I do see a clear-cut difference. A Patch is a two-dimensional region characterized by a boundary and an interior region, which may have colors, line/hatch styles, etc. Also, a Patch has an algorithms to compute an area, a circumference, decide whether a point lies inside or outside the Patch, to cut a Patch for visibility calculations, etc.
A Polygon is a special case of a Patch, namely one that is bounded by piecewise-linear segments. This implies specific formulae/algorithms to compute the properties mentioned above. Now, it is entirely meaningful to realize a Patch differently than in terms of piecewise-linear segments. I could use piecewise cubic segments (splines), or give the control points of a closed Bezier curve. All the properties of a Patch are still meaningful, but none of the algorithms for a Polygon apply. Hence I find it meaningful to define class Polygon(Patch) such that I am not precluded to define class SplinePatch(Patch) class BezierPatch(Patch) etc. Hence I prefer to have Patch as an Abstract Base Class and not as a specific implementation of a Polygon. -- View this message in context: http://matplotlib.1069221.n5.nabble.com/Polygon-vs-Patch-tp43743p43748.html Sent from the matplotlib - devel mailing list archive at Nabble.com. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Infragistics Professional Build stunning WinForms apps today! Reboot your WinForms applications with our WinForms controls. Build a bridge from your legacy apps to the future. http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/clk?id=153845071&iu=/4140/ostg.clktrk _______________________________________________ Matplotlib-devel mailing list Matplotlib-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/matplotlib-devel
