Ani Mate Pro Paint and Animation Program copyright (c)1997, Rick Sobie Shareware By using this program you agree to the terms of the user agreement, LICENSE.TXT. Which basically is that if you find it useful after 21 days, you must pay for it. $20 U.S. There is also a Utility Pack available for $10 with fades, wipes, and special effects, to make your animation easier and more fun. Address is in LICENSE.TXT or on-line info is in ONLINE.TXT **************************************************************** System Requirements ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A minimum 386 with 4 meg of disk space, a minimum SVGA adapter and mouse. Requires DOS 5 Requires that a copy of COMMAND.COM be in your path, or the root directory, or in this directory. Uses COMMAND.COM to shell to DOS to run conversion utilities etc. If you experience problems under Windows 95, reboot in DOS mode. Do not move the mouse during initialization or it will bail out. If you recieve an error message that the system could not initialize graphics, your graphic adapter card may not be compatible with the program. Try using the command line option of stating the adapter after the program name like so ANI /aSVGA256 or ANI /aVESA256 If you use VESA256 or BGI256 your paste size will be limited to 64k. SVGA256 will paste up to available conventional memory. For more info on drivers see the end of this document. If you still can't run the program seek out any 256 color *.BGI from the Internet and try it. The graphic drivers are files with a BGI extension and is a short form for Borland Graphical Interface. Thanks to Jordan Hargraphix for SVGA256.BGI, Bui Xuan Truong for VESA256.BGI, Knight Software and Borland for the others. To set the graphic mode use /m eg: ANI /m2 will set the resolution to 640x480 (default) ANI /aVESA256 /m3 will use the VESA256 driver in 800x600 ANI /aSVGA256 /m4 /d60 will use the SVGA driver in 1024x768 and set a mouse delay of 60 ms I designed the program to be used in 640x480 mode. Any image can be blown up to 1024x768 and still maintain image quality on a high res screen if necessesary afterwards. You can use the program in any resolution you want that is at least 640x400 but the interface will seem small in 1024x768. You may however need to capture an area larger than 640x480 and may need to change to higher mode to do it. Use /m[n] where 2=640x480 3=900x600 4=1024x768 I provided a Show Clips option that will preview your clips for you in VGA 320x200 full screen fairly quickly. That is the first 20 or 30 or so depending on how your files=num is set in config.sys and if you are using smartdrv.exe. There is a loss in quality during preview if the frame size is not 320x200 originally. Temporary copies are made and the originals are untouched. If you have a superfast machine and the delay between mouse clicks is too short causing it to skip processes, use the commandline switch ANI /d100 or similar value to set the delay. You only need to do it once for it to be written to the confg.fil Empty the CACHE\*.* subdirectory to remove the temp files stored there to free up your disk space at any time. Clip previews and temporary files are stored there. *************************************************************** Using the program ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Either choose NEW to create a new image or Load to load an existing image. The program reads and writes PCX type files to provide compatibility with other graphic programs. If you are wondering why the screen looks funny when decoding a PCX it is because I am cheating and using the screen memory to decode with because it is faster. Making Movies ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Once you have an image you can capture an area of it and that captured area becomes a clipboard. You have unlimited clipboards. Those clipboards can also be used as animation frames. You can save a series of frames on-mass as PCX files and then load them into Graphic Workshop for Windows and create an animated GIF for use on the World Wide Web on the Internet, or use VID EDIT for Windows, a program also available on the Internet. That program will take the PCX frames and "Insert" them to create an AVI. You can then add sound if you wish. You can also create MOV, FLI, MPG or any other format of animation file with conversion programs available on the Internet or BBS. Windows Paint can load PCX files as well as Paint Shop Pro, a program that compliments any graphic studio. The FIle Format used in this program is a VCX and is not compatible with other programs. _______________________________________________________________ (VCX Programmer Info) First two bytes Width of Image Next 2 bytes Height of image Pixel Array widthxheight in number of bytes no compression x: 2 bytes y: 2 bytes Palette array 768 bytes of rgb data identical to a PCX palette ---------------------------------------------------------------- *** 256 colors only **** Use Paint Shop Pro or similar conversion program to reduce photographic JPG images to 256 colors and save as PCX for loading into Ani Mate Error Messages ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If the program beeps, it is because it cannot read or write to disk. Either it can't find a file or the disk is full, or files are corrupted. It will try and solve the problem when it can. If it still beeps reload your backup set. ****************************************************************** *** On-line help is also available on the Ani Mate Web Site *** Help information is also available in the program under the Help Button "Help Book" or F1 or by clicking Mouse Button 2 twice on any tool. Approx. 