WinFIG
Encyclopedia
WinFIG is a proprietary
shareware
vector graphics
editor application. The file format and rendering are as close to Xfig as possible, but the program takes advantage of Windows features like clipboard, printer preview, multiple documents etc.
, WinFIG is under active development, with new features being added regularly.
program AmiFIG by the same author, which is also an Xfig
compatible vector drawing application. WinFIG was not created by porting the Xfig
source code to Windows
. It is an independent implementation.
Starting with release 4.0 WinFIG was ported from MFC
to the Qt toolkit
as the application framework and thereby enabling the first release of a Linux version.
user interface and provides unlimited undo and redo of actions.
Objects can have several attributes, which depend on the object type:
Proprietary software
Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...
shareware
Shareware
The term shareware is a proprietary software that is provided to users without payment on a trial basis and is often limited by any combination of functionality, availability, or convenience. Shareware is often offered as a download from an Internet website or as a compact disc included with a...
vector graphics
Vector graphics
Vector graphics is the use of geometrical primitives such as points, lines, curves, and shapes or polygon, which are all based on mathematical expressions, to represent images in computer graphics...
editor application. The file format and rendering are as close to Xfig as possible, but the program takes advantage of Windows features like clipboard, printer preview, multiple documents etc.
, WinFIG is under active development, with new features being added regularly.
History
The first release was in March 2003 and based on the AmigaAmiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
program AmiFIG by the same author, which is also an Xfig
Xfig
Xfig is a Free and open source vector graphics editor which runs under the X Window System on most UNIX-compatible platforms.In Xfig, figures may be drawn using objects such as circles, boxes, lines, spline curves, text, etc. It is also possible to import images in formats such as GIF, JPEG, EPS,...
compatible vector drawing application. WinFIG was not created by porting the Xfig
Xfig
Xfig is a Free and open source vector graphics editor which runs under the X Window System on most UNIX-compatible platforms.In Xfig, figures may be drawn using objects such as circles, boxes, lines, spline curves, text, etc. It is also possible to import images in formats such as GIF, JPEG, EPS,...
source code to Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. It is an independent implementation.
Starting with release 4.0 WinFIG was ported from MFC
Microsoft Foundation Class Library
The Microsoft Foundation Class Library is a library that wraps portions of the Windows API in C++ classes, including functionality that enables them to use a default application framework...
to the Qt toolkit
Qt (toolkit)
Qt is a cross-platform application framework that is widely used for developing application software with a graphical user interface , and also used for developing non-GUI programs such as command-line tools and consoles for servers...
as the application framework and thereby enabling the first release of a Linux version.
Interface and usability
WinFIG is designed to provide a clear, efficient and convenient graphical user interface. It allows working on multiple documents using an MDIMultiple document interface
Graphical computer applications with a multiple document interface are those whose windows reside under a single parent window , as opposed to all windows being separate from each other . Such systems often allow child windows to embed other windows inside them as well, creating complex nested...
user interface and provides unlimited undo and redo of actions.
Object creation
The basic types of objects in WinFIG are:- Open and closed SplineSpline (mathematics)In mathematics, a spline is a sufficiently smooth piecewise-polynomial function. In interpolating problems, spline interpolation is often preferred to polynomial interpolation because it yields similar results, even when using low-degree polynomials, while avoiding Runge's phenomenon for higher...
s - EllipsesEllipseIn geometry, an ellipse is a plane curve that results from the intersection of a cone by a plane in a way that produces a closed curve. Circles are special cases of ellipses, obtained when the cutting plane is orthogonal to the cone's axis...
- Polylines and PolygonsPolygonIn geometry a polygon is a flat shape consisting of straight lines that are joined to form a closed chain orcircuit.A polygon is traditionally a plane figure that is bounded by a closed path, composed of a finite sequence of straight line segments...
- TextsPlain textIn computing, plain text is the contents of an ordinary sequential file readable as textual material without much processing, usually opposed to formatted text....
- LaTeXLaTeXLaTeX is a document markup language and document preparation system for the TeX typesetting program. Within the typesetting system, its name is styled as . The term LaTeX refers only to the language in which documents are written, not to the editor used to write those documents. In order to...
formatted textFormatted textFormatted text, styled text or rich text, as opposed to plain text, has styling information beyond the minimum of semantic elements: colours, styles , sizes and special features .-Terminology:...
s - ArcsArc (geometry)In geometry, an arc is a closed segment of a differentiable curve in the two-dimensional plane; for example, a circular arc is a segment of the circumference of a circle...
- ImagesImageAn image is an artifact, for example a two-dimensional picture, that has a similar appearance to some subject—usually a physical object or a person.-Characteristics:...
: PNG, GIFGIFThe Graphics Interchange Format is a bitmap image format that was introduced by CompuServe in 1987 and has since come into widespread usage on the World Wide Web due to its wide support and portability....
, JPEGJPEGIn computing, JPEG . The degree of compression can be adjusted, allowing a selectable tradeoff between storage size and image quality. JPEG typically achieves 10:1 compression with little perceptible loss in image quality....
