% language=us runpath=texruns:manuals/metafun \startcomponent metafun-text \environment metafun-environment \startchapter[reference=sec:typesetting,title={Typesetting in \METAPOST}] \startintro It is said that a picture tells more than a thousand words. So you might expect that text in graphics becomes superfluous. Out of experience we can tell you that this is not the case. In this chapter we explore the ways to add text to \METAPOST\ graphics, and let you choose whether or not to have it typeset by \TEX. \stopintro \startsection[title={The process}] \index{text} The \METAPOST\ program is about graphics, not about text. Its ancestor was made for creating fonts and in order to do so, it actually had some limited capabilities to add text to a graphic, like coordinates to points. Now, when you really want to add typeset text, we need something more. The traditional way to add some text to a \METAPOST\ graphic was to use this: \starttyping btex Some text to be typeset by \TEX etex \stoptyping The machinery was set up in such a way that these snippets got delegated to \TEX, and the resulting \DVI\ converted back into a a \METAPOST\ picture with objects that refer to a font and character. Although the \METAPOST\ program could handle that by calling out to \TEX, we never used that method. In \MKII\ we had two flows: either direct processing, or collect all texts and process them between runs. Because the backend (conversion to \PDF) was under \CONTEXT\ control we could do more than usual. You can find some information in the older manuals. In \CONTEXT\ \MKIV\ we started using the library variant of \METAPOST. Its integration in \LUATEX\ made it possible to do all text rendering runtime at high speed. This change has an enormous speed gain: when this manual had about 425 pages, on my laptop with mobile 3840QM processor, one run of this document takes 18 seconds (14.5 with \LUAJITTEX) and that includes loading a bunch of (outline) fonts and processing some 2200 \METAPOST\ images. While writing the first version of this manual runtime was upto 50 times slower for half the number of pages so compared to \MKII\ we have gained a lot. In \MKIV\ we still have two internal runs per \METAPOST\ graphic that has text: the first time the texts snippets are collected and afterwards handed over to \LUA\ that tells the \TEX\ ending to process it. The dimensions are saved and used in a second processing of the graphic. Contrary to \MKII\ the user doesn't see these two runs: they appear as one. In \in {figure} [fig:text:mkiv] this is illustrated. \startFLOWchart[mkiv] \startFLOWcell \name {metapost 1} \location {1,1} \shape {action} \text {\METAPOST\ \type{textext 1}} \connection [rl] {lua 1} \stopFLOWcell \startFLOWcell \name {lua 1} \location {2,1} \shape {action} \text {\LUA} \connection [rl] {context 1} \connection [bb] {metapost 2} \stopFLOWcell \startFLOWcell \name {context 1} \location {3,1} \shape {action} \text {\CONTEXT} \stopFLOWcell \startFLOWcell \name {metapost 2} \location {4,1} \shape {action} \text {\METAPOST\ \type{textext 2}} \connection [bb] {lua 1} \connection [rl] {backend 1} \stopFLOWcell \startFLOWcell \name {backend 1} \location {5,1} \shape {action} \text {backend} \stopFLOWcell \stopFLOWchart In the later versions of \MKIV\ it was possible to jump out to \TEX\ immediately and save the second run, although there were cases where this was not possible (reliable). In \LMTX\ we always have one run. This is summarized in \in {figure} [fig:text:mkiv]. All this has to do with the fact that \TEX, \METAPOST\ and \LUA\ are integrated but still kind of independent. When you expand a macro (that triggers processing of a graphic) you end up in a call to the \METAPOST\ library but \TEX\ is still in that macro. In \LUATEX\ and more advanced in \LUAMETATEX\ you can sort of spawn a subprocess in \TEX\ (called local control) and indeed process the text immediately and use the calculated dimension after that has been done. All that \METAPOST\ needs is dimensions as it the backend that eventually will include the text. \startplacefigure[title={How \TEX\ and \METAPOST\ work together (\MKIV).},reference=fig:text:mkiv] \FLOWchart[mkiv] \stopplacefigure \startFLOWchart[lmtx] \startFLOWcell \name {context 1} \location {1,1} \shape {action} \text {\CONTEXT} \connection [rl] {lua 1} \stopFLOWcell \startFLOWcell \name {lua 1} \location {2,1} \shape {action} \text {\LUA} \connection [lr] {context 1} \connection [rl] {metapost 1} \stopFLOWcell \startFLOWcell \name {metapost 1} \location {3,1} \shape {action} \text {\METAPOST\ \type{textext}} \connection [lr] {lua 1} \connection [rl] {backend 1} \stopFLOWcell \startFLOWcell \name {backend 1} \location {5,1} \shape {action} \text {backend} \stopFLOWcell \stopFLOWchart \startplacefigure[title={How \TEX\ and \METAPOST\ work together (\LMTX).