Getting help
We have covered how to install Matplotlib and went over how to make very simple plots from a Python session or a Python script. Most likely, this went very smoothly for you. The rest of this book will focus on how to use Matplotlib to make an interactive application, rather than the many ways to display data. You may be very curious and want to learn more about the many kinds of plots this library has to offer, or maybe you want to learn how to make new kinds of plots.
Help comes in many forms. The Matplotlib website (http://matplotlib.org) is the primary online resource for Matplotlib. It contains examples, FAQs, API documentation, and, most importantly, the gallery.
Gallery
Many users of Matplotlib are often faced with the question, "I want to make a plot that has this data along with that data in the same figure, but it needs to look like this other plot I have seen." Text-based searches on graphing concepts are difficult, especially if you are unfamiliar with the terminology. The gallery showcases the variety of ways in which one can make plots, all using the Matplotlib library. Browse through the gallery, click on any figure that has pieces of what you want in your plot, and see the code that generated it. Soon enough, you will be like a chef, mixing and matching components to produce that perfect graph.
Mailing lists and forums
When you are just simply stuck and cannot figure out how to get something to work or just need some hints on how to get started, you will find much of the community at the Matplotlib-users mailing list. This mailing list is an excellent resource of information with many friendly members who just love to help out newcomers. Be persistent! While many questions do get answered fairly quickly, some will fall through the cracks. Try rephrasing your question or with a plot showing your attempts so far. The people at Matplotlib-users love plots, so an image that shows what is wrong often gets the quickest response. A newer community resource is StackOverflow, which has many very knowledgeable users who are able to answer difficult questions.
