When you write GTL programs,
all axes are automatically managed for you. For example, in a LAYOUT
OVERLAY block, the overlay container decides
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the axis type of each axis (linear,
time, ...)
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the data range of each axis
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other axis characteristics, some
of which are derived from the current style.
Usually, the internal
techniques that are used to manage axes produce good default axes.
Occasionally, you might find some feature that you want to change.
Layout statements provide many axis options that change the default
axis behavior. This chapter shows how axes are managed by default
and the programming options that are available to you for changing
that behavior.
Note: This chapter discusses axis
features that are specific to an OVERLAY layout when it is the outermost
layout and not nested in another layout. Nesting layouts sometimes
causes interactions that affect the axis features. You should read
this chapter before reading about other layout types because this
chapter provides the basic principles of axis management. Be aware,
though, that the other layout types (for example, OVERLAYEQUATED,
OVERLAY3D, LATTICE, DATAPANEL, and DATALATTICE) also control axes.
Many of these layouts have similar although not identical options
to the OVERLAY layout. See the chapters on these other layouts for
detailed discussions on how they manage axes.