NAME¶
Diagrams - User documentation of the Diagrams package
SYNOPSIS¶
package require
Tcl 8.4
package require
Tk 8.4
package require
Diagrams 0.2
::Diagrams::drawin canvas
::Diagrams::saveps filename
::Diagrams::direction newdir
::Diagrams::currentpos pos
::Diagrams::getpos anchor obj
::Diagrams::position xcoord ycoord
::Diagrams::box text width height
::Diagrams::plaintext text width height
::Diagrams::circle text radius
::Diagrams::slanted text width height angle
::Diagrams::diamond text width height
::Diagrams::drum text width height
::Diagrams::arrow text length heads
::Diagrams::line args
::Diagrams::attach anchor
::Diagrams::color name
::Diagrams::fillcolor name
::Diagrams::textcolor name
::Diagrams::usegap use
::Diagrams::xgap value
::Diagrams::ygap value
::Diagrams::textfont name
::Diagrams::linewidth pixels
::Diagrams::linestyle style
::Diagrams::pushstate
::Diagrams::popstate
::Diagrams::computepos
::Diagrams::boxcoords x1 y1 x2 y2
::Diagrams::moveobject obj
DESCRIPTION¶
The
Diagrams package is meant to help drawing diagrams, like flowcharts.
The philosophy is that you should be concentrating on the contents of the
diagram, rather than the exact positioning and sizing of all items within it.
The Diagrams package uses a few simple rules to layout the items:
- •
- Each item (or object) in the diagram has a number of
"anchors" - places where arrows and lines can be connected
to.
- •
- You can draw an arrow or a line from an object in a preset
direction
- •
- Sizing and positioning should be done as automatic as
possible: this is achieved for instance by drawing boxes and circles with
text, rather than first drawing a rectangle and then drawing the text
inside it or vice versa.
The commands within this package can be split up in several categories. Each
category is described in a separate section.
GENERAL COMMANDS FOR POSITIONING AND SETUP¶
- ::Diagrams::drawin canvas
- Set the canvas widget in which to draw
- widget canvas
- Widget to draw in
- ::Diagrams::saveps filename
- Save the drawing in a PostScript file
- filename string
- Name of the file to save the drawing in
- ::Diagrams::direction newdir
- Set the direction for moving the current position. The
direction is one of: north northeast east southeast south southwest west
northwest N NE E SE S SW W NW up up-right left down-right down down-left
left up-left centre center C
- newdir string
- New direction
- ::Diagrams::currentpos pos
- Set the current position explicitly (argument must be a
position "object")
- pos list
- New position (retrieve via getpos for instance)
- ::Diagrams::getpos anchor obj
- Get the position of a particular "anchor" point
of an object anchor should be one of the direction strings
- anchor string
- Name of the anchor (one of the directions - see the
direction command
- obj list
- The object in question
- ::Diagrams::position xcoord
ycoord
- Create a position "object"
- xcoord float
- X-coordinate of the position
- ycoord float
- Y-coordinate of the position
DRAWING OBJECTS¶
- ::Diagrams::box text width
height
- Draw a box from the current position (width and height are
both optional; if not given, the text determines the width and
height)
- string text
- Text to be shown inside the box
- float width
- Width (if any) of the box in pixels
- float height
- Height (if any) of the box in pixels
- ::Diagrams::plaintext text width
height
- Draw plain text from the current position (width and height
are both optional; if not given, the text determines the width and
height)
- string text
- Text to be shown
- float width
- Width (if any) of the (invisible) box in which to position
the text
- float height
- Height (if any) of the box
- ::Diagrams::circle text radius
- Draw a circle from the current position (the radius is
optional)
- string text
- Text to be shown inside the circle
- float radius
- Radius (if any) of the circle in pixels
- ::Diagrams::slanted text width
height angle
- Draw a slanted box from the current position (width, height
and angle are optional)
- string text
- Text to be shown inside the box
- float width
- Width (if any) of the box in pixels
- float height
- Height (if any) of the box in pixels
- float angle
- Angle of the slanted box
- ::Diagrams::diamond text width
height
- Draw a diamond-shaped box from the current position (width
and height are both optional; if not given, the text determines the width
and height)
- string text
- Text to be shown inside the diamond
- float width
- Width (if any) of the diamond in pixels
- float height
- Height (if any) of the diamond in pixels
- ::Diagrams::drum text width
height
- Draw a drumshaped item from th ecurrent position (width and
height are both optional; if not given, the text determines the width and
height)
- string text
- Text to be shown inside the drum
- float width
- Width (if any) of the drum in pixels
- float height
- Height (if any) of the drum in pixels
- ::Diagrams::arrow text length
heads
- Draw an arrow from the current position to the next. The
text is drawn next to the arrow, the length (in pixels) is optional. If
not given the gap parameters are used.
- string text
- Text to be shown along the arrow
- float length
- Length of the arrow in pixels
- float heads
- Which arrow heads to draw (first, last or both - defaults
to last)
- ::Diagrams::line args
- Draw a line specified via positions or via line segments
The arguments are either position or length-angle pairs
- list args
- List of positions or of length-angle pairs
ATTRIBUTES¶
(Note: attributes are persistent)
- ::Diagrams::attach anchor
- Set the anchor point for attaching arrows to
- string anchor
- Any one of the valid anchor (e.g. N or North)
- ::Diagrams::color name
- Set the color for the outline of a box etc.
- color name
- Name of the colour to be used
- ::Diagrams::fillcolor name
- Set the color to fill the objects
- color name
- Name of the colour to be used
- ::Diagrams::textcolor name
- Set the color to draw the text in
- color name
- Name of the colour to be used
- ::Diagrams::usegap use
- Turn the gap on (1) or off (0). Note: usually a small gap
is used when positioning objects.
- boolean use
- Use the gap to compute the position of the next object or
not
- ::Diagrams::xgap value
- Size of the gap in horizontal direction (in pixels)
- integer value
- Gap width in pixels
- ::Diagrams::ygap value
- Size of the gap in vertical direction (in pixels)
- integer value
- Gap height in pixels
- ::Diagrams::textfont name
- Set the name of the font to use
- string name
- Name of a text font
- ::Diagrams::linewidth pixels
- Set the width of the lines (in line objects and arrows and
the outline of boxes and other objects)
- integer pixels
- Number of pixels the lines are wide
- ::Diagrams::linestyle style
- Set the style of the lines and arrows and of the outline of
boxes and other objects. The predefined line styles are: solid, dot, dash,
dash-dot, dash-dot-dot (these are the distinguishable line styles on
Windows). You can also use the style patterns from the canvas
directly.
- string style
- Name of a valid line style
COMMANDS FOR IMPLEMENTING NEW OBJECTS¶
Note: it is best to study how for instance box objects are implemented first.
- ::Diagrams::pushstate
- Save the current global settings Used when defining an
object that is composed of other objects
- ::Diagrams::popstate
- Restore the previously saved global settings
- ::Diagrams::computepos
- Compute the current position
- ::Diagrams::boxcoords x1 y1 x2
y2
- Compute the anchor coordinates for a box-like object (this
is merely a convenience routine. In general, you will have to compute the
list of coordinates yourself - see for instance the diamond object)
- float x1
- X coordinate of upper-left corner
- float y1
- Y coordinate of upper-left corner
- float x2
- X coordinate of lower-right corner
- float y2
- Y coordinate of lower-right corner
- ::Diagrams::moveobject obj
- Move the object to the right position and return the new
information
- list obj
- List of data representing the object
KEYWORDS¶
diagrams, drawing
