---
name: "raster3d"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "raster3d"
version: "3.0-7-2+b2"
release: "Debian 13 (Trixie)"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/raster3d"
---

# raster3d(1)

molecular graphics package

## NAME

Raster3D - molecular graphics package

## SYNOPSIS

The *Raster3D* molecular graphics package consists of a core program *render*  and a number of ancillary programs  (*balls*, *rastep*, *rods*) which produce input files for rendering from PDB (Protein Data Bank) files of atomic coordinates. *Raster3D* can also render images composed using other programs such as *MOLSCRIPT* \[Per Kraulis (1991), J. Appl. Cryst. 24, 946-950\].

*Raster3D* is freely available. If you use the package to prepare figures for publication, please give proper credit to the authors. The proper citation for the current version is Merritt & Bacon (1997).

     Bacon & Anderson (1988) J. Molec. Graphics 6, 219-220.\
      Merritt & Murphy (1994) Acta Cryst. D50, 869-873.\
      Merritt & Bacon  (1997) Meth. Enzymol. 277, 505-524.

## DESCRIPTION

*Raster3D* uses a fast Z-buffer algorithm to produce high quality pixel images featuring one shadowing light source,  additional non-shadowing light sources, specular highlighting, transparency, and Phong shaded surfaces. Output is in the form of a pixel image with 24 bits of color information per pixel. *Raster3D* does not depend on graphics hardware.

The following image output formats are supported: AVS, JPEG, PNG, TIFF, and SGI libimage. To actually view or manipulate the images produced, you must also have installed an image viewing package (e.g. John Cristy's ImageMagick or the SGI libimage utilities). A filter utility *avs2ps* is included in the package which can convert an AVS format output stream directly to a dithered monochrome PostScript image.

Although Raster3D is not intended as a general purpose ray-tracing package, nothing in the rendering process is specific to molecular graphics.

## EXAMPLES

Using only programs included in the Raster3D distribution one can create and render space-filling models, ball-and-stick models,  ribbon models, and figures composed of any combination of these. The following set of commands would produce a composite figure of an Fe-containing metalloprotein with a smoothly shaded ribbon representation of the protein and spheres drawn for the Fe atoms:

     \#\
      \# Draw smooth ribbon with default color scheme 2,\
      \# save description (with header records) in ribbon.r3d\
      \#\
      cat protein.pdb \| ribbon -d2 \> ribbon.r3d\
      \#\
      \# Extract Fe atoms only, and draw as spheres.\
      \# Color info is taken from colorfile.\
      \# Save description (with no header records) in irons.r3d\
      \#\
      grep "FE" protein.pdb \| cat colorfile - \| balls -h \> irons.r3d\
      \#\
      \# combine the two descriptions and render to a PNG image\
      \#\
      cat ribbon.r3d irons.r3d \| render \> picture.png

Integrated use of MOLSCRIPT/Raster3D/ImageMagick allows one to describe, render, and view 3D representations of existing MOLSCRIPT figures:

     molscript -r infile.dat \| render \| display png:-

## SOURCE

**web URL:**\
  	http://www.bmsc.washington.edu/raster3d/raster3d.html

**contact:**\
  	Ethan A Merritt\
  	University of Washington, Seattle WA 98195\
  	merritt@u.washington.edu

## SEE ALSO

render(l), rastep(l), rods(l), ribbon(l), balls(l), avs2ps(l),  stereo3d(l)

## LICENSE

 Raster3D version 3.0 is distributed under the terms of the\
  Artistic License, Version 2.0.

## AUTHORS

 Originally written by David J Bacon and Wayne F Anderson.\
  Ancillary programs by Mark Israel, Stephen Samuel,  Michael Murphy, Albert Berghuis, and Ethan A Merritt.   Extensions, revisions, and modifications by Ethan A Merritt.