ps.map

## NAME

ps.map - Hardcopy PostScript map output utility.

## KEYWORDS

postscript, map, printing

## SYNOPSIS

ps.map
ps.map help
ps.map [-rpe] [input=string] [output=string] [scale=mapscale] [copies=string]

### Flags:

-r
  Rotate plot 90 degrees
-p
  Print paper formats ( name width height left right top bottom(margin) )
-e
  Create EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) instead of PostScript file

### Parameters:

input=string
  File containing mapping instructions (or use input=- to enter from keyboard)
output=string
  PostScript output file
scale=mapscale
  Scale of the output map, e.g. 1:25000 (default: Auto-sized to fit page)
copies=string
  Number of copies to print

## CHANGES BETWEEN VERSION 5.0.x/5.4.x and 6.0

- Devices and ps.select do not exist any more. Paper is defined in paper instruction.
- vpoints are used instead of sites (points are read from vector).
- vector is substituted by vpoints, vlines and vareas.
- Symbols are used instead of icons (different format and directory).
- Map legend can be printed in columns.

## DESCRIPTION

ps.map produces an output file containing a PostScript program to produce hardcopy map products on your system's PostScript output device. Output can include a raster map, any number of vector overlays, text labels, and other spatial data.

This program has two distinct modes of operation. The command-line mode requires the user to prepare a file of mapping instructions prior to running ps.map that describes the various spatial and textual information to be printed. The interactive mode (i.e., no command-line arguments) will prompt the user for items to be mapped and does not require the user to prepare a file of instructions (n.b., some options are not used in interactive mode).

The order of commands is generally unimportant but may affect how some layers are drawn. For example to plot vpoints above vareas list the vpoints entry first.

The command-line parameters are:

input=name
  File containing mapping instructions. (or enter input=- to enter from keyboard). These instructions are described in detail below. If omitted, instructions can be piped from stdin.

output=name
  Name of output the file to contain the PostScript program.

scale=mapscale
  (depreciated)
  Scale of the output map, e.g. 1:25000
  Default: Auto-sized to fit page
  This parameter is provided as a convenience. It is identical to the scale mapping instruction described below. NOTE: Using "scale" from the command line is depreciated and while still provided for compatibility reasons it will be removed in the future. Please use the "scale" mapping instruction instead.

copies=n
  Number of copies to print.
  This parameter is provided as a convenience. It is identical to the copies mapping instruction described below.

## MAPPING INSTRUCTIONS

Instruction keywords:
[ colortable | comments | copies | eps | geogrid | greyrast | grid | group | header | labels | line | mapinfo | maploc | maskcolor | outline | paper | point | psfile | raster | read | rectangle | region | rgb | scale | scalebar | setcolor | text | vareas | vlines | vpoints | verbose | vlegend | end ]

The mapping instructions allow the user to specify various spatial data to be plotted. These instructions are normally prepared in a regular text file using a system editor. Some instructions are single line instructions while others are multiple line. Multiple line instructions consist of the main instruction followed by a subsection of one or more additional instructions.

One "pixel" is 1/72 of an inch.

Instructions that may be included in the subsection under several different main instructions are:

where x y
  The top left corner of the bounding box of the item to be plotted is located x inches from the left edge of the paper and y inches from the top edge of the paper. If x is less than or equal to zero, the default horizontal location is used. If y is less than or equal to zero, the default vertical location is used.
font font name
  The name of the PostScript font. Fonts present in all PostScript implementations are: `Times-Roman, Times-Italic, Times-Bold, Times-BoldItalic, Helvetica, Helvetica-Oblique, Helvetica-Bold, Helvetica-BoldOblique, Courier, Courier-Oblique, Courier-Bold, and Courier-BoldOblique`.
  The default is Helvetica.
fontsize font size
  The size of the PostScript font (in 1/72nds of an inch). The default is 10.

## colortable

Prints the color table for the raster map layer anywhere on the page.

