<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote on Wed, 5 Jul 2000 15:47:22 +0200 (METDST):
> [... request for the best way to include incremented graphics
> produced by gnuplot and xfig ...]
>
> Stephan> I see four different possible ways:
>
> Stephan> a) export to metapost, embed the metapost code with emp
> Stephan> and insert \step commands wherever you want
>
> Stephan> b) use the xfig patch for generating different mpost
> Stephan> figures (dunno how this works).
>
> Stephan> c) export from xfig to eepic and insert steps in the
> Stephan> eepic code (don't know whether this has enough expressive
> Stephan> power for your pictures). Unfortunately, xfig doesn't
> Stephan> seem to support PSTricks export.
>
> Stephan> d) export from gnuplot to PSTricks and add \steps and any
> Stephan> decoration directly into the PSTricks code (xfig not used
> Stephan> here).
>
> The trouble with the route
>
> {xfig,gnuplot} -> any text format ->
> manually include \step commands to the text format -> latex the source
>
> is, that xfig or gnuplot don't necessarily write the text format in the
> right order in which you want to build your graphics. So you have to
> look at the text quite hard to see what \step[\value=n] you put
> where. I don't think it can be done when the graphics get more
> complex.
Ok, I overlooked this complication. So the best route seems
to be to sort your stuff into different layers in the order
it is to appear and then export to different mpost files
in the order of appearance (using the patched xfig),
exactly as you did.
> I wrote a macro tpmultiinc that uses \step to include the
> graphics step by step. I include it below. Does anyone have any
> comments on the implementation?
No. Looks perfect to me. I'm just wondering about
one thing: You're overlaying all previous pictures
on every subsequent slide, so the pictures have to
appear `transparent', otherwise the last one would
`overwrite' all the previous ones.
I assume this is ensured by the MetaPost parsing
algorithm of pdftex?
Can you use `solid' objects in your pictures?
And does the same technique work with LaTeX+dvips
as well, or would the `overwriting' effect occur
there?
Maybe it would be more safe and efficient to organize
the sequence of pictures such that every subsequent
mpost file contains everything from the previous ones?
Is this possible with the patched version of xfig?
> With using the multiple metapost output from xfig and the tpmultiinc
> macro in the latex source I avoided [order problems]. Besides I don't
> have to edit the source every time I change the figure in xfig.
Sounds great. If you're indeed using this technique for
your talk, may I ask for permission to include the
presentation in
http://lrb.cs.uni-dortmund.de/~lehmke/texpower/gallery
?
regards
Stephan
--
Stephan Lehmke [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Fachbereich Informatik, LS I Tel. +49 231 755 6434
Universitaet Dortmund FAX 6555
D-44221 Dortmund, Germany
