Files
hyperframes/docs/catalog/components/ascii-render-pass.mdx
Miguel ÁngelandMiguel Angel Simon Sierra 1ae2067b8d feat(catalog): put the variables panel back, on payloads (#3199)
* feat(catalog): put the variables panel back, on payloads

The panel drove its preview by loading an .html from docs/public, a type the
host does not publish, so it showed an empty frame in production and was
parked when the catalog was re-landed.

It now mounts the same JSON payload the plain player uses and re-mounts it as
values change, injecting them as window.__hfVariables into the composition head
before any of its scripts run, which is where the runtime reads overrides from.
Doing it in the markup rather than after load is what stops the composition
initialising with the wrong values first.

172 items with variables get the panel back; the playhead carries across a
change so a tweak mid-shot does not jump back to frame zero.

* fix(docs): drop the unused url form and the needless escapes

* fix(docs): the panel cannot reference a binding beside the export

* feat(catalog): make importing an SVG the obvious move

A reader arrives at this control with a shape, not with path data, and the
panel asked for the coordinates first. Import is now the primary action in a
drop target you can see is a drop target, and the raw path sits behind a
disclosure for anyone who wants it.

* feat(cli): let a fruitless catalog search report the gap

An agent that searches by meaning and finds nothing worth installing knows
something we do not: the name of a move the catalog is missing. There was no
way to tell us, so that knowledge was lost at the end of every run.

hyperframes feedback --search-miss "<query>" --wanted "<the move>" records it.
It carries no rating, so it never lands in the rating metric, and it is a
separate deliberate command rather than something catalog --query does on its
own: plain search still sends nothing, which is what the CLI promises.

--rating stops being required at the arg level, since a miss has no rating to
give. The check moved into the run body, where an absent one is now handled
rather than crashing on undefined.

* feat(cli): carry tuned variable values into the install snippet

Someone who tunes a block on its catalog page had no way to keep those values:
the install command was the same one everybody gets, and the tuning stayed on
the page.

hyperframes add <item> --vars '<json>' now prints a mount element carrying
data-variable-values, so the values land where the block is used.

They ride on the host rather than being written into the installed file. That
keeps the composition on disk byte-identical to the registry's, so a later
reinstall can still tell an edit from an update, and it lets two mounts of the
same block carry different values.

* fix(catalog): serve the item's own directory so runtime paths resolve

Some compositions assemble their asset URLs at run time —
"compositions/components/" + texture + ".png" for the texture masks, a font the
compiler pulled into _remote_media — and no scan of the markup can see a string
that does not exist until a script concatenates it. Those items either rendered
black or were dropped to a video that had never been uploaded.

Each item that needs it now has its prepared directory published, and its
payload carries a <base> pointing at it, so any relative path the composition
invents resolves. caption-texture renders its masks again, and
variable-font-flex has a preview at all for the first time: its MP4 and poster
are both 403.

Both layouts are published, because which one a composition asks for differs
per item, and a directory only earns that if it is under 2 MB. The 12 MB
texture sheet keeps the recorded video it already had.

* fix(catalog): let the variables panel actually drive the composition

Every control on the panel was inert. The values reached the composition and
nothing repainted, because the payload had already been compiled: compiling
inlines a mounted component and resolves its variables into the markup and CSS,
so by the time a reader turns a knob there is nothing left to change.

An item that declares variables now ships uncompiled, keeping the mount the
runtime loads at run time, which is the only state where data-variable-values
still means anything. The component travels inline as a data URI rather than a
sibling file, because .html is the one type the docs host will not publish. The
demo's own pinned values come off, so the reader's choices reach the mount
instead of losing to the values the demo picked to show itself off.

Measured on the rendered frame rather than the DOM: green rgb(98,207,144),
blue rgb(6,6,199), violet rgb(177,147,230), and back to green.

docs/public/catalog drops from 48 MB to 35 MB along the way, since an
uncompiled payload carries far less than an inlined one.

* feat(catalog): keep variable changes in the url

A reader who tuned a piece lost it on reload, and had nothing to send anyone.
The values now live in the query string, scoped by composition id so two links
never read each other,and only the ones that differ from the defaults are
written, so changing one knob gives a short URL rather than every variable
spelled out.

replaceState rather than pushState: dragging a slider should not leave a trail
of history entries. An unreadable value is ignored rather than thrown, so a
truncated or hand-edited link opens the piece at its defaults.

* fix(catalog): only rewrite the url when a value actually changed

* refactor(catalog): memoise the declared defaults on their content

* feat(catalog): offer an install command carrying the tuned values

The Install block is generated before anyone touches a knob, so it can only
ever print the plain command. Someone who spent a minute tuning a piece copied
it and got the defaults back.

The panel now carries its own command in the Snippet tab, with --vars holding
exactly the values that differ. An untouched piece still offers the same short
command, so nothing gets noisier for the common case.

* fix(catalog): a piece with nothing to render is a skip, not a failure

caption-blend-difference is a stylesheet and a paragraph of prose — a class you
add to your own captions, with no standalone scene to show. The generator
treated that as a build failure, so every run ended by reporting something
broken when nothing was.

It now reports the shape it is and keeps its recorded video, which is the only
honest preview such an item has. A genuine render failure still throws.

* fix(catalog): restore variables from the url on a cold load

A shared link opened at the defaults. The first render happens on the server,
where there is no window to read the query string from, and React then hydrates
against that markup and never revisits it — so the values only appeared once you
touched a control.

The URL is read again after mount, which is the first moment it exists. The
value is also escaped once now rather than twice: URLSearchParams already
decodes on the way out, and decoding a second time turned an SVG path full of
percent-escapes into something that no longer parsed, besides doubling the
length of every link.

* fix(catalog): mount the preview with the values a link carried

The frame was built from the declared defaults and the shared values were
posted to it afterwards, which is too late for anything the composition reads
once at init: a path arrived after the mark had already been drawn from the
default one, so a link looked right in the panel and wrong on screen.

