# Sort track plots

Aim

Track plots are displayed in the form of a matrix. You can sort rows and columns according to one or more independent variables.

example Subjects of both sexes were assigned to two different treatment levels (drug or saline). You want to visualize tracks according to Subject sex (on the rows) and Treatment (on the columns).

By default, plot headers do not include the name of an independent variable and the variable's value for that row/column. To show the variables' name, right-click a header and select Show Name. The values of the variables and the resulting sorting order are not removed. To hide the variables' name, right-click the header and deselect Show Name.

Sort the track plots by a new variable

Do one of the following:

▪Click the Show/Hide button on the toolbar, and select Layout. In the Layout window, select Arrange by headers. Under Available, click the variable you want to use. Next, click one of the buttons next to On Columns or On Rows, depending on whether you want to sort columns or rows by that variable.

▪Right-click the header of a column or a row, depending on where you want to place the new variable. Next, select Insert. In the Select Independent Variables to Insert window, from the Independent Variable Name list, select the variable you want to use, then click OK.

note The variable list does not include the variables already present in the plot headers.

Remove a sorting variable

Do one of the following:

▪Click the Show/Hide button on the toolbar and select Layout. Click the variable name under On Columns or On Rows, and click the deselect button next to it.

▪Right-click a header for that variable and select Delete.

If you remove all variables from one side of the matrix, the headers will be empty. All tracks are plotted on one row or column.

Sort the plots in ascending or descending order

By default, track plots are sorted in ascending order of the corresponding variables (numeric or alphabetic).

▪To sort variable values in descending order, right-click a header for that variable and select Sort Descending.

▪To sort variable values in ascending order, right-click a header for that variable and select Sort Ascending.

You cannot change the plot order from the Layout window.

Re-arrange multiple sorting levels

When two or more variables are inserted or moved to the same side of the matrix, they form a multi-level structure. In the example below, plots are first sorted by Subject sex (top level), and then by Treatment (bottom level).

To re-arrange sorting levels, do one of the following:

▪Click the Show/Hide button on the toolbar and select Layout. Click the variable you want to move. To move the variable one level up, click the Up button. To move the variable one level down, click the Down button.

▪Right-click a track plot header for a variable. To move a variable one level up, select Move up. To move a variable one level down, select Move down. Or click a header for that variable, and drag it to a lower or upper level.

In the example below, the variable Treatment has been moved above Subject sex. As a result, plots are first sorted by Treatment, then by Subject sex (compare this with the previous figure).

Swap variables from columns to rows and vice versa

You can re-arrange your plots by moving the variables shown in the rows to columns and vice versa. Do one of the following:

▪Click the variable name under On Columns or On Rows, and click the Place Horizontal or Place Vertical button.

▪Right-click a row/column header for that variable and select Place Horizontal or Place Vertical, or click a row/column header and drag it to a new position.