    USAGE:	colortable [y|n]
    	where x y
    	raster raster file
    	range minimum maximum
    	width table width
    	height table height (FP legend only)
    	cols table columns
    	font font name
    	fontsize font size
    	color text color
    	nodata [Y|n]
    	tickbar [y|N]
    	end

The color table will display the colors for each raster map layer category value and the category label. If raster is omitted, the colortable defaults to a previously registered raster layer. The legend's range can be adjusted for floating point rasters, but if set beyond the extent of the map's range be sure that you have set up color rules with r.colors which cover this range. The default location for the colortable is immediately below any other map legend information, starting at the left margin. The default text color is black. Omitting the colortable instruction would result in no color table. For floating point legends width is width of color band only. height is used only for floating point legend. Adding the nodata n instruction will prevent the "no data" box from being drawn (category based legends only). Adding the tickbar y instruction will change the tick mark style so that ticks are drawn across the color table instead of protruding out to the right (floating point legends only).

Note: Be careful about asking for color tables for raster map layers which have many categories, such as elevation. This could result in the printing of an extremely long color table!!!!!

Another issue is that the color table only includes categories which have a label. If there are only a few categories, you can use r.support to manually add labels. If there are too many categories to do this, you could write a script to add dummy labels to the cats file
(<gisdbase>/<location>/<mapset>/cats/<mapname>).

This example would print a color table immediately below any other map legend information, starting at the left margin, with 4 columns:

    EXAMPLE:
    	colortable y
            cols 4
            width 4
            end

## comments

Prints comments anywhere on the page.

    USAGE:	comments commentfile
    	where x y
    	font font name
    	fontsize font size
    	color text color
    	end

The default location is immediately below the last item item printed, starting at the left margin. The default text color is black.

If you wish to use parentheses spanning multiple lines you will need to quote them with a backslash to prevent the PostScript interpreter from getting confused. e.g. '`\(`' and '`\)`'

This example prints in blue whatever is in the file veg.comments starting at 1.5 inches from the left edge of the page and 7.25 inches from the top of the page, using a 15/72 inch Helvetica Bold font.

    EXAMPLE:
    	raster vegetation
    	comments veg.comments
    	where 1.5 7.25
    	font Helvetica Bold
    	fontsize 15
    	color blue
    	end

Presumably, the file veg.comments contain comments pertaining to the raster map layer vegetation, such as "This map was created by classifying a LANDSAT TM image".

## copies

Specifies the number of copies to be printed.

    USAGE:	copies n

Each page will be printed n times.

## eps

Places EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) pictures on the output map.

    USAGE:	eps east north
    	eps x% y%
    	epsfile EPS file
    	scale #
    	rotate #
    	masked [y|n]
    	end

The EPS picture location is entered in the main instruction line by giving either the map coordinates or by using percentages of the geographic region. The user must specify full EPS file path epsfile. The user may also specify the scale of the icon (default is 1.0), the rotate i.e. rotation in degrees (default is 0) and whether the point is to be masked by the current mask. (See manual entry for r.mask for more information on the mask.)

This example would place a EPS file ./epsf/logo.eps at the point (E456000 N7890000). This picture would be rotated 20 degrees clockwise, 3 times bigger than in original file and would not be masked by the current mask.

    EXAMPLE:
    	eps 456000 7890000
    	epsfile ./epsf/logo.eps
    	scale 3
    	rotate 20
    	masked n
    	end

Of course, multiple EPS pictures may be drawn with multiple eps instructions.

## geogrid

Overlays a geographic grid onto the output map.

    USAGE:	geogrid spacing unit
    	color color
    	numbers # [color]
    	font font name
    	fontsize font size
    	width #
    	end

The spacing and spacing unit of the geographic grid is given on the main instruction line. The spacing unit is given as one of d for degrees, m for minutes, and s for seconds. The subsection instructions allow the user to specify the color of the geographic grid lines, whether coordinate numbers should appear on the geographic grid lines, the width of the lines (accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers), and if they should appear every grid line (1), every other grid line (2), etc., and what color the numbers should be. The defaults are black grid lines, unnumbered.

