I have my Display PostScript manual somewhere. 1:1 vector graphics betwee= n platforms and media is worth thiking about, it would also include PDF o= f course, but I don't want to speculate on formats at all.
I wrote earlier to the forum about using real world measurements instead = of abstract pixels as the underlying framework for GUI and other designs.= This was because I see precision being important especially now HDTV sta= ndards are finally consolidating. The basis of converging technology needs a software anchor in the real wo= rld. Just as Apples innovation of the 72dpi monitor with the 72dpi printe= r plus Postscript jumped started not just Desktop Publishing but in some = respects the whole idea of a GUI computer itself. Whether REBOL 3 should be thinking about going in this direction at this = time is not an issue - whatever the developers are doing - just keep on d= oing it - PDF will be workable for a good long time and AGG is find and = fast combination. OpenGL works well as well. My point is that it is not a matter of of this or that language, but esta= blishing some fixed points of reference, from which the future direction = can be shaped (REBOL 4 perhaps, but by what happens now in REBOL 3). The datatypes are critical in this, more so than any other particular lan= guage issue. This is what I propose, and hopefully not too late to be seriously consid= ered. Realworld measurements as a series of datatypes, and scale as a means or = represnting them on various media (paper, monitors, whatever). That is a datatype capable of handling the really really tiny, to the rea= lly really large, and XYZ coordinates in real measure. If this is established well with whatever factoring notation is needed to= make it reasonable, then we have a basis of translating from raw scripti= ng to whatever language or respresentation in a stable way without progra= mming "funnies". There are a good deal of complicating factors, and I am a complete novice= in this, so others would be better to judge the implications, but using = GUI design as example. A dialog 300x200 is a relative measurement, using a single assumed pixel = size turns it into a real measure, which can be overridden by declaring a= different size (scale) while still maintaining a 1:1 to the real world. = Ie one pixel =3D 1mmx1mm (or 0.01 if this is more convenient, basically a= ny number would do) may be a large size, but is a trivial conversion to s= ets of real screens, and some simple tricks for converting between large = screens (at say 1080p) and much smaller handheld devices with a lot less = pixel coverage (ignoring design problems inherent in this). Establishing real measure as the "natural" datatype for all things measur= ed gives us a very stable base for application building. The metric syste= m has much to recommend itself as the native data format for such things.= Other measurement systems being transformed into or out of it. Hence 12pt Times, is clearer than the same measurement rendered in mm but= the data itself should be in a universal measure nonetheless. Between molecular, astronomical measurement, the printed word, engineerin= g plans or GUIs, each with substantial differences but reduceable to a si= ngle system of measurement is a substantial asset and need not be combers= ome if handled deftly by REBOL. Plus it makes translating the whole or part of rebol script into another = display language that much easier and less problematic (with far less exc= eption handling to do so).=20 It may be several interrelated datatypes, others will know better, the po= int being that one can be positioned into the other accurately. It will need sets of assumptions being made, to make scripting easy, like= assumed pixel size, assumed XYZ start positions, we could even assume GU= I elements have thickness, even if this is never practically used, it may= even help in layering, even if the assumed thickness is very thin indeed= (0.01mm perhaps - 100 layers amounting to 1mm, it does not really matter= , except of course layers could be addressed via the same system Z0.02). I know this is a strange suggestion, and seems like a complex way to solv= e problems that don't seem to exist in many areas. For instance why use t= his to describe video streams when established methods work fine. But it= is the implications involved, especially when looking at the long term f= urture, and in the short term, the reliability factor itself. The fact is= that it makes a lot more sense even with arbitrary assumptions that 300x= 200 means 30cm x 20cm even if this is scaled for use by 75%. If I have a measure, I need only to find the scale factor, I need only es= tablish one thing to bring all the rest into perspective whether on paper= , or a particular screen, or between application uses Please consider this suggestion (if it is not too late or too complex to = implement), it lays a good foundation for adopting PDF, PS, DPS, OpenGL o= r whatever, and gives us a stable basis for anything described in two or = three dimensions. But it has to integrate the nano to the lightyear in a = single continuum of real measurement. It has to be XYZ, even if the third= dimension is only used for layering or not at all, and exists 9/10ths of= the time as a simple assumption. May I also suggest that all measurements be XYZ with no negative position= ing and where negative coordinates are needed they become an object offse= t (I believe this actually would simplify a lot of transformations - I ma= y be mistaken in this).=20 Sorry fro this long post. Greg Schofield Perth Australia --- Message Received --- From: Chris Dwyer <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Fri, 7 Sep 2007 18:32:06 -0400 Subject: [REBOL] Re: - R3 GUI I see PDF as a file format rather than GUI etc. Postscript on the =20 other hand could be print layout , interface and file format. I don't know but PDF appears to be rather stupid and verbose. =20 Postscript to me is more minimal, like REBOL. R3, needs a cross platform basic text/graphics GUI, employing =20 Truetype and supporting FLASH, Quicktime, WMP etc. I don't think it needs 3D capabilities, but perhaps these could be =20 plugins to basic architecture. ~chris --=20 To unsubscribe from the list, just send an email to=20 lists at rebol.com with unsubscribe as the subject. -- To unsubscribe from the list, just send an email to lists at rebol.com with unsubscribe as the subject.
