Mandelbrot Renderer

See image and diagram below

A fast, extensible Mandelbrot fractal generator written in Go.
Supports multiple color palettes, configurable image dimensions, iteration limits, and automatic image preview using feh on Linux.

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Features

• High‑performance Mandelbrot set renderer in Go
• Multiple color palettes (e.g., MonochromeSlate, NebulaSpectre, AuroraArc, ThermalHeat, etc.)
• Custom image sizing and iteration depth
• PNG output
• Optional automatic preview via feh
• Clean and simple CLI interface (working on this)

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Example Usage

🦀 go run main.go     -palette MonochromeSlate     -outfile /outfile/monochrome_mandlebrot.png

The application will:

1. Parse flags\
2. Generate the fractal\
3. Apply the selected palette\
4. Save the PNG to the output file\
5. Automatically open it in feh (if available)

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Command-Line Flags

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Flag Type Description

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-palette string Selects a named color palette (e.g., MonochromeSlate)

-outfile string Path where the generated PNG will be written

-width int Image width in pixels

-height int Image height in pixels

-iters int Max iteration depth for escape-time algorithm

Example:

go run main.go -width 1920 -height 1080 -iters 1500 -palette Inferno -outfile fractal.png

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Architecture Diagram

flowchart TD
    A[Start main.go] --> B[Parse Flags]
    B --> C[Initialize Bounds & Constants]
    C --> D[Allocate RGBA Canvas]

    D --> E[For Each Pixel: Map to Complex Plane]
    E --> F[Run Mandelbrot Iterations]

    F --> G[Color Mapping via Palette]
    G --> H[Write to RGBA Buffer]
    H --> I[Encode PNG]

    I --> J{feh Installed?}
    J -->|Yes| K[Open Image with feh]
    J -->|No| L[Exit]

Loading

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Rendered Mandlebrot Image with "NebulaSpectre" flag.

e.g. go run main.go -palette "NebulaSpectre" -outfile /nebspec.png

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Dependencies

• Go 1.21+\
• (Optional) feh for image preview on Linux

Install feh on Fedora:

sudo dnf install feh

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Running Without feh

If you prefer not to open the file automatically, either uninstall feh or modify the code block that triggers:

exec.Command("feh", outfile).Start()

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Output Example

Once rendered, the program will generate a high-resolution PNG such as:

/outfile/monochrome_mandlebrot.png

Suggested palettes for stylish renders:

• MonochromeSlate
• NebulaSpectre
• BlueInferno
• Nebula
• MetallicChrome
• ThermalHeat
• AuroraArc

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Project Structure

mandlebrot/
│
├── README.md
├── /palette/palettes.go
├── outfile/nebula_mandlebrot.png
├── go.mod
└── main.go

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License

MIT License.
Feel free to modify, extend, or incorporate this renderer into your own projects.

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Author

whalelogic / Keith Thomson
Developer, cloud engineer, and fractal enthusiast.