labella 0.9

Python version of Labella.js

labella.py
==========

Labella.py is a Python 3 clone of
[labella.js](https://github.com/twitter/labella.js) which supports all the
features of labella.js and addionally can generate TikZ PDF images for use in
LaTeX.

**Note:** This package is for the most part a direct translation of the
original [labella.js](https://github.com/twitter/labella.js) code to Python 3.
All the credit for the labella code goes to Krist Wongsuphasawat
([@kristw](https://twitter.com/kristw)), I only added the code which generates
PDF output. Labella.py also includes code from
[d3](https://github.com/mbostock/d3) for axis scaling, and
[WebCola](https://github.com/tgdwyer/WebCola) for the VPSC code (label
placement optimization).

Why?
----
I wrote this for multiple reasons, the most important of which is that I
wanted to incorporate label graphs like the ones generated by
[labella.js](https://github.com/twitter/labella.js) in PDF documents, but
wasn't satisfied with the PDF output generated by SVG-to-PDF converters.
Additionally, it seemed like a fun way to learn some more Javascript, and
learn about how [labella.js](https://github.com/twitter/labella.js) works.

Screenshots
-----------
These screenshots show the PDF output generated by labella.py (converted to
.png)

Time scale:

Linear scale:

Usage
-----
Using labella.py is extremely similar to using
[labella.js](https://github.com/twitter/labella.js). See the
[examples](examples) directory for examples of how to use labella.py. These
examples are translations of the examples included in labella.js and in
[d3kit-timeline](https://kristw.github.io/d3kit-timeline/).

For ease of use only the Timeline interface is implemented, which works
similar to [d3kit-timeline](https://kristw.github.io/d3kit-timeline/). Here is
a minimal working example for exporting to PDF:

```python
>>> from labella.scale import LinearScale
>>> from labella.timeline import TimelineTex
>>> tl = TimelineTex([
{'time': 1, 'text': 'Minimal'},
{'time': 2, 'text': 'Working'},
{'time': 3, 'text': 'Example'}
], options={'scale': LinearScale()})
>>> tl.export('minimal.tex')
```

See also the documentation [here](docs).

Installation
------------

Clone the repository and then use:
```
python setup.py install
```
or:
```
python setup.py install --user
```

**Note:** Labella.py requires a working LaTeX distribution for both SVG and
PDF output (see also [the documentation](docs/)), and has only been tested on
Linux.

Author
------

Gertjan van den Burg ([@GJJvandenBurg](https://twitter.com/GJJvandenBurg)).

Licensed under the [Apache License Version
2.0](http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0).