PLOT User Guide

PLOT
User Guide
Version 4.4

pdms1160/PLOT User Guide
issue 240804

PLEASE NOTE:
AVEVA Solutions has a policy of continuing product development: therefore, the
information contained in this document may be subject to change without notice.
AVEVA SOLUTIONS MAKES NO WARRANTY OF ANY KIND WITH REGARD TO
THIS DOCUMENT, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE.
While every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of this document, AVEVA Solutions
shall not be liable for errors contained herein or direct, indirect, special, incidental or
consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance or use of this material.

This manual provides documentation relating to products to which you may not have access or which
may not be licensed to you. For further information on which Products are licensed to you please refer
to your licence conditions.

Copyright 1991 through 2004 AVEVA Solutions Limited
All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise, without prior written permission of AVEVA Solutions.
The software programs described in this document are confidential information and proprietary
products of AVEVA Solutions or its licensors.

For details of AVEVA's worldwide sales and support offices, see our website at
http://www.aveva.com
AVEVA Solutions Limited, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HB, UK

Contents
1 About this Manual ........................................................................................ 1-1
1.1 Who the Manual is Meant For...................................................................................................1-1
1.2 How the Manual is Set Out.......................................................................................................1-1
1.3 Conventions Used in the Manual ..............................................................................................1-2
2 Introducing PLOT......................................................................................... 2-1
2.1 What PLOT Does......................................................................................................................2-1
2.2 Input Formats That PLOT Can Accept.....................................................................................2-1
2.3 Output Formats That PLOT Can Generate................................................................................2-2
3 How To Use PLOT ........................................................................................ 3-1
3.1 Before You Begin......................................................................................................................3-1
3.2 Running PLOT..........................................................................................................................3-1
3.3 General Command Line Options...............................................................................................3-3
3.3.1 Specifying the Plotting Scale..........................................................................................3-3
3.3.2 Scaling the Plot to Fit the Paper......................................................................................3-4
3.3.3 Setting the Drawing Size from the Graphics...................................................................3-4
3.3.4 Specifying How Arcs and Circles are Represented.........................................................3-4
3.3.5 Specifying the Pen Selection Mode and Plotting Attributes...........................................3-4
3.3.6 Dekink Filter...................................................................................................................3-6
3.3.7 Splitting a Large Plot......................................................................................................3-8
3.3.8 Adding a Plot Border ......................................................................................................3-8
3.3.9 Adding Cutter Control Markers......................................................................................3-8
3.4 Creating your Own Device Drivers.........................................................................................3-10
3.4.1 Soft Drivers...................................................................................................................3-10
3.4.2 Soft Driver Examples....................................................................................................3-11
3.4.3 Overriding Built-in Driver Defaults..............................................................................3-12
3.5 Messages Output by PLOT.....................................................................................................3-12
3.5.1 Normal Run-Time Messages.........................................................................................3-13
3.5.2 Warnings and Error Messages.......................................................................................3-13
3.5.3 Modifying PLOTs Message File..................................................................................3-14
3.6 Getting Help about PLOT.......................................................................................................3-15
3.6.1 Checking the Command Syntax....................................................................................3-15
3.6.2 Checking the Program Version.....................................................................................3-15
3.6.3 Checking Driver Options..............................................................................................3-15
3.7 Summarising the Contents of Plot Files..................................................................................3-15
3.8 Running on Windows..............................................................................................................3-17
3.8.1 Screen Driver Printing...................................................................................................3-17
3.8.2 Screen Driver and Enhanced Metafile Output..............................................................3-17
3.8.3 Shortcuts and Browsing................................................................................................3-17
PLOT User Guide contents-i
Version 4.4
Contents
4 The Device Drivers....................................................................................... 4-1
4.1 BENSON..................................................................................................................................4-2
4.2 CALCOMP...............................................................................................................................4-2
4.3 DXF ..........................................................................................................................................4-5
4.3.1 Output File Contents.......................................................................................................4-5
4.3.2 DXF Options...................................................................................................................4-6
4.4 Hewlett-Packard (HP or HPGL)...............................................................................................4-7
4.5 HPGL2......................................................................................................................................4-9
4.6 HOUSTON.............................................................................................................................4-10
4.7 LASERJ ET.............................................................................................................................4-11
4.8 LIST........................................................................................................................................4-12
4.9 PDMS.....................................................................................................................................4-13
4.10 PENMAN................................................................................................................................4-14
4.11 PNG........................................................................................................................................4-14
4.12 POSTSCRIPT or PS...............................................................................................................4-16
4.13 SCREEN.................................................................................................................................4-22
4.14 XDUMP..................................................................................................................................4-24
5 Driver Quick Reference ............................................................................... 5-1
6 Changes to this Manual ............................................................................... 6-1
contents-ii PLOT Version 4.4.
User Guide

