Nicholas Bodley wrote:

>
> Ph. D. <phild@...> wrote:
>
> > Computers don't *think* at all. They simply draw line segments.
>
> > Computer programs (written by humans) say, e.g., from point x1,
> > y1 to point x2, y2 draw a line (or arc). A series of these may
> > represent lines on a spreadsheet grid or a letter in a font. Only
> > to a human do the lines have meaning.
>
> Ultimately, these days, all images (anything visible that isn't text)
> become bit maps. Text becomes bitmapped images, as well; that makes
> merging images and text at least theoretically easier.
>
> Some CRT displays used to draw strokes, as did pen plotters.

Yes, I know. I was trying to simplify. An application only has to
call an internal Windows routine specifying the endpoints, then
Windows calculates which points on the screen need to change
color to render the line segment.

I was trying to emphasize that a pattern of points on the screen
means nothing to a computer, only to a human who interprets
it. In the same way, the computer cannot tell what a sequence of
bytes in memory represents. It could be machine code or encoded
text or a floating point number or something else. It's only a matter
of interpretation.

--Ph. D.