},reference=fig:text:lmtx] \FLOWchart[lmtx] \stopplacefigure \stopsection \startsection[title={Environments}] \index{environments} The \type {textext} command is the main text handling command and it is used in many places in this manual. It takes a string. In \MKII\ text was processed between runs or immediately but still by running an independent \TEX\ run. That has some consequences when the text was to share its properties with the main document. This means that in \MKII\ we pass characteristics of the layout, spacing, fonts, color and optionally an environment that a user has set up. This is mentioned in the older manual but no longer relevant in \MKIV\ and \LMTX. Because we handle the text runtime we automatically use the same style and document properties. This means that in code like the following, a Palatino font will be used because that is what we use in this document. \starttyping \startMPcode draw btex Meta is a female lion! etex xysized (TextWidth,TextHeight) ; \stopMPcode \stoptyping But even when we still support \type {btex} we strongly advise users to use this: \starttyping \startMPcode draw textext("Meta is a female lion!") xysized (TextWidth,TextHeight) ; \stopMPcode \stoptyping In this example as well in the next one you see that we access \type {TextWidth} directly. In older examples in the \CONTEXT\ distribution you will notice that we serialize \TEX\ registers like \type {\textwidth}. This is still valid but less preferable. Here \type {TextWidth} is actually a macro that calls out to \LUA\ from where we fetch the value of \type {\textwidth} and pipe it back to \METAPOST\ in a way that makes it look like we have a variable. \startbuffer[lioncode] \startMPcode numeric w, h ; w := TextWidth ; h := w/2 ; picture p ; p := textext.urt("Meta is a female lion!") xysized (w,h) ; picture q ; q := textext.urt("Meta is a female lion!") xysized (w,h) ; path b ; b := boundingbox p ; draw p withcolor "darkyellow" ; draw textextanchor(p) withpen pencircle scaled 5mm withcolor "darkblue" ; for i = (.28w,.90h), (.85w,.90h), (w,.05h) : picture r ; r := q ; path s ; s := (fullsquare xscaled .05w yscaled .4h) shifted i ; clip r to s ; draw r withcolor "darkred"; endfor ; setbounds currentpicture to b ; \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer[lioncode] \in {Figure} [lionclip] shows the previous sentence in a slightly different look. You may consider coloring the dots to be an exercise in clipping. \startplacefigure[title={An example of clipping.},reference=lionclip] \getbuffer[lioncode] \stopplacefigure In this example we show that the origin of the text. By default it gets centered but the \type {urt} suffix moves it. Here is another example of showing the origin: \startbuffer \startMPcode picture p ; p := thetextext.top("foo",(10,1)); picture q ; q := thetextext.lft("foo",(1,10)); draw textextanchor(p) withpen pencircle scaled 2mm withcolor "darkred" ; draw textextanchor(q) withpen pencircle scaled 1mm withcolor "white" ; draw p; draw q; \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer It gives the following: \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection \stopsection \startsection[title={Labels}] \index{labels} In \METAPOST\ you can use the \type {label} macro to position text at certain points. \starttyping label("x", origin) ; \stoptyping The font and scale are determined by two variables, \type {defaultfont} and \type {defaultscale}, the former expecting the name of a font in the form of a string, the latter expecting a numeric to be used in the scaling of the font. Should you choose not to set these yourself, they default to \type {"Mono"} and \type {1.0}, respectively. However, you can change the defaults as follows: \starttyping defaultfont := "texgyrepagella-regular*default" ; defaultscale := 1.2 ; \stoptyping These settings selects Pagella at about 12pt. You can also set these variables to \CONTEXT\ related values. For \CONTEXT\ graphics they are set to: \starttyping defaultfont := "\truefontname{Regular}*default" ; defaultscale := \the\bodyfontsize/10 ; \stoptyping This means that they will adapt themselves to the current body font (in this document we get \truefontname {Regular}) and the current size of the bodyfont (here \the\bodyfontsize/10). Normally you can stick to the default and forget about these details. More important is how you anchor labels. This is best shown with some examples: \startbuffer \startMPcode path p ; p := fullcircle scaled 3cm ; drawarrow p ; dotlabel ("test",point 0 of p) withcolor red ; dotlabel.rt ("rt", point 1 of p) ; dotlabel.urt ("urt", point 2 of p) ; dotlabel.top ("top", point 3 of p) ; dotlabel.ulft("ulft",point 4 of p) ; dotlabel.lft ("lft", point 5 of p) ; dotlabel.llft("llft",point 6 of p) ; dotlabel.bot ("bot", point 7 of p) ; dotlabel.lrt ("lrt", point 8 of p) ; \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection \startbuffer \startMPcode path p ; p := fullcircle scaled 3cm ; drawarrow p ; dotlabel ("test",p) ; dotlabel.rt ("rt", p) ; dotlabel.urt ("urt", p) ; dotlabel.top ("top", p) ; dotlabel.ulft("ulft",p) ; dotlabel.lft ("lft", p) ; dotlabel.llft("llft",p) ; dotlabel.bot ("bot", p) ; dotlabel.lrt ("lrt", p) ; \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection \startbuffer \startMPcode p := (origin..right..up..left) scaled 3cm ; drawarrow p ; label ("test",p) ; label.rt ("rt", p) ; label.urt ("urt", p) ; label.top ("top", p) ; label.ulft("ulft",p) ; label.lft ("lft", p) ; label.llft("llft",p) ; label.bot ("bot", p) ; label.lrt ("lrt", p) ; \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection \startbuffer \startMPcode picture p ; p := image(drawarrow (origin..right..up..left) scaled 3cm ;) ; draw p ; draw bbox p dashed evenly ; label ("test",p) ; label.rt ("rt", p) ; label.urt ("urt", p) ; label.top ("top", p) ; label.ulft("ulft",p) ; label.lft ("lft", p) ; label.llft("llft",p) ; label.bot ("bot", p) ; label.lrt ("lrt", p) ; \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection \startbuffer \startMPcode picture p ; p := image(drawarrow (origin..right..up..left) scaled 3cm ;) ; draw p ; draw bbox p dashed evenly ; draw textext ("test") shifted theoffset (p) ; draw textext.lft ("rt") shifted theoffset.rt (p) ; draw textext.llft("urt") shifted theoffset.urt (p) ; draw textext.bot ("top") shifted theoffset.top (p) ; draw textext.lrt ("ulft") shifted theoffset.ulft(p) ; draw textext.rt ("lft") shifted theoffset.lft (p) ; draw textext.urt ("llft") shifted theoffset.llft(p) ; draw textext.top ("bot") shifted theoffset.bot (p) ; draw textext.ulft("lrt") shifted theoffset.lrt (p) ; \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection \stopsection \startsection[title={Text along a path}] \index{text} In the next example we will use a special mechanism for building graphics step by step. The advantage of this method is that we can do intermediate calculations in \TEX. Our objective is to write a macro that draws text along a circular path. While doing so we want to achieve the following: \startitemize[packed] \startitem the text should be properly kerned, i.e.\ the spacing between characters should be optimal, \stopitem \startitem the position on the circle should vary, and \stopitem \startitem the radius of the circle should vary. \stopitem \stopitemize This code below is a bit rusted but it illustrates the principles. In \MKIV\ and \LMTX\ we have typesetting along a curve built in so we no longer show the \TEX\ code that integrates it. This implementation is not the most straightforward one, but by doing it step by step, at least we see what is involved. We let the bodyfont match the font used in this document, and define \type {RotFont} to be the regular typeface, the one you are reading right now, but bold. \startbuffer \definefont[RotFont][RegularBold*default] \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer Since \METAPOST\ is unaware of kerning, we have to use \TEX\ to keep track of the positions. We will split the text into tokens (often characters) and store the result in an array of pictures (\type {pic}). We will also store the accumulated width in an array (\type {len}). The number of characters is stored in~\type {n}. In a few paragraphs we will see why the other arrays are needed. While defining the graphic, we need \TEX\ to do some calculations. Therefore, we will use \type {\startMPdrawing} to stepwise construct the definition. The basic pattern we will follow is: \starttyping \resetMPdrawing \startMPdrawing metapost code \stopMPdrawing tex code \startMPdrawing metapost code \stopMPdrawing \MPdrawingdonetrue \getMPdrawing \stoptyping In the process, we will use a few variables. We will store the individual characters of the text in the variable \type {pic}, its width in \type {wid} and the length of the string so far in \type {len}. Later we will use the \type {pos} array to store the position where a character ends up. The variable \type {n} holds the number of tokens. \startbuffer[init] \resetMPdrawing \startMPdrawing picture pic[] ; numeric