* feat(catalog): the install command follows the values you tuned

Copying the Install line gave the plain command back, because that block is
generated before anyone touches a knob and had no way to know what changed. The
tuned command only existed in the panel Snippet tab, which is not where anyone
looks for it.

The line now reads the same query string the panel writes, so the two agree
without either component knowing the other exists, and a shared link carries the
right command too. replaceState fires no event, so the panel announces its own
writes.

* fix(catalog): send a text variable to the preview once it is finished

Every other control in the explorer reports a whole value on every event: a
slider at any position is a position, a swatch is a colour. A text field is
not. Typing v3 into a badge posted v first, so the preview remounted and
rendered a composition built from half a word.

The post now waits while a text field has focus and goes out when the edit is
committed, with Enter or by clicking away. The field itself is unchanged and
still tracks every keystroke.

---------

Co-authored-by: Miguel Angel Simon Sierra <miguelangelsi07@gmail.com>
2026-08-10 22:40:01 -04:00

1046 lines
46 KiB
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---
title: "ASCII Render Pass"
description: "A slotted scene renders as live ASCII: a canvas samples the source's luminance grid (rasterized once at mount) and draws glyphs from a density ramp charset; resolution steps coarse to fine as the piece resolves, then holds legible-fine."
---
import { InstallCommand } from "/snippets/install-command.jsx";
import { VariablesExplorer } from "/snippets/variables-explorer.jsx";
<VariablesExplorer
previewSrc="/public/catalog/components/ascii-render-pass.json"
compositionId="ascii-render-pass"
compositionSrc="compositions/components/ascii-render-pass.html"
variables={[{"id":"charset","type":"string","role":"style","label":"Charset","description":"Density ramp, dark to light. A leading space keeps dark cells empty.","default":" .:-=+*#%@"},{"id":"grid","type":"enum","role":"style","label":"Grid","description":"Final cell pitch the resolve lands on.","default":"med","options":[{"value":"coarse","label":"Coarse"},{"value":"med","label":"Medium"},{"value":"fine","label":"Fine"}]},{"id":"resolve_at","type":"number","role":"timing","label":"Resolve at","description":"Seconds from mount start when the coarse-to-fine resolve begins.","default":1.4,"min":0.6,"max":10,"step":0.1,"unit":"s"},{"id":"accent","type":"enum","role":"style","label":"Accent","description":"Glyph ink: green rides --brand, blue rides --accent, violet rides --accent-2.","default":"green","options":[{"value":"green","label":"Green"},{"value":"blue","label":"Blue"},{"value":"violet","label":"Violet"}]},{"id":"exit","type":"enum","role":"timing","label":"Exit","description":"Optional departure. Default none: the fine render holds until the frame cuts.","default":"none","options":[{"value":"none","label":"None"},{"value":"fade","label":"Fade"},{"value":"up","label":"Up"}]}]}
>
```html ascii-render-pass.html
<!doctype html>
<!--
ascii-render-pass: HyperFrames video primitive (Wave M experiment, texture)
A slotted scene renders as live ASCII: the source is rasterized ONCE at
mount to an offscreen canvas, its luminance grid is sampled per cell, and
each cell draws a glyph from a density ramp charset. Resolution animates
coarse to fine on a stepped pitch ladder as the piece resolves, then
holds legible-fine. The DOM source itself never displays; the canvas is
the whole picture.
The scene is a SLOT. Callers supply content by placing an inert template
anywhere in the HOST page (templates never render, and the runtime wipes
the host clip's own children on mount):
<template data-slot="ascii-render-pass-scene"> ... </template>
Slot content is rasterized through an SVG foreignObject snapshot, so it
must be self-contained: inline styles or rules carried by host <style>
tags (which are copied into the snapshot), data-URI images only, system
or already-active fonts. External resources do not load inside the
snapshot. When no slot exists, the primitive rasterizes a token monogram
tile drawn synchronously from contract tokens (no snapshot involved).
Variables (declared in data-composition-variables below):
- charset (string): density ramp, dark to light, first glyph may be a
space so dark cells stay empty. Default " .:-=+*#%@".
- grid ("coarse" | "med" | "fine", default "med"): final cell pitch.
- resolve_at (seconds): when the coarse-to-fine resolve begins.
- accent ("green" | "blue" | "violet", default "green"): glyph ink;
green rides --brand, blue rides --accent, violet rides --accent-2.
- exit ("none" | "fade" | "up", default "none"): frame roots own
transitions; the default holds the fine render to the cut.
Envelope, fixed segments with elastic HOLD only (never timeScale):
0.00s canvas fades up over 0.5s at the coarsest pitch
resolve_at pitch ladder steps coarse to fine over 1.2s (5 steps,
powers of sqrt(2)); a per-cell hash shimmer rides the
steps and lands at zero on the final step
then legible-fine HOLD, truly still
OUT = 0.45s only when exit is not none
Determinism (canvas 2D law): the raster, its luminance summed-area
table, and every resolved color are fixed once at mount. Every painted
frame is a pure function of (that raster, the timeline's current time):
the timeline's onUpdate clears the canvas and redraws every glyph from
