Quartz 2D Graphics for Mac OS X® Developers [Paperback]

R. Scott Thompson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 20, 2006 | ISBN-10: 0321336631 | ISBN-13: 978-0321336637

Core Graphics is the new graphics framework for Mac OS X. Quartz, the 2D drawing system, and Core Image, which processes both video and still images, are the key new technologies in this framework and provide the tools Mac OS X developers need to create and draw graphics for their applications that target the design-savvy Mac consumer audience. With the evolution of Mac OS X, Apple is phasing out use of its previous graphics framework, QuickDraw, and encouraging all developers to begin using Core Graphics. The model for Quartz is completely unique and entirely different from QuickDraw creating a steep learning curve for all developers moving over. This book is in an introduction and guide to working with Core Graphics, specifically Quartz and Core Image. It carries the developer through the fundamental Quartz models and basic concepts such as drawing, coordinating system basics, virtual paint, and CGContext. Once the fundamentals are covered, author Scott Thompson delves into more advanced topics such as shading, patterns, and manipulating image effects. Practical code examples enhance the discussion and offer Mac developers the information they need to incorporate these powerful graphics into their own Mac OS X Applications.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

A Hands-On Guide and Introduction to Quartz 2D

 

On Mac OS X, Macintosh developers depend on the graphics and imaging frameworks of the Core Graphics system to implement multimedia features in their applications. With Core Graphics Apple has answered the increasing demands of graphics developers with a powerful collection of tools, including Quartz 2D and Core Image. Quartz 2D is a modern drawing API with a powerful imaging model. Beginning with Mac OS X 10.4, Tiger, Quartz 2D replaces the QuickDraw® graphics library in legacy applications and provides the functionality developers need to take advantage of the latest hardware.

 

Quartz 2D Graphics for Mac OS X® Developers is a hands-on guide and introduction to Quartz 2D. Differences between the interfaces and features of QuickDraw and Quartz 2D are making the switch challenging for developers. Through in-depth practical coverage, Mac developer and consultant Scott Thompson leads you smoothly through the transition and sets you on the path to developing cutting edge graphics in Core Image.

 

Through this invaluable guide, you will learn how to

• Forge connections between Quartz 2D and graphics devices using CGContexts
• Simplify the drawing process using transformations
• Draw line art using path-drawing operations on Bezier paths
• Use pixel data to create images
• Import and export images from Quartz 2D with Image I/O and QuickTime
• Generate text and implement special text effects
• Draw in offscreen environments, such as CGLayers and offscreen bitmaps
• Create shadings and patterns
• Create PDFs from Quartz 2D drawings or import PDFs into your drawings

 

If you depend on QuickDraw for your graphics needs, or are interested in a system that pushes the envelope in computer graphics, now is the time to make the switch to Core Graphics (Quartz 2D, Core Image). This is the book that walks you through that change–step-by-step!

 

The companion CD-ROM contains projects and source code covered in this book so you can run each sample. The samples demonstrate how to call Quartz 2D from both Carbon and Cocoa applications as well as from Mac OS X’s Python scripting interface.

About the Author

R. Scott Thompson is currently a software engineer at Mindjet Corporation (www.mindjet.com). He has been a professional Macintosh developer since 1993. Working with Apple as an independent consultant he helped developers move their applications from the classic Mac OS to Mac OS X. Prior to that, Scott was an engineer with Macromedia helping to create a popular PostScript-based print publishing application.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional (March 20, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0321336631
• ISBN-13: 978-0321336637
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,465,946 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Practices for Mac programmers., May 30, 2006

By 

J. Wrenholt (Lincoln, NE United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Quartz 2D Graphics for Mac OS X® Developers (Paperback)

I thought this was a great book for Mac programmers who want to know more about Quartz. It is well written and easy to follow. There is a CD-ROM with the sample code included with the book. It covers the essentials and gives "Best Practices" advice on actually using Quartz in a professional program, including performance issues. R. Scott Thompson is a talented author and I hope he will write more programming books in the future.

It starts with a clear introduction to Quartz, but gets right to some useful techniques, such as off-screen bitmaps, writing images to a PNG file, etc. It covers the basics, like CGContexts, Affine transforms, Bezier curves, and Paths, in a clear and insightful manner. You could learn most of this material from the manuals, but Scott has a way of clearing things up and making you feel comfortable with the topic. The examples he gives are short but useful in learning the subtle points of the Quartz API.

Next comes a more in-depth look at off-screen drawing, clipping and the masking of images. Scott shows you how to work with PNG, JPEG data, and gives code for importing and exporting other image formats using QuickTime.

I especially like the chapter on Core Image, which isn't covered anywhere else. Scott shows you how to wrap the API in C to gain access to the powerful filters and transition effects provided by Core Image.

This book is not a complete reference or encyclopedia of the Quartz API, (get "Programming with Quartz" by Gelphman & Laden for that). Mac programmers will want both.

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Informative but Irrelevant. Obsolete!, December 8, 2007

By 

JoeMMac - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Quartz 2D Graphics for Mac OS X® Developers (Paperback)

This was great for learning quartz in TIGER but a lot of the examples don't compile in Leopard. A lot of stuff is also (bizarrely) written in C++ in Carbon. Almost the first sentence of every other Mac programming book I've ever read was "Use Cocoa and Objective C". Almost every paragraph in the book tells Cocoa programmers where to look for documentation instead. Even the examples that are written in Cocoa are in "Objective-C++" (.mm).

Granted it was a decent introduction to Quartz and drawing, but if you want to take anything out of the book you have to follow the author's links to where to learn about Cocoa, open up your developer library, and translate everything into actual Objective-C yourself.

So unless you plan on developing for Tiger for the rest of your life, stick to Apple's online documentation for learning how to write Mac OS X applications.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Quartz2D Graphics for Mac OS developers, May 30, 2011

By 

William G. Harter "Buckyball" (U of A at Fayetteville) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Quartz 2D Graphics for Mac OS X® Developers (Paperback)

OK until you get to chapter 11 on text.

Then it is completely obsolete and useless. Its CD of text display programs will not compile on X-Code 3 or X-Code 4.