70 Paint and Animation tools Hot Keys F1 Help F2 Privacy Fast Black Screen F2 again it returns. F3 Reload TEMP.VCX F7 Normal Paste ALT-X Exit All arrow buttons increment and decrement by 10 or by 1 depending on which mouse button you press. If you like to have a printed reference or like to read manuals, I provided the following for you. *********************** (Use your text editor word search) Changing The Toolbar Tool Basics Individual Tool Help The CLP number Changing the prefix Capture Box Size Capture Box Position C and P buttons The S button File Edit Image Options Animation Selecting the size Zooming In Zooming Out Zoom Undo Capturing a Frame Showing Frames Converting to AVI etc. Full Screen Preview Hints and Tips Using the Pad Saving PADs Clip Handling Positioning The Pad 1 Color Sampler Click Button 1 to sample the Left Color. Click Button 2 to sample the Right Color. Hint: Click the mouse on the large Left or Right Color indicator squares to clear the screen in that color. 2 Palette Tint Adjustment To tint the entire palette, change the numbers in the boxes provided in the menu that appears. Tint A stretch of Color Select this option and when you change the numbers in the menu provided, you will tint only those colors that are between the currently selected Left color and Right color. 3 Cut and Paste Palettes Select a Left Color by clicking Button 1 on a color on the color bar. Select a RIght color with Button 2. Copy Left to Right Color will copy that stretch of color to the palette clipboard. Paste between will take those clipboard colors and fit them into a new palette you have loaded once again between two colors that you select. more Gradient Color Gradient Color will take two different shades of color a Dark one (Left Selected Color) and a Bright one (Right Selected Color) and create a stretch of color starting at spot #1 on the color bar. You can then copy that stretch and paste it into any palette at any location. more Copy Clip Colors The colors of the current clip eg: CLIPS\CLP1.VCX will be copied to the palette clipboard. Reverse Stretch of Color The color range - usually a gradient stretch - will be reversed. This will affect the depth aspect of the colors when used with some tools. 4 Tinting a Palette Entry Select a color then change the color values in the menu boxes provided. 5 Picture Color This will isolate the colors in the current image file - TEMP.VCX - and turn the remaining palette entries black to allow you to add colors to the palette by cutting or pasting palette sections in or allow you to fit clips with nonmatching palettes better in some difficult situations. 6 Fetch a Palette from Disk You may select a VCX image file, PCX image file, or PAL palette file, to retrieve a palette. Just the palette will load, not the image. BE sure that the PCX you load is a version 5 PCX with palette "info" or you will recieve incorrect palette information. 7 Swap Color Suppose there were little blue specs on the current image and you wanted to turn them all green. You could use the color replacer eraser icon and do it manually and tediously or you could sample the color with the Color Sampler Icon making the blue the Left selected color and green or whatever as the Right Selected color. Then select this Icon to change all occurances of the currently selected Left Color in the entire file with the selected Right color. 8 Remove Duplicate Palette Entries If you were to add to an existing palette without affecting the image itself you will need blank space to paste the new colors into the palette. This icon finds and removes the duplicates in the image file to make room for new palette entries. Pasting two images with different palettes onto the same page could require this as well. You can also isolate the colors with the Picture Color Icon 9 Sort Palette You may sort by brightness or Red Green Blue values. Most of the draw tools are designed to work within a stretch of gradient color from Left to Right. Sorting the palette may make the gradient tools work better. Once sorted the image is remapped onto the new palette. 10 Average Two Palettes When you paste a clip with a different palette onto the image, it needs to be mapped to the current palette. Sometimes the two palettes will differ too much and the colors will not look correct. You may then need to use this Icon to make a better palette that both can use and then map both the clip and current image onto it with this icon. It is always good to test map using the Scratch Pad prior to mapping the clip using the Paste Option in the Edit Menu. 12 The Pixel Movers The normal Rectangle Cursor Box will >< shrink and < > grow in contact with the window edges. If the Poly/Rectangle Selector Icon is set to CLP this means that it will move the current clip in the chosen direction. If the Selector Icon is set to normal rectangle, it affects the area inside the cursor box. more An Example Used primarily for animation to move a character's arm or leg etc just a few pixels in a particular direction so that when the frames are played back it will appear to move. For a fast sample: 1) load an image 2) use BOX then CAP above, to save a frame. 