Text layers

Last update: June 6, 2024

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textPs= supports a number of different usage models described in this section.

NOTE
This section does not apply to text=.

Common rules and definitions are as follows:

  • Self-sizing text layers are layers which do not include a size= command or for which size=0,0 is specified.

  • The layer size of self-sizing text layers is determined by the actual text rendered.

  • The default layer anchor of self-sizing text layers is generally not at the center of the layer (see below).

  • If anchor= or origin= is specified for self-sizing text layers, the position of the text layer is influenced by the text content.

  • When size= is specified, parts of character glyphs may be rendered outside the layer rectangle.

  • pos= can be used in all cases to reposition a text layer.

Point text (self-sizing)

Photoshop-style point text is simulated when textPs= is specified without size=, textPath=, or textFlowPath=. The layer size is determined horizontally by the width of the rendered text and vertically by the line spacing. Text never wraps automatically.

If neither anchor= nor origin= are specified, the first line of the text is positioned immediately above the layer origin; paragraphs marked with \ql are positioned to the right of the layer origin, paragraphs which include \qr are rendered to the left of the origin, and paragraphs with \qc are centered horizontally around the origin. Standard layer positioning rules apply if anchor= or origin= are specified.

If color= is specified, it fills the bounding box of the actual text rendered.

The following RTF commands are ignored: \qj, \marg*, \hyph*, \vertal*.

Rectangular text box

If size= is specified in addition to textPs= (without textPath= and textFlowPath=), text is constrained to the specified rectangle. The layer is positioned as usual. Character glyphs near the text box edges may be rendered partially outside the text box.

color= fills the region defined by size=.

All RTF commands are applied as expected.

Variable height text box

Specifying size= with 0 height allows the text box to be sized vertically to accommodate all contents. The layer width is defined by the width of size=, and the layer height by the height of the actual rendered text. The layer is positioned as usual. Character glyphs near the left and right edges of the text box may be rendered partially outside the text box.

color= fills the rectangle defined by the width specified with size= and the height of the actual text rendered.

The following RTF commands are ignored:

\vertal*

Self-sizing text in path

textFlowPath= in conjunction with textPs= can be used to define one or more regions into which text should be flowed. textFlowXPath= may be specified optionally to exclude text from flowing into one or more areas. If size= is not specified, the resulting text layer is self-sizing and the layer size is determined by the bounding box of the text actually rendered.

If neither origin= nor anchor= are specified, the layer anchor defaults to (0,0) of the pixel coordinate space used to define the path(s), ensuring absolute positioning regardless of the rendered text. If anchor= or origin= are specified, the layer is positioned relative to (and adapting to) the bounding box of the actual contents rendered.

color= fills the bounding box of the actual text rendered.

The following RTF commands are ignored:

\marg*

Pre-sized text in path

If size= is specified together with textFlowPath=, the layer size is pre-determined. (0,0) of the pixel coordinate space used to define the path(s) is located at the top-left corner of the layer rectangle.

The textFlowPath= regions may be located outside the layer rectangle. Text is always flowed and rendered into all path regions, even if this results in text being rendered outside the layer rectangle. extend=0,0,0,0can be used to crop the rendered text to the layer rectangle.

For layer positioning purposes, the layer rectangle is based on the specified size=, regardless of how much text is actually rendered, even if some of it is located outside the layer rectangle. Standard layer positioning applies.

color= fills the rectangular area defined by size=.

The following RTF commands are ignored for textFlowPath=:

\marg*

Self-sizing text on path

textPath= defines one or more paths onto which text specified with textPs= should be rendered. When size= is not specified, the resulting text layer is self-sizing. The layer size is determined by the bounding box of the actual text rendered.

If neither origin= nor anchor= are specified, the layer anchor defaults to (0,0) of the pixel coordinate space used to define the path; the position of the rendered text is fixed regardless of how much text is rendered. If anchor= or origin= are specified, the layer is positioned relative to (and adapting to) the bounding box of the actual contents rendered.

color= fills the bounding box of the actual text rendered.

The following RTF commands are ignored:

  • \marg*
  • \hyph*
  • \vertal*

Any text after the first \par or \line is ignored.