SVGlike

SVGlike is a vector graphics markup language designed to describe two-dimensional vector imagery in a compact, human-readable form. It is inspired by the SVG standard but emphasizes simplicity and performance for embedded systems and real-time rendering. SVGlike documents define scenes as a hierarchical set of elements that describe shapes, styles, transformations, and animations.

Core elements include shapes such as rectangles, circles, ellipses, lines, polylines, polygons, and paths; container groups; and text nodes with font and rendering settings. Styles cover fill and stroke properties, opacity, and a variety of paints, including solid colors, linear and radial gradients, and patterns. Transformations such as translate, rotate, scale, and skew can be applied to any element, and effects like clipping and masking enable compositing. Declarative animations and interactivity are supported through properties that interpolate over time, with timing and easing options similar to SMIL.

SVGlike also defines a compact binary encoding (.svglb) to reduce file size and improve parsing speed in bandwidth-constrained environments or performance-critical contexts. Tooling typically includes editors, validators, and exporters that target SVGlike documents or provide conversion paths to other formats, such as SVG or native rendering APIs.

Compared with SVG, SVGlike aims for a smaller feature surface, faster parsing, and closer integration with rendering engines used in UI toolkits and game frameworks, while preserving interoperability through conversion layers. SVGlike is used in web widgets, mobile apps, and game user interfaces where vector scalability and performance are priorities.