GNUPlot Manual

94 gnuplot 4.0 36 SET-SHOW
36.57.5 Set style line
Each terminal has a default set of line and point types, which can be seen by using the command test.
set style line defines a set of line types and widths and point types and sizes so that you can refer to
them later by an index instead of repeating all the information at each invocation.
Syntax:
set style line {linetype
unset style line
show style line
| lt }
{linewidth | lw }
{pointtype | pt }
{pointsize | ps }
{palette}
The line and point types are taken from the default types for the terminal currently in use. The line
width and point size are multipliers for the default width and size (but note that here is
unaffected by the multiplier given on set pointsize).
The defaults for the line and point types is the index. The defaults for the width and size are both unity.
Linestyles created by this mechanism do not replace the default styles; both may be used.
Not all terminals support the linewidth and pointsize features; if not supported, the option will be
ignored.
Note that this feature is not completely implemented; linestyles defined by this mechanism may be used
with plot, splot, replot, and set arrow, but not by other commands that allow the default index to
be used, such as set grid.
If gnuplot was built with pm3d support, the special keyword palette is allowed as linetype for splots
(the 2d plot command ignores palette). In this case the line color is chosen from a smooth palette
which was set previously with the command set palette. The color value corresponds to the z-value
(elevation) of the splot.
Example: Suppose that the default lines for indices 1, 2, and 3 are red, green, and blue, respectively, and
the default point shapes for the same indices are a square, a cross, and a triangle, respectively. Then
set style line 1 lt 2 lw 2 pt 3 ps 0.5
defines a new linestyle that is green and twice the default width and a new pointstyle that is a half-sized
triangle. The commands
set style function lines
plot f(x) lt 3, g(x) ls 1
will create a plot of f(x) using the default blue line and a plot of g(x) using the user-defined wide green
line. Similarly the commands
set style function linespoints
plot p(x) lt 1 pt 3, q(x) ls 1
will create a plot of p(x) using the default triangles connected by a red line and q(x) using small triangles
connected by a green line.
splot sin(sqrt(x*x+y*y))/sqrt(x*x+y*y) w l pal
creates a surface plot using smooth colors according to palette. Note, that this works only on some
terminals.
See also set palette (p. 85), set pm3d (p. 82).
36.57.6 Plotting styles
The commands set style data and set style function change the default plotting style for subsequent
plot and splot commands.