Simulate Surface

This dialog is used when you enter the Simulate Surface... command. It allows for the creation of a simulated 3D surface from a function of two variables f(x, y) by adding uniform Noise to it.

If the function expression contains terms that are recognizable as constants, e.g.: f(x) = z0 + a*x + b*y, QtiPlot detects them and displays a two column table on the right side of the dialog which contains input spin boxes that simplify the process of setting appropriate values for the detected constants.

On the left side of the input text pane for the analytical function there are three buttons. By pressing the first one, displaying the capital greek letter sigma Σ, a menu pops-up listing all built-in mathematical functions provided by QtiPlot. Pressing one of the actions from this menu copies the displayed function into the edit box at the position of the text cursor.

Clicking on the button displaying a pencil icon opens a menu which lists recently used functions. By pressing one of the menu items, the selected function is inserted into the edit text box at the current position of the cursor.

Clicking the Clear button removes the contents of the function definition text box.

The From and To input boxes are used to select the visible X and Y ranges for the simulated surface. The Columns and Rows controls from the Mesh group box help define the resolution of the surface in the X and Y dimension, respectivelly.

Finally, it is also possible to input a string in the Comment field of this dialog. If a non empty string is typed in this field, it will be displayed by the 3D legend objects instead of the mathematical formula of the analytical surface.