https://github.com/mcuntz/mcplot
A Python package with a plotting class and routines for publication-ready graphics
https://github.com/mcuntz/mcplot
colors colorscheme graphics matplotlib plotting publication-quality-plots python
Last synced: about 2 months ago
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A Python package with a plotting class and routines for publication-ready graphics
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/mcuntz/mcplot
- Owner: mcuntz
- License: other
- Created: 2024-10-01T22:23:15.000Z (over 1 year ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2025-05-30T22:17:28.000Z (9 months ago)
- Last Synced: 2025-09-25T03:38:15.054Z (5 months ago)
- Topics: colors, colorscheme, graphics, matplotlib, plotting, publication-quality-plots, python
- Language: Python
- Homepage: https://mcuntz.github.io/mcplot/
- Size: 35 MB
- Stars: 2
- Watchers: 1
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 0
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.rst
- Changelog: CHANGELOG.rst
- License: LICENSE
- Authors: AUTHORS.rst
- Zenodo: .zenodo.json
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README
mcplot
======
A Python package with a plotting class and routines for publication-ready graphics.
|DOI| |PyPI version| |Conda version| |License| |Build Status| |Coverage Status|
About mcplot
------------
``mcplot`` provides a class that combines methods to easily produce
publication-ready graphics on light or black background. It includes a
large number of colormaps collected from different sources. There are
a number of functions that help to position plots, number plot panels,
or write text on a graph.
The complete documentation of ``mcplot`` is available at:
https://mcuntz.github.io/mcplot/
Installation
------------
The easiest way to install is via `pip`:
.. code-block:: bash
python -m pip install mcplot
or via `conda`:
.. code-block:: bash
conda install -c conda-forge mcplot
Requirements
* numpy_
* matplotlib_
* pandas_
Calling a plotting script from the command line
-----------------------------------------------
``mcplot`` provides a class that has methods for opening and closing
different plotting backends, setting layout options, as well as having
a command line interface. A most basic example is using the method
`plot_test`, which just plots two sinusoidal curves. A file
`mcplot_test.py` could be:
.. code-block:: python
# file: mcplot_test.py
from mcplot import mcPlot
if __name__ == '__main__':
iplot = mcPlot(desc='Test mcPlot',
argstr='No argument wanted')
iplot.plot_test()
iplot.close()
This script `mcplot_test.py` can be called on the command line. '-h'
gives a short help:
.. code-block:: bash
python mcplot_test.py -h
gives the help message::
usage: mcplot_test.py [-h] [-o plotname] [-s] [-t outtype] [-u]
[-w] [--dpi number] [--transparent] [args ...]
Test mcPlot
positional arguments:
args No argument wanted
options:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-o plot_filename, --output plot_filename,
-p plot_filename, --plotname plot_filename
Name of plot output file for types pdf, html,
d3, or hvplot, and name basis for type png
(default: class_mcplot).
-s, --serif Use serif font; default sans serif.
-t outtype, --type outtype
Output type is pdf, png, html, d3, or hvplot
(default: open screen windows).
-u, --usetex Use LaTeX to render text in pdf, png and html.
-w, --white White lines on transparent or black background;
default: black lines on transparent or
white background.
--dpi number Dots Per Inch (DPI) for non-vector output types or
rasterized maps in vector output (default: 300).
--transparent Transparent figure background
(default: black or white).
--font name Font name or LaTeX package name
(default: DejaVuSans or DejaVuSerif (serif) and
MyriadPro or ComputerModern (serif) if --usetex
.. code-block:: bash
python mcplot_test.py
opens a standard Matplotlib plotting window with the test plot.
.. code-block:: bash
python mcplot_test.py -t pdf -o test1.pdf
writes the plot into the PDF file `test1.pdf` using the sans-serif
font `DejaVuSans` that comes with Matplotlib. It will use the serif
font DejaVueSerif with the command line option `-s`. It will use LaTeX
to render text with the `-u` option. `-u -s` uses LaTeX's standard
Computer Modern font. It uses MyriadPro as sans-serif font in LaTeX,
which must be installed (see section `Myriad Pro`_).