NOTE: The geogrid draws grid numbers on the east and south borders of the map.

This example would overlay a blue geographic grid with a spacing of 30 minutes onto the output map. Alternate grid lines would be numbered with yellow numbers.

    EXAMPLE:
    	geogrid 30 m
    	color blue
    	numbers 2 yellow
    	end

## greyrast

Selects a raster map layer for output in shades of grey.

    USAGE:	greyrast mapname|list

For each ps.map run, only one raster map layer can be requested (using either the greyrast or the raster instruction).

## grid

Overlays a coordinate grid onto the output map.

    USAGE:	grid spacing
    	color color
    	numbers # [color]
    	cross cross size
    	font font name
    	fontsize font size
    	width #
    	end

The spacing of the grid is given (in the geographic coordinate system units) on the main instruction line. The subsection instructions allow the user to specify the color of the grid lines, whether coordinate numbers should appear on the grid lines, and if they should appear every grid line (1), every other grid line (2), etc., and what color the numbers should be. The cross argument draws grid intersection crosses instead of grid lines, with cross size given in geographic coordinate system units. The defaults are black grid lines, unnumbered.

This example would overlay a green grid with a spacing of 10000 meters (for a metered database, like UTM) onto the output map. Alternate grid lines would be numbered with red numbers.

    EXAMPLE:
    	grid 10000
    	color green
    	numbers 2 red
    	end

## group

Selects an RGB imagery group for output.

    USAGE:	group groupname

This is similar to raster, except that it uses an imagery group instead of a raster map layer. The group must contain three raster map layers, comprising the red, green and blue bands of the image.

## header

Prints the map header above the map.

    USAGE:	header
    	file header file
    	font font name
    	fontsize font size
    	color text color
    	end

If the header instruction or the file sub-instruction is absent, the header will consist of the map TITLE and location, each centered on the page above the map. The default text color is black.

This example prints (in red) whatever is in the file soils.hdr above the map, using a 20/72 inch `Courier` font.

    EXAMPLE:
    	header
    	file soils.hdr
    	font Courier
    	fontsize 20
    	color red
    	end

## labels

Selects a labels file for output (see manual entry for v.label ).

    USAGE:	labels  labelfile|list
    	font font name
    	end

NOTE: ps.map can read new option 'ROTATE:' from labels file, which specifies counter clockwise rotation in degrees.

This example would paint labels from the labels file called town.names. Presumably, these labels would indicate the names of towns on the map.

    EXAMPLE:
    	labels town.names
    	end

## line

Draws lines on the output map.

    USAGE:	line east north east north
    	line x% y% x% y%
    	color color
    	width #
    	masked [y|n]
    	end

The beginning and ending points of the line are entered on the main instruction. These points can be defined either by map coordinates or by using percentages of the geographic region. The user may also specify line color, width in pixels (accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers), and if the line is to be masked by the current mask. (See manual entry for r.mask for more information on the mask.)

This example would draw a yellow line from the point x=10% y=80% to the point x=30% y=70%. This line would be 2 pixels wide and would appear even if there is a mask.

    EXAMPLE:
    	line 10% 80% 30% 70%
    	color yellow
    	width 2
    	masked n
    	end

Of course, multiple lines may be drawn with multiple line instructions.

## mapinfo

Prints the portion of the map legend containing the scale, grid and region information, on or below the map.

    USAGE:	mapinfo
    	where x y
    	font font name
    	fontsize font size
    	color text color
    	background box color|none
    	border color|none
    	end

The default location is immediately below the map, starting at the left edge of the map. The default text color is black. The default background box color is white.

border will draw a border around the legend using the specified color. (see NAMED COLORS below)

This example prints (in brown) the scale, grid and region information immediately below the map and starting 1.5 inches from the left edge of the page, using a 12/72 inch `Courier` font.

    EXAMPLE:
    	mapinfo
    	where 1.5 0
    	font Courier
    	fontsize 12
    	color brown
    	end

## maploc

Positions the map on the page.

