Indicates any special deals by which you can obtain a package at less than the full commercial cost.

Possible entries are -

Description gives a very brief summary of what a package is, to give you a quick idea of its intended application area.

Entry is ‘Yes’ if there is further information in the ‘Creative graphics matrix’ section, otherwise ’No’.

Entry is ‘Yes’ if there is further information in the ‘Data Driven graphics matrix’ section otherwise ’No’.

This entry tells you what sort of machine you need in order to run a package.

Platform indicates the hardware, and operating system if relevant - for example Windows', 'Mac', 'Unix'.

Web site URL’s of interest. These may be the application vendor or possibly a user group page. Blank if no site exists.

Indicates any special facilities you need in order to get the most out of the package. If extra clipart for instance is supplied on CD, enter ‘CD’ here.

Usually ‘Yes’ or ‘No’. Many packages support some form of scripting language to allow extensions to the functionality of the application.

This entry tells you about the general overall appearance of each package.

User interface is usually ‘WIMP’ on PCs and Macs - for "Windows /images/ Menus and Pointer". In this case you can control programs by pointing and clicking with a mouse, and manipulating windows and icons on your computer screen. The main alternatives are menu-based programs - driven by a mouse or the keyboard, and command-driven programs.

Can be ‘Yes’ if there is any help information within a package, or ‘No’. If ‘Yes’, the help available is often enough to let you run the package without extensive documentation.

Package supports Object Linking and Embedding for MS Windows. This allows graphics objects created by one piece of software to be embedded in a graphical object created by another but still maintain it’s link with the original software - i.e. any changes made to the object will start up the original package and allow you to edit the original object .

Most packages simply use the fonts which are available on their host computer, though some provide extra ones. The type of extra fonts which are available with the package are shown here, i.e. ‘Truetype’. (See the entry for typeface in the glossary for a definition of the terms 'font' and 'typeface' as used in the matrix.)

Number of fonts supplied.

Is ‘Yes’ if the package can show a sequence of images, either under control or unattended, to support a talk or as an unattended demonstration.

Is ‘Yes’ if you can store general attributes without specific data, to act as templates for future productions; otherwise ‘No’.

Is ‘Yes’ if the package includes a library of graphics images for inclusion in your charts, otherwise ‘No’.

Is ‘Yes’ if you can tell the package to save your work every so often, or ‘No’ if you have to remember to save it yourself.

Is ‘Yes’ if the package supports the internationally recognised Pantone system of specifying colours, otherwise ‘No’. This feature is particularly important if you need to get the best output from bureaux.

Most Windows and Macintosh packages rely on their host system to deal with printers etc. Any extra facilities provided by individual packages are listed in this section, an example of this might be a 35mm type driver.

Either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ - indicates whether or not you can edit your data within a package before display.

Can be ‘No’, 'simple' (meaning that you can do simple transformations of data), or 'complex' (if you can carry out complex calculations on the data before displaying it - calculations such as those which you can perform in spreadsheets).

Tells you if a change to the data or alteration of the graph is automatically represented by an update of the other (i.e. the data or the graphical display)

Is either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’, to indicate whether a package can calculate statistical information about your data - such as mean and standard deviation.

Indicates the number of variables the package can handle.

Indicates the number of data points for each variable that the package can handle.

Indicates what the package does with missing values in your data. Packages with statistical capability tend to do something sensible with such cases, while other packages might ignore them or substitute a special value.

Indicates that data interpolation methods are available in the package. These vary and only a general indication is given, reference to the documentation should be made for more specific details.

The cell entries may be ‘No’, ‘2D’, ‘3D’, ’2D+3D’.

2D indicates support for 2D data. - i.e. parametric interpolation etc., similarly 3D indicates support for 3D data - i.e. irregular data converted to regular grid etc.

Indicates if error bars supported - applies to line charts. Entries may be ‘No’, ‘X-axis’, ‘Y-axis’, ‘Both’. Sometimes error-bars are also applied to other types of graphs, in such cases an entry (R) will appear in the ‘Graph Type’ cell., i.e. a bar/column chart supporting error-bars would have an (R) entry.

Shows there are curve fitting options. These vary and only an indication ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ is given, reference to the documentation should be made for more specific details.

Indicates if maths functions be plotted directly, for example from an equation. Entry is ‘Yes’ or ‘No’

Indicates that adjustment of the viewing position for 3-D graphical objects supported. Entry is ‘Yes’ or ‘No’

If the value of data points can be displayed by clicking at a position on the graph, entry is ‘Yes’ otherwise ‘No’

The Axis topics refer to the actual line which makes up the axis, and the positioning of axes.

The Axis labelling topics refer to the various text items with which you can embellish an axis.

The Tick mark topics concern the appearance and labelling of the tick marks along the axis.

Is ‘Yes’ if the package lets you add a title, otherwise ’No’.

Is ‘Yes’ if you can add text anywhere on the chart, for example to act as a key, otherwise ‘No’.

Is ‘Yes’ if you can label individual points in the graph, 'yes, some' if you have some scope for labelling points, otherwise ‘No’.

Is ‘Yes’ if you can add general annotation to the chart, otherwise ‘No’.

Is ‘Yes’ if the package allows you to adjust the size of the chart, otherwise ‘No’. It is useful if you can do this: while it won't make any difference to what you see on the screen, you get the best quality when adding a graphic to a printed document if you get its size right in the graphics package, rather than having to adjust its size in the printed document.

Gives you an idea of what backgrounds you can add to your chart. The main choices are 'coloured' (a plain coloured background), 'bitmap' (meaning that you can import a picture, logo or other graphic to have as a chart background), 'pattern' (to have the package generate a background pattern), or 'graduated' (for a variably-shaded background). The presence of a background facility in a package doesn't tell you if it is 'easy' or 'difficult', just 'possible'.

Is ‘Yes’ if the package allows you to put a frame around the chart, otherwise ‘No’.

Is ‘Yes’ if the package lets you create and group several charts on a single page, otherwise ‘No’.

The range of styles and widths are indicated by a general indication :-

If the package allows the user to produce a customised linestyle or variable width a (u) is added after the entry.

Shows you how many different symbols a package can use in a chart. The range is :-

If the package allows the user to produce a customised symbol or change the size of an existing symbol a (u) is added after the entry.

Tells you the sort of fill styles which the package supports, for example to fill an area such as the segment of a pie chart or the area under a line graph. The range is :-

If the package allows the user to produce a customised fill pattern a (u) is added after the entry.

Gives you an idea of how many different colours are pre-defined in package. Colour range is more important in Creative graphics, a large range of simultaneously available colours is necessary to create realistic effects. The actual range of colours may be limited by the Graphics Card, in which cases dithering may be used.

Additionally the user may be allowed to specify their own colour choice from a palette. In such cases a (u) is added after the entry. This will almost always be the case for Creative Graphics facilities.