Javascript/browser vector graphics

2015-11-20 — 2023-11-09

Wherein the browser is enlisted to render vector graphics by libraries and services, and Kroki is noted as a CLI and web service by which varied diagram formats are rendered from simple textual descriptions.

computers are awful
faster pussycat
photon choreography
Figure 1

There are many ways of weaponising the browser to draw vector graphics (HTML DOM, SVG, Canvas…) and many libraries abstract the process.

One to rule them all is Kroki!, which is a CLI and/or web service that can render a wide variety of vector graphics formats from a simple text description. It’s very handy for things I intend to render offline anyway, such as markdown.

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1 Raphaël

A classic; not heavily maintained, but also maybe not in need of much maintenance.

2 Mermaid

3 Two.js

4 Paper.js

5 Snap

snap.js is a modern SVG library by the author of raphaël.js.