If you want a new cfg or Settings File, first click on the OPEN button at the bottom of the screen. The Open Presets File dialog box will open. Type in the name you want for your new Settings File in the "File Name" box - the system will append the .cfg for you - and click on the OPEN button. Then, click on the SAVE button as outline above, to save your settings.

To load a particular Sinedots Settings file you've saved, click on the OPEN button at the bottom of the screen. A list of Settings Files will appear - just double-click on your Settings File, or the one that contains the settings you want to work with. To find the individual Sinedots setting in that Settings File, click on the small arrow beside the name box at the bottom of the screen - a list of the settings in the currently open Settings File will drop down.

Any time you're not sure which Settings File is open, click the OPEN button - the Open Presets File dialog box will pop up, and the name of the currently open Settings File will appear in the "File Name" box. If that's not the one you want, browse through the list, double-clicking on the one you want.

• In the Save As dialog, change the .pspimage qualifier to .psp (red box below):
  

• Click on the Options button (green arrow above).
• In the Save Options dialog box, choose "PSP 7 compatible file" in the Version Save As drop-list:
  

• Click OK to close the Save Options dialog.
• Click Save to save the file.

Be sure to reset the Options to "PSP 12 compatible file" when you are done so that future files will be saved in PSP X2 format.

An alternate and easier method of saving files in PSP 7 format is to use the Animation Shop file type in the Save as type of the Save As dialog (circled in red below):

Notice that this format saves the image with a .psp extension (blue arrow above). When this method is used, there is no need to go back and reset the Save As Options to "PSP 12 compatible file", as this method does not change those options.

Note: Although Animation Shop is no longer distributed with Paint Shop Pro, the option to save files in Animation Shop format - which is PSP 7 format - is still available. Animation Shop from previous versions of PSP can still be used to animate files created in PSP X2, as long as those files are saved in PSP 7-compatible format.

• In Paint Shop Pro, choose File...Open.
• Highlight the file and click the Details button.
• Check the version number in the Image format panel:

  

  • If it says 10, it was saved in PSP X2 format.
  • If it says 9, it was saved in PSP XI format.
  • If it says 8, it was saved in PSP X format.
  • If it says 7, it was saved in PSP 9 format.
  • If it says 6, it was saved in PSP 8 format.
  • If it says 5, it was saved in PSP 7 format.
  • If it says 4, it was saved in PSP 6 format.
  • If it says 3, it was saved in PSP 5 format.

Note this is true of all PSP-type files, such as PSP layered images, tubes, frames, masks, brushes, shapes, etc.

Note: This tip only applicable to those with previous versions of PSP, which included Animation Shop.

In my opinion, the best way to create an animation is to create a layered image in Paint Shop Pro and open the PSP file as a multi-framed animation in Animation Shop. With the file saved as a PSP file, you can go back and make any changes, add new layers, rearrange the layers, and so on.

In order for these multilayered PSP files created in PSP X2 to work correctly in Animation Shop, the following must be true:

• The image must be saved in PSP 7 format - see #063 Saving PSP Images in PSP 7 Format above.
• All layers must be visible when you save the image.
• Animation Shop must be configured to keep layers as separate frames.

To configure Animation Shop to keep layers as separate frames, start Animation Shop, then choose File...Preferences...General Program Preferences, and click on the Layered Files tab. Make sure "Keep layers as separate frames" is checked. This feature causes Animation Shop to open a multilayered file and keep each layer as a separate frame. It's a very powerful feature. Also check "Preserve overall layer transparency" to retain the transparency level set for each layer.

Note: As there is no longer any communication between Animation Shop and PSP with this release, the "Export frames to Paint Shop Pro as layered images" option has no meaning.

Now, open your multilayered PSP file in Animation Shop, and click the View Animation button (or choose View...Animation). If the image checks out, you're ready to save the animation.

Note: This tip only applicable to those with previous versions of PSP, which included Animation Shop.

Animation shop does not do a very good job of saving transparent gifs - there are always some "jaggies" left around the image. There are three ways to avoid this problem and keep your animations "clean":

• Use a solid background behind your animation layers. In other words, if you will be using the animation on a white background, when you have completed creating your animation image in Paint Shop Pro, create a white layer, duplicate this layer as many times as you have layers in the animation, and merge one white layer with each animation layer. This makes the white background part of the animation, and there will be no "jaggies".
• If you have already saved the animation with a transparent background, you can still add an opaque background while in Animation Shop:
  • Choose Animation...Animation Properties.
  • On the Canvas Color tab, click Opaque.
  • Left-click inside the color box to display the Color dialog box (or right-click inside this color box to display the Recent Colors dialog box). Select the new canvas color.
  • Click OK to save your changes.
• A third procedure that gives great results is to Customize your animation during the save process. To do this, click on the Customize button on the Animation Quality Versus Output Size screen (first screen in the save dialog after naming your animation):
  • Click on the Colors tab:
    • Choose the number of colors - I usually use 255 colors.
    • In the Create Palette by section, choose Optimized Median Cut.
    • In the Reduce Colors section, choose Error Diffusion.
  • Click on the Optimizations tab:
    • Check Write Minimal Frames.
    • Check Collapse Identical Frames.
    • Check Map Identical Pixels to Transparent.
  • Click on the Partial Transparency tab:
    • Check the first item (Convert pixels less than), and enter a low number in the box - I have 1.
    • In the next section, check the first item (Yes, blend with this color) and then click on the color box to choose a color close to your background - use the exact color for solid backgrounds.

