Comments on: New Features in R2008b and How to Ask for More http://blogs.mathworks.com/loren/2008/11/10/new-features-in-r2008b-and-how-to-ask-for-more/ Loren Shure works on design of the MATLAB language at <a href="http://www.mathworks.com/">The MathWorks</a>. She writes here about once a week on MATLAB programming and related topics. <br><br><a href="/images/loren-full.jpg"><img src="/images/loren.jpg"></a> Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:53:13 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.1 By: Ken Atwell http://blogs.mathworks.com/loren/2008/11/10/new-features-in-r2008b-and-how-to-ask-for-more/#comment-29864 Ken Atwell Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:32:05 +0000 http://blogs.mathworks.com/loren/2008/11/10/new-features-in-r2008b-and-how-to-ask-for-more/#comment-29864 James – Thanks for you comments concerning plotting, it is always a challenging balancing act for us to both modernize our out-of-the-box behavior and maintain backwards compatibility. Please do us the survey to communicate further to us. Not to be argumentative, but I contend that textbooks are in black and white for primarily economic reasons (the cost of printing). A (modern) computer display does not have to make this compromise, so it seems sensible to, by default, use color as a means to distinguish a plot line from the axis and other plot lines. Search the help for “Line Styles for Black and White Output” for dot-dash options should you needs to format a plot for black and white publication. Read on to the next section of the help for ways to make these settings “sticky” if you find yourself making the same tweaks again and again. Finally, there is the startup.m file to make these setting “very permanent”. Regards, KEN James –

Thanks for you comments concerning plotting, it is always a challenging balancing act for us to both modernize our out-of-the-box behavior and maintain backwards compatibility. Please do us the survey to communicate further to us.

Not to be argumentative, but I contend that textbooks are in black and white for primarily economic reasons (the cost of printing). A (modern) computer display does not have to make this compromise, so it seems sensible to, by default, use color as a means to distinguish a plot line from the axis and other plot lines. Search the help for “Line Styles for Black and White Output” for dot-dash options should you needs to format a plot for black and white publication. Read on to the next section of the help for ways to make these settings “sticky” if you find yourself making the same tweaks again and again. Finally, there is the startup.m file to make these setting “very permanent”.

Regards,
KEN

]]> By: Loren http://blogs.mathworks.com/loren/2008/11/10/new-features-in-r2008b-and-how-to-ask-for-more/#comment-29861 Loren Wed, 12 Nov 2008 12:18:46 +0000 http://blogs.mathworks.com/loren/2008/11/10/new-features-in-r2008b-and-how-to-ask-for-more/#comment-29861 James- I hope you will fill in the survey to air your thoughts. --Loren James-

I hope you will fill in the survey to air your thoughts.

–Loren

]]> By: James Cho http://blogs.mathworks.com/loren/2008/11/10/new-features-in-r2008b-and-how-to-ask-for-more/#comment-29860 James Cho Wed, 12 Nov 2008 07:48:47 +0000 http://blogs.mathworks.com/loren/2008/11/10/new-features-in-r2008b-and-how-to-ask-for-more/#comment-29860 I'd mostly like broad improvements to the plotting interface. At the end of the day, the numbers generated through the MATLAB code are what matter. We all spend so much time visualizing the data through plots of various types though that cycling through all the various settings and commands (and associated slowdowns, kludginess) with every plot really eats into analysis time. Just getting a plot to "look right" takes a fair amount of time. And why is the default plot line color blue instead of black? Every engineering textbook I have is printed in black and white. I’d mostly like broad improvements to the plotting interface. At the end of the day, the numbers generated through the MATLAB code are what matter. We all spend so much time visualizing the data through plots of various types though that cycling through all the various settings and commands (and associated slowdowns, kludginess) with every plot really eats into analysis time. Just getting a plot to “look right” takes a fair amount of time.

And why is the default plot line color blue instead of black? Every engineering textbook I have is printed in black and white.

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