// Copyright (C) 2017 The Qt Company Ltd.
// SPDX-License-Identifier: LicenseRef-Qt-Commercial OR GFDL-1.3-no-invariants-only

/*!
    \title Qt Data Visualization Overview
    \page qtdatavisualization-overview.html
    \brief An overview of the Qt Data Visualization module.
    \ingroup explanation

    The Qt Data Visualization module provides a way to develop rapidly
    responding, complex, and dynamic 3D visualization for analytical demanding
    industries such as academic research and medical. Qt 3D Data Visualization
    provides 3D bars, scatter, and surface visualizations. Combining user
    interaction and real time 3D drawing visualizations enables creating user
    interfaces that use space effectively. Changing between 3D and 2D
    presentation enables truly utilizing the value of 3D in visualizing data.

    The look and feel of the graphs can be customized by using the predefined
    themes or defining new ones. In addition, scenes can be customized by
    specifying settings for the camera, and individual items can be customized
    by using predefined or user-defined meshes.

    Qt Data Visualization offers ready-made data proxies that can be used to
    visualize data from Qt item models and height maps. Each graph type has a
    basic proxy type, which accepts data in a format suitable for that
    visualization. For more information, see \l{Qt Data Visualization Data
    Handling}.

    End users can interact with the data presented by graphs in several ways,
    including rotating graphs, zooming into and out of data, selecting items,
    and viewing 2D slices of the 3D data for increased readability. For more
    information, see \l{Qt Data Visualization Interacting with Data}.

    \include maintenance-phase.qdocinc

    \section1 Graph Types

    The Qt Data Visualization module provides the following 3D graph types:

    \list
        \li \l{3D Bar Graphs}{3D bar graphs}
        \li \l{3D Scatter Graphs}{3D scatter graphs}
        \li \l{3D Surface Graphs}{3D surface graphs}
    \endlist

    The QAbstract3DGraph class subclasses a QWindow and provides a render loop
    for its own subclasses that implement the different graph types: Q3DBars,
    Q3DScatter, and Q3DSurface. The graph type determines how the data is
    presented.

    \section2 3D Bar Graphs

    3D bar graphs present data as 3D bars that are grouped by category. The
    Q3DBars class is used to create a graph and the QBar3DSeries and
    QBarDataProxy classes are used to set data to the graph, as well as to
    control the visual properties of the graph, such as draw mode and shading.
    In QML, the corresponding types are Bars3D, Bar3DSeries, and BarDataProxy.

    \image q3dbars-minimal.png

    For more information, see \l{How to construct a minimal Q3DBars graph}, and
    \l {Simple Bar Graph} examples.

    \section2 3D Scatter Graphs

    3D scatter graphs present data as a collection of points. The Q3DScatter
    class is used to create a graph and the QScatter3DSeries and
    QScatterDataProxy classes are used to set data to the graph, as well as to
    control the visual properties of the graph. In QML, the corresponding types
    are Scatter3D, Scatter3DSeries, and ScatterDataProxy.

    \image q3dscatter-minimal.png

    For more information, see \l{How to construct a minimal Q3DScatter graph}, and
    \l{Simple Scatter Graph} examples.

    \section2 3D Surface Graphs

    3D surface graphs present data as 3D surface plots. The Q3DSurface class is
    used to create a graph and the QSurface3DSeries and QSurfaceDataProxy
    classes are used to set data to the graph, as well as to control the visual
    properties of the graph. In QML, the corresponding types are Surface3D,
    Surface3DSeries, and SurfaceDataProxy.

    \image q3dsurface-minimal.png

    For more information, see \l{How to construct a minimal Q3DSurface graph}, \l{Graph Gallery},
    and \l{Surface Graph Gallery} examples.

    \section1 Using OpenGL for Rendering Data

    It is recommended to use OpenGL 2.1 or later for data rendering.
    If OpenGL ES2 is used (including Angle builds in Windows), the following
    features are not supported:

    \list
        \li Shadows
        \li Antialiasing
        \li Flat shading for surfaces
        \li Volumetric objects, because they use 3D textures
    \endlist

    Only OpenGL ES2 emulation is available for software renderer (that is, when
    using QCoreApplication::setAttribute(Qt::AA_UseSoftwareOpenGL)).

    \section2 Selecting Rendering Mode

    In QML, you can set the \l{AbstractGraph3D::renderingMode}
    {AbstractGraph3D.RenderingMode} property to determine whether the graph will
    be rendered directly on the window background or to an offscreen surface
    that is then drawn during normal QML item rendering.