3) apply the normal rectangle pixel movers to the BOX area inside the captured clip. 4) repeat step 2 above. 5) Use Show Clips in the File Menu and view the clips. 20 The Poly/Rectangle Selector Icon This icon toggles between CLP and normal. When CLP is active the pixel movers move the current clip in the direction of the arrows. If normal, you use a rectangle cursor box to determine the area to move in the direction of the arrows. Used primarily to move objects or characters on animation frames. 21 Paste Rotate Options Icon This Icon Opens the Paste Options Menu and from there you can view your clips, rotate, mirror, flip, resize and test pasting them into position. The changes do not affect the current clip. You may repeat the process as many times as you wish. This way you can make a series of character moves by manipulating one clip without any loss of image quality. The original is resampled each time. 23 Line Draw Select a range of gradient color from Left to Right to draw with a gradient tube, or select both Right and Left as the "same" color to draw with a solid colored line. The Line thickness is set on the bottom left. 24 Line Blend Performs a color blend operation affecting the area within the thickness of the line. Set the line thickness on the bottom left. 25 Draw Splat Select a Right draw color, select a line thickness, the thicker the better for more effect. Draw a series of short and long lines in a circular fashion to create a paint splat. 26 Draw Fan If the selected Left color is the same as the selected Right color then a solid colored ray line will be drawn. Otherwise a gradient tube will be drawn in colors ranging from Left to Right. 27 Color Replacer Eraser All instances of the currently selected Left color will be changed to the currently selected Right color. TIP: When morfing a clipped area that is surrounded by black (#0 transparent), the morf gets its new shape from the "non black" areas only. To allow for the proper outline shape transformation, first replace the surrounding black area with an easily identifiable, easily replaced color with this tool. After the morf, replace the black if you want. 28 Color Eraser Replaces the area inside the cursor box with black. 29 Bezier Curve Lay out a point, then move the mouse. Lay out a second point and move again to shape the curve. The line thickness is adjusted at the bottonm left. Will use the range of color from currently selected Left color to Right color unless they are the same. 30 Gradient Blob Draw Used primarily for landscapes. Set the thickness to determine the range of the effect. Set the Left color at a dark shade and the Right color at a bright shade. Draw a curvy line with button 1. Move the cursor about half inch away from the line in the center and hold button 2. Lines will be drawn towards the cursor changing color getting brighter as they approach the mouse cursor. 31 Flower Draw Draws a flower shape. Experiment with line thickness and ranges of color between the currently selected Left and RIght Color to see the effects created. Click Button 1 to anchorthe circular cursor box. Then Click Button 1 again to draw the flower. 32 Flash Draw Draws a jagged shape. Used for advertising flashes such as NEW and IMPROVED etc. Click Button 1 to anchorthe circular cursor box. Then Click Button 1 again to draw the shape. 34 The Basic Filled Polygon One of the most used tools. CLick Button 1 to lay out a series of points then click both buttons to complete the polygon. Outline color is the selected Right color and the fill color is the currently selected Left color. You may also choose the fill style Icon to pattern-fill the polygon. 35 Spray Paint Select a Left color for the paint color. Click Button 1 to paint. The line thickness selected determines the size of spray. 36 Flood FIll Select a Left FIll color and click on the area to paint. You may select a fill pattern prior using the Fill Pattern Icon. 37 Magic Paint Select a range of color between Left and RIght. The colors between the Left and RIght will be mixed up and painted in the boxed area when you click Button 1. The Line Thickness Selector determines the size of the box cursor. 38 Blend Color It can be a time consuming process to blend the color contained in the cursor box. It has a heavy blend effect so it may be better to use the anti-alias Icon (next to it) for a lighter blend effect. 39 Anti-Alias Filter To smooth out jagged edges you may wish to use this filter. It usually has a minimal effect on areas that are not too sharp in contrast. 40 Pattern Fill Selector Click on the fill pattern to use for the flood fill tool as well as the polygon and filled rectangles etc. 41 Poly Sample Brush To sample a non black polygon area of a page in order to paint with the sample area as a brush. Does not affect the clips or CLP number at all. 42 Polygon Blend Outline a shape and the non black area inside the shape will be subjected to a heavy color blend. 