Problem: When working in Tecplot 360, lines and fonts appear rough with jagged edges.
Solution: Antialiasing is a computer graphics technique which results in smoother, less jagged lines and text, at the cost of decreased performance and increased memory requirements. Antialiasing is not enabled by default when working in Tecplot 360, although it is used when exporting images or movies. On certain platforms, it may be possible to force Tecplot 360 to use antialiasing. While this will result in improved rendering quality, it may drastically decrease performance, particularly with complex data sets.
The follow instructions cover the process for forcing antialiasing using the nVidia Control Panel under Windows 7. A similar process is possible using ATI’s Catalyst Control Center application.
First, right-click the desktop and select the NVIDIA Control Panel menu item.
On the left side of the window, select the “Manage 3D Settings” item.
On the right side of the window, select the “Program Settings” tab. Click the Add button.
A file selection dialog will open. Navigate to the folder where your Tecplot 360 installation is located. Open up the “bin” folder and select the “tec360.exe” file, then click Open.
In the Feature list, select “Antialiasing – Mode.” Choose “Override any application setting.” Next, under “Antialiasing – Setting”, choose your preferred antialiasing quality. Larger values (such as 4x) result in greater visual fidelity at the cost of lower responsiveness and increased memory requirements.
After selecting your preferred settings, close the nVidia Control Panel window. When you are asked to apply your changes, click Yes.
To revert your changes and disable antialiasing, return to the nVidia Control Panel. Select “tec360.exe” from the dropdown list and click the Remove button. This will erase all application-specific settings for Tecplot 360.
These images (click to enlarge) demonstrate the effect of antialiasing in Tecplot 360. The image on the left has antialiasing disabled, while the image on the right is using 4XMS antialiasing.