Beginning with Version 10, STATISTICA uses advanced graphics capabilities such as gradient shading in solid areas (you see this in histograms), smoother lines via “anti-aliasing” technologies, and the ability to define the level of transparency to markers and plot areas using the interactive graphics controls. Note that Windows metafiles do not support the gradient and transparency features.
There are two different technologies that implement these capabilities, and which one is used depends on your particular operating system and the settings of various options.
The preferred technology is Direct2D. Direct2D is available on Windows 7 and later, and is also available on Vista SP2 if you have installed the “Platform Upgrade” system update. This “Platform Upgrade” is available as an optional system update, so if you are running Vista SP2, you may need to explicitly select it from Windows Update; consult your system administrator for details. In addition to the supported operating systems, Direct2D performs its operations in hardware on the graphics card, so a suitable advanced graphics card must be available.
The secondary technology, which will be used if Direct2D is not available,
is GDI+. GDI+ is software-based graphics, and is available on XP and later.
However, GDI+ has one drawback: when run over Remote Desktop (which is
used with Windows Terminal Server or Citrix environments), the transparency
feature is implemented in a different way, and does not look as good as
when you are running on a monitor directly connected to the system.
If neither Direct2d nor GDI+ are available, or if their use is turned off by options in the Options dialog - Display options pane, the system will use the graphics engine in previous versions of STATISTICA, meaning that gradient shading, smooth (anti-aliased) lines, and transparency will not be available.
Finally, the current version of the PDF printer driver used in STATISTICA does not support area transparency well. If you are creating plots that will later be saved as PDF documents, do not use the transparency features. This will be resolved in future versions of the software.
These options, located in the Options dialog - Display options pane, are used to control which graphics technology will be used:
Enable advanced graphics rendering
Use hardware graphics acceleration when supported
If no hardware support available, use software support even on Remote Desktop
Use Direct2D when creating enhanced metafiles
Display interactive graphics controls (the bar with sliders on the bottom of graph windows)
Use Version 9 marker/pattern settings (requires restarting STATISTICA)