FastCharts.Core 1.2.0

FastCharts - High-Performance .NET Charting Library

<div align="center"> <img src="mabinogi-icon.png" alt="FastCharts" width="128" height="128">

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🌟 What is FastCharts?

FastCharts is a high-performance .NET charting library designed for real-time applications, financial dashboards, and data visualization scenarios requiring smooth rendering of massive datasets (10M+ points).

⚡ Key Features

• 🚀 Real-time Performance: 60 FPS rendering with LTTB decimation
• 📊 Rich Chart Types: Line, Scatter, Bar, Area, Band, OHLC, ErrorBar
• 🎯 Multi-Axis Support: Independent left/right Y axes
• 📈 Advanced Axes: Linear, Logarithmic, Category with custom bases
• 🔄 Streaming Data: Rolling windows with efficient append operations
• 🎨 Interactive: Pan, zoom, crosshair, pinned tooltips
• 📍 Annotations: Lines, ranges, labels with full styling
• 💾 Export Ready: PNG + SVG (vector) export, clipboard integration
• 🌐 Cross-Platform: Windows, macOS, Linux support
• 🏗️ MVVM Ready: Full WPF integration with ReactiveUI

🎯 Perfect For

• Financial Applications: Trading platforms, market analysis
• Real-Time Dashboards: IoT monitoring, system metrics
• Scientific Visualization: Research data, sensor readings
• Business Intelligence: KPI dashboards, analytics
• Desktop Applications: WPF apps with rich data visualization

📦 Quick Start

For WPF Applications (Recommended)

dotnet add package FastCharts.Wpf

Basic Usage

XAML:

<Window xmlns:fc="clr-namespace:FastCharts.Wpf.Controls;assembly=FastCharts.Wpf">
    <fc:FastChart Model="{Binding ChartModel}" />
</Window>

C# Code — a curve from a dictionary, zero ceremony:

using FastCharts.Core;

var model = new ChartModel();

// Any Dictionary<double, double> plots as a sorted line in one call
var measures = new Dictionary<double, double> { [0] = 10, [1] = 20, [2] = 15, [3] = 25 };
model.AddSeries(measures, "Sales Data");

// Y values only? X becomes the index
model.AddSeries(new[] { 10.0, 20.0, 15.0, 25.0 }, "Quick values");

// Other kinds, same one-liner
model.AddSeries(measures, ChartKind.Area);      // or Scatter, Bar, StepLine

// Make it pretty in two more lines
var curve = model.AddSeries(measures, "Smooth");
curve.Smoothing = LineSmoothing.Spline;         // smooth curve
curve.ShowMarkers = true;                       // dots on data points
model.Theme = ChartThemes.Dark;                 // runtime theme switch

// Bind to your ViewModel
this.DataContext = new { ChartModel = model };

Need full control? Build the series yourself:

using FastCharts.Core.Series;
using FastCharts.Core.Primitives;

model.AddSeries(new LineSeries(new[] { new PointD(0, 10), new PointD(1, 20) })
{
    Title = "Sales Data",
    StrokeThickness = 2
});

Real-Time Streaming Example

// Create streaming series with rolling window
var streamingSeries = new StreamingLineSeries {
    Title = "Live Data",
    MaxPointCount = 1000, // Keep last 1000 points
    RollingWindowDuration = TimeSpan.FromMinutes(5)
};

// Add real-time data
streamingSeries.AppendPoint(new PointD(DateTime.Now.Ticks, sensorValue));

model.AddSeries(streamingSeries);

Multi-Axis Example

// Create chart with multiple Y axes
var model = new ChartModel();

// Add left axis series (temperature)
model.AddSeries(new LineSeries(temperatureData) {
    Title = "Temperature (°C)",
    YAxisIndex = 0, // Left Y axis
    Color = ColorRgba.Red
});

// Add right axis series (pressure) 
model.AddSeries(new LineSeries(pressureData) {
    Title = "Pressure (hPa)", 
    YAxisIndex = 1, // Right Y axis
    Color = ColorRgba.Blue
});

🏗️ Architecture

FastCharts uses a clean, modular architecture:

├── FastCharts.Core          # Core algorithms & abstractions
├── FastCharts.Rendering.Skia # Cross-platform rendering engine
└── FastCharts.Wpf           # WPF controls & MVVM integration

Package Selection Guide

📊 Advanced Features

LTTB Decimation for Massive Datasets

var largeSeries = new LineSeries(millionsOfPoints) {
    EnableAutoResampling = true // Automatically reduces to screen resolution
};
// Maintains visual fidelity while ensuring 60 FPS performance

Performance Metrics Overlay

model.AddBehavior(new MetricsOverlayBehavior {
    ShowDetailed = true,
    Position = MetricsPosition.TopLeft
});
// Press F3 to toggle, F4 for detail level, F5 to reset

MVVM Data Binding (Observable Series)

// Bind a chart series directly to your ViewModel collection
var readings = new ObservableCollection<SensorReading>();

var series = new ObservableLineSeries(readings, nameof(SensorReading.Time), nameof(SensorReading.Temperature))
{
    Title = "Temperature",
    RefreshThrottle = TimeSpan.FromMilliseconds(50) // coalesce rapid updates (optional)
};

model.AddSeries(series);          // renders like any other series
readings.Add(new SensorReading()); // chart updates automatically

Interactive Behaviors

model.AddBehavior(new PanBehavior());
model.AddBehavior(new ZoomBehavior());
model.AddBehavior(new CrosshairBehavior());
model.AddBehavior(new PinnedTooltipBehavior()); // Right-click to pin tooltips

Annotations

// Add horizontal line annotation
model.AddAnnotation(new LineAnnotation {
    Type = LineAnnotationType.Horizontal,
    Value = 100,
    Label = "Target Value",
    Color = ColorRgba.Green
});

// Add range highlight
model.AddAnnotation(new RangeAnnotation {
    Type = RangeAnnotationType.Horizontal, 
    StartValue = 90,
    EndValue = 110,
    FillColor = ColorRgba.Green.WithAlpha(0.2f),
    Label = "Acceptable Range"
});

🚀 Performance

• Rendering Speed: Up to 60 FPS for interactive charts
• Memory Efficiency: Optimized for large datasets (10M+ points)
• LTTB Algorithm: Reduces data while preserving visual fidelity
• Hardware Acceleration: GPU-accelerated rendering via SkiaSharp
• Streaming Optimized: Real-time updates with minimal overhead

🌐 Framework Support

Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux (Core + Skia), Windows only (WPF)

Linux note: FastCharts.Rendering.Skia relies on SkiaSharp. On Linux, add the SkiaSharp.NativeAssets.Linux (or SkiaSharp.NativeAssets.Linux.NoDependencies) package to your application so the native libSkiaSharp library is deployed.

📖 Documentation

• 🚀 Getting Started | Démarrage Rapide
• 📊 Chart Types Guide | Guide des Types de Graphiques
• 🎨 Styling & Themes | Style & Thèmes
• ⚡ Performance Guide | Guide Performance
• 🔌 API Reference | Référence API
• 🧪 Examples & Demos | Exemples & Démos

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! See our Contributing Guide for details.

Development Setup

git clone https://github.com/MabinogiCode/FastCharts.git
cd FastCharts
dotnet restore
dotnet build
dotnet test # full test suite should pass

📝 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Built with SkiaSharp for cross-platform graphics
• Inspired by LiveCharts2 and ScottPlot
• LTTB algorithm implementation based on research by Sveinn Steinarsson

<div align="center"> <strong>Made with ❤️ for the .NET community</strong><br> _{FastCharts - Where performance meets visualization} </div>