/babelia.meaning

A small app designed to aid your search for meaning in the babel image archives

Primary LanguagePythonMIT LicenseMIT

babelia.meaning

Meaning search tool for the babel image archives built upon OpenCV framework.

The main concept is to select pixels with the same color from a babelia image. Then the selected pixels coordinates can be used to automatically generate or manually draw line patterns.

alt text
(GIF is clickable)

Babelia images consist of 4096 colors and have a resolution of 640 $\times$ 416, which means there are approximately 65 pixels of each color in a typical image from the universal slide show. While it is a small number, it is just enough to create simple drawings. On the other hand, finding the right configuration is still a somewhat challenging task, so it doesn't reduce things to simply drawing anything you want over the original image.

However, in case such arguments don't seem convincing to you, the app provides plenty of automatic regimes for the fans of interpreting the true randomness.

Key features

  • Pattern generation with a nearest point walk
  • Manual drawing mode
  • Editable bookmark format to store your drawings
  • PNG image export (supports transparency)
  • Extensive settings to customize your experience
  • Comprehensive command manuals

Installation

To use this app you need to install Python first. Head over to www.python.org to download Python 3.8.10 installer.

Notice. The app is tested for Python 3.8, but will probably work with later Python versions.

Then run the command:

pip install -r requirements.txt

If you use Anaconda, run the following commands:

conda create --name babelia --file requirements_conda.txt
conda activate babelia
pip install -r requirements.txt

Run the program by:

python main.py

Getting started

First, download the desired image from the babel image archives to the data folder. Run the app and input the image number or filename to open it:

user@MyPC:~/babelia.meaning$ python main.py

   0b - "example"
Use index or filename to access bookmark.

   0 - "babelia0.jpg"
Use index or filename to access image.
> 0
> babelia0
> babelia0.jpg

Move the mouse pointer in the opened window to generate some random patterns. Several pattern types are available through command options, for example, try:

> 0 --cos
> 0 -i

To display command manuals and guides use:

> help
> help open

Add -d option to the command to enter manual drawing mode :

> 0 -d

Then use the mouse to draw lines between selected points. Press Z to undo the last stroke, Y to redo, D to clear the canvas (no undo!), Esc to leave the editor.

To save the results close the editor window and run:

> bookmark my_drawing

A bookmark can be viewed by simply entering its index or name:

   0b - "example", 1b - "my_drawing"
Use index or filename to access bookmark.

   0 - "babelia0.jpg"
Use index or filename to access image.
> 1b
> my_drawing

Click anywhere in the window to edit the bookmark content.

To export a pattern or drawing to PNG run:

> export my_drawing
> export my_drawing_transparent -t

Leave the app by entering an empty command:

>

Program finished.

Have fun and remember that the only way you find meaningful art in these libraries is by making it yourself.

TODO

  • Export animations to mp4/gif
  • Line eraser tool in drawing mode