    USAGE:	maploc  x y [width height]

The upper left corner of the map will be positioned x inches from the left edge of the page and y inches from the top of the page. If width and height (in inches) are present, the map will be rescaled, if necessary, to fit.

This example positions the upper left corner of the map 2.0 inches from the left edge and 3.5 inches from the top edge of the map.

    EXAMPLE:
    	maploc 2.0 3.5

## maskcolor

Color to be used for mask.

    USAGE:	maskcolor  color

## outline

Outlines the areas of a raster map layer with a specified color.

    USAGE:	outline
    	color  color
    	width  width of line in pixels
    	end

Distinct areas of the raster map will be separated from each other visually by drawing a border (or outline) in the specified color (default: black). For width the program accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers. Note: it is important the user enter the instruction end even if a color is not chosen. (It is hoped that in the future the outline of a different raster map layer other than the one currently being painted may be placed on the map.)

This example would outline the category areas of the soils raster map layer in grey.

    EXAMPLE:
    	raster soils
    	outline
    	color grey
    	width 2
    	end

## paper

Specifies paper size and margins.

    USAGE:	paper paper name
    	point
    	height #
    	width #
    	left #
    	right #
    	bottom #
    	top #
    	end

paper may select predefined paper name (a4,a3,a2,a1,a0,us-legal,us-letter,us-tabloid). Default paper size is a4. The measures are defined in inches. left, right, bottom and top are paper margins. If the plot is rotated with the -r command line flag, measures are applied to the rotated page.

    EXAMPLE:
    	paper a3
    	end

    EXAMPLE:
    	paper
    	width 10
    	height 10
    	left 2
    	right 2
    	bottom 2
    	top 2
    	end

## point

Places additional points or icons on the output map.

    USAGE:	point east north
    	point x% y%
    	color color
    	fcolor color
    	symbol symbol group/name
    	size #
    	masked [y|n]
    	end

The point location is entered in the main instruction line by giving either the map coordinates or by using percentages of the geographic region. The user may also specify the point color, the size is size of symbol in point and whether the point is to be masked by the current mask. (See manual entry for r.mask for more information on the mask.)

This example would place a purple diamond (from icon file diamond) at the point (E456000 N7890000). This diamond would be the the size of a 15 points and would not be masked by the current mask.

    EXAMPLE:
    	point 456000 7890000
    	fcolor purple
    	color black
    	symbol basic/diamond
    	size 15
    	masked n
    	end

Of course, multiple points may be drawn with multiple point instructions.

## psfile

Copies a file containing PostScript commands into the output file.

Note: ps.map will not search for this file. The user must be in the correct directory or specify the full path on the psfile instruction. (Note to /bin/csh users: ~ won't work with this instruction).

    USAGE:	psfile filename

This example copies the file "logo.ps" into the output file.

    EXAMPLE:
    	psfile logo.ps

## raster

Selects a raster map layer for output.

    USAGE:	raster mapname|list

For each ps.map run, only one raster map layer (or set of layers or imagery group; see below) can be requested. If no raster map layer is requested, a completely white map will be produced. It can be useful to select no raster map layer in order to provide a white background for vector maps.

Note that an imagery group selected with the group option, or a set of three raster layers selected with the rgb option, count as a raster map layer for the purposes of the preceding paragraph.

This example would paint a map of the raster map layer soils.

    EXAMPLE:
    	raster soils

## read

Provides ps.map with a previously prepared input stream.

    USAGE:	read previously prepared UNIX file

Mapping instructions can be placed into a file and read into ps.map.

Note: ps.map will not search for this file. The user must be in the correct directory or specify the full path on the read instruction. (Note to /bin/csh users: ~ won't work with this instruction).

This example reads the UNIX file pmap.roads into ps.map. This file may contain all the ps.map instructions for placing the vector map layer roads onto the output map.

    EXAMPLE:
    	read pmap.roads

The user may have created this file because this vector map layer is particularly useful for many ps.map outputs. By using the read option, the user need not enter all the input for the vector instruction, but simply read the previously prepared file with the correct instructions.