scratch. Cell shimmer uses a stateless integer hash of (column, row,
ladder step), not a stream; there is no Math.random, no wall clock, no
incremental state. Eventful seeks (suppressEvents false, the engine's
render path) land identical frames in any order and either direction.
The no-slot monogram raster is drawn synchronously before the timeline
registers; a slotted raster arrives from the snapshot decode and
repaints the current frame, after which all frames are pure f(t).
-->
<html
lang="en"
data-composition-id="ascii-render-pass"
data-composition-duration="4"
data-composition-variables='[
{ "id": "charset", "type": "string", "role": "style", "label": "Charset", "description": "Density ramp, dark to light. A leading space keeps dark cells empty.", "default": " .:-=+*#%@" },
{ "id": "grid", "type": "enum", "role": "style", "label": "Grid", "description": "Final cell pitch the resolve lands on.", "default": "med", "options": [{ "value": "coarse", "label": "Coarse" }, { "value": "med", "label": "Medium" }, { "value": "fine", "label": "Fine" }] },
{ "id": "resolve_at", "type": "number", "role": "timing", "label": "Resolve at", "description": "Seconds from mount start when the coarse-to-fine resolve begins.", "default": 1.4, "min": 0.6, "max": 10, "step": 0.1, "unit": "s" },
{ "id": "accent", "type": "enum", "role": "style", "label": "Accent", "description": "Glyph ink: green rides --brand, blue rides --accent, violet rides --accent-2.", "default": "green", "options": [{ "value": "green", "label": "Green" }, { "value": "blue", "label": "Blue" }, { "value": "violet", "label": "Violet" }] },
{ "id": "exit", "type": "enum", "role": "timing", "label": "Exit", "description": "Optional departure. Default none: the fine render holds until the frame cuts.", "default": "none", "options": [{ "value": "none", "label": "None" }, { "value": "fade", "label": "Fade" }, { "value": "up", "label": "Up" }] }
]'
>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8" />
<title>ASCII Render Pass</title>
</head>
<body>
<template>
<div id="root" data-composition-id="ascii-render-pass" data-duration="4" data-fps="30">
<style>
*,
*::before,
*::after {
box-sizing: border-box;
}
#root {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
overflow: hidden;
container-type: size;
isolation: isolate;
color: var(--fg, #f8fafc);
font-family: var(--font-mono, ui-monospace, "SF Mono", Menlo, Consolas, monospace);
pointer-events: none;
}
.arp-clip {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
overflow: hidden;
background: var(--bg, transparent);
}
.arp-stage {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
will-change: transform, opacity;
}
.arp-canvas {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
width: 100%;
height: 100%;
}
</style>
<div
id="ascii-render-pass-clip"
class="arp-clip clip"
data-start="0"
data-duration="4"
data-track-index="0"
>
<div class="arp-stage">
<canvas class="arp-canvas" aria-hidden="true"></canvas>
</div>
</div>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/gsap@3.14.2/dist/gsap.min.js"></script>
<script>
(function () {
"use strict";
var root = document.getElementById("root");
var stage = root.querySelector(".arp-stage");
var canvas = root.querySelector(".arp-canvas");
var vars =
window.__hyperframes && window.__hyperframes.getVariables
? window.__hyperframes.getVariables()
: {};
function num(value, fallback, min, max) {
var n = Number(value);
if (!isFinite(n)) n = fallback;
return Math.max(min, Math.min(max, n));
}
var charset =
typeof vars.charset === "string" && vars.charset.length >= 2
? vars.charset
: " .:-=+*#%@";
var grid = vars.grid === "coarse" || vars.grid === "fine" ? vars.grid : "med";
var exit = vars.exit === "fade" || vars.exit === "up" ? vars.exit : "none";
// Each enum choice routes to a DIFFERENT contract token so the
// variable stays meaningful under a theme.
var accentColors = {
green: "var(--brand, #71f5a7)",
blue: "var(--accent, #61a8ff)",
violet: "var(--accent-2, #c5a3ff)",
};
var accent = Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(accentColors, vars.accent)
? vars.accent
: "green";
// Bundler mirrors composition variables as scoped CSS custom
// props; when this unit's accent variable shadows the --accent
// token ("blue" is a valid CSS color), fall back to the literal.
var computedAccent = getComputedStyle(root).getPropertyValue("--accent").trim();
if (
computedAccent === "green" ||
computedAccent === "blue" ||
computedAccent === "violet"
) {
accentColors.blue = "#61a8ff";
}
// Envelope.
var duration = Math.max(0.001, parseFloat(root.dataset.duration || "4"));
var OUT = exit === "none" ? 0 : 0.45;
var RESOLVE = Math.min(1.2, Math.max(0.5, duration - OUT - 1.0));
var FADE_IN = 0.5;
var maxAt = Math.max(0.6, duration - RESOLVE - OUT - 0.05);
var resolveAt = num(vars.resolve_at, 1.4, 0.6, maxAt);
var OUT_START = duration - OUT;
// Canvas raster basis, fixed once at mount. Elastic root: the
// host box decides the resolution.
var dpr = Math.min(2, Math.max(1, Number(window.devicePixelRatio) || 1));
var box = root.getBoundingClientRect();
var cssW = Math.max(1, Math.round(box.width) || 640);
var cssH = Math.max(1, Math.round(box.height) || 360);
canvas.width = Math.round(cssW * dpr);
canvas.height = Math.round(cssH * dpr);
var ctx = canvas.getContext("2d");
// Resolve tokens to concrete values once at mount so nothing in
// the paint path depends on style recalc during seeks.
var hostDoc = root.ownerDocument;
function resolveColor(cssColor, fallback) {
