Writing a drawing out: cheatsheet#
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Reminders for writing a drawing out: the two calls, their options, the box, and what each format keeps.
The calls#
| Format | renderSketch(page, options) | renderBook(book, options) | Write it as |
|---|
svg | a string | a string a page | UTF-8 |
png | a Uint8Array | a Uint8Array a page | bytes |
pdf | a string | one string, a PDF page a sketch | latin1 |
skbk | a string: a book of that page | one string | UTF-8 |
jsx | a string: a script for that page | one string, a document a page | UTF-8 |
Options#
| Option | Default | Meaning |
|---|
format | 'svg' | svg, png, pdf, skbk or jsx |
crop | the whole page | 'auto', { mode: 'auto', pad: 12 }, 'none', or { x, y, width, height } |
registration | none | One box for every page; wins over crop |
transparent | false | No paper in the SVG, the PNG or the .jsx |
scale | 1 | PNG pixels a page pixel |
resolveLink | none | Reads linked files for the PNG: resolveLinkFromDir(folder) |
decodeImage | none | Decodes images the PNG cannot: anything but PNG |
linkFolder | beside the script | Where a .jsx looks for linked files; writeBook and drawToFiles set it |
onWarning | none | Told what a format left out or drew as a stand-in |
...output from evaluate applies the script's own crop and registration.
The output verbs#
| Category | Verb | Written | Does |
|---|
| Output | crop | crop auto [pad <length>]
crop none
crop <x> <y> <width> <height> | The box every output is cut to: auto fits the ink with room to spare, none keeps the page, or a box given outright. |
| Output | registration | registration <x> <y> <width> <height> | One box every page is written in, so frames drawn by one script line up when they are played in sequence. |
| SVG | PNG | PDF | .skbk | .jsx |
|---|
| Layer tree and names | Yes, named three ways | Composited | Flattened | Yes | Layers and named groups, hidden and locked ones too |
| Bezier anchors | Yes, two decimals | Drawn | Vector lines through the sampled points | Yes | Yes, two decimals |
| Gradients | Yes | Yes | Flat fill, warned | Yes | Yes |
| Dashes, profiles, Copic nibs | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Text | Live <text>, the named font | The built-in face | Helvetica | Yes | Text frames, the named font where Illustrator has it |
| Images | Embedded | PNG; the rest with decodeImage | JPEG only, warned | Yes | Embedded |
| Links | The reference | The file with resolveLink, else the placeholder | The placeholder | The reference | Placed by link |
| Erasers | A mask on the layer | Clear their own layer | Paint the paper back | Yes | Paint the paper back, warned |
| Effects | A <filter>, and data-effects | Drawn | Left out, warned | Yes | Left out, warned |
| A Splatter | Its lines, and data-effects | Drawn | Its lines | Yes | Its lines |
| A Warp | The bent shape, and data-effects | Drawn | The bent shape | Yes | The bent shape |
| 3D | A group of its faces, and data-effects | Drawn | Its faces | Yes | A group of its faces |
| Transparency | transparent: true | transparent: true | A transparent page prints no paper | - | transparent: true |
The box#
| Want | Script | Options |
|---|
| The whole page | crop none | crop: 'none' |
| The ink | crop auto | crop: 'auto' |
| The ink and room | crop auto pad 12 | crop: { mode: 'auto', pad: 12 } |
| A box | crop 40 40 200 100 | crop: { x: 40, y: 40, width: 200, height: 100 } |
| Frames that line up | registration 50 70 300 180 | registration: { x: 50, y: 70, width: 300, height: 180 } |
| The box before writing | | inkBox(page), renderBox(page, options) |
Common mistakes#
| Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|
writeFileSync('card.pdf', pdf) | writeFileSync('card.pdf', pdf, 'latin1') | UTF-8 mangles an embedded image's bytes. |
renderBook(book, { format: 'png' }) | renderBook(book, { format: 'png', ...output }) | The script's crop rides in output, not in the book. |
| A JPEG placed, a PNG rendered | Pass decodeImage | The PNG decodes only PNG itself; the image is left out, with a warning. |
