Herd Software Development
DaVinci Graphics Library
DaVinci Documentation

Introducing DaVinci

Welcome to the DaVinci graphics library from Herd software development for Microsoft WindowsTM.

DaVinci’s capabilities

DaVinci is a library of functions for processing images and graphic data in a variety of formats on 16 and 32 bit Microsoft Windows operating systems. The library is designed as a development aid for programmers and application developers and can be redistributed royalty-free by licensed developers.

DaVinci’s capabilities include:

• Import/export of a range of graphic file formats
  
  
• Compression of graphics data
  
  
• Processing and special effects (including rotation, section enlargements, sharpening etc.)
  
  
• Image conversion (dithering, modification of color depth, format conversion, etc.)
  
  
• Barcode recognition
  
  
• Image display in applications
  
  
• Gamma correction
  
  
• Printing of graphics and graphic data
  
  
• Pixel-by-pixel access to images
  
  
• Direct modification of images (i.e. drawing/painting into an existing picture)

Library modules

DaVinci

DaVinci provides your applications with easy access to images in all the most popular formats without the hassle of authoring or debugging your own graphics functions. Development and implementation with DaVinci frees you from the drudgery and detail of implementing complex or varied graphics formats into applications. With just a few lines of code you can add wide-ranging imaging support to virtually any application.

This simplicity doesn’t compromise on power. DaVinci can generate image data in formats which extend beyond the limits of normal Windows imaging, and supports both 16 and 32 bit image formats in addition to the usual formats.

It’s ideal for multiplatform development, too. DaVinci’s function calls are identical on both 16 and 32 bit Windows platforms, allowing you to generate 16 and 32 bit applications from the same source code.

Leonardo

The Leonardo graphics function library, included with your DaVinci license, contains supplementary functions for editing bitmap and metafile images. The sample programs provided with DaVinci demonstrate how to display, print and process graphics in many formats across different development platforms.

Imagine

The Imagine window class, also included with a DaVinci license, provides sophisticated display of graphics in applications and even performs automatic dithering, scaling, printing and scrolling. Imagine is "engine" behind the TDavinci VCL component and the Imagine ActiveX control.

TDavinci component

The TDavinci component component is provided as a development aid for Borland Delphi 1/2/3 and Borland C++ builder 3. It should vastly simplify the use of the DaVinci components in Borland RAD. It makes complex graphics operations as simple as setting a few simple properties and calling Execute.

DavCtl ActiveX control

The DavCtl ActiveX control provides the same features as the TDavinci component component. It is provided for use with Visual Basic, Microsoft VBA (Visual Basic for Applications, currently used in Word 97, Access 97 etc.) and other development platforms which support ActiveX technology. (DavCtl ActiveX is only available in a 32 bit OCX version...no VBX version is available at this time.)

Hardware requirements

Requirements for DaVinci in distributed applications

16 bit applications:

Windows 3.1 or newer

Equivalent of Intel 80386 or newer

2 MB system memory

VGA graphics (min. 16 colors)

Minimum Windows 3.0-compatible (i.e. Windows 2.0 printer drivers are not compatible)

32 bit applications

Windows NT 3.50 or Windows 95 or newer (Win32s over Windows 3.1/3.11 is not supported)

Equivalent of Intel 80386 or newer

4 MB system memory

VGA graphics (min. 16 colors)

Requirements for developing with DaVinci

Windows NT 3.50 or Windows 95 or newer

Software development environment with WIN32.HLP help file.