Asymptote (vector graphics language)

Asymptote is a descriptive vector graphics language developed by Andy Hammerlindl, John C. Bowman of the University of Alberta, and Tom Prince. It gives technical drawing a natural coordinate-based framework and runs on Unix, Mac OS and Microsoft Windows as free software under the GNU Lesser General Public License. It typesets labels and equations with LaTeX and produces PostScript, PDF, SVG or 3D PRC output. The design was inspired by MetaPost but uses a C-like syntax, and it is mathematically oriented, for example rotating vectors by complex multiplication. It solves size constraints between fixed-size objects such as labels and arrowheads and objects that scale with the figure by using the simplex method and deferred drawing. Asymptote generalizes MetaPost path construction to three dimensions, compiles commands to virtual machine code for speed while staying portable, and implements its high-level graphics commands in the Asymptote language itself so they can be tailored. It is notable as apparently the first package to lift TeX into three dimensions, and it has a graphical interface, xasy.py, written in Python with the Tk widget set.