wid[], len[], pos[], n ; wid[0] := len[0] := pos[0] := n := 0 ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[init] We also started fresh by resetting the drawing. From now on, each start command will add some more to this graphic. The next macro is responsible for collecting the data. Each element is passed on to \TEX, using the \type {btex} construct. So, \METAPOST\ itself will call \TEX ! \startbuffer[toks] \def\whatever#1% {\appendtoks#1\to\MPtoks \setbox\MPbox=\hbox{\bfd\the\MPtoks}% \startMPdrawing n := n + 1 ; len[n] := \the\wd\MPbox ; \stopMPdrawing \startMPdrawing[-] pic[n] := textext("\bfd\setstrut\strut#1") ; pic[n] := pic[n] shifted - llcorner pic[n] ; \stopMPdrawing} \handletokens MetaPost is Fun!\with\whatever \stopbuffer \typebuffer[toks] We use the low level \CONTEXT\ macro \type {\appendtoks} to extend the token list \type {\MPtoks}. The \type {\handletokens} macro passes each token (character) of \typ {MetaPost is Fun!} to the macro \type {\whatever}. The tokens are appended to the token register \type {\MPtoks} (already defined). Then we typeset the content of \type {\MPtoks} in \type {\MPbox} (also already defined). The width of the box is passed to \METAPOST\ and stored in \type {len}. By default the content of the drawing is expanded, which means that the macro is replaced by its current meaning, so the current width ends up in the \METAPOST\ file. The next part of the drawing, starting with \type {btex}, puts the token in a picture. This time we don't expand the drawing, since we want to pass font information. Here, the \type {[-]} suppresses expansion of \typ {btex \bfd #1 etex}. The process is iterated by \type {\handletokens} for each character of the text \typ {MetaPost is Fun!}. Before we typeset the text, now available in pieces in \type {pic}, in a circle, we will first demonstrate what they look like. You may like to take a look at the file \type {mpgraph.mp} to see what is passed to \METAPOST. \startbuffer[test] \startMPdrawing pair len ; len := origin ; for i=1 upto n : draw pic[i] shifted len ; draw boundingbox pic[i] shifted len withpen pencircle scaled .25pt withcolor red ; len := len+(xpart urcorner pic[i]-xpart llcorner pic[i],0) ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[test] \startbuffer[show] \MPdrawingdonetrue\getMPdrawing \stopbuffer We can call up this drawing with \type {\getMPdrawing}, but first we inform the compiler that our \METAPOST\ drawing is completed. \typebuffer[show] This results in: \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer[init,toks,test,show] \stoplinecorrection Compare this text with the text as typeset by \TEX: \blank \start \bfd MetaPost is Fun!\par \stop \blank and you will see that the text produced by \METAPOST\ is not properly kerned. When putting characters after each other, \TEX\ uses the information available in the font, to optimize the spacing between characters, while \METAPOST\ looks at characters as separate entities. But, since we have stored the optimal spacing in \type {len}, we can let \METAPOST\ do a better job. Let's first calculate the correction needed. \startbuffer[kern] \startMPdrawing for i=1 upto n : wid[i] := abs(xpart urcorner pic[i] - xpart llcorner pic[i]) ; pos[i] := len[i]-wid[i] ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[kern] This compares well to the text as typeset by \TEX: \blank \start \bfd MetaPost is Fun!\par \stop \blank We can now use the values in \type {pos} to position the pictures according to what \TEX\ considered to be the best (relative) position. \startbuffer[test] \startMPdrawing for i=1 upto n : draw pic[i] shifted (pos[i],0) ; draw boundingbox pic[i] shifted (pos[i],0) withpen pencircle scaled .25pt withcolor red ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[test] That this correction is adequate, is demonstrated in the next graphic. If you look closely, you will see that for instance the \quote {o} is moved to the left, under the capital \quote {P}. \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer[init,toks,kern,test,show] \stoplinecorrection When we want to position the pictures along a circle, we need to apply some rotations, especially because we want to go clockwise. Since we don't want to use \quote {complicated} math or more advanced \METAPOST\ code yet, we will do it in steps. \startbuffer[swap] \startMPdrawing for i=1 upto n: pic[i] := pic[i] rotatedaround(origin,-270) ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[swap] \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer[init,toks,kern,swap,test,show] \stoplinecorrection \startbuffer[cent] \startMPdrawing for i=1 upto