from
The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (8 July 2008)
Graphical Kernel System
GKS
<graphics, standard> (GKS) The widely recognised standard
{ANSI} X3.124 for graphical input/output. GKS is worked on by
the {ISO}/{IEC} group {JTC1/SC24}. It provides applications
programmers with standard methods of creating, manipulating,
and displaying or printing computer graphics on different
types of computer graphics output devices. It provides an
abstraction to save programmers from dealing with the detailed
capabilities and interfaces of specific hardware.
GKS defines a basic two-dimensional graphics system with:
uniform input and output {primitives}; a uniform interface to
and from a {GKS metafile} for storing and transferring
graphics information. It supports a wide range of graphics
output devices including such as {printers}, {plotters},
{vector graphics} devices, {storage tubes}, {refresh
displays}, {raster displays}, and {microfilm recorders}.
(1999-04-01)