tesserax

name	tesserax
description	Specialized in generating charts, diagrams, and technical visualizations using the tesserax Python library. Use when the user asks to "draw", "visualize", "chart", or "diagram" something, especially for architectural, hierarchical, or statistical data.

Tesserax Visualization Guide

Tesserax is a declarative Python library for creating SVG-based diagrams and charts. Use it for generating high-quality, programmatic visualizations.

Core Workflow

1. Initialize Canvas: Always use the Canvas context manager.
2. Define Shapes/Data: Use geometric primitives (Square, Circle, Text) or Chart for data.
3. Layout semantic elements: Use RowLayout, ColumnLayout, GridLayout, Tree, or Force-Directed layouts.
4. Connect with Anchors: Use semantic anchors (top, bottom, left, right, center) for connections.
5. Export/Display: Use .fit().display() to finalize.

Code Patterns

Basic Diagram

from tesserax import Canvas, Square, Text, RowLayout, Polyline

with Canvas() as canvas:
    a = Square(size=2) + Text("A")
    b = Square(size=2) + Text("B")
    layout = RowLayout(children=[a, b], gap=2)
    p = Polyline(points=[a.anchor("right"), b.anchor("left")])

canvas.fit().display()

Statistical Chart

from tesserax import Canvas, Chart

data = [{"x": 1, "y": 10}, {"x": 2, "y": 20}]
with Canvas() as canvas:
    chart = Chart(data).mark_bar().encode(x="x", y="y")

canvas.fit().display()

Strategy for "Drawing" Requests

When the user asks to "draw" something:

1. Analyze the data or structure to be visualized.
2. Write a Python script using tesserax.
3. Quarto Integration: If working inside a .qmd file (the primary format for this project), use a standard {python} code block.
   • End the block with canvas.fit().display().
   • Quarto will automatically capture the SVG output and render it in the document.
   • No manual file saving or export commands are needed.
4. Standalone Execution: For non-Quarto contexts, execute the script and capture the SVG output to a file (e.g., diagram.svg).
5. Environment Check: Ensure uv add tesserax is run if the library is not available in the current environment.