Rotating a square around the Z axis. To get the results you expect, send the rotate function angle parameters that are values between 0 and PI*2 (TWO_PI which is roughly 6.28). If you prefer to think about angles as degrees (0-360), you can use the radians() method to convert your values. For example: scale(radians(90)) is identical to the statement scale(PI/2).
Original Processing.org Example: Rotate
// All Examples Written by Casey Reas and Ben Fry // unless otherwise stated. void setup() { size(200,200); noStroke(); fill(255); frameRate(30); } float angle; float cosine; float jitter; void draw() { background(102); if(second()%2 == 0){ jitter = (random(-0.1, 0.1)); } angle = angle + jitter; cosine = cos(angle); translate(width/2, height/2); rotate(cosine); rectMode(CENTER); rect(0, 0, 115, 115); }