SECTION 4.

3 151 Graphics State

smoothness number (PDF 1.3) The precision with which color gradients are to be ren- dered on
the output device (see Section 6.5.2, "Smoothness Toler- ance"). The value of this parameter gives
the maximum error tolerance, expressed as a fraction of the range of each color compo- nent;
smaller numbers give smoother color transitions at the expense of more computation and memory
use. Initial value: installation-dependent.

Some graphics state parameters are set with specific PDF operators, some are set by including a
particular entry in a graphics state parameter dictionary, and some can be specified either way. The
current line width, for example, can be set either with the w operator or (in PDF 1.3) with the LW
entry in a graphics state param- eter dictionary, whereas the current color is set only with specific
operators and the current halftone is set only with a graphics state parameter dictionary. It is
expected that all future graphics state parameters will be specified with new entries in the graphics
state parameter dictionary rather than with new operators.

In general, the operators that set graphics state parameters simply store them un- changed for later
use by the painting operators. However, some parameters have special properties or behavior:

•Most parameters must be of the correct type or have values that fall within a certain range.

• Parameters that are numeric values, such as the current color, line width, and miter limit, are
forced into valid range, if necessary. However, they are not ad- justed to reflect capabilities of the
raster output device, such as resolution or number of distinguishable colors. Painting operators
perform such adjust- ments, but the adjusted values are not stored back into the graphics state.

• Paths are internal objects that are not directly represented in PDF.

Note: As indicated in Tables 4.2 and 4.3, some of the parameters-color space, color, and overprint-
have two values, one used for stroking (of paths and text objects) and one for all other painting
operations. The two parameter values can be set inde- pendently, allowing for operations such as
combined filling and stroking of the same path with different colors. Except where noted, a term
such as current color should be interpreted to refer to whichever color parameter applies to the
operation being performed. When necessary, the individual color parameters are distinguished ex-
plicitly as the stroking color and the nonstroking color.