Units

Within the graphics output area, SAS/GRAPH defines an invisible grid of rows and columns. This grid consists of character cells as shown in Rows, Columns, and Cells in the Graphics Output Area.

The size and shape of these cells affect the size and appearance of your graph since each graphics element is drawn using units of cells. The size and shape of the cells are determined by the size of the graphics output area. They are also determined by the number of rows and columns that SAS/GRAPH has defined in the grid. You can control the number of rows by specifying the LROWS device parameter (for a landscape orientation) or the PROWS device parameter (for a portrait orientation). Similarly, the number of columns is controlled by the LCOLS (landscape) or PCOLS (portrait) device parameter.

It is not recommended that you change the number of rows and columns in the grid from the default for your device. If you must do so, you can specify the HPOS= and VPOS= graphics options. HPOS= overrides the value of LCOLS or PCOLS and sets the number of columns in the graphics output area. VPOS= overrides the value of LROWS or PROWS and sets the number of rows in the graphics output area.

Changing only the outer dimensions of the graphics output area (HSIZE= and VSIZE=) retains the cell size. However, this causes SAS/GRAPH to automatically recalculate the number of rows and columns, as illustrated in Changing HSIZE= and VSIZE= Changes Dimensions and Recalculates the Number of Rows and Columns.

Changing only the number of rows and columns (HPOS and VPOS) changes the size of the cells without altering the overall size of the output. Changing HPOS= and VPOS= Changes Cell Size shows how increasing the number of rows and columns reduces the size of the individual cells.

Suppose you use units of CELLS to control the size of the text in your graph while also changing the number of rows and columns. In this case the size of the text changes. If the cells are large (that is, HPOS= and VPOS= have small values), the text might not fit. If the cells are too small, the text might be too small to read. In this case, you can adjust the size of the text with the HEIGHT= statement option or the HTEXT= graphics option.

By default, most graphics elements are drawn using units of CELLS to determine their size. For example, the default character height for the TITLE1 definition is two cells; for all other text the default height is one cell.

Changing the cell size to control the size of one element, such as text, can distort other parts of your graph. Instead, you might want to change the type of units that SAS/GRAPH uses to control the size of the graphics elements. In addition to CELLS, you can use the following units:

The percent unit specification is often a good choice because it changes the height of the graphics elements in proportion to the size of the graphics output area.

You can specify the unit for individual graphics elements, or you can use the GUNIT= graphics option to set the units for most graphics element heights.