var probe = hostDoc.createElement("span");
probe.style.color = cssColor;
root.appendChild(probe);
var out = getComputedStyle(probe).color || fallback;
probe.remove();
return out;
}
var bgColor = resolveColor("var(--bg, #0b0c0e)", "#0b0c0e");
var inkColor = resolveColor(accentColors[accent], "#71f5a7");
var probeFont = hostDoc.createElement("span");
probeFont.style.fontFamily =
'var(--font-mono, ui-monospace, "SF Mono", Menlo, Consolas, monospace)';
root.appendChild(probeFont);
var monoFamily = getComputedStyle(probeFont).fontFamily || "monospace";
probeFont.remove();
// Source raster: cssW x cssH capped to 1280 wide, composited
// over the resolved bg so luminance never depends on alpha.
var rasterScale = Math.min(1, 1280 / cssW);
var rw = Math.max(1, Math.round(cssW * rasterScale));
var rh = Math.max(1, Math.round(cssH * rasterScale));
var raster = hostDoc.createElement("canvas");
raster.width = rw;
raster.height = rh;
var rctx = raster.getContext("2d");
// Luminance summed-area table so any cell's average is O(1) and
// a pure function of the fixed raster.
var sat = null; // Float64Array (rw+1)*(rh+1)
function buildSat() {
var data = rctx.getImageData(0, 0, rw, rh).data;
var table = new Float64Array((rw + 1) * (rh + 1));
for (var y = 0; y < rh; y += 1) {
var rowSum = 0;
for (var x = 0; x < rw; x += 1) {
var i = (y * rw + x) * 4;
rowSum += (0.299 * data[i] + 0.587 * data[i + 1] + 0.114 * data[i + 2]) / 255;
table[(y + 1) * (rw + 1) + (x + 1)] = table[y * (rw + 1) + (x + 1)] + rowSum;
}
}
sat = table;
}
function cellLuma(x0, y0, x1, y1) {
// Raster-space integer rect, clamped.
if (x1 <= x0 || y1 <= y0) return 0;
var s = rw + 1;
var sum = sat[y1 * s + x1] - sat[y0 * s + x1] - sat[y1 * s + x0] + sat[y0 * s + x0];
return sum / ((x1 - x0) * (y1 - y0));
}
function paintMonogram(target, w, h) {
// Synchronous token monogram raster: a surface tile with one
// display glyph, same vocabulary as the slot-less siblings.
var m = Math.min(w, h);
target.fillStyle = bgColor;
target.fillRect(0, 0, w, h);
var tile = m * 0.52;
var x = (w - tile) / 2;
var y = (h - tile) / 2;
var r = m * 0.05;
target.fillStyle = resolveColor(
"color-mix(in srgb, var(--surface, #14171c) 72%, " + accentColors[accent] + ")",
"#1a2a22",
);
target.beginPath();
if (target.roundRect) target.roundRect(x, y, tile, tile, r);
else target.rect(x, y, tile, tile);
target.fill();
target.fillStyle = resolveColor(
"color-mix(in srgb, var(--fg, #f8fafc) 30%, " + accentColors[accent] + ")",
"#a8f5c8",
);
target.font = "600 " + Math.round(m * 0.3) + "px " + monoFamily;
target.textAlign = "center";
target.textBaseline = "middle";
target.fillText("H", w / 2, h / 2 + m * 0.012);
}
// SLOT. Rasterized through an SVG foreignObject snapshot of the
// slot markup plus every host <style> tag and the resolved
// contract tokens, so host-authored rules and theme values
// apply inside the snapshot.
var slotTemplate = null;
try {
slotTemplate = hostDoc.querySelector('template[data-slot="ascii-render-pass-scene"]');
} catch (error) {
slotTemplate = null;
}
var rasterReady = false;
function finishRaster() {
buildSat();
rasterReady = true;
root.setAttribute("data-arp-raster", "ready");
paint(tl ? tl.time() : 0);
}
if (slotTemplate) {
var tokenNames = [
"--bg",
"--fg",
"--muted",
"--surface",
"--border",
"--brand",
"--accent",
"--accent-2",
"--font-display",
"--font-body",
"--font-mono",
"--radius",
"--space-1",
"--space-2",
"--space-3",
"--dur-beat",
"--ease-standard",
"--ease-emphasis",
];
var rootStyle = getComputedStyle(root);
var tokenDecl = "";
for (var ti = 0; ti < tokenNames.length; ti += 1) {
var tv = rootStyle.getPropertyValue(tokenNames[ti]).trim();
if (tv) tokenDecl += tokenNames[ti] + ":" + tv + ";";
}
var styleTexts = "";
var styleTags = hostDoc.querySelectorAll("style");
for (var si = 0; si < styleTags.length; si += 1) {
styleTexts += styleTags[si].textContent || "";
}
var wrapper = hostDoc.createElement("div");
wrapper.setAttribute(
"style",
"width:" +
rw +
"px;height:" +
rh +
"px;overflow:hidden;position:relative;" +
"display:grid;place-items:center;background:" +
bgColor +
";" +
tokenDecl,
);
wrapper.appendChild(hostDoc.importNode(slotTemplate.content, true));
var styleEl = hostDoc.createElement("style");
styleEl.textContent = styleTexts;
wrapper.insertBefore(styleEl, wrapper.firstChild);
var serialized = new XMLSerializer().serializeToString(wrapper);
var svgMarkup =
// No xmlns on foreignObject: a default xmlns declaration
// applies to the declaring element itself and would eject
// foreignObject from the SVG namespace (renders blank). The
// serialized wrapper div already carries the XHTML namespace.
'<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="' +
rw +
'" height="' +
rh +
'"><foreignObject width="' +
rw +
'" height="' +
rh +
'">' +
serialized +
"</foreignObject></svg>";
var snapshot = new Image();
snapshot.onload = function () {
rctx.fillStyle = bgColor;
rctx.fillRect(0, 0, rw, rh);
rctx.drawImage(snapshot, 0, 0, rw, rh);
try {
finishRaster();
} catch (error) {
// Tainted or unreadable snapshot: fall back to the monogram.
paintMonogram(rctx, rw, rh);
finishRaster();
}
};
snapshot.onerror = function () {
paintMonogram(rctx, rw, rh);
finishRaster();
};
snapshot.src = "data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8," + encodeURIComponent(svgMarkup);
} else {
paintMonogram(rctx, rw, rh);
}
// Final cell pitch (display px) per grid enum; the ladder steps
// down from 4x on powers of sqrt(2). Stepped, not continuous:
