Overview of iTool Visualization Types
A visualization type is an iTool component object class that contains core IDL graphic objects (IDLgrPlot objects, for example), other iTool visualization components, or both. Visualization type components can also contain data. A number of visualization types are predefined and included in the IDL iTools package. If none of the predefined types suits your needs, you can create your own visualization type by subclassing either from one of the predefined types or from the base IDLitVisualization class on which all of the predefined types are based.
The Visualization Type Creation Process
To create a new iTool visualization type, you will do the following:
- Choose an iTool visualization class on which your new visualization type will be based. In almost all cases, you will base new visualization types either on the IDLitVisualization class or on a visualization class that is itself based on IDLitVisualization. The IDLitVisualization class automatically handles selection, selection visuals, data ranges, and notification of data changes.
- Define the data parameters necessary to create a visualization of the new type.
- Define the properties of the visualization, and set default property values.
- Override methods used to get or set properties, react to changes in the underlying data, and clean up, as necessary.
This chapter describes the process of creating a new visualization type based on the IDLitVisualization class.
