[LIBART] libart in SciGraphica

[Adrian Feiguin <feiguin magnet fsu edu>]

Hi, everybody. I am the developer of SciGraphica
(http://scigraphica.sourceforge.net) a program for scientific graphics
that may eventually be corba/bonobo-ized to be used with
gnumeric/gnome-office. The program uses a library I created: gtkextra
(http://gtkextra.sourceforge.net) which implements all the needed widgets,
for instance: gtksheet, gtkplot, gtkplotpolar, gtkplot3d. 
I've been
learning the art of computer graphics "on the fly", and I lack
the exeprience that I may need to do graphics in the state-of-the-art.
However, I managed to do a lot, the math and geometry is trivial to me,
but I don't know enough to refine my work. 
 I've been using an engine I created and called gtkplotpc. I
started from scratch, but I realize that is very similar to gnome-print,
at least conceptually. gtkplotpc is a gtk-object that has the subclasses
gtkplotps (for postscript output) and gtkplotgdk (for drawing on a window 
usign gdk calls). I can create, if I wanted to, subclasses to generate
output using other formats. gtkplotpc is basically a wrapper: instead of
using gdk calls, I use gtkplotpc calls, for example
gtk_plot_pc_draw_rectangle
gtk_plot_pc_clip
gtk_plot_pc_draw_line
The format and the device for the output will be determined by using a
gtkplotps or gtkplotgdk.
pc = GTK_PLOT_PC(gtk_plot_ps_new(file));
or
pc = GTK_PLOT_PC(gtk_plot_gdk_new(drawable));

Well the idea can be used to create a gtkplotgdk subclass (say,
gtkplotart) and use libart calls. This would improve the quality of the
plots a lot.

My questions are:
- I've been traying to find out more about libart, but with the lack of
documentation is very complicated. I don't want to start
hacking programs (e.g. gnome-canvas) to try to understand how to use it.
Suggestions?
- I don't have experience with gdkpixbuf. Would it be better to use it
directly, instead of libart?
- Any other idea?

Before you ask: The program can be compiled without gnome, i.e. a gtk-only
version that is portable and can be compiled under window$ or Mac
(eventually). That's why I had to do it in this way. Of course, this
situation may change: a lot of the gnome code is moving to gtk, and
gnome-canvas and gnome-print could be eventually compiled independently. I
have other schemes under study.

Thanks a lot!,
Saludos!
<ADRIAN>