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Re: Clever Tricky Solutions

• To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
• Subject: [mg94328] Re: Clever Tricky Solutions
• From: Helen Read <hpr at together.net>
• Date: Wed, 10 Dec 2008 04:49:53 -0500 (EST)
• References: <27271771.1228394784179.JavaMail.root@m02> <ghavpg$o9j$1@smc.vnet.net> <200812081122.GAA15823@smc.vnet.net> <ghlmek$k3a$1@smc.vnet.net>
• Reply-to: HPR <read at math.uvm.edu>

Brett Champion wrote:
> On Dec 8, 2008, at 5:22 AM , congruentialuminaire at yahoo.com wrote:
> 
>> Hello MathGroup:
>>
>> Thanks to Helen, et.al. for helping me to understand more about this.
>>
>> I submitted a summarizing post [to MathGroup] about this simple,
>> common problem. Maybe it can help a new user past this simple problem.
>>
>> But reading Brett Champion's explanation about the behavioral change
>> baffles me. He explains that new options like Filling->Bottom
>> motivated the change to the PlotRange semantic.
>>
> 
> [I haven't looked up my afore-mentioned response, but some  
> clarification...]
> 
> This behaves the same in both V5 and V7:
> 
> g1 = Graphics[Disk[{0, 0}, 1], PlotRange -> {{-2, 2}, {-2, 2}}, Axes - 
>  > True,
>     Background -> Hue[0.2]];
> g2 = Graphics[Disk[{3, 3}, 1], PlotRange -> {{2, 4}, {2, 4}}, Frame ->  
> True,
>     Background -> Hue[0.8]];
> Show[g1, g2]
> 
> so I don't think Show has changed much if at all.

Actually, it has changed substantially.

Try this in V5 and V7.

p1 = Plot[x^2, {x, -3, 3}];
p2 = Plot[-Abs[x - 5], {x, -10, 10}];
Show[{p1, p2}]

And compare Show[{p2,p1}]

Prior to V6, Show did a decent job of combining PlotRanges automatically 
by default. Now it takes the PlotRange from the first graphic listed in 
Show. I find the pre-V6 behavior to be far preferable. 99% of the time, 
what I want is a nice combined view. On the rare occasion that I need 
something else, I can always specify a PlotRange explicitly. It's 
annoying to have to throw in PlotRange->Automatic every time I use Show. 
I'd like Automatic to be the default (as it was prior to V6).

> I agree that it would be nice if Show[] could do something better by  
> default, and hopefully it will in a future version.

That would be nice, but I think it does contradict what you said last 
year. At that time, you basically said that the new behavior of Show is 
a feature, not a bug.

-- 
Helen Read
University of Vermont

• Follow-Ups:
  • Re: Clever Tricky Solutions
    • From: Brett Champion <brettc@wolfram.com>

• References:
  • Re: Clever Tricky Solutions
    • From: congruentialuminaire@yahoo.com