## rectangle

Draws rectangle on the output map.

    USAGE:	rectangle east north east north
    	rectangle x% y% x% y%
    	color color
    	fcolor fill color
    	width #
    	masked [y|n]
    	end

The two corners of the rectangle are entered on the main instruction. These points can be defined either by map coordinates or by using percentages of the geographic region. The user may also specify line color, fill color fcolor, width in pixels (accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers), and if the rectangle is to be masked by the current mask. (See manual entry for r.mask for more information on the mask.)

This example would draw a yellow rectangle filled by green from the point x=10% y=80% to the point x=30% y=70%. This line would be 2 pixels wide and would appear even if there is a mask.

    EXAMPLE:
    	rectangle 10% 80% 30% 70%
    	color yellow
    	fcolor green
    	width 2
    	masked n
    	end

Of course, multiple rectangles may be drawn with multiple rectangle instructions.

## region

Places the outline of a smaller geographic region on the output.

    USAGE:	region regionfile|list
    	color color
    	width #
    	end

Geographic region settings are created and saved using the g.region module. The ps.map region option can be used to show an outline of a smaller region which was printed on a separate run of ps.map on other user-created maps.

The user can specify the color and the width in pixel units (accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers) of the outline. The default is a black border of one pixel width.

This example would place a white outline, 2 pixels wide, of the geographic region called fire.zones onto the output map. This geographic region would have been created and saved using g.region.

    EXAMPLE:
    	region fire.zones
    	color white
    	width 2
    	end

## rgb

Selects three raster map layers for output as an RGB color image.

    USAGE:	rgb red green blue

This is similar to raster, except that it uses three raster map layers instead of a single layer. The three layers are composed to form a color image, similar to d.rgb.

For each layer, only one of the components of the layer's color table is used: the red component for the red layer, and so on. This will give the desired result if all of the layers have a grey-scale color table, or if each layer's color table uses the hue appropriate to the layer.

## scale

Selects a scale for the output map.

    USAGE:	scale scale

The scale can be selected either as:

  a relative ratio, e.g. 1:25000;
  an absolute width of the printed map, e.g. 10 inches;
  the number of printed paper panels, e.g. 3 panels .I (at the present time, only 1 panel is supported);
  the number of miles per inch, e.g. 1 inch equals 4 miles.

This example would set the scale of the map to 1 unit = 25000 units.

    EXAMPLE:
    	scale 1:25000

## scalebar

Draws a scalebar on the map.

    USAGE:	scalebar [f|s]
    	where x y
    	length scale length
    	height scale height
    	segment no. segments
    	numbers #
    	fontsize font size
    	background [Y|n]
    	end

Draw one of two types of scale bar. Fancy (f) draws alternating black and white scale boxes. Simple (s) draws a plain line scale. The default type is fancy. The subsection instructions allow the user to set where the scalebar is placed, the length of the scalebar (in geographic coordinate system units), the height of the scalebar in inches, and the number of segments (or tics for simple). The number of annotations numbers every n-th segment. The background command can turn off the background box for the text.

The scalebar length is the only required argument. The defaults are a fancy scalebar with 4 segments, each segment labeled, and a height of 0.1 inches. The default location is 2 inches from the top of the page and halfway across.

NOTE: The scalebar is centered on the location given.

This example draws a simple scalebar 1000 meters (for a metered database, like UTM) long, with tics every 200 meters, labeled every second tic. The scalebar is drawn 5 inches from the top and 4 inches from the left and is 0.25 inches high.

    EXAMPLE:
    	scalebar s
    	where 4 5
    	length 1000
    	height 0.25
    	segment 5
    	numbers 2
    	end

## setcolor

Overrides the color assigned to one or more categories of the raster map layer.

    USAGE:	setcolor cat(s) color

This example would set the color for categories 2,5 and 8 of the raster map layer watersheds to white and category 10 to green. (NOTE: no spaces are inserted between the category values.)

