
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73       GNUTERM
74              The name of the terminal type to be used by default.   This  can
75              be  overridden  by the gnuplotrc or .gnuplot start-up files and,
76              of course, by later explicit "set terminal" commands.
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78       GNUHELP
79              The pathname of the HELP file (gnuplot.gih).
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81       HOME   The name of a directory to search for a .gnuplot file.
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83       PAGER  An output filter for help messages.
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85       SHELL  The program used for the "shell" command.
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87       FIT_SCRIPT
88              Specifies a gnuplot command to be executed when a fit is  inter‐
89              rupted---see "help fit".
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91       FIT_LOG
92              The name of the logfile maintained by fit.
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94       GNUPLOT_LIB
95              Additional  search  directories  for data and command files. The
96              variable may contain a single  directory  name,  or  a  list  of
97              directories  separated  by  ':'. The contents of GNUPLOT_LIB are
98              appended to the "loadpath" variable,  but  not  saved  with  the
99              "save" and "save set" commands.
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101       GDFONTPATH
102              Several  gnuplot  terminal drivers access TrueType fonts via the
103              gd library.  This variable gives the font search path for  these
104              drivers.
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106       GNUPLOT_DEFAULT_GDFONT
107              The  default  font for the terminal drivers that access TrueType
108              fonts via the gd library.
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110       GNUPLOT_FONTPATH
111              The font search path used by the postscript terminal. The format
112              is the same as for GNUPLOT_LIB. The contents of GNUPLOT_FONTPATH
113              are appended to the "fontpath" variable, but not saved with  the
114              "save" and "save set" commands.
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116       GNUPLOT_PS_DIR
117              Used by the postscript driver to locate external prologue files.
118              Depending on  the  build  process,  gnuplot  contains  either  a
119              builtin  copy of those files or simply a default hardcoded path.
120              Use this variable to test the postscript  terminal  with  custom
121              prologue files. See "help postscript prologue".
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FILES

124       gnuplotrc
125              When  gnuplot  is run, it first looks for a system-wide initial‐
126              ization file named gnuplotrc.  The  standard  location  of  this
127              file  expected by the program is reported by the "show loadpath"
128              command.
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130       .gnuplot
131              After loading the system-wide initialization file, if any,  Gnu‐
132              plot  looks for a private initialization file in the HOME direc‐
133              tory.  It may contain any legal gnuplot commands, but  typically
134              they  are  limited  to  setting  the preferred terminal and line
135              types and defining frequently-used functions or variables.
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137       fit.log
138              The default name of the logfile output by the "fit" command.
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AUTHORS

141       Original authors: Thomas Williams and Colin Kelley.  Starting with gnu‐
142       plot  version  3.8,  the  project source is cooperatively maintained on
143       SourceForge by a large number of contributors.
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BUGS

146       Please report bugs using the project bug tracker on SourceForge.
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