Rick Grehan
In rare instances, I have the privilege of working with packages void of feature-bedecked user front ends that need a CD-ROM's worth of documentation to master. Such is the case with Leadtools, from Lead Technologies ((704) 332-5532; fax (704) 372-8161). Leadtools does one thing--image manipulation--and it does it right.
The whole package amounts to a floppy disk and a book. Leadtools Professional 4.0 (for both DOS and Windows) consists of a DLL and a library that lets you call the DLL. You'll need a Borland or Microsoft C compiler (or a compiler that is compatible enough to read standard .LIB files; I used Watcom C/C++ 10.0). The product is also available in versions for Windows NT and Clipper, Visual Basic, a
nd FoxPro programmers.
The Leadtools DLL provides routines that can read, write, and manipulate image files. It understands more file formats than I can list--some, I am embarrassed to say, I hadn't even heard of. Some of the familiar formats it understands are Targa, TIFF, PCX, GIF, EPS, Windows Metafiles, MacPaint, WordPerfect raster files, and the lowly BMP (i.e., bit-map) file. Leadtools does have access limitations on some formats. For example, it can read Kodak Photo CD files, but it can't write them due to licensing restrictions by Kodak.
Leadtools' manipulation functions are similarly diverse. You can sharpen, blur, rotate, flip, posterize, filter, and create mosaic (i.e., pixel-tiled) images. Every function I've ever seen in professional image-manipulation packages is here--and then some. Additionally, when you tell Leadtools to actually display an image, you can control the painting effect. It can ``wipe'' from left to right, right to left, top to bottom, or bottom to top. The image ca
n ``materialize'' as random pixels are properly illuminated. You can even have the image spiral into existence.
The Leadtools disk is crawling with sample programs, each exercising a different class of functions from the DLL. If you need to see what an effect looks like (some are often hard to describe), the designers have thankfully provided several ``exerciser'' programs in executable form, along with sample images. You can load an image and try out the effect before adding it to your program.
Granted, the $795 price is steep, but it gets you DOS and Windows, plus royalty-free distribution rights to whatever applications you build. If I had to write my own personal version of Adobe Photoshop, Leadtools is where I'd start.
Leadtools's emboss function
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The image of this airplane was enhanced using Leadtools' emboss function.
Leadtools' Comprehensive Imaging Development Toolkit