43 Gradient Filter Outline an area and then select from the menu provided. Click Button 1 to lighten towards the center. Click Button 2 to darken in towards the center. You may set the maximum color brightness and the minimum darkness level with the Right and Left colors respectively. TIP: When you lighten towatds the center it adds depth to the object and it appears more rounded out. If it darkens towards the center it appears to hollow out. 45 Filled Rectangle Select the Left Color as the Fill color and the Right Color as the outline color. Select the line thickness to determine the thickness of the outline of the box. 46 Rectangle Select the Right color as the draw color and then click Button 1 to anchor the rectangle and click button 1 again to draw the rectangle. Select the Line thickness to determine the thickness of the line. 47 Globe Draw Uses the range of color between the Left and Right selected color to draw a globe. Select a dark shade on the left and a light shade on the right to draw a gradient ball or globe. 48 Filled Circle Select the Left color as the Fill color and select the Right color as the outline color. You may select a fill pattern using the Fill Pattern Icon and you may set the line thickness for a thicker outline. 49 Circle Select the Right color as the draw color and the line thickness to determine the thickness of the circle. If the Left color is not the same as the Right color it will draw gradient circles the thickness selected forming a gradient torus (donut shape). 50 3D Box Select the Right or Draw color as the outline color. Anchor the box with Button 1 then click Button 1 again to draw a 3D Box. 51 Filled 3D Box Select the Right or Draw color as the outline color. Select The Left or FIll color as the fill color. You may select a pattern with the Fill Pattern Icon. Anchor the box with Button 1 then click Button 1 again to draw a 3D Box. 52 Plain Paint Brush Select the Left color as the fill color. Select a fill pattern using the Fill Pattern Icon if you wish. Button 1 to paint the area inside the cursor box. The Line Thickness Selector determines the size of the box. 53 Single Arrow The Left Color determines the color of the arrow head and the Right color determines the color of the line. The line thickness selector determines the size of the arrow. 54 Double Arrow The Left Color determines the color of the arrow head and the Right color determines the color of the line. The line thickness selector determines the size of the arrows. 56 Copy and Paste Polygon Outline a shape by laying out a series of points to form a polygon. To complete the polygon, click both buttons. The area will be copied and become a clipboard or clip or animation frame. (same thing) When you paste, the black will not be pasted. To cut the area (remove the area and preserve the clip), press the space bar when the clip is in place. When the clip is perfectly matched to its original location it appears all black. more If while the area appears black you press the spacebar, the clip area becomes black. The CLP number is automatically incremented by 1. This number along with the current prefix eg: CLP will determine the name of the clipboard file. eg:CLIPS\CLP2.VCX ^ ^-- clip count number | clip prefix 57 Copy Rectangle Click Button 1 to anchor the box, click both buttons to capture the area inside the box. The area will be copied and become a clipboard or clip or animation frame. (same thing) When you paste, the black will not be pasted. The CLP number is automatically incremented by 1. 58 Sample then Morf Polygon First outline a non black area to sample as a brush. Then outline the non black area of the shape you wish to morf the original sample into. It takes the first area and molds the contents into the second shape. You may have to temporarily replace some black surounding area prior to using this tool. The best use of this tool is on photographic images. Touching up areas or when you move an object with the Pixel Movers and need to fill in the vacant area. 59 Blue Screen In movies or television you often see a fake background behind an actor. That fake background is achieved by replacing a single color on the film with another image. This is called blue or green screening because the replaced color is usually blue or green. Click on any color in the top left corner of your image and the current clip eg: CLIPS\CLP2.VCX will replace the instances of that selected color in your image. 