Notes

Plots can be annotated using notes.

Notes are text boxes placed in HyperGraph 2D windows for labeling points, describing trends, and relating additional curve information.

In addition to the Note list, the Notes panel contains three tabs: Text, Attributes, and Attach To.



Figure 1.

Note List

The Note list displays the names of all the notes in the active window. Notes can be renamed, added, cut, copied, and pasted using the note list controls at the bottom of the list.

To edit a note, it must be either selected from the list or picked from the window.

Notes can be hidden or displayed. To hide a note, select the note from the note list or pick the note from the window and deactivate the check box next to the Note: field. To display a note, select the note and activate the check box.

The Cut, Copy, Paste, and Add buttons are used to maintain the note list. Notes can be copied and pasted into other windows. Notes can also be added and cut from the list.

Notes can be positioned anywhere in the window by clicking and dragging the note box to a new location. While moving, the note is represented by an empty box. Release the mouse button to place the note at its new position.

For more information on positioning notes, see Note Positioning.

Text

Once a note has been added to the note list, text and Templex expressions can be entered and formatted from the Text tab.

Enter note text in the note text box. Press Enter to create new lines. There is no limit to the number of lines a note can contain.
Expansion button
Click the expansion button, , to enlarge the note text box.
Font button
Click the font button, , to display the Font Selector dialog. The Font Selector dialog allows you to select font types, font styles, and font sizes for the note text.
Alignment
Text can be left aligned, right aligned, or centered in a note box by selecting the corresponding radio buttons to the right of the text box. Text alignment is updated automatically.
Apply
Click Apply to process any Templex statements contained in the note and display the text in the note box or to update existing text.
Text Edit Context Sensitive Menu
Right-click to display a text editing menu when the cursor is inside the text box. Once the menu is activated, it remains open until you perform a procedure. You can perform the following text editing procedures:
Undo
Discards the last change made to the contents of the text box.
Cut
Removes the highlighted text and places a copy of the text on the clipboard.
Copy
Place a copy of the highlighted text on the clipboard.
Paste
Inserts text from the clipboard.
Delete
Deletes the highlighted text.
Select All
Highlights all items in the text box.
Right-to-left reading order
Aligns the text to the right of the text box.

Templex Statements in Notes

Notes can contain Templex statements as well as math and string functions and operators. In fact, notes can be complete Templex templates. Templex enables you to include text from an external file, call external functions, assign variables, and perform math operations within a note.

Note: See Templex Reference for complete descriptions of the Templex statements and for more information on writing Templex templates.
Note: See Math Reference for more information on math and string functions and operators.

Below the note text box are six buttons that represent Templex variables that can be included in a note. For example, if a note contains the variables {X}, {Y}, and {Slope}, the X and Y values, as well as the slope of the curve at the attachment point, are displayed in the note. As the note’s attachment point changes, the Templex variables update automatically.

{X}
Displays the X value of the attachment point.
{Y}
Displays the Y value of the attachment point.
{T} or {Time}
Displays the time value of the attachment point.
{Label}
Displays the name of the curve containing the attachment point.
{Slope}
Displays the slope (first derivative) of the curve at the attachment point.
{Curv}
Displays the curvature (second derivative) of the curve at the attachment point.

Other Templex variables that can be included in a note are:

{x.note}
{y.note}
{t.note}
These can be applied if you are reading a curve from an external file, such as an ABF file or an external reader. Within the external file, there can be a particular request to which a note is assigned, or a note may be included to improve the understanding of the curve numbers, for example. The note is preserved in and accessed from the x, y, or t data vector when reading the curve from the external file.
{x.filename}
{y.filename}
{t.filename}
Displays the filename from which the data vector was derived. If the data vector is a math vector, no filename is displayed in the note.
{index}
Displays the index of the curve at the attachment point.

Vector data can be referenced in a note calculation using either of the following statements:

c#.vector
Where:
# is the number of a specific curve in the curve list of that plot.
vector (.x, .y, or .t) specifies either the X, Y, or Time vector for the specified curve.
For example, c1.x refers to the X vector of the first curve in the list. c#.vector can be used in notes attached to windows, views, and curves.
c@.vector
Where:
@ references the curve to which the note is attached.
vector (.x, .y, or .t) specifies either the X, Y, or Time vector for the curve to which the note is attached.
For example, c@.x refers to the X vector of the curve to which the note is attached. c@.vector can only be used in notes attached to curves.
Note: When using c#, # denotes the position of the curve as it appears in the curve list in the Define Curves panel, it is not related to the curve label.

Attributes

The Attributes tab on the Notes panel allows you to set the note border and text attributes.



Figure 2.
Apply To
You can choose to apply the attributes you select to the Selected Note, the Current Window, the Current Page, or All Pages.
Border Styles
Color Palette
Select a note box border style from the four listed, or click None to remove the border from the note box.
Pick a color from the color palette to change the color of the note box border and the note text.
Auto position
Activate Auto position to automatically position notes to avoid obscuring curves. The setting is saved to the session file and report template.
Font Icon
Click the font button, , to display the Font Selector dialog. The Font Selector dialog allows you to select font types, font styles, and font sizes for the note text.
Use Preferences
Click to use the preferences set in the preferences.mvw file.

Attach To

The Attach To tab allows you to specify how a note is displayed in the window.

Notes can be anchored one of four ways, which are described below. Once attached, notes can be positioned anywhere in the window. When a curve is either cut or copied, notes attached to the curve are also cut or copied. Notes can also be attached to curves using the Templex statements, attach_note_at and attach_note_to.



Figure 3.
Window
The note remains stationary when the plot is repositioned in the window.
View
The note moves with the plot when the plot is repositioned in the window.
Curve
A leader connects the note to a specific point on the curve and the note moves with the plot when the plot is repositioned in the window. This is not available for bar charts.
Coordinates
A leader connects the note to a specific point on the plot. This is not available for bar charts.