\part{Quick start and data semantics}

\section{Installation and engine requirements}
The supported baseline is LaTeX 2025-11-01+, expl3 2025-12-29+ and
PGF/\manualTikZ{} 3.1.11a+. Update older distributions before installing this release.
\pkg{gradbars} is available on \href{https://ctan.org/pkg/gradbars}{CTAN} and included
in TeX Live as \pkg{gradbars}. For TeX Live installations managed by \key{tlmgr} (including
MacTeX), install it from a terminal:
\begin{lstlisting}[style=gradmanual,language={}]
tlmgr install gradbars
\end{lstlisting}
Update an installed copy or inspect package information with:
\begin{lstlisting}[style=gradmanual,language={}]
tlmgr update gradbars
tlmgr info gradbars
\end{lstlisting}
Load \key{\usepackage{gradbars}} in the preamble; no project-local sty copy is
needed. The configured TeX Live repository may not yet contain a new CTAN
release. Check the installed version before using new manual features.
For a release not yet synchronized, place all matching \key{.sty} files
from \key{sty/} beside your source, or use a local TEXMF tree under \key{tex/latex/gradbars}.
Include \key{tblrlibgradbars.sty} for the optional tabularray adapter.
A project-local copy takes precedence over the system installation. See the
\href{https://tug.org/texlive/doc/tlmgr.html}{TeX Live package manager documentation}.
Dependencies include \manualTikZ{}/PGF, xparse, expl3, collcell, array, booktabs, colortbl and longtable.
No shell escape or external data-conversion program is required.

The package has no inherent XeLaTeX requirement. PDF output with pdfLaTeX,
XeLaTeX and LuaLaTeX is tested, including CSV input. The Chinese manual uses XeLaTeX with
ctex and Fandol fonts. This English manual can be compiled with pdfLaTeX.
The package itself does not load fontspec or ctex. Use an appropriate font and
encoding setup for non-ASCII text in your own documents.

\subsection{Loading selected libraries}
Select feature libraries in the preamble with the \key{libraries} option:
\begin{source}
\usepackage[libraries={stack,spark,heat,csv,table}]{gradbars}
\end{source}
This explicitly loads all five feature libraries and is equivalent to the
default \key{\usepackage{gradbars}}. Use a shorter list when fewer features are needed:
\begin{source}
\usepackage[libraries={stack,spark,heat}]{gradbars}
\end{source}
The \key{table} library automatically loads \key{stack}, \key{spark}, \key{heat}
and \key{csv}. Select \key{libraries=none} for the shared engine and public API
only. Load libraries in the preamble; see the libraries chapter for details.

\subsection{A complete example}
\begin{source}
\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{booktabs,gradbars}
\begin{document}
\gradbarssetup{width=30mm,max=100,precision=1}
\begin{center}
\begin{tabular}{cc}
\toprule
\multicolumn{1}{c}{Model} & \multicolumn{1}{c}{Accuracy (\%)}\\
\midrule
Baseline & \gradbar{72.4} \\
Proposed & \gradbar{92.7} \\
\bottomrule
\end{tabular}
\end{center}
\end{document}
\end{source}
No \key{tikzpicture} wrapper is needed. Commands may also be used inside an
existing \manualTikZ{} picture. Settings and named styles follow ordinary TeX grouping.
Options are applied left to right: put a theme or preset before individual overrides.