// each step is a stable re-sample, the digital resolve.
var rowsFinal = { coarse: 22, med: 36, fine: 54 };
var cellFinal = Math.max(4, cssH / rowsFinal[grid]);
var LADDER = [4, 2.83, 2, 1.41, 1];
var LAST = LADDER.length - 1;
function clamp01(v) {
return v < 0 ? 0 : v > 1 ? 1 : v;
}
// Stateless integer hash for per-cell shimmer: pure function of
// (col, row, step), no stream, no state.
function hash01(cx, cy, step) {
var h =
Math.imul(cx + 1, 0x9e3779b1) ^
Math.imul(cy + 1, 0x85ebca6b) ^
Math.imul(step + 1, 0xc2b2ae35);
h = Math.imul(h ^ (h >>> 15), 0x27d4eb2f);
h = (h ^ (h >>> 13)) >>> 0;
return h / 4294967296;
}
var glyphs = charset.split("");
var GN = glyphs.length;
// Pure repaint from (raster tables, t).
function paint(timeSeconds) {
ctx.fillStyle = bgColor;
ctx.fillRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
if (!rasterReady) return;
var t = timeSeconds;
var fade = clamp01(t / FADE_IN);
fade = 1 - (1 - fade) * (1 - fade); // power2.out
if (fade <= 0) return;
var rp = clamp01((t - resolveAt) / RESOLVE);
rp = rp * rp * (3 - 2 * rp); // smoothstep across the ladder
var step = Math.min(LAST, Math.floor(rp * LAST + 1e-6));
if (rp >= 1) step = LAST;
var cell = cellFinal * LADDER[step];
var cols = Math.ceil(cssW / cell);
var rows = Math.ceil(cssH / cell);
var cellDev = cell * dpr;
ctx.font = "600 " + cellDev * 0.92 + "px " + monoFamily;
ctx.textAlign = "center";
ctx.textBaseline = "middle";
ctx.fillStyle = inkColor;
// Shimmer amplitude decays to exactly zero on the final step
// so the HOLD is truly still.
var shimmerAmp = step === LAST && rp >= 1 ? 0 : 0.16;
for (var cy = 0; cy < rows; cy += 1) {
for (var cx = 0; cx < cols; cx += 1) {
var x0 = Math.round(cx * cell * rasterScale);
var y0 = Math.round(cy * cell * rasterScale);
var x1 = Math.min(rw, Math.round((cx + 1) * cell * rasterScale));
var y1 = Math.min(rh, Math.round((cy + 1) * cell * rasterScale));
var luma = cellLuma(x0, Math.min(y0, rh), x1, Math.min(y1, rh));
var idx = Math.round(luma * (GN - 1));
if (idx <= 0 && glyphs[0] === " ") continue;
var alpha = (0.3 + 0.7 * luma) * fade;
if (shimmerAmp > 0) {
alpha *= 1 - shimmerAmp + shimmerAmp * hash01(cx, cy, step);
}
if (alpha <= 0.01) continue;
ctx.globalAlpha = clamp01(alpha);
ctx.fillText(glyphs[idx], (cx + 0.5) * cellDev, (cy + 0.5) * cellDev);
}
}
ctx.globalAlpha = 1;
}
gsap.set(stage, { opacity: 1, y: "0cqh" });
var tl = gsap.timeline({
paused: true,
onUpdate: function () {
paint(tl.time());
},
});
// Anchor tween: spans the full authored duration so onUpdate
// (the canvas repaint) fires for every eventful seek in [0, D]
// and holds keep tl.time() honest.
tl.to({ t: 0 }, { t: 1, duration: duration, ease: "none" }, 0);
// HOLD: legible-fine, truly still (shimmer amplitude is zero
// past the final ladder step; the raster never changes).
// OUT: optional departure; exit none holds until the frame cuts.
if (exit === "up") {
tl.to(stage, { y: "-4cqh", duration: OUT, ease: "power2.in" }, OUT_START);
tl.to(stage, { opacity: 0, duration: OUT, ease: "power2.in" }, OUT_START);
} else if (exit === "fade") {
tl.to(stage, { opacity: 0, duration: OUT, ease: "power2.in" }, OUT_START);
}
tl.seek(0);
paint(0);
window.__timelines = window.__timelines || {};
window.__timelines["ascii-render-pass"] = tl;
})();
</script>
</div>
</template>
</body>
</html>
```
</VariablesExplorer>
## Install
<InstallCommand command="npx hyperframes add ascii-render-pass" item="ascii-render-pass" />
That writes one file: `compositions/components/ascii-render-pass.html`.
## Paste it into your composition
Open `compositions/components/ascii-render-pass.html` and copy what is inside into your own composition.
A component has no size or duration of its own. It takes both from the composition
you paste it into.
## Variables
Every one of these has a default, so the piece works untouched. Set the ones you
want to change on the element:
| Variable | Default | Accepts | What it does |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `charset` | ` .:-=+*#%@` | string | Density ramp, dark to light. A leading space keeps dark cells empty. |
| `grid` | `med` | `coarse`, `med`, `fine` | Final cell pitch the resolve lands on. |
| `resolve_at` | `1.4` | 0.6s to 10s, step 0.1s | Seconds from mount start when the coarse-to-fine resolve begins. |
| `accent` | `green` | `green`, `blue`, `violet` | Glyph ink: green rides --brand, blue rides --accent, violet rides --accent-2. |
| `exit` | `none` | `none`, `fade`, `up` | Optional departure. Default none: the fine render holds until the frame cuts. |
Set them with `data-variable-values` on the element that mounts it. These are the
defaults, so this behaves exactly like the preview above until you change one:
```html wrap
<div
data-composition-id="ascii-render-pass"
data-composition-src="compositions/components/ascii-render-pass.html"
data-variable-values='{"charset":" .:-=+*#%@","grid":"med","resolve_at":1.4,"accent":"green","exit":"none"}'
></div>
```
## Source
<Accordion title={`ascii-render-pass.html`}>
```html
<!doctype html>
<!--
ascii-render-pass: HyperFrames video primitive (Wave M experiment, texture)
A slotted scene renders as live ASCII: the source is rasterized ONCE at
mount to an offscreen canvas, its luminance grid is sampled per cell, and
each cell draws a glyph from a density ramp charset. Resolution animates
coarse to fine on a stepped pitch ladder as the piece resolves, then
holds legible-fine. The DOM source itself never displays; the canvas is
the whole picture.