    EXAMPLE:
    	raster watersheds
    	setcolor 2,5,8 white
    	setcolor 10 green

Of course, setcolor can be requested more than once to override the default color for additional categories. More than one category can be changed for each request by listing all the category values separated by commas (but with no spaces).

## text

Places text on the map.

    USAGE:	text  east north text
    	text  x% y% text
    	font fontname
    	color color|none
    	width #
    	hcolor color|none
    	hwidth #
    	background color|none
    	border color|none
    	fontsize font size
    	size #
    	ref reference point
    	xoffset #
    	yoffset #
    	opaque [y|n]
    	end

The user specifies where the text will be placed by providing map coordinates or percentages of the geographic region. The text follows these coordinates on the same instruction line. More than one line of text can be specified by notating the end of a line with \n (e.g. USA\nCERL).

The user can then specify various text features:

font: the PostScript font. Common possibilities are listed at the start of this help page. The default is `Helvetica`.

color (see NAMED COLORS below);

width of the lines used to draw the text to make thicker letters (accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers);

size and fontsize. size gives the vertical height of the letters in meters on the ground (text size will grow or shrink depending on the scale at which the map is painted). Alternatively fontsize can set the font size directly. If neither size or fontsize is given, a default font size of 10 will be used;

the highlight color (hcolor) and the width of the highlight color (hwidth);

the text-enclosing-box background color; the text box border color;

ref. This reference point specifies the text handle - what part of the text should be placed on the location specified by the map coordinates. Reference points can refer to: [lower|upper|center] [left|right|center] of the text to be printed; The default is center center, i.e the text is centered on the reference point.

yoffset, which provides finer placement of text by shifting the text a vertical distance in pixels from the specified north. The vertical offset will shift the location to the south if positive, north if negative;

xoffset, which shifts the text a horizontal distance in pixels from the specified east The horizontal offset will shift the location east if positive, west if negative;

whether or not the text should be opaque to vectors. Entering no to the opaque option will allow the user to see any vectors which go through the text's background box. Otherwise, they will end at the box's edge.

The following example would place the text SPEARFISH LAND COVER at the coordinates E650000 N7365000. The text would be a total of 3 pixels wide (2 pixels of red text and 1 pixel black highlight), have a white background enclosed in a red box, and be 500 meters in size. The lower right corner of the text would be centered over the coordinates provided. All vectors on the map would stop at the border of this text.

    EXAMPLE:
    	text 650000 7365000 SPEARFISH LAND COVER
    	font romand
    	color red
    	width 2
    	hcolor black
    	hwidth 1
    	background white
    	border red
    	size 500
    	ref lower left
    	opaque y
    	end

## vareas

Selects a vector map layer for output.

    USAGE:	vareas vectormap
    	layer # (layer number used with cats/where option)
    	cats list of categories (e.g. 1,3,5-7)
    	where SQL where statement like: vlastnik = 'Cimrman'
    	masked [y|n]
    	color color
    	fcolor color
    	width #
    	label label in legend
    	lpos position in legend
    	pat pattern file
    	pwidth #
    	scale #
    	end

The user can specify:

color - color of the vector lines or area boundaries;

fcolor - the area fill color;

width - width of the vectors lines or area boundaries in pixels (accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers);

masked - whether or not the raster map layer is to be masked by the current mask; (see manual entry r.mask for more information on the mask)

cats - which categories should be plotted (default is all);

label - for description in vlegend. Default is: map(mapset);

lpos - position vector is plotted in legend. If lpos is 0 then this vector is omitted in legend. If more vectors used the same lpos then their symbols in legend are merged and label for first vector is used.

pat - full path to pattern file. The pattern file contains header and simple PostScript commands. It is similar to EPS but more limited, meaning that while each pattern file is a true EPS file, most EPS files are not useful as pattern files because they contain restricted commands. Color and width of patterns are set by fcolor (red, green, ..., none, R:G:B) and width until overwritten in the pattern file. Pattern may be scaled with the scale command. Several standard hatching patterns are provided in `$GISBASE/etc/paint/patterns/`. Demonstrative images can be found on the GRASS Wiki site. You can also create your own custom pattern files in a text editor. Example of pattern file:

    %!PS-Adobe-2.0 EPSF-1.2
    %%BoundingBox: 0 0 10 10
    newpath
    5 0 moveto
    5 10 lineto
    stroke

scale - pattern scale

pwidth - pattern line width, width is used by pattern until the width is overwritten in pattern file.