1 About this Manual
1.1 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
Chapter 2 summarises the function of PLOT and details the input and output file
formats that it can recognise.
Chapter 3 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.
Chapter 4 is a reference section that details the options available for each of
PLOTs output formats.
Chapter 5 is a quick reference guide and summarises the driver specific options and
the options that apply to drivers generally.
Chapter 6 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,
Chapter 2 and the first three sections of Chapter 3. You will also need to refer to at
least one section in Chapter 4, depending on what you intend to use the PLOT
output for.
PLOT User Guide 1-1
Version 4.4

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, using a different typeface from that used for normal text; 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
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
Exampl e of I nput / Out put Sequence Typef ace
Note: Examples of command syntax throughout the manual use uppercase
characters to make them easily identifiable within the body of the main text.
When running under some operating systems, e.g. Unix, case is significant.
You may need to enter the commands using lowercase characters under
such circumstances.
1-2 PLOT Version 4.4.
User Guide

2 Introducing PLOT
2.1 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 PDMS 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.
PLOT User Guide 2-1
Version 4.4

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.
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 GP
2
)
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 Description
BENSON Pen plotter
CALCOMP Pen plotter
DXF AutoCAD drawing interchange file
HOUSTON Pen plotter
HP Pen plotter
HPGL Pen plotter
HPGL2 Pen and raster plotter
LASERJ ET HP PCL page description language
LIST Displays drawing contents
User Guide
Introducing PLOT
PDMS PDMS plot file
PENMAN Turtle plotter
PNG Raster graphics file
POSTSCRIPT Postscript page description language
PS Postscript page description language
SCREEN On-screen plot file viewer
XDUMP X-windows bitmap file
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
Chapter 4, 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; for example, to translate from PDMS
format to HPGL format, and vice versa.
CAUTION:
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
a PDMS plot file.
PLOT Version 4.4 2-3
User Guide

3 How To Use PLOT
3.1 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 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
PLOT User Guide 3-1
Version 4.4

LASERJ ET
LIST
PDMS
PENMAN
PNG
POSTSCRIPT or PS
SCREEN
XDUMP
A full description of the functions of each of these is given in Chapter 4.
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 can be viewed later 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 with 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 Section 3.3 of this chapter. Other options are relevant only to
specific device drivers; these are described separately in Chapter 4.
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:
pl ot pdms pl ot 12 ul ay. pl
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
This command sends data from the file plot12 to the file ulay.pl in PDMS
pseudo-code format. The latter file could then be used as an underlay in a PDMS
drawing module, for example.

pl ot scr een pl ot a2 - 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.

pl ot hp vi ew. pl vi ew. hp scal e=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 Chapter 4. You can use all of these options
with the soft drivers described in Section 3.4.
If an option is specified more than once, the last occurrence is the one that applies.
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.
User Guide

3.3.2 Scaling the Plot to Fit the Paper
Instead of predefining the plotting scale, as explained in Section 3.3.1, 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.
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
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
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:
User Guide

ATTR integer1 integer2 linestyle linetype width
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 CHAI N THI CK
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 CHAI N THI CK 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.
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
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.
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,
User Guide

and the change in the number of lines in the output file (both as percentages). For
example:
DEKI NK r educed pen t r avel by 68. 99%and number of l i nes 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
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 This is the number of marks at the end of the plot.
Default: 0
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
pen This is the number of the pen to draw the marks.
Default: 1
penwidth The pen thickness in millimetres.
Default: 0.1mm
offset The distance that the plot is shifted away from the edge of the paper
(in millimetres).
macross The mark size across the paper.
Default: 5.0mm
malong The mark size along the paper.
Default: 2.0mm
msep Separation distance between marks.
Default: 5.0mm
User Guide

Example
Paper Edge
Paper Edge
Drwg No

Figure 1 Cutmarks Example
Figure 1 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 Creating your Own Device Drivers
3.4.1 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 Sections 2.3 and 3.2, 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.
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
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.