The scene is a SLOT. Callers supply content by placing an inert template
anywhere in the HOST page (templates never render, and the runtime wipes
the host clip's own children on mount):
<template data-slot="ascii-render-pass-scene"> ... </template>
Slot content is rasterized through an SVG foreignObject snapshot, so it
must be self-contained: inline styles or rules carried by host <style>
tags (which are copied into the snapshot), data-URI images only, system
or already-active fonts. External resources do not load inside the
snapshot. When no slot exists, the primitive rasterizes a token monogram
tile drawn synchronously from contract tokens (no snapshot involved).
Variables (declared in data-composition-variables below):
- charset (string): density ramp, dark to light, first glyph may be a
space so dark cells stay empty. Default " .:-=+*#%@".
- grid ("coarse" | "med" | "fine", default "med"): final cell pitch.
- resolve_at (seconds): when the coarse-to-fine resolve begins.
- accent ("green" | "blue" | "violet", default "green"): glyph ink;
green rides --brand, blue rides --accent, violet rides --accent-2.
- exit ("none" | "fade" | "up", default "none"): frame roots own
transitions; the default holds the fine render to the cut.
Envelope, fixed segments with elastic HOLD only (never timeScale):
0.00s canvas fades up over 0.5s at the coarsest pitch
resolve_at pitch ladder steps coarse to fine over 1.2s (5 steps,
powers of sqrt(2)); a per-cell hash shimmer rides the
steps and lands at zero on the final step
then legible-fine HOLD, truly still
OUT = 0.45s only when exit is not none
Determinism (canvas 2D law): the raster, its luminance summed-area
table, and every resolved color are fixed once at mount. Every painted
frame is a pure function of (that raster, the timeline's current time):
the timeline's onUpdate clears the canvas and redraws every glyph from
scratch. Cell shimmer uses a stateless integer hash of (column, row,
ladder step), not a stream; there is no Math.random, no wall clock, no
incremental state. Eventful seeks (suppressEvents false, the engine's
render path) land identical frames in any order and either direction.
The no-slot monogram raster is drawn synchronously before the timeline
registers; a slotted raster arrives from the snapshot decode and
repaints the current frame, after which all frames are pure f(t).
-->
<html
lang="en"
data-composition-id="ascii-render-pass"
data-composition-duration="4"
data-composition-variables='[
{ "id": "charset", "type": "string", "role": "style", "label": "Charset", "description": "Density ramp, dark to light. A leading space keeps dark cells empty.", "default": " .:-=+*#%@" },
{ "id": "grid", "type": "enum", "role": "style", "label": "Grid", "description": "Final cell pitch the resolve lands on.", "default": "med", "options": [{ "value": "coarse", "label": "Coarse" }, { "value": "med", "label": "Medium" }, { "value": "fine", "label": "Fine" }] },
{ "id": "resolve_at", "type": "number", "role": "timing", "label": "Resolve at", "description": "Seconds from mount start when the coarse-to-fine resolve begins.", "default": 1.4, "min": 0.6, "max": 10, "step": 0.1, "unit": "s" },
{ "id": "accent", "type": "enum", "role": "style", "label": "Accent", "description": "Glyph ink: green rides --brand, blue rides --accent, violet rides --accent-2.", "default": "green", "options": [{ "value": "green", "label": "Green" }, { "value": "blue", "label": "Blue" }, { "value": "violet", "label": "Violet" }] },
{ "id": "exit", "type": "enum", "role": "timing", "label": "Exit", "description": "Optional departure. Default none: the fine render holds until the frame cuts.", "default": "none", "options": [{ "value": "none", "label": "None" }, { "value": "fade", "label": "Fade" }, { "value": "up", "label": "Up" }] }
]'
>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8" />
<title>ASCII Render Pass</title>
</head>
<body>
<template>
<div id="root" data-composition-id="ascii-render-pass" data-duration="4" data-fps="30">
<style>
*,
*::before,
*::after {
box-sizing: border-box;
}
#root {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
overflow: hidden;
container-type: size;
isolation: isolate;
color: var(--fg, #f8fafc);
font-family: var(--font-mono, ui-monospace, "SF Mono", Menlo, Consolas, monospace);
pointer-events: none;
}
.arp-clip {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
overflow: hidden;
background: var(--bg, transparent);
}
.arp-stage {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
will-change: transform, opacity;
}
.arp-canvas {
position: absolute;
inset: 0;
width: 100%;
height: 100%;
}
</style>
<div
id="ascii-render-pass-clip"
class="arp-clip clip"
data-start="0"
data-duration="4"
data-track-index="0"
>
<div class="arp-stage">
<canvas class="arp-canvas" aria-hidden="true"></canvas>
</div>
</div>
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/gsap@3.14.2/dist/gsap.min.js"></script>
<script>
(function () {
"use strict";
var root = document.getElementById("root");
var stage = root.querySelector(".arp-stage");
var canvas = root.querySelector(".arp-canvas");
var vars =
window.__hyperframes && window.__hyperframes.getVariables
? window.__hyperframes.getVariables()
: {};
function num(value, fallback, min, max) {
var n = Number(value);
if (!isFinite(n)) n = fallback;
return Math.max(min, Math.min(max, n));
}
var charset =
typeof vars.charset === "string" && vars.charset.length >= 2
? vars.charset
: " .:-=+*#%@";
