libs/flake/Mainpage.dox

0001 /**
0002  * \mainpage Flake
0003  *
0004  * The Flake library is a low level library for all kinds of graphical content
0005  * to be placed on any Krita canvas. This includes a line to text-areas or
0006  * even movies.  Just as important, this library will include tools to manipulate
0007  * the graphical content. At least at the level of Flake objects.  This goes from
0008  * moving/rotating the object to a basis for complex brushes for a paint program.
0009
0010  * <b>Who uses Flake</b><br>
0011  * <img src="../flake.png">
0012  * Flake is a middle layer between the applications and the content providers.
0013  * The applications will allow flake to be plugged in by implementing the
0014  * KoCanvasController interface while providers of content (like a chart engine
0015  * or a text component) will extend KoShape and optionally KoToolBase to do their
0016  * work.
0017  *
0018  * A <b>shape</b> is a rectangle or a text or a movie.  A shape paints itself and has content.
0019  * A <b>Tool</b> get user input. Tools do things on data, tools do things on shapes.
0020  * Both shapes and tools are plugins. So they are independent of applications.
0021  * For example; I have a textshape that paints text.  It comes with a texttool that
0022  * takes mouse and keyboard events and alters the text that the textshape shows.
0023  * This idea of combining a shape and a text is done in flake by "ID"s .  Each
0024  * shape has an ID and a tool has an ID.   If they have the same ID they belong
0025  * together.
0026  * Example;  I select a text shape and the toolbox will show a icon to activate the
0027  * text tool.
0028  *
0029  * The way that a shape is kept separate from the application and from the Flake
0030  * layer is similar to how a widget in a GUI is kept separate from the application.
0031  * The shape inherits from the abstract KoShape class and all the logic embedded in
0032  * the KoShape class is enough for the flake layer to do all things with it like
0033  * positioning and moving as well as rotating and deleting it.
0034  * Just like a widget does not know the difference between painting on one app, or
0035  * another a shape will not know the difference. The flake library will take care
0036  * of all details.
0037  *
0038  * It is common to combine a shape-plugin with one or more tools which are made
0039  * specifically to work on that shape type. So, a text shape comes with a tool that
0040  * knows how to address the shape not only by the abstract KoShape class, but also
0041  * by the KoTextShape API and is therefore able to alter the data that shape
0042  * displays. In this case text.
0043
0044  * Flake natively only has a vector shape. All other types of shapes (including the
0045  * text one used in the example above) are plugins and not part of Flake itself.
0046  *
0047  *
0048  * Use KoShape as a base object for any application-specific graphical
0049  * content, and extend KoShapeContainer for objects that can contain others.
0050  *
0051  * KoShape is the base class for all flake objects. Flake objects extend it
0052  * to allow themselves to be manipulated by the KoToolBase s. The content of such an
0053  * object is independent and based on the model of the data this object represents.
0054  *
0055  * If you want to be a supplier of shape objects; create a library with a KoShapeFactoryBase
0056  * class and install a .desktop service file with the following content:
0057  *
0058 @verbatim
0059 [Desktop Entry]
0060 Encoding=UTF-8
0061 Name=My Flake Shapes Plugin
0062 ServiceTypes=Krita/Shape
0063 Type=Service
0064 X-KDE-PluginInfo-Name=myflakeshapes
0065 X-KDE-Library=myflakeshapesplugin
0066 X-Flake-MinVersion=27
0067 X-Flake-PluginVersion=27
0068 @endverbatim
0069  *
0070  */
0071
0072 // DOXYGEN_SET_PROJECT_NAME = KritaFlake
0073 // DOXYGEN_SET_IGNORE_PREFIX = Ko K