3.4.2 Soft Driver Examples
As an example, the soft driver definition:
PSRGB| POSTSCRI PT| BANNER Y, RGB, \
PTYPE ' st at usdi ct begi n 2 set paper t r ay 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 Section 4.12.

The following command uses the soft driver definition:
pl ot psr gb pl ot a22 pl ot a22. out
It has exactly the same effect as the longer version:
pl ot post scr i pt pl ot a22 pl ot a22. out
"BANNER Y, RGB, PTYPE ' st at usdi ct begi n 2 set paper t r ay 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| POSTSCRI PT| BA Y, LAY W, MAP 0 0 283. 6333 197. 2733, \
MONO, I G 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:
User Guide

pdmsc| scr een| 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:
pl ot psr gb pl ot a22 pl ot a22. 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 built-in 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.
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.
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
3.5.1 Normal Run-Time Messages
When PLOT begins to interpret a pseudo-code file it displays the message to the
command window
- - - - - begi nni ng of pl ot - - - - -
When the file interpretation has finished it display the message
- - - - - end of pl ot - - - - -
(See Section 3.5.3 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:
Er r or : Cannot cr eat e/ open out put f i l e
Check that the named output file is valid, is not protected from access, and is not
already in use.
Er r or : Cannot open i nput f i l e
Check that the file name has been correctly entered, that the file exists, and that you
have access rights to read it.
Er r or : I nt er pr et at i on or dat a er r or
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.
Er r or : Pl ot t oo l ar ge f or medi a
Add the ADJ UST option to the PLOT command line (see Section 3.3.2). 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).
Er r or : Unknown devi ce t ype
Check that the device driver that you have specified matches one of the standard
drivers listed in Sections 2.3 and Section 3.2, or is a valid soft driver name.
War ni ng: Pl ot i s adj ust ed t o medi a si ze
This message confirms that the ADJ UST option has automatically rescaled the
output plot to suit its destination device or file. No action is needed.
User Guide

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.
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
3.6 Getting Help about PLOT
3.6.1 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 Ut i l i t y

usage: pl ot dr i ver f i l e out put [ opt i ons. . . ]

Dr i ver s ar e: benson cal comp dxf houst on hp hpgl hpgl 2 i nt er l eaf
l aser j et l i st pdms penman png post scr i pt ps
scr een xdump

Fi l e i s a PDMS, DXF, HPGL or ot her pseudo- code pl ot f i l e.

Out put i s a f i l e name or t he command wi ndow.
e. g. pl ot post scr i pt dr wg3. pl t pl ot out . ps
pl ot scr een dr wg3. pl t - 0

The SCALE=val ue opt i on pr ovi des gener al pl ot scal i ng.
An opt i ons st r i ng i s avai l abl e f or most dr i ver s.
e. g. pl ot hpgl 2 dr wg3. pl t dr wg3. h2 scal e=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:
plot drivers

This displays the driver quick reference information for PLOT that can also found in
Chapter 5 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.
User Guide

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.
User Guide
How To Use PLOT
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.
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: C:\AVEVA\pdms\plot\plot.exe screen "*" 0 "AUTOSIZE"
Start in: C:\temp
Name: Plot
Target 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 "*".
User Guide

Start in is set as the directory that is most used for plot files.
Name labels the shortcut.
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 f i l e=%1
i f " %f i l e%" == " " set f i l e=" *"
st ar t / b C: \ AVEVA\ pdms\ pl ot \ pl ot . exe pl ot scr een %f i l e%- 0 " AUTO"
User Guide
The Device Drivers
4 The 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
Section 4.8.
User Guide

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
pl ot benson vi ew. 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
User Guide
The Device Drivers
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:
(Preamble)
Sync
Bias
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
Checksum character
Value of number-encoding radix (64 or 95)
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 bad response causes the data
to be transmitted again.

