How to clean up .table and .gnuplot using latexmk

Question

I'm using latexmk as my building assistance. I'm also trying to use it as the clean-up contractor... In .latexmkrc I added:

$pdf_previewer = "open -a /Applications/Skim.app"; 
$clean_ext = "rel paux lox pdfsync out bbl %R.run.xml %R.table %R.gnuplot";
$pdflatex = 'pdflatex -8bit -etex -shell-escape -file-line-error -halt-on-error -synctex=1 %O %S';
$new_viewer_always [0];
$pvc_view_file_via_temporary [1];

so it will remove the tex_name.func_name.table and tex_name.func.gnuplot file types in addition to the defaults. Unfortunately, it doesn't work. When I run latexmk -c, this is the first output's line (I don't know if it is related):

Useless use of array element in void context at (eval 12) line 5, <GEN0> chunk 1.

And these files stay in the directory. How can I make them gone?

Edit:

As @N.N. suggested I corrected the mistake in the last two code lines. As for the main issue of this question, I have to clarify the case. Compiling my document produces several files all having the following filename pattern: tex_main_name.function_name.gnuplot and similarly tex_main_name.function_name.table. I want latexmk -c to remove all of them. Therefore, using func_name.table in the latexmkrc will only remove two files. I hope the problem is clearer now.

Edit 2:

As @N.N. asked, here's a WME:

\documentclass[tikz]{standalone}
\begin{document}
\begin{tikzpicture}
  % Function
  \begin{scope}[domain=0.9:5.5,samples=200]
    \draw[<->,color=blue,line width=2pt] plot[id=func1]
    function{(x*x+x+1)/(x*x)} node[right] {$f(x)$};
  \end{scope} 
 \begin{scope}[domain=0.9:5.5,samples=200]
   \draw[<->,color=blue,line width=2pt] plot[id=func2]
   function{-(x*x+x+1)/(x*x)} node[right] {$f(x)$};
 \end{scope} 
\end{tikzpicture}
\end{document}

Compiling this code generates two files, namely file_name.func1.table and file_name.func2.gnuplot. I want that latexmk -c will remove these two files.

Answer 1

This is not an answer, but an email from John Collins, saying that it will be possible in the future.

Good idea.

Unfortunately, it somewhat conflicts with another request, which is to allow the patterns in $clean_ext to be regular expressions (regexps). The wildcard idea is easier to implement, but the regexp idea gives finer control over the files to be deleted, which is needed in some situations.

In any case, the suggestion of allowing wildcards or regexps in the patterns is on my list of future enhancements.

John

Hans-Peter E. Kristiansen wrote: Tank you for a wonderful tool - latekmk. Can I suggest an improvement: In line 7016 add "glob" to the unlink command, to make it possible to use wildcards in the rc file like this: $clean_ext .= '%R.*.gnuplot';

Answer 2

You have not used the correct syntax for the last two lines in your .latexmkrc. What you seem to have done is to have copied the last two lines in your .latexmkrc from the latexmk manual in which the variables are listed along with their default value in square brackets. The correct syntax is roughly as follows (see the manual for details):

$variable_name = value;

So the last two lines of your .latexmkrc should read:

$new_viewer_always = 0;
$pvc_view_file_via_temporary = 1;

Also you have no specified the files to clean out correctly. The manual reads:

It is also possible to specify a more general pattern of file to be deleted, by using the place holder %R, as in commands. Thus setting

$clean_ext = "out %R-blx.bib";

in an initialization file will imply that when a clean-up operation is specified, not only is the standard set of files deleted, but also files of the form FOO.out and FOO-blx.bib, where FOO stands for the basename of the file being processed (as in FOO.tex).

So if you have a file named test.tex and which when it is compiled generates test.func1.gnuplot and test.func1.table and you want latexmkrc to clean out these, then you should add func1.table and func1.gnuplot to the variable $clean_ext. In some of my tests of other plots also test.pgf-plot.gnuplot and test.pgf-plot.table were generated. Thus, to cover all cases you should set the variable as follows:

$clean_ext = "func1.gnuplot func1.table pgf-plot.gnuplot pgf-plot.table";