By default, ``mcPlot`` plots onto a DIN A4 page, which facilitates
choices of font sizes, etc. The output can easily be cropped with the
utility pdfcrop_ which can be acquired from CTAN_. The standard
subplots are on a 2x3 grid. The plot will be tightly cropped if the
output type is `png`. Plot resolution can be set for `png` as well
(`--dpi`) with standard being 300 dpi. PNG plots can have transparent
background (`--transparent`), for example to use in presentations.
The command line switch `-w` swaps foreground and backgroud colors,
i.e. uses white lines on black background. This is used if you do
presentations with black background.
In summary, the standard command line options allow to use the same
script to design a plot using plotting windows on screen, produce the
publication ready plots in a PDF file (`-t`, `-o`, `-u` options), and
make the same plot with dark background for presentations (`-t`, `-o`,
`-u`, `-w` options).
Using the plotting class
------------------------
The class `mcPlot` can be extended. One normally would have at least a
method to read data from a file and a method that produces a
plot. This could give a script such as:
.. code-block:: python
# file: mcplot_basic.py
import numpy as np
from mcplot import mcPlot
class myPlot(mcPlot):
def read_data(self):
# reading one file would use self.cargs[0] such as
# self.dat = np.loadtxt(self.cargs[0])
self.dat = np.arange(100)
def plot_fig_1(self):
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
# make axes
fig = plt.figure()
ax = fig.add_subplot(3, 2, 1)
# plot
xx = self.dat / self.dat.size * 4. * np.pi
line1 = ax.plot(xx, np.sin(xx))
plt.setp(line1, linestyle='-', linewidth=self.lw,
marker='', color=self.lcol1)
# show plot or write in file
self.plot_save(fig)
if __name__ == '__main__':
# open plot
iplot = myPlot(desc='A basic plot')
# read data
iplot.read_data()
# plot
iplot.plot_fig_1()
# close plot and possible output file
iplot.close()
The script could be called giving the name(s) of (an) input file(s) on
the command line, which is then accessible through `self.cargs`:
.. code-block:: bash
python mcplot_basic.py -t png -o basic. input.csv
Every time `self.plot_save(fig)` is called, a figure is written to the
output file. A PDF file can have multiple pages. For PNG files, only
the start of the output files is given (here *basic.*) and will be
extended by `f'{start}{self.ifig:04d}.png'`. The example would give
the outputfile `basic.0001.png`.
See the complete documentation of ``mcplot`` at: https://mcuntz.github.io/mcplot/
License
-------
``mcplot`` is distributed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE_ file
for details.
Copyright (c) 2021- Matthias Cuntz
.. |DOI| image:: https://zenodo.org/badge/866240152.svg
:target: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13893825
.. |PyPI version| image:: https://badge.fury.io/py/mcplot.svg
:target: https://badge.fury.io/py/mcplot
.. |Conda version| image:: https://anaconda.org/conda-forge/mcplot/badges/version.svg
:target: https://anaconda.org/conda-forge/mcplot
.. |License| image:: http://img.shields.io/badge/license-MIT-blue.svg?style=flat
:target: https://github.com/mcuntz/mcplot/blob/master/LICENSE
.. |Build Status| image:: https://github.com/mcuntz/mcplot/actions/workflows/main.yml/badge.svg
:target: https://github.com/mcuntz/mcplot/actions/workflows/main.yml
.. |Coverage Status| image:: https://coveralls.io/repos/github/mcuntz/mcplot/badge.svg?branch=main
:target: https://coveralls.io/github/mcuntz/mcplot?branch=main
.. _CTAN: https://www.ctan.org/pkg/pdfcrop
.. _LICENSE: https://github.com/mcuntz/mcplot/blob/main/LICENSE
.. _Myriad Pro: https://github.com/mcuntz/setup_mac?tab=readme-ov-file#myriad-pro
.. _matplotlib: https://matplotlib.org/
.. _netCDF4: https://github.com/Unidata/netcdf4-python
.. _numpy: https://numpy.org/
.. _pandas: https://pandas.pydata.org/
.. _pdfcrop: https://github.com/ho-tex/pdfcrop