n : pic[i] := pic[i] shifted (0,ypart -.5[ulcorner pic[i],llcorner pic[i]]) ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer We will now center the pictures around the baseline. Centering comes down to shifting over half the height of the picture. This can be expressed by: \starttyping ypart -.5[ulcorner pic[i],llcorner pic[i]] \stoptyping but different ways of calculating the distance are possible too. \typebuffer[cent] So, now we have: \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer[init,toks,kern,swap,cent,test,show] \stoplinecorrection When we typeset on a (half) circle, we should map the actual length onto a partial circle. We denote the radius with an~\type {r} and shift the pictures to the left. \startbuffer[shif] \startMPdrawing numeric r ; r := len[n]/pi ; for i=1 upto n : pic[i] := pic[i] shifted (-r,0) ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[shif] You can now use the following code to test the current state of the pictures. Of course this code should not end up in the final definitions. \startbuffer[test] \startMPdrawing draw origin withpen pencircle scaled 5pt withcolor red ; for i=1 upto n : draw pic[i] ; draw boundingbox pic[i] withpen pencircle scaled .25pt withcolor red ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[test] \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer[init,toks,kern,swap,cent,shif,test,show] \stoplinecorrection Later we will write a compact, efficient macro to take care of rotation. However, for the moment, so as not to overwhelm you with complicated code, we will rotate each individual picture with the following code fragment. \startbuffer[rots] \startMPdrawing numeric delta, extra, radius, rot[] ; delta := extra := radius := 0 ; for i=1 upto n : rot[i] := extra+delta-((pos[i]+.5wid[i])/len[n])*(180+2delta) ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[rots] Here we introduce a few variables that we can use later to tune the result a bit. With \type {delta}, the space between the characters can be increased, while \type {extra} rotates the whole string around the origin. The \type {radius} variable can be used to increase the distance to the origin. Without these variables, the assignment would have been: \starttyping rot[i] := ((pos[i]+.5wid[i])/len[n])*180 ; \stoptyping Placing the pictures is now rather easy: \startbuffer[done] \startMPdrawing for i=1 upto n : draw pic[i] shifted (-radius,0) rotatedaround(origin,rot[i]) ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \typebuffer[done] The pictures are now positioned on half a circle, properly kerned. \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer[init,toks,kern,swap,cent,shif,rots,done,show] \stoplinecorrection A bit more insight is given in the next picture: \startbuffer[test] \startMPdrawing def moved(expr i) = shifted (-radius,0) rotatedaround(origin,rot[i]) enddef ; pickup pencircle scaled .5pt ; for i=1 upto n : draw pic[i] moved(i) ; draw boundingbox pic[i] moved(i) withcolor red ; draw origin -- center pic[i] moved(i) withcolor green ; endfor ; draw tcircle scaled 2r withcolor blue ; \stopMPdrawing \stopbuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer[init,toks,kern,swap,cent,shif,rots,test,show] \stoplinecorrection This was defined as follows. The path variable \type {tcycle} is predefined to the top half of a fullcircle. \typebuffer[test] We will now package all of this into a nice, efficient macro, using, of course, the predefined scratch registers \type {\MPtoks} and \type {\MPbox}. First we define the token processor. Note again the expansion inhibition switch \type {[-]}. This code is presented as an example of how these mechanissm evolved in \CONTEXT. \startbuffer \def\processrotationtoken#1% {\appendtoks#1\to\MPtoks \setbox\MPbox=\hbox{\RotFont\the\MPtoks}% \startMPdrawing n := n + 1 ; len[n] := \the\wd\MPbox ; \stopMPdrawing \startMPdrawing[-] pic[n] := textext("\RotFont\setstrut\strut#1") ; pic[n] := pic[n] shifted - llcorner pic[n] ; \stopMPdrawing} \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer The main macro is a bit more complicated but by using a few scratch numerics, we can keep it readable. \startbuffer \def\rotatetokens#1#2#3#4% delta extra radius tokens {\vbox\bgroup \MPtoks\emptytoks \resetMPdrawing \startMPdrawing picture pic[] ; numeric wid, len[], rot ; numeric delta, extra, radius, n, r ; len[0] := n := 0 ; delta := #1 ; extra := #2 ; radius := #3 ; \stopMPdrawing \handletokens#4\with\processrotationtoken \startMPdrawing r := len[n]/pi ; for i=1 upto n : wid := abs(xpart lrcorner pic[i] - xpart llcorner pic[i]) ; rot := extra + delta - ((len[i]-.5wid)/len[n]) * (180+2delta) ; draw pic[i] rotatedaround (origin,-270) shifted (-r-radius, ypart -.5[ulcorner pic[i], llcorner pic[i]]) rotatedaround (origin,rot) ; endfor ; \stopMPdrawing \MPdrawingdonetrue \getMPdrawing \resetMPdrawing \egroup} \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer \startbuffer \startcombination[3*1] {\rotatetokens {0} {0}{0}{Does it work ok?