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 Section 3.2), 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: int =an integer; val =a real number; Y/N =Yes or No]
BUffer int Sets device to use int data buffers (int must be 2 or 16).
Default: BU 16
CHecksum Y/N Specifies whether or not checksum is enabled.
Default: CH Y
User Guide

EOm int Sets the end-of-message character to int (int must be in the
range 0-127).
Default: EO 3
HEader Y/N Specifies whether or not a search address is to be included in the
output header.
Default: HE Y
LIne int Sets the line length of the output data field to int characters (int
must be in the range 80-125).
Default: LI 119
NL Y/N Specifies that a newline code is to be output between lines.
Default: NL Y
PAd int 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
RAdix int Sets the number conversion radix to int (int must be 64 or 95).
Default: RA 95
RESponse Y/N Specifies whether or not a plotter response is expected by the
driver for output flow control.
Default: RES Y
SCale int 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
STeps val Sets the number of plotter steps per mm (i.e. the plotter
resolution) to val.
Default: ST 80.0
SYnc int1 int2 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
WAit Y/N Specifies whether or not the plotter is switched off-line between
plots.
Default: WA Y
WIndon val Sets the distance to be left blank between adjacent plots to val
mm.
Default: WI 20.0
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"
User Guide
The Device Drivers
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:
pl ot cal comp pdms. pl ot pdms. code " PA 0, RE N"
Alternatively, you could create the equivalent soft driver to do this.
For example:
cal compx| cal comp| PA 0, RE N
The new soft driver can then be used with the command:
pl ot cal compx pdms. pl ot 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
pl ot cal comp vi ew. pl 1
pl ot cal comp64 vi ew. pl 1
pl ot cal comp vi ew. pl 1 " HE N, LI 110, PE N, WI 25"
4.3 DXF
This driver outputs a plot as an AutoCAD drawing in DXF (drawing interchange)
file format.
4.3.1 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.
User Guide

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.
POlylines Y/N Specifies whether the driver outputs lines and arcs as
LINE and ARC entities, or as POLYLINE entities.
Default: POLYLINES Y
UNits value Sets the type of coordinates in the DXF output file as
INCHES or MM.
Default: UNITS MM
ZAxis value Selects the output of a Z value with all XY coordinates.
The value parameter defines the constant Z coordinate
value.
Default: No Z coordinate.
Example
pl ot dxf vi ew1. pl vi ew1. dxf " UNI TS I NCHES"
User Guide
The Device Drivers
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 Section 3.2), or indirectly, as parameters in a soft driver definition
(see Section 3.4).
by commas):
[Key: val =a real number; Y/N =Yes or No; x y =x,y coordinates in mm]
User Guide

CEntre Y/N 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
High 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
MAp Derives the size of the plot from the plot file.
MAp x y 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.
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 for both the HP and HPGL drivers
STeps val 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:
" 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.
Example
pl ot hp vi ew. pl pl ot 1. pl t (output to a file)
pl ot hp vi ew. pl - 1 (output direct to plotter)
User Guide
The Device Drivers
pl ot hpgl vi ew. pl pl ot 1. pl t (output to a file)
pl ot hpgl vi ew. pl - 1 (output direct to plotter)
pl ot hp vi ew. pl pl ot 1. pl t " 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 section 3.2), or
indirectly, as parameters in soft driver definition (see section 3.4).
by commas):
[Key: Y/N =Yes or No; x y etc. coordinates in mm and other values; n and pen
are integers.]
COpies n Print n copies of each drawing in the plot file.
Default: COPIES 1
FF Y/N 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
ECutter Y/N Enables the automatic cutter that operates after each plot is
completed.
Default: ECUTTER N
HIgh If selected the driver outputs higher level graphical primitives
such as arcs, circles, and line styles.
Default: HIGH is not selected.
MAp Derives the size of the plot from the plot file.
MAp x y w h 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
User Guide

