DEC-11-GPMA-B-D Picture Book Reference Manual 197312

"Picture Book" is a software controller developed by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) for the GT40 graphics terminal, designed to enable programmers to create and manipulate interactive graphic displays on a host computer (such as a PDP-10 or PDP-11 under DOS/BATCH).

The software organizes the GT40's memory into a "Graphics Book" containing various "chapters" for different types of data: Pictures (for long vectors and subpage calls), Figures (for short vectors and points), Graphs (for plotting with variable axes), and Tables (for addressable text entries in ASCII or Special characters).

Users can interact with Picture Book in two primary ways:

1. FORTRAN Subroutines: Programmers write application programs in FORTRAN using a comprehensive library of subroutines (GLIB). These subroutines allow direct control over drawing graphic elements (vectors, dots, arcs), setting display modes (brightness, blinking, line types, light-pen sensitivity), managing the "Book" structure (layout, opening pages, marking positions), and handling light pen input.
2. PICLET Language: A simpler, on-line command language for direct keyboard entry, enabling quick creation or alteration of graphic elements.

Key features include interactive manipulation of displayed graphics (e.g., moving elements with a light pen), simulation of VT06 alphanumeric terminal communications, and efficient memory usage. The manual provides detailed descriptions of all FORTRAN subroutines, examples of application programs (like POLY for interactive polygons and CLOCK for a sine wave plot), and operating instructions for PDP-10 and DOS/BATCH systems. For DOS/BATCH environments, specialized I/O subroutines (INLIN, OUTLIN, SETUP) are introduced, as the GT40 is not treated as a standard terminal.