    EXAMPLE:
    	vareas forest
    	color blue
    	width 1
    	masked y
    	cats 2,5-7
    	end

## vlines

Selects a vector map layer for output.

    USAGE:	vlines vectormap|list
    	type lines and/or boundaries
    	layer # (layer number used with cats/where option)
    	cats list of categories (e.g. 1,3,5-7)
    	where SQL where statement like: vlastnik = 'Cimrman'
    	masked [y|n]
    	color color
    	width #
    	cwidth #
    	hcolor color
    	hwidth #
    	offset #
    	coffset #
    	ref left|right
    	style  0-9
    	label label
    	lpos #
    	end

The user can specify:

color - color of the vector lines or area boundaries;

width - width of the vectors lines or area boundaries in pixels (accepts decimal points [floating points] as well as integers);

cwidth - width of the vectors lines. If cwidth is used then width of line is equal to cwidth * category value and width is used in legend;

hcolor - the highlight color for the vector lines;

hwidth - the width of the highlight color in pixels;

offset (experimental) - offset for the vectors lines in pixels for plotting parallel lines in distance equal to offset (accepts positive or negative decimal points). Useful to print streets with several parallel lanes;

coffset (experimental) - offset for the vectors lines. If coffset is used then offset of line is equal to coffset * category value and offset is used in legend;

ref (experimental) - line justification.

masked - whether or not the raster map layer is to be masked by the current mask; (see manual entry r.mask for more information on the mask);

style - the line style allows the vectors to be dashed in different patterns. This is done by typing a series of numbers (0's and 1's) in a desired sequence or pattern. Blanks and non-digit characters are recognized as 0's. Using 0 would allow the colors of the raster map layer (or the background color if no raster map layer was selected) to show through;

cats - which categories should be plotted (default is all);

label - for description in vlegend. Default is: map(mapset);

lpos - position vector is plotted in legend. If lpos is 0 then this vector is omitted in legend. If more vectors used the same lpos then their symbols in legend are merged and label for first vector is used.

    EXAMPLE:
    	vlines streams
    	color blue
    	width 2
    	hcolor white
    	hwidth 1
    	masked y
    	cats 2
    	label Streams - category 2
    	end

## vpoints

Selects vector point data to be placed on the output map

    USAGE:	vpoints vectormap
    	type point or/and centroid
    	layer # (layer number used with cats/where/sizecol options)
    	cats list of categories (e.g. 1,3,5-7)
    	where SQL where statement like: vlastnik = 'Cimrman'
    	masked [y|n]
    	color color
    	fcolor color
    	width #
    	eps epsfile
    	symbol symbol group/name
    	size #
    	sizecol attribute column used for symbol sizing
    	scale scaling factor for sizecol values
    	label legend label
    	lpos position in legend
    	end

The user may specify the the color of the sites (see section on NAMED COLORS below); the eps Encapsulated Postscript file to be used to represent the presence of a site (if '$' is used in the EPS file path it will be replaced by category number); and rotate in degrees for clockwise rotation (EPS files only).
The size of the icon (number of times larger than the size it is in the icon file) is typically given by the size option. Alternatively the size of the symbol or EPS graphic can be taken from an attribute column by using the sizecol command. The value given by sizecol may be scaled by using the scale factor setting (default scaling is 1.0).

    EXAMPLE:
    	vpoints windmills
    	color blue
    	symbol mills/windmill
    	size 10
    	end

## verbose

Changes the amount of talking ps.map will do.