PCL Y/N Specifies that the plotter is operating HP-GL/2 with PCL in a
dual context.
Default: PCL Y
PWidth w1 [w2] 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
QUality n 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
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
0-256). The colour values are in the range 0 to 1.
Default: Monochrome
ROtate n Rotate the plot by 0, 90, 180, 270 degrees counter-clockwise
about the plotter coordinate system origin.
Default: ROTATE 0
The defaults specified in the standard HP-GL/2 driver are equivalent to the
following options string:
" CO 1, EC N, MAP, PCL Y, PW0. 0 0. 35, QU 100, RO 0"
Examples:
pl ot hpgl 2 vi ew. pl pl ot 1. pl t

pl ot hpgl 2 vi ew. pl pl ot 1. pl t " COPI ES 3, ROTATE 90"
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.
User Guide
The Device Drivers
Options
None.
Example
pl ot houst on vi ew. pl vi ew. 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 data transfer time may be achieved by specifying a lower raster 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.
User Guide

Options
You can specify the LASERJ ET driver options either directly, as PLOT command
line arguments (see Section 3.2), or indirectly, as parameters in a soft driver
definition (see Section 3.4).
by commas):
COpies integer This prints integer copies of each drawing in the plot file. The
default is 1 copy.
DPi integer 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.
Examples
pl ot l aser j et vi ew. pl pl ot 1. pl t (output to a file)
pl ot l aser j et vi ew. pl - 1 (output direct to printer)
pl ot l aser j et vi ew. 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 (if it is a PDMS file)
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
- 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
User Guide
The Device Drivers
- The full list of symbol names. Symbols are shown with a prefix character to
indicate how often they are referenced:
Prefix References
none unreferenced
+ once
* one or more times
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:
pl ot l i st pdmspl ot . pl - 0
This would list the content of the PDMS pseudo-code plot file pdmsplot.pl,
containing an A1 drawing, thus:
I nt er pr et er : PDMS
Fi l e Header : pi per 18/ 07/ 04 12. 25
Dr awi ng: 1
Si ze 841 by 594 MM
Vect or s 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 (i.e. PDMS pseudo-code).
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
PDMS 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 PDMS driver are in binary format and comprise a textual header
block followed by the graphical data.
The header block contains:
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.
User Guide

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
pl ot pdms vi ew. pl ul ay2. 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
pl ot penman vi ew. pl - 1
4.11 PNG
Models
This driver generates output in PNG file format.
User Guide
The Device Drivers
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.

LAyout type 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.
SIze width height 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.
TRan Sets the image background to be transparent.
User Guide

Example
pl ot png i n. dxf out . png " BI TMAP 32 32"
4.12 POSTSCRIPT or PS
(The POSTSCRIPT and PS drivers are identical.)
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 Section 3.4).
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.

User Guide
The Device Drivers
Options
The POSTSCRIPT/PS drivers provide many options. You can specify these either
directly, as PLOT command line arguments (see Section 3.2), or indirectly, as
parameters in a soft driver definition (see Section 3.4).
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.).
by commas):
[Key: int =an integer; string =a text string]
Layout Options
LAyout type Defines the output page layout as type, where type is one of the following:
Drawing - 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.
Landscape - 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.
Whole - 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.
User Guide

Margin - 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.
Figure - this layout is identical to MARGIN, except that the drawing is
not rotated.
Include - 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).
Default: LA L.
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 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.
TR string Sets the right-hand header text (TR=Top Right) to string.
BL string Sets the left-hand footer text (BL=Bottom Left) to string.
BC string Sets the central footer text (BC=Bottom Centre) to string.
BR string Sets the right-hand footer text (BR=Bottom Right) to 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:
pl ot ps dr g. pl dr g. out " LA M, TL ' Page #' , TR Fi gur e, BC %"
This sets the page layout as follows:
User Guide
The Device Drivers
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.
General Options
BAnner Y/N Specifies whether or not a banner page is output at the head of
the document.
Default: BA Y
EOt Y/N 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
IGraphics Y/N Allows the use of the initgraphics command. (You should not
normally need to change this setting.)
Default: IG N
PType string 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 ' st at usdi ct begi n 2 set paper t r ay end'
PTYPE ' st at usdi ct begi n / manual f eed t r ue def end'
Default: PT
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
STeps val Sets the printer steps per inch (i.e. the printer resolution) to val.
Default: ST 300
GRay Selects grey-scale output to represent colours.
MOno Selects monochrome output.
RGb Selects RGB colour output (using default colour
definitions).
Default colour representation: MONO
User Guide