These fields are sticky fields, and your selections should be intact for your next animation, though you may need to change the color in the color box on the Partial Transparency tab.

Note: This tip only applicable to those with previous versions of PSP, which included Animation Shop.

To add a watermark or logo to all frames of an animation:

• Open the animation in Animation Shop.
• Open the logo/watermark you wish to add in Animation Shop.
• Activate the animation to which the watermark is to be added.
• Choose Edit...Select all.
• Choose Edit...Propagate Paste.
• Activate the logo/watermark animation.
• Choose Edit...Copy.
• Activate the animation to which the logo is to be added.
• Choose Edit...Paste...Into Selected Frame.
• Move logo/watermark into desired location, and left-click to fix in place.

Then select all nodes (CTRL + A), and change the node type to Symmetric (CTRL + S).

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To exit node editing, select another tool.

In this first set of images, the original shape is shown at the left. The center image shows stretching the rectangle by pulling on the right handle of the bounding box. Finally, the rightmost image shows the resulting rectangle. Notice the corners.

This same thing happens when using the rounded rectangle shape to create the rectangle directly - the corners are not evenly rounded at all:

Now let's see how to correct this situation. In the next set of images, the original shape is the same. To make the rectangle, I stretched this image, too, but in a different way:

Here's an arc whose line style was changed to Arrowhead end:

Note: If the Ellipse tool (Q) is used to draw the circle instead of the Preset Shape tool, the process is slightly different. After the circle is drawn, the object must first be converted to a path (right-click and choose Convert to path from the context menu) before invoking node edit.

• Click at the first vertex (A).
• Click at the second vertex (B) to set the first edge of the triangle.
• Click at the 3rd vertex (C) to set the second edge of the triangle.
• Click the Close selected open contours button .

The following diagram shows this process - the first side of the triangle is created by clicking at point A and then at point B. The second side of the triangle is created by clicking at point C. The triangle would be completed now by clicking on the Close selected open contours button on the Tool options palette.

• Draw vector objects from top left to bottom right to ensure a clockwise path for the contour. To determine the direction of a contour, choose the Pen tool , select Edit Mode, and select a node on the path:
  • If the node has visible control arms, the arrow points in the direction the path is drawn.
  • If the node does not have visible control arms, press the } key (SHIFT + ]) repeadedly to move from node to node - the direction you traverse the nodes is the direction of the path.

• To create text on a curved path, enable the Text tool and click on the path when the cursor becomes the Curved Text cursor ( ).

• To adjust the text either above or below the path, use the Offset parameter in the Text Tool Options palette - use positive offset values to place text above the path, and negative offset values to place text below the path.

  Note: Leading has no effect on the position of text relative to a curve. This was new in PSP 9.

• To get text to the bottom of a closed curve, activate the Pen tool in Edit mode to select the curve, reverse the contour of the curve (Objects...Edit...Reverse Contour), and then create the text.

• To edit vector text on a curve, hover over the text until the cursor changes to the Edit Curved Text cursor ( ), and then click on the text.

• To get "straight" text on a curved filled vector object, press the ALT key while using the Text tool.

• To fit existing vector text to a path, group the text and path (click on both the text and the path with the Pick tool while pressing the SHIFT key), and then choose Objects...Fit Text to Path. Alternately, right-click the vector object group and choose Fit Text to Path from the context menu.

• To make the path invisible before saving curved text image, open the Vector Property dialog box for the path, and clear the Visible box, or click the Visibility button of the curve object so that it appears crossed out on the Layers palette ( ).

• If the bounding box surrounding the curve is in the way when you go to choose the alignment point for the text on the curve, just remove it - use CTRL + D, or right-click and choose Select None from the context menu. Then click on the curve with your Text tool.

Notice the small square icon that moves along the curve as you move the text (see blue arrow in following image) - this icon represents the location where the text will be dropped:

If the text is aligned left, that icon represents the left edge of the text; if the text is aligned center, that icon represents the new center of the text; and if the text is aligned right, that icon represents the right edge of the text.

Of course, if you want to move the text and the line, all you have to do is select both the text and the line, and they will still move together.

Or the Warp Brush tool :

• Choose File...Preferences...General Program Preferences.
• Click on Palettes in the left window
• In the "Materials palette" panel, mark both the Display colors in RGB format and Hexadecimal display check boxes.

Then, when you need to get the HTML code for a color you're using in a tutorial, all you have to do is hover over the color with the Dropper tool and the hexadecimal/HTML code will display:

The HTML code for the color in the first image is #8EA791, and the code for the second image is #0B562D. If your ToolTips aren't visible, see below.