Useful non-SEPlib programs

Note that the names of these programs all begin with a lower-case letter.

plas

plas reads in a human-readable ASCII version of the vplot graphics language and writes out standard binary vplot (the same stuff written into the output SEPlib data file by SEPlib graphics programs like Graph, Wiggle, Contour, Ta2vplot, Dots, etc...). plas is the inverse of pldb. plas is primarily used to convert the output of pldb back into regular vplot, but it can also be used to generate trivial vplot files from scratch. To do this, use your favorite editor (or even ``cat'' or ``echo'') to create an ASCII human-readable version of a vplot file, then use plas to turn it into a genuine (binary) vplot file. You can find the documentation for both the ASCII and binary vplot file formats in the vplot man page, although it is probably easier to learn by using pldb to generate a few examples from known files. (Note plas is not a SEPlib program: it does not begin with a capital letter. It does not read in or write out SEPlib history files!)

pldb

pldb reads a vplot file from standard input (not a SEPlib header file pointing to a vplot data file, but a raw vplot data file) and writes out a human-readable and editable ASCII version. By default the units are in integer ``vplot units'', 600 to the inch. You may find the options of pldb to express everything in units of inches or centimeters make the output ASCII vplot file easier to work with. pldb is often used to perform trivial editing operations on a vplot graphics file. For example, if you want to change the color of some object and can't easily regenerate the plot from scratch, you can convert the binary vplot to ASCII using pldb, edit one or two lines so the color changes and changes back again at the right times, and then use plas to turn the file back into standard binary vplot. (Note pldb is not a SEPlib program: it does not begin with a capital letter. It does not read in or write out SEPlib history files.) See also plas (the inverse of pldb).

pspen

The non-SEPlib version of Pspen; takes straight vplot files as input instead of SEPlib history files that point to vplot files.

tube

The non-SEPlib version of Tube; takes straight vplot files as input instead of SEPlib history files that point to vplot files.

vp_OverUnderAniso

Stack two or more vplot plots one over the other, with the first on bottom and the last on top. Stretch the files anisotropically to ``fill the screen''. The multiple plots to be stacked can be spread through multiple input files, or can be multiple frames of plots (separated by erases) within a single vplot file.

vp_OverUnderIso

Stack two or more vplot plots one over the other, with the first on bottom and the last on top. Do not stretch the files to ``fill the screen''; preserve aspect ratios. The multiple plots to be stacked can be spread through multiple input files, or can be multiple frames of plots (separated by erases) within a single vplot file.

vp_SideBySideAniso

Like vp_OverUnderAniso, but stacks plots side by side from left to right.

vp_SideBySideIso

Like vp_OverUnderIso, but stacks plots side by side from left to right.

vp_Unrotate

Unrotate old-style plots. (In former days SEPlib programs put the plot origin at the upper-left corner of the screen, with the X axis going down and the Y axis going left to right across the page.) Hopefully you will never have a need for this utility, but the past never completely dies.

vppen

The non-SEPlib version of Vppen; takes straight vplot files as input instead of SEPlib history files that point to vplot files. The user interface to vppen can be intimidating to the new user. Those intimidated may find the shells vp_OverUnderAniso, vp_OverUnderIso, vp_SideBySideAniso,
vp_SideBySideIso, and vp_Unrotate useful. These shells use vppen to do their work but have a much simpler user interface (since they aren't trying do to everything under the sun in one program). See also plas, pldb, tube, and the vplot manual pages.