}} {A} {\rotatetokens{20} {0}{0}{Does it work ok?}} {B} {\rotatetokens{20}{30}{0}{Does it work ok?}} {C} \stopcombination \stopbuffer We can use this macro as follows: \typebuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection The previous macro is not really an example of generalization, but we used it for demonstrating how to build graphics in a stepwise way. If you put the steps in buffers, you can even combine steps and replace them at will. This is how we made the previous step by step examples: We put each sub||graphic in a buffer and then called the ones we wanted. Next we show how it is done today in \LMTX. Instead of wrapping it in a macro we just do all in \METAPOST. Watch how we use the key|/|value interface: \startbuffer \startMPcode draw lmt_followtext [ path = halfcircle rotated 45 scaled 4cm, text = "Does it work ok?", spread = true, trace = true, ] ; draw lmt_followtext [ path = halfcircle rotated -30 scaled 3cm, text = "Does it work ok?", spread = false, trace = true, ] shifted (4cm,0) ; draw lmt_followtext [ path = reverse halfcircle scaled 2cm, text = "Does it work ok?", spread = true, trace = true, ] shifted (8cm,0) ; \stopMPcode \stopMPcode \stopbuffer \typebuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \getbuffer \stoplinecorrection \stopsection \startsection[title={Using shapes}] Sometimes, others may say oftentimes, we are in need for some fancy typesetting. If we want to typeset a paragraph of text in a non standard shape, like a circle, we have to fall back on \type {\parshape}. Unfortunately, \TEX\ is not that strong in providing the specifications of more complicated shapes, unless you are willing to do some complicated arithmetic \TEX. Given that \METAPOST\ knows how to deal with shapes, the question is: \quotation {Can \METAPOST\ be of help?} In the process of finding out how to deal with this, we first define a simple path. Because we are going to replace pieces of code, we will compose the graphic from components. First, we create the path. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text path} path p ; p := ((0,1)..(-1,0)..(1,0)--cycle) scaled 65pt ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer This shape is not that beautiful, but it has a few characteristics that will help us to identify bordercases. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text draw} drawarrow p withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor red ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer Now we use \CONTEXT's \type {\includeMPgraphic} command to build our graphic from the previously defined components. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text} \includeMPgraphic{text path} \includeMPgraphic{text draw} \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer When called with \type {\useMPgraphic{text}}, we get: \startlinecorrection[blank] \useMPgraphic{text} \stoplinecorrection For the moment we start the path at $(x=0,y>0)$, but later using more complicated macros, we will see that we can use arbitrary paths. We are going to split the path in two, and will use the points that make up the bounding box as calcutated by \METAPOST. The next graphic shows one of these points, the lower left corner, available as point \typ {llcorner p}. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text draw} draw p withpen pencircle scaled 3pt withcolor red ; draw boundingbox p withpen pencircle scaled 1pt ; draw llcorner p withpen pencircle scaled 5pt ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \useMPgraphic{text} \stoplinecorrection The five points that \METAPOST\ can report for each path or picture are: \starttabulate[|Tl|l|] \NC llcorner \NC lower left corner \NC \NR \NC lrcorner \NC lower right corner \NC \NR \NC urcorner \NC upper right corner \NC \NR \NC ulcorner \NC upper left corner \NC \NR \NC center \NC intersection of the diagonals \NC \NR \stoptabulate If we want to typeset text inside this circle, we need to know where a line starts and ends. Given that lines are horizontal and straight, we therefore need to calculate the intersection points of the lines and the path. As a first step, we calculate the top and bottom of the path and after that we split off the left and right path. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text split} pair t, b ; path l, r ; t := (ulcorner p -- urcorner p) intersectionpoint p ; b := (llcorner p -- lrcorner p) intersectionpoint p ; l := p cutbefore t ; l := l cutafter b ; r := p cutbefore b ; r := r cutafter t ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer The \type {intersectionpoint} macro returns the point where two paths cross. If the paths don't cross, an error is reported, when the paths cross more times, just one point is returned. The \type {cutafter} and \type {cutbefore} commands do as their names say and return a path. In the \type {text split} code fragment, \type {t} and \type {b} are the top points of the main path, while \type {l} and \type {r} become the left and right half of path \type {p}. We now draw the original path using a thick pen and both halves with a thinner pen on top of the original. The arrows show the direction. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text draw} draw p withpen pencircle scaled 3pt withcolor red ; drawarrow l withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor green ; drawarrow r withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor blue ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer We use \type {\includeMPgraphic} to assemble the components: \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text} \includeMPgraphic{text path} \includeMPgraphic{text split} \includeMPgraphic{text draw} \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer This graphic is typeset with \type {\useMPgraphic{text}}: \startlinecorrection[blank] \useMPgraphic{text} \stoplinecorrection Before we are going to use them, we define some variables that specify the text. We use a baseline distance of 8~points. The part of the line above the baseline is 7.2~points, while the (maximum) depth is 2.8~points. These ratios are the ones we use in \CONTEXT. Because we don't want the text to touch the circle so we define an offset too. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text vars} MyOffset := LineHeight/2 ; MyTopSkip := StrutHeight ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer We more or less achieve the offset by scaling the path. In doing so, we use the width and height, which we call \type {hsize} and \type {vsize}, thereby conforming to the \TEX\ naming scheme. First we calculate both dimensions from the bounding box of the path. Next we down scale the path to compensate for the offset. When done, we recalculate the dimensions. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text move} pair t, b ; path q, l, r ; hsize := xpart lrcorner p - xpart llcorner p ; vsize := ypart urcorner p - ypart lrcorner p ; q := p xscaled ((hsize-2MyOffset)/hsize) yscaled ((vsize-2MyOffset)/vsize) ; hsize := xpart lrcorner q - xpart llcorner q ; vsize := ypart urcorner q - ypart lrcorner q ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text split} t := (ulcorner q -- urcorner q) intersectionpoint q ; b := (llcorner q -- lrcorner q) intersectionpoint q ; l := q cutbefore t ; l := l cutafter b ; r := q cutbefore b ; r := r cutafter t ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer We adapt the \type {text split} code to use the reduced path instead of the original. \typebuffer \getbuffer \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text draw} drawarrow p withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor red ; draw t withpen pencircle scaled 2pt ; draw b withpen pencircle scaled 2pt ; drawarrow l withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor green ; drawarrow r withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor blue ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer In order to test what we have reached so far, we draw the original path, the left and right part of the reduced path, and both the top and bottom point. \typebuffer \getbuffer Again we use \type {\includeMPgraphic} to combine the components into a graphic. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text} \includeMPgraphic{text path} \includeMPgraphic{text vars} \includeMPgraphic{text move} \includeMPgraphic{text split} \includeMPgraphic{text draw} \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer Then we use \type {\useMPgraphic{text}} to call up the picture. \startlinecorrection[blank] \useMPgraphic{text} \stoplinecorrection The offset is not optimal. Note the funny gap at the top. We could try to fix this, but there is a better way to optimize both paths. We lower the top edge of \type {q}'s bounding box by \type {MyTopSkip}, then cut any part of the left and right pieces of \type {q} that lie above it. Similarly, we raise the bottom edge and cut off the pieces that fall below this line. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text cutoff} path tt, bb ; tt := (ulcorner q -- urcorner q) shifted (0,-MyTopSkip) ; bb := (llcorner q -- lrcorner q) shifted (0,StrutDepth) ; l := l cutbefore (l intersectionpoint tt) ; l := l cutafter (l intersectionpoint bb) ; r := r cutbefore (r intersectionpoint bb) ; r := r cutafter (r intersectionpoint tt) ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer Because we use \type {\includeMPgraphic} to construct the graphic, we can redefine \type {text draw} to show the result of this effort. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text draw} drawarrow p withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor red ; drawarrow l withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor green ; drawarrow r withpen pencircle scaled 1pt withcolor blue ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer The \type {text} graphic now becomes: \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text} \includeMPgraphic{text path} \includeMPgraphic{text vars} \includeMPgraphic{text move} \includeMPgraphic{text split} \includeMPgraphic{text cutoff} \includeMPgraphic{text draw} \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer Or, as graphic: \startlinecorrection[blank] \useMPgraphic{text} \stoplinecorrection We are now ready for an attempt to calculate the shape of the text. For each line, we have to calculate the left and right intersection points, and since a line has a height and depth, we have to determine which part touches first. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text calc} vardef found_point (expr lin, pat, sig) = pair a, b ; a := pat intersection_point (lin shifted (0,StrutHeight)) ; if intersection_found : a := a shifted (0,-StrutHeight) ; else : a := pat intersection_point lin ; fi ; b := pat intersection_point (lin shifted (0,-StrutDepth)) ; if intersection_found : if sig : if xpart b > xpart a : a := b shifted (0,StrutDepth) fi ; else : if xpart b < xpart a : a := b shifted (0,StrutDepth) fi ; fi ; fi ; a enddef ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer Instead of using \METAPOST's \type {intersectionpoint} macro, we use one that comes with \CONTEXT. That way we don't get an error message when no point is found, and can use a boolean flag to take further action. Since we use a \type {vardef}, all calculations are hidden and the~\type {a} at the end is returned, so that we can use this macro in an assignment. The \type {sig} variable is used to distinguish between the beginning and end of a line (the left and right subpath). \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text step} path line; pair lll, rrr ; for i=MyTopSkip step LineHeight until vsize : line := (ulcorner q -- urcorner q) shifted (0,-i) ; lll := found_point(line,l,true ) ; rrr := found_point(line,r,false) ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer Here we divide the available space in lines. The first line starts at \type {StrutHeight} from the top. We can now finish our graphic by visualizing the lines. Both the height and depth of the lines are shown. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text line} fill (lll--rrr--rrr shifted (0,StrutHeight)--lll shifted (0,StrutHeight)--cycle) withcolor .5white ; fill (lll--rrr--rrr shifted (0,-StrutDepth)--lll shifted (0,-StrutDepth)--cycle) withcolor .7white ; draw lll withpen pencircle scaled 2pt ; draw rrr withpen pencircle scaled 2pt ; draw (lll--rrr) withpen pencircle scaled .5pt ; \stopuseMPgraphic \startuseMPgraphic{text done} endfor ; \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer The result is still a bit disappointing. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text} \includeMPgraphic{text path} \includeMPgraphic{text vars} \includeMPgraphic{text move} \includeMPgraphic{text split} \includeMPgraphic{text cutoff} \includeMPgraphic{text draw} \includeMPgraphic{text calc} \includeMPgraphic{text step} \includeMPgraphic{text line} \includeMPgraphic{text done} \stopuseMPgraphic \stopbuffer \typebuffer \getbuffer \startlinecorrection[blank] \useMPgraphic{text} \stoplinecorrection In order to catch the overflow at the bottom, we need to change the \type {for}||loop a bit, so that the number of lines does not exceed the available space. The test that surrounds the assignment of \type {vvsize} makes sure that we get better results when we (on purpose) take a smaller height. \startbuffer \startuseMPgraphic{text step} path line; pair lll, rrr ; numeric vvsize ; if (StrutHeight+StrutDepth