Processing.js
 | |
| Original author(s) | John Resig |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Seneca CDOT |
| Initial release | 2008 |
| Stable release | 1.6.6
/ March 5, 2017 |
| Repository |  |
| Written in | JavaScript |
| Size | 61 KB (gzipped) / 209 KB (production) / 754 KB (development) |
| Type | Web application framework |
| License | MIT |
| Website | processingjs |
Processing.js is a JavaScript port of Processing, a programming language designed to write visualisations, images, and interactive content. It allows web browsers to display animations, visual applications, games and other graphical rich content without the need for a Java applet or Flash plugin. It was discontinued in December 2018.
Processing.js was originally created to allow existing Processing developers and existing code to work unmodified on web. Processing.js used JavaScript to render 2D and 3D content on the HTML canvas element, and was supported by browsers that have implemented this element (the latest versions of Mozilla Firefox, Opera, Internet Explorer, Safari and Google Chrome).
The development of Processing.js was started by John Resig and then picked up by the CDOT group at Seneca College after its initial release in 2008. A team of students and professors finished the porting work to get Processing.js to parity with the Processing v1.0 API, fixing more than 900 bugs, shipping 12 releases, and creating a vibrant community in the process. The project was run through a partnership between the Mozilla Foundation and Seneca College, led by David Humphrey, Al MacDonald, and Corban Brook.
Processing.js development was moved to Github in February of 2010, receiving contributions from 58 individuals, and was kept at parity with Processing up to its API version 2.1 release. The project was discontinued in December of 2018, two years after active development on it had stopped.
IDE
The Processing.js code was designed to be used with standalone text editors, but can also be built into an integrated development environment (IDE).
Following are IDEs which supported Processing.js:
- Sketchpad, which put processing on Etherpad, allowing authors to simultaneously edit a text document, and see all of the participants' edits in real-time, with the ability to display each author's text in their own color.
- The Processing helper tool allowed editing Processing.js code.
- There were plugins that allowed Eclipse users to write Processing.js code.
iPhone use
There exists an integration of the Processing.js library and a Javascript application framework for iPhone, called iProcessing.
Processing syntax
Processing.js syntax was almost identical to that of the Processing language, as it was intended to be a code-compatible port of Processing. It uses the same setup() function to define general visualization properties like canvas size, frame rate and other variables, and the draw() function as (animated) frame drawing function. File support covered the Processing .pde extensions, as well as commong JavaScript extensions.
p5.js
Lauren McCarthy created p5.js,[1] a native JavaScript alternative and successor to Processing.js that has the official support of the Processing Foundation. McCarthy also teaches an introductory course to p5.js on Kadenze.
See also
References
- Glassner, Andrew (August 9, 2010), Processing for Visual Artists: How to Create Expressive Images and Interactive Art (1st ed.), A K Peters/CRC Press, p. 955, ISBN 1-56881-716-9, archived from the original on April 21, 2011D
- Reas, Casey; Fry, Ben (June 17, 2010), Getting Started with Processing (1st ed.), Make, p. 208, ISBN 1-4493-7980-X
- Noble, Joshua (July 21, 2009), Programming Interactivity: A Designer's Guide to Processing, Arduino, and Openframeworks (1st ed.), O'Reilly Media, p. 736, ISBN 0-596-15414-3
- Terzidis, Kostas (May 11, 2009), Algorithms for Visual Design Using the Processing Language (1st ed.), Wiley, p. 384, ISBN 0-470-37548-5
- Reas, Casey; Fry, Ben; Maeda, John (September 30, 2007), Processing: A Programming Handbook for Visual Designers and Artists (1st ed.), The MIT Press, p. 736, ISBN 0-262-18262-9, archived from the original on April 17, 2011
- Fry, Ben (January 11, 2008), Visualizing Data (1st ed.), O'Reilly Media, p. 382, ISBN 0-596-51455-7
- Greenberg, Ira (May 28, 2007), Processing: Creative Coding and Computational Art (Foundation) (1st ed.), friends of ED, p. 840, ISBN 1-59059-617-X, archived from the original on January 27, 2011
- Shiffman, Daniel (August 19, 2008), Learning Processing: A Beginner's Guide to Programming Images, Animation, and Interaction (1st ed.), Morgan Kaufmann, p. 450, ISBN 0-12-373602-1
