### 12.4 Object types ¶

A schematic/symbol file for gEDA/gaf consists of:

- A version (`v`) as the first item in the file. This is required.
- Any number of objects and the correct data. Objects are specified by an “object type”.
- Most objects are a single line, however text objects are two lines long.
- No blank lines at the end of the file (these are ignored by the tools)
- For all enumerated types in the gEDA/gaf file formats, the field takes on the numeric value.

The “object type” ID is a single letter and this ID must start in the first column. The object type ID is case sensitive.

The schematic and symbol files share the same file layout. A symbol is nothing more than a collection of primitive objects (lines, boxes, circles, arcs, text, and pins). A schematic is a collection of symbols (components), nets, and buses.

The following sections describe the specifics of each recognized object type. Each section has the name of the object, which file type (sch/sym) the object can appear in, the format of the data, a description of each individual field, details and caveats of the fields, and finally an example with description.

For information on the color index (which is used in practically all objects), see the Colors section.