.:aplot:home

Aplot Graphical Plotting Program

Setup and Getting Started

Aplot is a software program that quickly plots data from flights of the University of North Dakota's Citation research aircraft. CPLOT is written in python.

FAQ

Q: What is the difference between Aplot and Cplot/Cplot2?

A: Aplot is a more recent program similar to Cplot and has more features.

How to Run Aplot on Linux/UNIX

There are two ways:

• Option 1

1. Open a terminal
2. Enter 'aplot' followed by the filename in which you wish to open. Note: Be in the directory of the file.

• Option 2

1. Open a terminal.
2. Enter 'aplot', and hit enter.
3. Click the 'Browse' button on the graphical interface that shows up.
4. Navigate to the directory of the file that you want to bring up in aplot.
5. Select the file that you want.
6. Click 'ok', 'open file'.

Example

I want to open the file '20140516_101427.iphex' in the directory '~/iphex/'. To open this file in Aplot, I would:

1. Open a terminal
2. Type 'aplot' while in my home directory
3. Click 'Browse'
4. Double click the 'iphex' folder in the GUI
5. Double click the '20140516_101427.iphex' file in the GUI
6. Now I am ready to make plots with that file in Aplot.

Using Aplot

This section describes Aplot and its various features.

General things to note:

• You cannot use the 'ADPAA Aplot' program window while a plot is open. To use that window again, you must close the plot you have open.
• Many options in the 'Plot XY Settings' section of the 'ADPAA Aplot' program window can also be changed within the plot window itself

Make A Plot

1. Choose an x-axis field (selectable button on the left hand side of the main window).
2. Choose a y-axis field (toggle button under the 'Y-Axis' column). Note: you can select multiple fields to plot, but only the first one selected will be chosen for the y-axis labels and units.
3. (optional) Choose a second y-axis field (toggle button under the 'Second Y-Axis' column). This behaves like the first y-axis, but the axis label and units are located on the right side of the plot.
4. Create the plot by hovering over 'Plot' in the toolbar, then clicking the 'XY Graph' option.

Note: If you need more information on a field, you can click a selectable button on the right hand side of the main window, under the question mark column header. This will open a window given you the description of that field from the file.

Modifying the Plot

This section describes how you can modify the plot in the Plot XY Settings section in the 'ADPAA Aplot' program window.

Alter Plot Axes

At the top of the window, you can change the range of the X-Axis, Y-Axis, and Second Y-Axis (if used). Additionally, you can change the ticks and scale between linear and logarithmic. To do so, for each axis:

1. Type in the desired minimum value.
2. Type in the desired maximum value.
3. Type in the desired tick mark spacing for both major and minor ticks (per unit based on the variable you are plotting)
4. Select either 'Linear' or 'Log' scale

Edit Plot Labels

In the middle section of the window, you can change the axis labels and the plot title. To do so, for each axis:

1. Type in the desired axis under the 'Axis Labels' column.
2. Select the desired label color from a drag-down menu under the 'Axis/Font Color' column.
3. Enter the desired label size under the 'Font Size' column. You can 1) type in the size or 2) click the up and down arrows to incrementally change the size.
4. Select the desired label style under the 'Font Weight' column.

Modify Plot Lines

At the bottom section of the window, you can change the look of the line for the plotted variables. To do so, for each variable:

1. Select the desired color of the line by using the dropdown menu.
2. Select the desired style of the line by using the dropdown menu.
3. Enter the desired weight (i.e., thickness) of the line by either 1) typing in the size or 2) clicking the up and down arrows to incrementally change the size.
4. Select the desired marker style by using the dropdown menu. The marker is placed at each data point for the variable plotted. By default, this is turned off and set to 'None'.
5. Enter the desired marker size. Note: this has no effect is the marker style is set to 'None'.
6. Type in the desired label for the legend. Note: the legend must be turned on in the plot for this to have an effect.