7.2.6 Contour Labels

Click on the Contour Labels button to pop up a panel of controls which affect how contour labels are drawn.

Line Labels controls how label positions are chosen (what NCAR calls a penalty scheme). Select Off if no labels are desired. Select Quick & Dirty to employ a fast algorithm that may not produce the most readable plot. Choose Slow & Tidy if sparser, well-chosen labels are worth the extra time they take to generate.

Line Label Angle:

There are three options for the Line Label Angle at which contour line labels can be drawn:

  1. Horizontal: All labels are drawn from left to right across the screen.
  2. Tangent: All labels are drawn along a line tangent to the curve at that point.
  3. Constant: All labels are drawn at the same angle (not necessarily horizontal). Use the slider to choose the angle.
High/Low Labels:

To include labels for relative maxima and minima in a contour plot, turn this option On.

Label Boxes:

Contour line labels and High/Low labels can be drawn in their own boxes. These boxes may be:

  1. Outlined: a rectangle (using the current overlay color) is drawn around the box.
  2. Filled: a rectangle the color of the background is drawn behind the label text.
  3. Filled & Outlined.