Table of Contents

• 1. Path Construction
• 2. Overview
• 3. Command Categories
  • 3.1. Basic Path Operations
  • 3.2. Relative Path Operations
  • 3.3. Arc Operations
• 4. Common Patterns
  • 4.1. Rectangle
  • 4.2. Circle
  • 4.3. Rounded Rectangle
• 5. See Also

1. Path Construction

Commands for building vector paths in PostScript. Paths are the fundamental building blocks for all graphics operations - they define shapes that can then be filled, stroked, or used for clipping.

2. Overview

Path construction in PostScript follows a three-step process:

1. Construct - Build the path using moveto, lineto, curveto, arc, etc.

2. Paint - Apply fill, stroke, or clip operations

3. Reset - Use newpath to start fresh

3. Command Categories

3.1. Basic Path Operations

Command	Description
newpath	Initialize path to empty
moveto	Set current point (start new subpath)
lineto	Add straight line to current point
curveto	Add Bézier curve to path
closepath	Close current subpath
currentpoint	Get coordinates of current point

3.2. Relative Path Operations

Command	Description
rmoveto	Relative moveto
rlineto	Relative lineto
rcurveto	Relative curveto

3.3. Arc Operations

Command	Description
arc	Add counterclockwise circular arc
arcn	Add clockwise circular arc
arct	Add arc defined by tangent lines
arcto	Like arct but returns tangent points

4. Common Patterns

4.1. Rectangle

newpath
100 100 moveto
200 0 rlineto
0 150 rlineto
-200 0 rlineto
closepath

4.2. Circle

newpath
200 200 50 0 360 arc
closepath

4.3. Rounded Rectangle

/roundrect {  % x y width height radius
  /r exch def
  /h exch def
  /w exch def
  /y exch def
  /x exch def

  newpath
  x r add y moveto
  x w add y x w add y h add r arcto 4 { pop } repeat
  x w add y h add x y h add r arcto 4 { pop } repeat
  x y h add x y r arcto 4 { pop } repeat
  x y x w add y r arcto 4 { pop } repeat
  closepath
} def

50 50 200 100 10 roundrect

5. See Also

• Painting - Fill and stroke paths

• Graphics State - Line parameters

• Transformations - Coordinate systems