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).
User Guide
The Device Drivers
Number Colour Red Green Blue
0 White 1 1 1
1 Black 0 0 0
2 Orange 1 0.5 0
3 Green 0 1 0
4 Red 1 0 0
5 Blue 0 0.78 1
6 Magenta 0.78 0 1
7 Yellow 1 1 0
8 Sand 1 0.78 0
9 Yellow 1 1 0
10 Cyan 0 1 1
11 Indigo 0 0 1
12 Violet 0.5 0 0.5
13 Light Grey 0.75 0.75 0.75
14 Mid Grey 0.5 0.5 0.5
15 Dark Grey 0.25 0.25 0.25
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
FLush 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.
HIgh Specifies that higher-level primitives may be used for text and other
output.
Default: Not selected.
As an example a command with the general Postscript control options:
pl ot ps dr g. pl dr g. 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, I G N, PT, ST 300"
User Guide

Example
pl ot ps vi ew. pl f i g1. ps (Output to file, e.g. for inclusion in
another file)
pl ot post scr i pt vi ew. pl f i g1. ps
(Output to file, e.g. for inclusion in
another file)
pl ot post scr i pt vi ew. pl - 2 (output direct to printer)
pl ot ps vi ew. pl - 2 " LA M, BR ' Page #' , MA 10 40 100 70"
(Note nested quotation marks.
These are needed as 'Page #' is all one
string)
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.
User Guide
The Device Drivers
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.
Command Summary
Key/button Description
Home View all of the drawing
Shift-Home Refresh the window
Arrow keys Pan down/left/right/up by 10% of window
Control-Arrow Pan down/left/right/up by 2% of window
Shift-Arrow Pan down/left/right/up by 50% of window
H or ? Display help text
X Toggle cursor style, small cross and crosshair
/ Toggle cursor style, ISO and crosshair
N or Space Next drawing from plot file
Q or Return Quit viewer
0 to 9 Set cursor colour (1=white)
Mouse 1 Press/Move/Release pans around drawing. Press/release (no
move) centres this position in the window.
Mouse 2 Press/Move/Release zooms in on the box cursor. Press/release
(no move) centres this position in the window and zooms in by
20%.
Mouse 3 Press/Move/Release zooms in on the box cursor. Press/release
(no move) centres this position in the window and zooms out by
20%.
Note that 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.
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.
User Guide

CUrsor n Sets the long cursor pen number and must be in the range 1-15.
The default value is 4.
RGb pen r g b 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 Colour Red Green Blue
0 Black 0 0 0
1 White 1 1 1
2 Orange 1 0.5 0
3 Green 0 1 0
4 Red 1 0 0
5 Blue 0 0.78 1
6 Magenta 0.78 0 1
7 Yellow 1 1 0
8 Sand 1 0.78 0
9 Yellow 1 1 0
10 Cyan 0 1 1
11 Indigo 0 0 1
12 Violet 0.5 0 0.5
13 Light Grey 0.75 0.75 0.75
14 Mid Grey 0.5 0.5 0.5
15 Dark Grey 0.25 0.25 0.25

Example
pl ot scr een l ogo. pl t - 0 " CUR 10, MA 20 40 250 150"

