From bdf3c2b4b66f56ecfed0c107c7ae062cf6a0eb12 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Ian Webster <ianw_github@ianww.com>
Date: Thu, 26 Nov 2020 18:24:38 -0500
Subject: [PATCH] Create README.md

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+# quickchart-csharp
+
+A C# client for the [quickchart.io](https://quickchart.io/) chart API.
+
+# Installation
+
+Use `QuickChart/QuickChart.cs` in this project, or install `QuickChart` through NuGet.
+
+# Usage
+
+This library provides a `QuickChart` namespace containing a `Chart` class.  Import and instantiate it.  Then set properties on it and specify a [Chart.js](https://chartjs.org) config:
+
+```csharp
+Chart qc = new Chart();
+
+qc.Width = 500;
+qc.Height = 300;
+qc.Config = @"{
+    type: 'bar',
+    data: {
+        labels: ['Q1', 'Q2', 'Q3', 'Q4'],
+        datasets: [{
+        label: 'Users',
+        data: [50, 60, 70, 180]
+        }]
+    }
+}";
+```
+
+Use `GetUrl()` on your QuickChart object to get the encoded URL that renders your chart:
+
+```csharp
+Console.WriteLine(qc.GetUrl());
+// https://quickchart.io/chart?c=%7B%22chart%22%3A+%7B%22type%22%3A+%22bar%22%2C+%22data%22%3A+%7B%22labels%22%3A+%5B%22Hello+world%22%2C+%22Test%22%5D%2C+%22datasets%22%3A+%5B%7B%22label%22%3A+%22Foo%22%2C+%22data%22%3A+%5B1%2C+2%5D%7D%5D%7D%7D%7D&w=600&h=300&bkg=%23ffffff&devicePixelRatio=2.0&f=png
+```
+
+If you have a long or complicated chart, use `GetShortUrl()` to get a fixed-length URL using the quickchart.io web service (note that these URLs only persist for a short time unless you have a subscription):
+
+```csharp
+Console.WriteLine(qc.GetShortUrl());
+# https://quickchart.io/chart/render/f-a1d3e804-dfea-442c-88b0-9801b9808401
+```
+
+The URLs will render an image of a chart:
+
+<img src="https://quickchart.io/chart?c=%7B%22type%22%3A+%22bar%22%2C+%22data%22%3A+%7B%22labels%22%3A+%5B%22Hello+world%22%2C+%22Test%22%5D%2C+%22datasets%22%3A+%5B%7B%22label%22%3A+%22Foo%22%2C+%22data%22%3A+%5B1%2C+2%5D%7D%5D%7D%7D&w=600&h=300&bkg=%23ffffff&devicePixelRatio=2.0&f=png" width="500" />
+
+## Customizing your chart
+
+You can set the following properties:
+
+### Config: string
+The actual Chart.js chart configuration.
+
+### Width: int
+Width of the chart image in pixels.  Defaults to 500
+
+### Height: int
+Height of the chart image  in pixels.  Defaults to 300
+
+### BackgroundColor: str
+The background color of the chart. Any valid HTML color works. Defaults to #ffffff (white). Also takes rgb, rgba, and hsl values.
+
+### DevicePixelRatio: double
+The device pixel ratio of the chart. This will multiply the number of pixels by the value. This is usually used for retina displays. Defaults to 1.0.
+
+## Getting URLs
+
+There are a few ways to get a URL for your chart object.
+
+### GetUrl(): string
+
+Returns a URL that will display the chart image when loaded.
+
+### GetShortUrl(): string
+
+Uses the quickchart.io web service to create a fixed-length chart URL that displays the chart image.  Returns a URL such as `https://quickchart.io/chart/render/f-a1d3e804-dfea-442c-88b0-9801b9808401`.
+
+Note that short URLs expire after a few days for users of the free service.  You can [subscribe](https://quickchart.io/pricing/) to keep them around longer.
+
+## Other methods
+
+### ToFile(string path)
+
+Write your chart to file.
+
+### ToByteArray(): byte[]
+
+Returns an array of bytes representing your image.
+
+## More examples
+
+Checkout the `QuickChartExamples` project to see other usage.