var grid = vars.grid === "coarse" || vars.grid === "fine" ? vars.grid : "med";
var exit = vars.exit === "fade" || vars.exit === "up" ? vars.exit : "none";
// Each enum choice routes to a DIFFERENT contract token so the
// variable stays meaningful under a theme.
var accentColors = {
green: "var(--brand, #71f5a7)",
blue: "var(--accent, #61a8ff)",
violet: "var(--accent-2, #c5a3ff)",
};
var accent = Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(accentColors, vars.accent)
? vars.accent
: "green";
// Bundler mirrors composition variables as scoped CSS custom
// props; when this unit's accent variable shadows the --accent
// token ("blue" is a valid CSS color), fall back to the literal.
var computedAccent = getComputedStyle(root).getPropertyValue("--accent").trim();
if (
computedAccent === "green" ||
computedAccent === "blue" ||
computedAccent === "violet"
) {
accentColors.blue = "#61a8ff";
}
// Envelope.
var duration = Math.max(0.001, parseFloat(root.dataset.duration || "4"));
var OUT = exit === "none" ? 0 : 0.45;
var RESOLVE = Math.min(1.2, Math.max(0.5, duration - OUT - 1.0));
var FADE_IN = 0.5;
var maxAt = Math.max(0.6, duration - RESOLVE - OUT - 0.05);
var resolveAt = num(vars.resolve_at, 1.4, 0.6, maxAt);
var OUT_START = duration - OUT;
// Canvas raster basis, fixed once at mount. Elastic root: the
// host box decides the resolution.
var dpr = Math.min(2, Math.max(1, Number(window.devicePixelRatio) || 1));
var box = root.getBoundingClientRect();
var cssW = Math.max(1, Math.round(box.width) || 640);
var cssH = Math.max(1, Math.round(box.height) || 360);
canvas.width = Math.round(cssW * dpr);
canvas.height = Math.round(cssH * dpr);
var ctx = canvas.getContext("2d");
// Resolve tokens to concrete values once at mount so nothing in
// the paint path depends on style recalc during seeks.
var hostDoc = root.ownerDocument;
function resolveColor(cssColor, fallback) {
var probe = hostDoc.createElement("span");
probe.style.color = cssColor;
root.appendChild(probe);
var out = getComputedStyle(probe).color || fallback;
probe.remove();
return out;
}
var bgColor = resolveColor("var(--bg, #0b0c0e)", "#0b0c0e");
var inkColor = resolveColor(accentColors[accent], "#71f5a7");
var probeFont = hostDoc.createElement("span");
probeFont.style.fontFamily =
'var(--font-mono, ui-monospace, "SF Mono", Menlo, Consolas, monospace)';
root.appendChild(probeFont);
var monoFamily = getComputedStyle(probeFont).fontFamily || "monospace";
probeFont.remove();
// Source raster: cssW x cssH capped to 1280 wide, composited
// over the resolved bg so luminance never depends on alpha.
var rasterScale = Math.min(1, 1280 / cssW);
var rw = Math.max(1, Math.round(cssW * rasterScale));
var rh = Math.max(1, Math.round(cssH * rasterScale));
var raster = hostDoc.createElement("canvas");
raster.width = rw;
raster.height = rh;
var rctx = raster.getContext("2d");
// Luminance summed-area table so any cell's average is O(1) and
// a pure function of the fixed raster.
var sat = null; // Float64Array (rw+1)*(rh+1)
function buildSat() {
var data = rctx.getImageData(0, 0, rw, rh).data;
var table = new Float64Array((rw + 1) * (rh + 1));
for (var y = 0; y < rh; y += 1) {
var rowSum = 0;
for (var x = 0; x < rw; x += 1) {
var i = (y * rw + x) * 4;
rowSum += (0.299 * data[i] + 0.587 * data[i + 1] + 0.114 * data[i + 2]) / 255;
table[(y + 1) * (rw + 1) + (x + 1)] = table[y * (rw + 1) + (x + 1)] + rowSum;
}
}
sat = table;
}
function cellLuma(x0, y0, x1, y1) {
// Raster-space integer rect, clamped.
if (x1 <= x0 || y1 <= y0) return 0;
var s = rw + 1;
var sum = sat[y1 * s + x1] - sat[y0 * s + x1] - sat[y1 * s + x0] + sat[y0 * s + x0];
return sum / ((x1 - x0) * (y1 - y0));
}
function paintMonogram(target, w, h) {
// Synchronous token monogram raster: a surface tile with one
// display glyph, same vocabulary as the slot-less siblings.
var m = Math.min(w, h);
target.fillStyle = bgColor;
target.fillRect(0, 0, w, h);
var tile = m * 0.52;
var x = (w - tile) / 2;
var y = (h - tile) / 2;
var r = m * 0.05;
target.fillStyle = resolveColor(
"color-mix(in srgb, var(--surface, #14171c) 72%, " + accentColors[accent] + ")",
"#1a2a22",
);
target.beginPath();
if (target.roundRect) target.roundRect(x, y, tile, tile, r);
else target.rect(x, y, tile, tile);
target.fill();
target.fillStyle = resolveColor(
"color-mix(in srgb, var(--fg, #f8fafc) 30%, " + accentColors[accent] + ")",
"#a8f5c8",
);
target.font = "600 " + Math.round(m * 0.3) + "px " + monoFamily;
target.textAlign = "center";
target.textBaseline = "middle";
target.fillText("H", w / 2, h / 2 + m * 0.012);
}
// SLOT. Rasterized through an SVG foreignObject snapshot of the
// slot markup plus every host <style> tag and the resolved
// contract tokens, so host-authored rules and theme values
// apply inside the snapshot.
var slotTemplate = null;
try {
slotTemplate = hostDoc.querySelector('template[data-slot="ascii-render-pass-scene"]');
} catch (error) {
slotTemplate = null;
}
var rasterReady = false;
function finishRaster() {
buildSat();
rasterReady = true;
root.setAttribute("data-arp-raster", "ready");
paint(tl ? tl.time() : 0);
}
if (slotTemplate) {
var tokenNames = [
"--bg",
"--fg",
"--muted",
"--surface",
"--border",
"--brand",
"--accent",
"--accent-2",
"--font-display",
"--font-body",
"--font-mono",
"--radius",
"--space-1",
"--space-2",
"--space-3",
"--dur-beat",
"--ease-standard",
"--ease-emphasis",
];
var rootStyle = getComputedStyle(root);
var tokenDecl = "";
for (var ti = 0; ti < tokenNames.length; ti += 1) {