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.
User Guide
The Device Drivers
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.
Size width height 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.
Example
plot xdump view.pl view.px "BITMAP 200 200"
User Guide
Driver Quick Reference
5 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 description
ADJ UST Scale the plot to fit the paper
ARCSIZE n Set the circle and arc approximation
ATTR n s [s] [s] [v] Set pen attributes
BORDER [n] Draw the plot border using the pen number
CUTMARK ... Draw marks for automatic cutters
DEKINK ... Select the dekink output filter
PENS [s] Set the pen selection mode (Abbreviation PE)
SPLIT w h 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 description
BUFFER n Number of data buffers
CHECKSUM [Y|N] Checksum enabled
EOM n End of message character
HEADER [Y|N] Include search address in header
LINE n Line length
NL [Y|N] Output newline after each line
PAD n Number of padding characters
RADIX n Data conversion radix, 64 or 95
RESPONSE [Y|N] Plotter response used for flow control (Abbreviation RES)
SCALE n Plotter device scale factor
STEPS v Plotter device steps per MM
SYNC n n Number of sync characters and the sync character
WAIT [Y|N] Plotter to wait at the end of each plot
WINDON v 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 description
AUTOSIZE Set drawing size from extent of graphics
HEADER [s] File supplying header, tables and blocks sections
POLYLINES [Y|N] Lines and arcs are output within polyline entities
User Guide

UNITS [s] Define units as MM or INCHES
ZAXIS v Define the constant Z-axis value

HOUSTON Driver
No options

HP Driver
Default: CEN N,MAP,STEPS 40,WAIT Y
option description
AUTOSIZE Set drawing size from extent of graphics
CENTRE [Y|N] Physical coordinate origin position
HIGH Use higher level graphics primitives
MAP x0 y0 [w h] Define the position and size of plot
STEPS v Plotter steps per MM
WAIT [Y|N|P] 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 description
COPIES [n] Print multiple copies
ECUTTER [Y|N] Enable cutter
FF [Y|N] Formfeed after HP-GL/2
PCL [Y|N] Dual HP-GL/2 and PCL context
PWIDTH v [v] Pen widths for thin and thick pens (MM)
QUALITY n Quality level, percentage
RGB n r g b Define red/green/blue mix for pen number
ROTATE n Rotate plot by 0/90/180/270 degrees

INTERLEAF Driver
Default:
option description
HEADER s Select file header, default or RAPPORT

LASERJET Driver
Default: COP 1,DPI 150
option description
COPIES n Print multiple copies
DPI n 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
User Guide
Driver Quick Reference
option description
FLAT Output without symbol structure
LAYERS n n [n n] Select Pegs layers for output
POLYLINES [Y|N] Lines are output as connected polylines
TSCALE v Text size relative scale factor

PENMAN Driver
No options

PNG Driver
Default: BITMAP 600 400,LAY FIT
option description
BITMAP w h Set the bitmap dimensions
LAYOUT [FIT|CENTRE|CORNER] Define bitmap layout of the graphics
SIZE w h Set the minimum plot size in MM
TRANSPARENT 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 description
BANNER [Y|N] Print banner page
BC s Bottom centre label
BL s Bottom left label
BR s Bottom right label
EOT [Y|N] EOT after PostScript
FONTNAME s Graphical text font
FLUSH Graphical primitives start on new lines
GRAY Grayscale output, see MONO and RGB
IGRAPHICS [Y|N] Include an "initgraphics" command
LAYOUT [L|P|W|M|F|I|E|D] Define the page layout
MONO Monochrome output, see GRAY and RGB
PAGE n Set the initial page number
PTYPE [s] Include a page type command
STEPS v Plotter device steps per inch
TC s Top centre label
TL s Top left label
TR s Top right label
PS Driver
This is an alternative name for POSTSCRIPT

SCREEN Driver
Default: DEV 13
option description
CURSOR n Set the long cursor colour
MAP x0 y0 [w h] Define the window position and size
XDUMP Driver
Default: BITMAP 1000 800
option description
User Guide

BITMAP w h Set the bitmap dimensions
SIZE w h Set the minimum plot size in MM

User Guide
Changes to this Manual
6 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 Chapter 5 to provide a quick reference to all the driver options.
Added Chapter 6 (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.
User Guide

PLOT User Guide

Caricato da

Informazioni sul documento

Descrizione originale:

Copyright

Formati disponibili

Condividi questo documento

Condividi o incorpora il documento

Opzioni di condivisione

Hai trovato utile questo documento?

Questo contenuto è inappropriato?

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

PLOT User Guide

Caricato da

Copyright:

Formati disponibili

PLOT

Potrebbero piacerti anche