60 Shade Polygon Outine an area of you picture that you wish to add shading to, either darker or lighter. Once you have clicked both buttons to complete the polygon, if you click Button 1 the area gets lighter. If you click Button 2 the area gets darker. It searches the palette for shades of color that are the closest match to those it is shading. Space Bar when done. 61 Paste Options Similar to the Edit Menu Clip Paste options. Normal Paste, Mirror, Flip, Rotate, 3D Rotate. Use this Icon in conjunction with the Scratch Pad to manipulate pieces of clips. When you paste a clip it seeks its original position and once covered perfectly, the area becomes temporarily black. To cut out that matching area, press the space bar. 62 Flash Copy Clip This tool copies the area of the picture within a flash type of polygon. It could be used for page advertising or the like. The CLP number is incremented automatically. The clip prefix along with the CLP number will determine the name of the clipboard file. eg: CLIPS\CLP2.VCX 63 Circle Copy Clip Click Button 1 to anchor the cursor box, then click both buttons to capture the circular area. The CLP number is incremented automatically. The clip prefix along with the CLP number will determine the name of the clipboard file. eg: CLIPS\CLP2.VCX 64 Current Clip Morf Outline a shape to nmorf the current clip into. This tool takes the current clip, deternmined by the current CLP number. The clip prefix along with the CLP number will determine the name of the clipboard file. eg: CLIPS\CLP2.VCX It samples this clip and molds it into the new shape. It is non-destructive to the clip so you can do it again and again. It only samples areas of the clip that are non black because black is always transparent in this program. 65 Resize the current Clip Use the cursor box to determine the new size of the current clipboard. The process is non-destructive to the clip and you can take numerous tries to get it just right if you wish. The clip prefix along with the CLP number will determine the name of the clipboard file. eg: CLIPS\CLP2.VCX 67 Write Text Select the Right Color for foreground text and Left color for background shaded text. Anchor the cursor then type. Backspace to undo. Prior to hitting the enter key, you can adjust the color. 68 Text Style Options Shaded text uses the Right and Left color for foreground and shaded text. Bold text is just that, thicker text characters. 69 Font Size and Type Use the options provided in the pop up menu to determine the current text font and size of characters. 78 4x Power Zoom Click both buttons while the rectangle is over the selected area to zoom in. 79 2x Power Zoom Click both buttons while the rectangle is over the selected area to zoom in. 80 8x Power Zoom Click both buttons while the rectangle is over the selected area to zoom in. 81 Zoom Undo When you replace a zoomed in area the upper Undo option will not reverse the editing done while in a zoomed in state. You can however use this Icon to replace the zoomed in area to how it was prior to being zoomed in. ****************************** #22 {Changing tools] Just above the [line] thickness area on the bottom left is an arrow. Click on this arrow and the entire tool set is displayed. Click on a tool and it becomes the current tool in that row. Conversely, if you click Button 2 on any tool the entire row of tools are displayed. When you select a tool it becomes current. The toolset remains in the same configuration until changed in the same manner. #23 {Tool Basics] Once selected, the tool remains active and a rectangle surrounds the tool to indicate that it is active. Some tools are designed to be used then turned off. If you wish to repeat an operation you will need to select it again. The cursor will usually change to signify that a tool is active. #24 {Individual Help] Click on the arrow above the [line thickness area] in the bottom left, then once the tools are all displayed, click Button 2 on a tool to activate the individual tool help. or Click Button 2 on a tool. It shows the row. Click Button 2 again on a tool in the row and it shows the individual tool help. #32 {The CLP Number] CLP is the default prefix that along with a number will determine the name of the captured area. eg: C:\ANI\CLIPS\CLP1.VCX Clips or "frames" are placed in the CLIPS subdirectory. Each time you capture an area the CLP number is incremented automatically. You may adjust the number manually using the [arrow] buttons. If the current spot is occupied the number is white on black. If empty it is white on red. You can check to see if you are about to write over a clip by incrementing the number by one and seeing the color of the number and then moving the number back to where it was. #33 {Changing the prefix] To change the CLP prefix, click on "CLP". A menu appears. If you select the first white area, you will be prompted to enter the three letters manually. These three letters will then appear as a new menu choice. Switching between prefixes is common during animation. Cut and paste to edit your characters under one prefix, then capture your [animation frames] under another prefix. This separates your scratch work from your frames. #34 {Capture Box Size] Provided for convenience is a capture [BOX]. It is the same as using any other cut and paste tool. You may set the size manually with the arrows. Clicking on the [S] locks the box's size and position. If the lock is off, the [BOX] automatically sets itself to the current clip size and position. If the area of the box is larger than available conventional memory, the numbers appear white on red. This only affects the way the clips are played back. Generally the clips will be converted to an [AVI, MOV,] MPG or FLI or other format on completion and will not be affected by this at all. #35 {Capture Box Position] Provided for convenience is a capture [BOX]. When capturing animation frames it is essential that the box does not move or your [background] appears