(Note: Linux Stata does not allow you to select variables so you'll need to type their names.

For the Y variable select or type mpg, and for the X variable select or type weight. Leave the category set to Basic plots and the type set to Scatter. You'll then get a dialog box where you can describe the plot you want. The basic twoway dialog box will allow you to define as many plots as you need, plus control the other characteristics of the graph. Also, a single graph may contain multiple plots. In Stata terms, a plot is some specific data visualized in a specific way, for example 'a scatter plot of mpg on weight.' A graph is an entire image, including axes, titles, legends, etc. Stata refers to any graph which has a Y variable and an X variable as a twoway graph, so click Graphics, Twoway graph. We'll start with a simple scatter plot with weight as the X variable and mpg as the Y variable. Creating Graphs Using the Graphical User Interface Creating a graph will never change your data, so the worst that can happen is that your graph turns out to be useless or just plain ugly. Feel free to experiment as you go, especially with the settings we don't discuss (usually because they're either fairly obvious or rarely used). The examples in this article will use the automobile dataset that comes with Stata, so begin by typing: The best way to use this article is to read it at the computer and actually carry out the steps described. This article will discuss creating graphs using the Stata GUI, the structure of the graph command syntax (without dwelling too much on the details), some common types of graphs, and the graph editor. Thus it's better to create the graph you want in the first place where possible, but the editor is still a very useful addition. If you later make any changes to your data, you'll have to start your graph over from scratch. This gives you even more control over your graph, but unlike the GUI for creating a graph the editor does not give you a command you can rerun later. Stata 10 also added a graph editor which allows you to modify a graph after you've created it. That doesn't mean you shouldn't put your graph commands in do files once you've created them, but it does mean that for complex graphs you can use the GUI to create the commands you'll store. What's more, Stata's Graphical User Interface (GUI) organizes the various graphing options in an intuitive way so you can find them when you need them without memorizing the syntax for each one. However, you'll probably only need to make a few different kinds of graphs, and in most cases Stata's default settings will be fine.

Between the wide variety of graphs you can make and the sheer number of details you can control in a graph, Stata graphics can be a daunting subject. Stata includes a rich set of tools for creating publication-quality graphics.

Stata 12 graphics box