    USAGE: verbose [0|1|2]

A higher value implies more chatter. The default is 2. This example sets the amount of chatter to a minimum.

    EXAMPLE:
    	verbose 0

## vlegend

Prints the portion of the map legend containing the vector information, on or below the map.

    USAGE:	vlegend
    	where x y
    	font font name
    	fontsize font size
    	width width of color symbol
    	cols number of columns to print
    	border color|none
    	end

The default location is immediately below the legend containing the scale, grid and region information, starting at the left edge of the map. If the where instruction is present and y is less than or equal to zero, the vector legend will be positioned immediately below the map, starting x inches from the left edge of the page.

width is the width in inches of the color symbol (for areas) in front of the legend text. The default is 1/24 * fontsize inches. cols is the number of columns to split the legend into. The default is one column. The maximum number of colums is 10, or equal to the number of legend entries if there are less than 10 entries.

border will draw a border around the legend using the specified color. (see NAMED COLORS below)

Alternatively, the user can create a custom legend by using the rectangle, point, and text instructions.

This example prints the vector legend immediately below the map and starting 4.5 inches from the left edge of the page, using a 12/72 inch Helvetica font.

    EXAMPLE:
    	vlegend
    	where 4.5 0
    	font Courier
    	fontsize 12
    	end

## end

Terminates input and begin painting the map.

    USAGE:	end

## NAMED COLORS

The following colors names are accepted by ps.map:

    aqua
    black
    blue
    brown
    cyan
    gray
    grey
    green
    indigo
    magenta
    orange
    purple
    red
    violet
    white
    yellow

For vectors and some plotting commands (vpoints, vlines, vareas, point, line, rectangle, and region) you can also specify 'none' or 'r g b' (e.g '255 0 0').

## EXAMPLE ps.map INPUT FILE

The following is an example of a ps.map script file. The file has been named spear.soils. For the purposes of illustration, the file is in two columns. This script file can be entered at the command line:

      ps.map input=spear.soils output=soils.ps

    raster soils
    outline
       color black
       width 1
       end
    comments soil.cmt
       where 1 6
       font Helvetica
       end
    colortable y
       where 1 6.5
       cols 4
       width 4
       font Helvetica
       end
    setcolor 6,8,9 white
    setcolor 10 green
    vlines roads
       width 2
       style 0111
       color grey
       masked n
       end
    vlegend
       where 4.5 0
       font Courier
       fontsize 8
       end
    text 30% 100% SPEARFISH SOILS MAP
       color red
       width 1
       hcolor black
       hwidth 1
       background white
       border red
       size 500
       ref lower left
       end
    line 606969.73 3423092.91 616969.73 3423092.91
       color yellow
       width 2
       end
    point 40% 60%
       color purple
       symbol basic/diamond
       size 25
       masked n
       end
    scale 1:125000
    scalebar f
       where 4.5 6.5
       length 5000
       height 0.05
       segment 5
       numbers 5
       end
    geogrid 60 s
       color blue
       numbers 2 yellow
       end
    paper a4
        end
    end

More samples can be found on the GRASS Wiki help site.

## INTERACTIVE MODE

If the user simply enters ps.map without arguments, then a simple prompting session occurs. Some, but not all of the non-interactive requests are available at this level.

## NOTES

The user can specify negative values for position of EPS-files in ps.map to move them outside the current region (to position a barscale or other legend entries).

For users wanting to use special characters (such as accented characters) it is important to note that ps.map uses `ISO-8859-1` encoding. This means that your instructions file will have to be encoded in this encoding. If you normally work in a different encoding environment (such as `UTF-8`), you have to transform your file to the `ISO-8859-1` encoding, for example by using iconv:

    iconv -f UTF-8 -t ISO_8859-1 utf_file > iso_file

## SEE ALSO

v.label

## AUTHOR

Paul Carlson, USDA, SCS, NHQ-CGIS
Modifications: Radim Blazek, Glynn Clements, Bob Covill, Hamish Bowman

Last changed: $Date: 2007/05/17 11:40:04 $

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