to jump all over during playback. Matching up frames to prevent this is difficult so a way to lock the size and position has been provided. Clicking on the [S] locks the box in position. When the box is not locked, it remembers the last place you captured an area with any capture tool. By clicking on the X:Y position display you are given a menu of three choices to match up the box to an existing clip set. "Automatic" reads the current CLP#.VCX file and obtains the size and position from the clip itself. Once selected, if you lock the box, the subsequent frames captured will all match up. #36 {C and P buttons] The "C" button activates a capture tool. Use it to set the size and position of the animation sequence by capturing the first frame manually if you wish. It works like any other rectangle cut and paste tool but it doesn't paste. It just captures. To paste the clip, use the "P" button beside it. This button has numerous options. Paste is normal paste. "Put Clip" puts it back where it came from with black being transparent. Put Black puts the [black] background area of the clip as well. Options opens a secondary menu of clip manipulation options. View displays the clips allowing you to select one different from the current clip number. #37 {The S button] The "S" button locks the size and position of the frame box for animation sequences. If the capture box is locked, the X:Y position area is white numbers on a grey background. Click on the X:Y position display to match up the box to an existing clip set. Make the clip current and then click on the X:Y. If you are an experienced animator you are aware of the difficulties involved with maintaining the same capture box size and position and will appreciate these features which make matching up or adding to an existing set a breeze. Your backgrounds can be made to pan or move but you want to prevent camera jiggle from clips that are not aligned properly. #42 {File] New Image creates a new file called TEMP.VCX. This is the only main picture file used. Any time a file is loaded into the program it copies it onto TEMP.VCX. You can exit, then come back at a later date and reload this file without saving it under another name. Clipboards or CLP frames are also individual VCX files that reside in the CLIPS subdirectory. If you load one via this main menu it will also be copied to TEMP.VCX preserving the original. Use [SAVE AS] to save under another name. Show Clips is a preview option and not meant to replace the normal method of converting to [PCX] then [AVI, MOV, MPG or FLI] etc. #43 {Edit] Undo will undo the last operation when it can. Each time you select a tool it grabs the screen and when you choose Undo it will replace the screen to where it was at that time. You may find it undoes too much. You may then select Redo which appears in the menu after an Undo operation. Redo will replace your work to the point where you selected Undo. Select [Cut] and a new menu appears with various cut or copy options. Select Paste and a new menu appears with various paste options. #44 {Image] Resize opens a menu that allows you to choose between entering the numbers manually or using a growing rectangle to select the new size. TEMP.VCX - the only file used - will be shrunk or enlarged according to the size you select. Flip and Mirror affect TEMP.VCX. To undo merely repeat the operation. Rotate affects [TEMP.VCX] and is very slow process. It is much faster to capture an area and rotate it as a clip, then [Load] the file and a copy will become the new [TEMP.VCX] Save palette saves the palette as *.PAL Sort/Map palette arranges the palette colors in order of brightness then maps the pixels from TEMP.VCX onto the new palette. Average Two Palettes is the best way to bring a clip with a different palette into the current image. It makes room by removing duplicate entries and incorporates the new palette where possible then maps both onto the new palette. If you [Load] a new palette into the program, the current image - TEMP.VCX - will not look right snd you may need to select this option to map TEMP.VCX onto the new palette. Mapping onto the global palette is to ensure compatibility with [Netscape] and other browsers. As palettes go it is not a very good one for maintaining image integerity. Use it as a last resort. Most palettes will not be a problem. If you plan to create an animated GIF for use on the World Wide Web, you might want to create the GIF by loading your frames converted to PCX by this program into Graphic Workshop available on the Internet. It will do palette adjustments at that time. #45 {Options] Select Menu Colors to customize your desktop. Once you have set your preferred colors, the program will do its best to maintain those colors inspite of different palettes. When it cannot find the exact color it will use the closest match. Choose Tools is provided in case you missed the small arrow above the line thickness area on the bottom left. Enlarge Canvas will provide a larger amount of drawing room on your picture. It Enlarges TEMP.VCX without enlarging the image itself. Scratch Pad Activates the Pad like the Scratch Pad Button does. Color Dither use filters to enhance the image and increase detail. Text Size opens a menu which allows you to set the current font and size used by the Text Icon. EMPTY CACHE is an option to empty the subdirectory CACHE\*.