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List:       gnuplot-info-beta
Subject:    Re: Breaking out "filled" as a separate style option
From:       Hans-Bernhard Broeker <broeker () physik ! rwth-aachen ! de>
Date:       2002-08-01 11:54:35
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On Wed, 31 Jul 2002, Ethan Merritt wrote:

> I propose a patch [attached] to split out "filled" as a separate style 
> option, legal both in a 'plot' command and in 'set style'.

The patch is a step in the right direction, I think.  But, as pointed
out before, cramming more and more combinations of features into the
current 'enum PLOT_STYLE' is beginning to become a burden which we had
better address before we go on adding more types to it.  

In particular, I think it's hight time to turn PLOT_STYLE into a struct
instead of an enum, so 'plot style options' like 'filled', 'lines',
'points', 'errorbars' or others can become elements of that struct.
In particular, this should limit the complexity of all those

	switch(this_plot->style) {
	   /* one case per PLOT_STYLE enum value here */
	}

considerably, as most of those really just want to check: "does this
dataset's plotstyle contain {insert feature here...}?"

As an additional benefit, the mapping between user interface and internal
representation would be closer.  I.e. the 'filled' option would correspond
to an element "TBOOLEAN is_filled;" or similar in struct PLOT_TYPE.

> 1) I have left 'filledboxes' as legal syntax in this patch.
>    Given that USE_ULIG_FILLEDBOXES is still an experimental
>    configuration option, is this backwards-compatibility needed?

Probably not.  Somewhere we have to draw a borderline for support of
backwards compatibility.  Features that have never left EXPERIMENTAL
stauts, nor active in the default build certainly ought to be behind that
border.

> 2) I have not changed 'filledcurves' because there is no base 'curves'
>    plotting style. Should it be replaced by 'filled lines'? 

Not really.  But this may be seen as a sign that we need a 'with polygons'
plotting style (automatically closes each polyline found in the input),
and thus rename 'filledcurves' to 'filled polygons'.  I'd rather not call
that style 'curves', because it does not draw actual curved lines ---
they're still piecewise straight lines.

-- 
Hans-Bernhard Broeker (broeker@physik.rwth-aachen.de)
Even if all the snow were burnt, ashes would remain.


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