5.1 The Graphics Window

It is possible to use several graphics windows ScilabGraphicx x being the number used for the management of the windows, but at any time only one window is active. On the main Scilab window the button Graphic Window x is used to manage the windows : x denotes the number of the active window, and we can set (create), raise or delete the window numbered x : in particular we can directly create the graphics window numbered 10. The execution of a plotting command automatically creates a window if necessary.

We will see later that Scilab uses a graphics environment defining some parameters of the plot, these parameters have default values and can be changed by the user; every graphics window has its specific context so the same plotting command van give different results on different windows.

There are 4 buttons on the graphics window:

• 3D Rot.: for applying a rotation with the mouse to a 3D plot. This button is inhibited for a 2D plot. For the help of manipulations (rotation with specific angles ...) the rotation angles are given at the top of the window.
• 2D Zoom: zooming on a 2D plot. This command can be recursively invoked. For a 3D plot this button is not inhibited but it has no effect.
• UnZoom: return to the initial plot (not to the plot corresponding to the previous zoom in case of multiple zooms).

  These 3 buttons affecting the plot in the window are not always in use; we will see later that there are different choices for the underlying device and zoom and rotation need the record of the plotting commands which is one of the possible choices (this is the default).

• File: this button opens different commands and menus.

  The first one is simple : Clear simply rubs out the window (without affecting the graphics context of the window).

  The command Print... opens a selection panel for printing. The printers are defined in the main scilab script SCIDIR/bin/scilab (obtained by ``make all'' from the origin file SCIDIR/bin/scilab.g).

  The Export command opens a panel selection for getting a copy of the plot on a file with a specified format (Postscript, Postscript-Latex, Xfig).

  The save command directly saves the plot on a file with a specified name. This file can be loaded later in Scilab for replotting.

  The Close is the same command than the previous Delete Graphic Window of the menu of the main window, but simply applied to its window (the graphic context is, of course deleted).