var tv = rootStyle.getPropertyValue(tokenNames[ti]).trim();
if (tv) tokenDecl += tokenNames[ti] + ":" + tv + ";";
}
var styleTexts = "";
var styleTags = hostDoc.querySelectorAll("style");
for (var si = 0; si < styleTags.length; si += 1) {
styleTexts += styleTags[si].textContent || "";
}
var wrapper = hostDoc.createElement("div");
wrapper.setAttribute(
"style",
"width:" +
rw +
"px;height:" +
rh +
"px;overflow:hidden;position:relative;" +
"display:grid;place-items:center;background:" +
bgColor +
";" +
tokenDecl,
);
wrapper.appendChild(hostDoc.importNode(slotTemplate.content, true));
var styleEl = hostDoc.createElement("style");
styleEl.textContent = styleTexts;
wrapper.insertBefore(styleEl, wrapper.firstChild);
var serialized = new XMLSerializer().serializeToString(wrapper);
var svgMarkup =
// No xmlns on foreignObject: a default xmlns declaration
// applies to the declaring element itself and would eject
// foreignObject from the SVG namespace (renders blank). The
// serialized wrapper div already carries the XHTML namespace.
'<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="' +
rw +
'" height="' +
rh +
'"><foreignObject width="' +
rw +
'" height="' +
rh +
'">' +
serialized +
"</foreignObject></svg>";
var snapshot = new Image();
snapshot.onload = function () {
rctx.fillStyle = bgColor;
rctx.fillRect(0, 0, rw, rh);
rctx.drawImage(snapshot, 0, 0, rw, rh);
try {
finishRaster();
} catch (error) {
// Tainted or unreadable snapshot: fall back to the monogram.
paintMonogram(rctx, rw, rh);
finishRaster();
}
};
snapshot.onerror = function () {
paintMonogram(rctx, rw, rh);
finishRaster();
};
snapshot.src = "data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8," + encodeURIComponent(svgMarkup);
} else {
paintMonogram(rctx, rw, rh);
}
// Final cell pitch (display px) per grid enum; the ladder steps
// down from 4x on powers of sqrt(2). Stepped, not continuous:
// each step is a stable re-sample, the digital resolve.
var rowsFinal = { coarse: 22, med: 36, fine: 54 };
var cellFinal = Math.max(4, cssH / rowsFinal[grid]);
var LADDER = [4, 2.83, 2, 1.41, 1];
var LAST = LADDER.length - 1;
function clamp01(v) {
return v < 0 ? 0 : v > 1 ? 1 : v;
}
// Stateless integer hash for per-cell shimmer: pure function of
// (col, row, step), no stream, no state.
function hash01(cx, cy, step) {
var h =
Math.imul(cx + 1, 0x9e3779b1) ^
Math.imul(cy + 1, 0x85ebca6b) ^
Math.imul(step + 1, 0xc2b2ae35);
h = Math.imul(h ^ (h >>> 15), 0x27d4eb2f);
h = (h ^ (h >>> 13)) >>> 0;
return h / 4294967296;
}
var glyphs = charset.split("");
var GN = glyphs.length;
// Pure repaint from (raster tables, t).
function paint(timeSeconds) {
ctx.fillStyle = bgColor;
ctx.fillRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
if (!rasterReady) return;
var t = timeSeconds;
var fade = clamp01(t / FADE_IN);
fade = 1 - (1 - fade) * (1 - fade); // power2.out
if (fade <= 0) return;
var rp = clamp01((t - resolveAt) / RESOLVE);
rp = rp * rp * (3 - 2 * rp); // smoothstep across the ladder
var step = Math.min(LAST, Math.floor(rp * LAST + 1e-6));
if (rp >= 1) step = LAST;
var cell = cellFinal * LADDER[step];
var cols = Math.ceil(cssW / cell);
var rows = Math.ceil(cssH / cell);
var cellDev = cell * dpr;
ctx.font = "600 " + cellDev * 0.92 + "px " + monoFamily;
ctx.textAlign = "center";
ctx.textBaseline = "middle";
ctx.fillStyle = inkColor;
// Shimmer amplitude decays to exactly zero on the final step
// so the HOLD is truly still.
var shimmerAmp = step === LAST && rp >= 1 ? 0 : 0.16;
for (var cy = 0; cy < rows; cy += 1) {
for (var cx = 0; cx < cols; cx += 1) {
var x0 = Math.round(cx * cell * rasterScale);
var y0 = Math.round(cy * cell * rasterScale);
var x1 = Math.min(rw, Math.round((cx + 1) * cell * rasterScale));
var y1 = Math.min(rh, Math.round((cy + 1) * cell * rasterScale));
var luma = cellLuma(x0, Math.min(y0, rh), x1, Math.min(y1, rh));
var idx = Math.round(luma * (GN - 1));
if (idx <= 0 && glyphs[0] === " ") continue;
var alpha = (0.3 + 0.7 * luma) * fade;
if (shimmerAmp > 0) {
alpha *= 1 - shimmerAmp + shimmerAmp * hash01(cx, cy, step);
}
if (alpha <= 0.01) continue;
ctx.globalAlpha = clamp01(alpha);
ctx.fillText(glyphs[idx], (cx + 0.5) * cellDev, (cy + 0.5) * cellDev);
}
}
ctx.globalAlpha = 1;
}
gsap.set(stage, { opacity: 1, y: "0cqh" });
var tl = gsap.timeline({
paused: true,
onUpdate: function () {
paint(tl.time());
},
});
// Anchor tween: spans the full authored duration so onUpdate
// (the canvas repaint) fires for every eventful seek in [0, D]
// and holds keep tl.time() honest.
tl.to({ t: 0 }, { t: 1, duration: duration, ease: "none" }, 0);
// HOLD: legible-fine, truly still (shimmer amplitude is zero
// past the final ladder step; the raster never changes).
// OUT: optional departure; exit none holds until the frame cuts.
if (exit === "up") {
tl.to(stage, { y: "-4cqh", duration: OUT, ease: "power2.in" }, OUT_START);
tl.to(stage, { opacity: 0, duration: OUT, ease: "power2.in" }, OUT_START);
} else if (exit === "fade") {
tl.to(stage, { opacity: 0, duration: OUT, ease: "power2.in" }, OUT_START);
}
tl.seek(0);
paint(0);
window.__timelines = window.__timelines || {};
window.__timelines["ascii-render-pass"] = tl;
})();
</script>
</div>
</template>
</body>
</html>
```
</Accordion>
{/* hf:generated-footer */}
Tagged `motion-primitive` `experiment` `texture` `ascii` `quantize`.
## Related topics
- [Browse the complete Catalog](/catalog)
- [Add assets and Catalog items in Studio](/studio/assets-and-blocks)
- [Build a richer composition](/go-further)