    Background rendering modes offer slightly better performance than the
    indirect rendering mode, at the cost of non-standard QML behavior. For
    example, the graphs do not obey the z ordering of QML items and they cannot
    be partially transparent. Therefore, changing the rendering mode is a
    question of performance versus quality.

    Qt Quick uses a dedicated scenegraph for data rendering, and is therefore
    the best choice for data visualization.

    \section1 3D Axes

    Qt Data Visualization supports the following axis types:

    \list
        \li Value axis
        \li Category axis
    \endlist

    An axis can be set up to show a line or a grid. Both axis types are
    specializations of the QAbstract3DAxis class or the AbstractAxis3D QML type.

    A value axis can be given a range of values and segment and subsegment
    counts to divide the range into. Labels are drawn between each segment.
    Grid lines are drawn between each segment and each subsegment. The value
    axis is implemented using the QValue3DAxis class or the ValueAxis3D QML type.

    A category axis has named ranges and adjustable range widths. It is divided
    into equal-sized categories based on the data window size defined by the
    axis range. Labels are drawn to the positions of categories, if provided.
    Grid lines are drawn between categories, if visible. A category axis is
    implemented using the QCategory3DAxis class or the CategoryAxis3D QML type.

    If no axes are set explicitly for a graph, temporary default axes with no
    labels are created. These default axes can be modified via axis accessors,
    but as soon as any axis is set explicitly for a particular orientation, the
    default axis for that orientation is destroyed.

    All graph types support showing multiple series simultaneously. All the
    series do not need to contain the same number of rows and columns. Row and
    column labels are taken from the first series added, unless they are
    explicitly defined for the row and column axes.

    Axis formatters can be used to customize value axis grid lines and labels.
    The QValue3DAxisFormatter class and ValueAxis3DFormatter QML type provide
    formatting rules for a linear value 3D axis. The QLogValue3DAxisFormatter
    class and the LogValueAxis3DFormatter QML type provide formatting rules for
    a logarithmic value 3D axis.

    Polar horizontal axes can be used for surface and scatter graphs by setting
    the \l{QAbstract3DGraph::}{polar} property.

    \section1 3D Themes

    A theme is a built-in collection of UI style related settings applied to all
    the visual elements of a graph, such as the colors, fonts, and visibility of
    the elements, as well as the strenght of the light and ambient light.

    Qt Charts comes with the following predefined themes that can be used as
    basis for custom themes:

    \list
        \li \e Qt is a light theme with green as the base color.
        \li \e {Primary colors} is a light theme with yellow as the base color.
        \li \e Digia is a light theme with gray as the base color.
        \li \e {Stone moss} is a medium dark theme with yellow as the base
            color.
        \li \e {Army blue} is a medium light theme with blue as the base color.
        \li \e Retro is a medium light theme with brown as the base color.
        \li \e Ebony is a dark theme with white as the base color.
        \li \e Isabelle is a dark theme with yellow as the base color.
        \li \e {User defined} is the default theme that is meant to be
            customized. For more information, see \l {Default Theme}.
    \endlist

    Custom themes can also be created from scratch.

    If a graph displays the data from several data series, some settings can be
    specified separately for each series. For example, different gradients can
    be specified for different layers of the graph to make it look more
    realistic. For an example, see \l{Surface Graph Gallery}.

    \section1 Customizing 3D Scenes

    A 3D scene is implemented by using the Q3DScene class or the Scene3D QML
    type. A scene contains a single active camera, implemented by using the
    Q3DCamera class or the Camera3D type, and a single active light source,
    implemented by using the Q3DLight class or the Light3D type. The light
    source is always positioned in relation to the camera. By default, the light
    position follows the camera automatically.

    The camera can be customized by specifying its preset position, rotation,
    and zoom level. For an example, see \l{Simple Scatter Graph}.

    \section1 Customizing Items

    Qt Data Visualization has predefined mesh types for bars, items, and
    surfaces. The mesh type determines how a bar, an item, or a surface looks on
    a graph. A user-defined mesh can be specified as a Wavefront OBJ geometry
    definition file. For more variety, a quaternion can be set for mesh
    rotation.

    In addition to customizing individual items, the QCustom3DItem class or the
    Custom3DItem QML type can be used to add custom items to graphs. The items
    have a custom mesh, position, scaling, rotation, and an optional texture.

    The QCustom3DVolume class and the Custom3DVolume QML type can be used to
    create volume rendered objects to be added to a graph. A volume rendered
    object is a box with a 3D texture. Three slice planes are supported for the
    volume, one along each main axis of the volume.

    The The QCustom3DLabel class and the Custom3DLabel QML type implement custom
    labels with the specified text, font, position, scaling, and rotation. Label
    colors, borders, and background are determined by the active theme.
*/
