I’m getting questions about MATLAB plots. Maybe it’s project time. Although I am busy learning Python and matplotlib, I won’t hate on MATLAB–here is my tutorial on plotting your data in 3D using 3 kinds of MATLAB plots.
This time of year brings questions on which software is best for all kinds of topics. Common topics for this question are 3D modelling, microcontroller programming, and electromagnetic simulation. If you’re not told what to use in a class or at work, it’s smart to pick software that lets you get moving fast, rather than aim for the software package that’s #1 in the field. Pick something where you don’t get bogged down in setting up your work environment, whether because it’s easy or because you have local support specifically for that software, so you can move on immediately to learn the things that are more universal. The basic concepts of generating the x,y, and z data for your 3D plot are similar from system to system, while the details of your license server are not.
Matplotlib is aiming for the same features as MATLAB plots, so most of what you would learn in a MATLAB class applies to it even though the syntax is a little different. The main advantage of Python/matplotlib over MATLAB is that it’s free (this can be important after you move to a new job), the disadvantage is that the documentation is less consistent. Greater consistency has a price…probably they have more meetings at the MATLAB factory.