, EPSEncapsulated PostScriptEncapsulated PostScript, or EPS, is a DSC-conforming PostScript document with additional restrictions which is intended to be usable as a graphics file format...
and more - Compound objects, which are hierarchical compositions of objects
Objects can have several attributes, which depend on the object type:
- Line width
- Line style
- Line cap style
- Line join style
- Arrows
- Outline color, fill color and fill pattern
Object manipulation
- move
- copy
- scale
- rotate
- align
- add/delete points from lines or splines
- copy object attributes
- Numerical input of point coordinates
Exports
WinFIG can export into various formats:- Raster formats: GIFGIFThe Graphics Interchange Format is a bitmap image format that was introduced by CompuServe in 1987 and has since come into widespread usage on the World Wide Web due to its wide support and portability....
, JPEGJPEGIn computing, JPEG . The degree of compression can be adjusted, allowing a selectable tradeoff between storage size and image quality. JPEG typically achieves 10:1 compression with little perceptible loss in image quality....
, PNG, PPMPortable pixmapThe phrase Netpbm format commonly refers to any or all of the members of a set of closely related graphics formats used and defined by the Netpbm project....
, XBMXBMIn computer graphics, the X Window System uses X BitMap , a plain text binary image format, for storing cursor and icon bitmaps used in the X GUI.XBM files differ markedly from most image files in that they take the form of C source files...
, XPM, PCXPCXPCX is an image file format developed by the now-defunct ZSoft Corporation of Marietta, Georgia. It was the native file format for PC Paintbrush and became one of the first widely accepted DOS imaging standards, although it has since been succeeded by more sophisticated image formats, such as GIF,...
, TIFF, SLD - Formats for printed documents: PostScriptPostScriptPostScript is a dynamically typed concatenative programming language created by John Warnock and Charles Geschke in 1982. It is best known for its use as a page description language in the electronic and desktop publishing areas. Adobe PostScript 3 is also the worldwide printing and imaging...
, PDF, LaTeXLaTeXLaTeX is a document markup language and document preparation system for the TeX typesetting program. Within the typesetting system, its name is styled as . The term LaTeX refers only to the language in which documents are written, not to the editor used to write those documents. In order to...
, HP-GL (printer control language used by Hewlett-Packard plotters), - Vector graphics formats: EPSEncapsulated PostScriptEncapsulated PostScript, or EPS, is a DSC-conforming PostScript document with additional restrictions which is intended to be usable as a graphics file format...
, SVG, PSTricksPSTricksPSTricks is a set of macros that allow the inclusion of PostScript drawings directly inside TeX or LaTeX code.It is originally the work of Professor Timothy Van Zandt and in recent years it has been maintained by Denis Girou, Sebastian Rahtz and Herbert Voss....
, TPIC, PICPic languageIn computing, Pic is a domain-specific programming language by Brian Kernighan for specifying diagrams in terms of objects such as boxes with arrows between them. The pic compiler translates this description into concrete drawing commands. Pic is a procedural programming language, with variable...
, CGMComputer Graphics MetafileComputer Graphics Metafile is a free and open international standard file format for 2D vector graphics, raster graphics, and text, and is defined by ISO/IEC 8632.-Overview:...
, MetaFontMETAFONTMetafont is a programming language used to define vector fonts. It is also the name of the interpreter that executes Metafont code, generating the bitmap fonts that can be embedded into e.g. PostScript...
, MetaPostMetaPostMetaPost refers to both a programming language and the interpreter of the MetaPost programming language. Both are derived from Donald Knuth's Metafont language and interpreter. MetaPost excels at producing diagrams in the PostScript programming language from a geometric/algebraic description...
, EMFWindows MetafileWindows Metafile is a graphics file format on Microsoft Windows systems, originally designed in the 1990s. Windows Metafiles are intended to be portable between applications and may contain both vector graphics and bitmap components....
, Tk.
Miscellaneous
- Winfig can handle smart links. A smart link is a moving connection from a source to a target object. It is established by connecting the end point of a line or spline to another object. The connecting line or spline segment follows the movements of the target object. Smart links are useful for diagrams, graphs etc.
- WinFIG can show a grid and provides several magnet modes for constraining editing operations to discrete coordinates.
- Objects can be organized in layers to control their Z-orderZ-orderZ-order is an ordering of overlapping two-dimensional objects, such as windows in a graphical user interface , shapes in a vector graphics editor, or objects in a 3D application. One of the features of a typical GUI is that windows may overlap, so that one window hides part or all of another...
. This is important to control overlapping of filled shapes. - Object library: drawings can be stored in a special sub-folder in the program installation directory, which makes them available in the library dialog for easy reuse.
See also
- XfigXfigXfig is a Free and open source vector graphics editor which runs under the X Window System on most UNIX-compatible platforms.In Xfig, figures may be drawn using objects such as circles, boxes, lines, spline curves, text, etc. It is also possible to import images in formats such as GIF, JPEG, EPS,...
- List of vector graphics editors
- Comparison of vector graphics editorsComparison of vector graphics editorsA number of vector graphics editors for various platforms exist. Potential users of these editors will make a decision based on factors such as the availability for the user's platform, the feature set, usability of the user interface and the focus of the program. Some programs are more suitable...