Using Unicode characters [new]
A new feature in gnuplot 4.4 allows you to use the Unicode character set in your graph's title and labels. This is a vast improvement over more cumbersome methods of entering special characters, but it does not work on all terminals. For example, PostScript does not support Unicode directly, but some implementations of the pdf and png terminals, and others, will work. The following example was created using the pngcairo
version of the png terminal. Which versions you have available will depend on the details of your operating system and gnuplot installation. A more general method for creating complex labels is given in the next recipe.
Getting ready
You will need some method of inputting Unicode characters. There are myriad ways of doing this, depending on your operating system, terminal program, text editor, and so on, and the details are beyond the scope of this book. In order to create the title for this example, incorporating the name of a famous Viking scientist...