The reality is that research, be it experimental or theoretical science, culminates in data analysis. Several software packages are available for data analysis, but in my experience, the best scientific software available is SPSS Sigma Plot. Though it is expensive, users of Sigma Plot would agree on the utility of this software as justification for the price.
Obtaining a simple graph is just a few clicks away. Graphs can be plotted in various ways such as bar graph, line, scatter or a combination of these. Other options include area plot, polar plot, pie chart, box plot or contour plot, as well as, various 3D plots. Data obtained from other instruments or formats can be readily imported into the program (the system offers over 20 different formats from operating systems such as Mac and Linux). Data importing can be specified based on how it is organized, such as white space, tab, or any specified delimiter.
Calculations and statistical analyses can be performed quickly and generating a formula is easy. User-defined equations can be stored and re-called for future use. Either an entire row/column or specific cells can be used as the data source for plotting graphs and multiple graphs can be plotted and aligned on a single page. Customization features include position setting of X- and Y-axes labels, the use of special characters and fonts, options in adding figure legends or headings and all are very convenient.
Graphs can be easily formatted or edited using the options provided and can then be copied and pasted to MSWord or MS power point. Moreover, direct exporting of a graph to a power point slide is possible and a transparent graph background can be selected, which is extremely useful. These graphs can be directly edited using Sigma Plot, as all graph details are retained, even if the original Sigma Plot file is no longer available in the system. This feature, although beneficial, does tend to increase the size of the file.
The new version offers several other advantages over the older ones. For example, more than one column can now have the same heading. Equations for smoothing data, regressions, slope, mean and standard deviation are available. Scaling is now automatically adjusted on both axes and is especially useful for the x-axis, as scaling of the x-dimension is usually not possible in other system packages. More than one notebook, file or graph sheet can be simultaneously opened and password protected. Files saved in the newest version cannot be opened in an older version although an option for saving a file in a compatible format is provided. Slight variations in graphs may occur when plots rendered in older versions are opened using the newest version.
Vikas Jain
Research Scholar
Indian Institute of Science
India