Vector images?

[Mark Waddingham]

On 2015-10-20 21:49, Richmond wrote:
> This is a very important question to which the answer really does need
> to be "Yes".

I think you are confusing the underlying ability to import and render 
SVG (which will be used by the components which are created to sit atop 
it - which the current development is a step towards), and how that 
might be integrated into other parts of the engine and exposed to the 
user in various ways.

> What I do know is that as there is a menu item to either import or
> reference images that would seem
> the logical place for SVG images to be handled.

Indeed. The current patch is just the lower-level bit which (a) allows 
various bits (well, widgets and potentially other parts of the engine) 
to parse and render SVG and (b) a widget which displays an SVG file.

It would make perfect sense for the IDE to have an 'import svg' menu 
item or some such.

> A longish time ago LiveCode (then called Revolution) allowed one to
> import EPS vector images
> via the menu system: why SVG images need to be handled in a completely
> different way vis-a-vis
> the GUI entirely escapes me.

I'm sorry - but this has simply never ever been the case. EPS support 
only ever existed in UNIX builds of the engine for UNIX platforms which 
used Display PostScript.

> The ability to import, export, manipulate and, possibly, manufacture
> SVG images in LiveCode is not
> a "little" development, it is very important.

Indeed - it is important - although how important will depend entirely 
on what you are using LiveCode for.

SVG, at the end of the day, is just text. LiveCode is good at processing 
text, so certainly export of SVG is something which can be done quite 
happily, and well (and indeed quite sensibly) in script. Indeed, there 
is even an SVG importer which has been around for a long time (although 
it is slightly limited by some restrictions on the LiveCode graphic 
object) also written in script.

Now, I'm not saying that having builtin import and rendering of SVG is a 
great thing - because it is - however, it is by no means a panacea that 
will solve all problems - it will, however, solve specific problems for 
specific domains (some of which are, I suspect, ones that you face).

Similarly, an 'export snapshot ... as svg' command would also be useful 
to solve specific problems for specific domains but, again, isn't going 
to do so for everyone.

> Vector graphics are part of what we could call "the standard set", and
> indeed have been for rather
> longer than perhaps most people are aware, and RunRev's decision to
> drop EPS image import
> seemed odd and wrong at the time it happened: importing SVG images
> would serve to rectify
> what I, for one, feel was a backward move.

Again - EPS support was never dropped. It never existed on Windows, Mac 
or Linux in the first place.

> More strength to your SVG elbow!

Just to go back to my point above about problem solving and applicable 
domain. For you (and many others), I can see why simple SVG import 
support is so important. There are a number of tools in the 'producing 
graphics' domain which generate SVG, and there are a large number of SVG 
files out there which have graphics which are highly suitable for the 
uses you are putting LiveCode to.

However it is important to remember that not everyone uses LiveCode to 
the same ends - there will probably be as many people on this list who 
would see SVG as a much lower priority than <insert feature which would 
help their particular problem domain and endeavours with LiveCode>.

Serving such a broad user base with a 'high-level' tool such as ours is 
not an easy task as, ultimately, it takes time and human effort to add 
any feature that people might want/need. This is a huge part of the 
reason for 'why LCB and Widgets' - by making it MUCH easier to extend 
the engine in ways that are indistinguishable (or getting that way, 
anyway) from anything else in the engine we can get to a situation where 
many more people (beyond just 'us' behind the LiveCode Ltd. veil) can 
help others solve their LiveCode related problems.

Warmest Regards,

Mark.

-- 
Mark Waddingham ~ mark at livecode.com ~ http://www.livecode.com/
LiveCode: Everyone can create apps