* which the program uses for temporary files. In time it can become huge and eat up a lot of disk space. Empty it to free up disk space and virtual memory at any time. #46 {Animate] Moving backgrounds will take an image you select and alter it in stages, capturing frames as it does to give the illusion of [panning and zooming] like a movie camera. Once this is done, a set of clips or frames with a BAK prefix \CLIPS\BAK1.VCX ... exists for you to then add foreground moving objects or characters to. In the [CAP] [BOX] it displays the BAK frame, then superimposes the new set onto the backgrounds. The new foreground set must have some [black] #0 or it may completely cover the backgrounds. Black is transparent. Copy clip set will copy a series of frames onto another prefix. This is to protect the originals or to allow you to change the new set and later add to the first to make a longer sequence. Save Clip Set prepares the clips for transport to your favorite movie making program like VID EDIT or Graphic Workshop, which take frames, in this case PCX files and connverts them to AVI, MOV or FLI or MPG to share with others or use on the Internet etc. Show Clip Set is a preview option and not meant to replace the real method which is to save as PCX and convert to AVI, MOV or MPG etc. The preview works on copies and leaves the originals alone. #52 {Selecting Size] Select the Icon that coresponds to the amount of zoom enlargement you require. 2 4 or 8 times as large. You may use any tool on the zoomed area unlike most other draw programs. Drawing on a zoomed area allows for more accurate work and a much better finished product. #53 {Zooming In] Move the rectangle over the area you wish to work on and [click Both] Mouse Buttons. The area is blown up and you may now draw, paint cut and paste etc on the blown up area. Undo and Redo will still work as well as the Scratch Pad and other tools. Some Palette tools will cause the area to be replaced prior to their use. You may not work on the other areas of the image until you replace the area. #54 {Zooming Out] To replace the zoomed in area, merely click on the bar as stated there. If you select a menu button or palette tool, it will also zoom back to ensure that conflicts do not arise during file loading etc. #55 {Zoom Undo] You may find that after working on a zoomed in area it didn't turn out as you had hoped. The Upper Menu Button Undo will not reverse that area after it has been replaced but you can undo that area with the Zoom Undo Icon. It only affects the area of the last zoom operation. #62 {Capturing a Frame] Any clip or cutting can be an animation frame because they are all the same file type. A VCX file. It is similar to a PCX or BMP type of file. Use any capture, cut or copy tool to capture an area of the screen to disk. Poly tools require you to lay out a series of points around the area and rectangle tools copy a rectangular area. The [CLP Number] will be incremented automatically. eg: CLIPS\CLP2.VCX then CLIPS\CLP3.VCX etc... CLP0 and CLP1 are used internally as virtual memory when working with clips. #63 {Showing Frames] Under the menus File or Animate is an option Show Clips which preview your frames. You may wish to see your clips individually and so [Thumbnail] in the Scratchpad is provided as well as the [View] option located under the "[P]" button on the clip bar. [View] will do a quick size and display the clips along the top of the screen. [Thumbnail] will also map the colors which takes a few seconds longer to display. #64 {Converting] Most animated movies found on the Internet etc are formatted into a file type that can be viewed by other people. Since most people Windows, [AVI] is very popular. The GIF format is the most prevalent on the Internet. To make an animated GIF, AVI, MOV, MPG or FLI movie, you will need a conversion program such as VID EDIT or Graphic Workshop to combine the frames, use compression, and put all your clips into one file. In order for this program to interface with these conversion programs you will need to convert your frames to PCX a file type that these other programs can read. They cannot read a VCX. Under the Animate Menu button is an option that will [Save Clips] which will handle this operation on a group or series of clips or frames. You may also [SAVE AS] a PCX individually if you wish. These other programs have the capacity to handle different palettes and VID EDIT easily sizes frames on the fly. #65 {Full Screen Preview] Not to replace the proper method of conversion to AVI MOV or MPG etc but rather to see how your sequence would look full screen. This option under the Show Clips Menu, will size copies made of your clips to 320x200 VGA screen size, maintaining the same aspect ratio of the images, then play them back super fast full screen. Mouse Button 1 to slow down, Button 2 to speed up and and Both buttons to flip back and forth between two frames. This helps to find inconsistencies in your sequence. It works on copies only and leaves the originals intact. #66 {Hints and Tips] Do your palette adustments on your first frame to save work later. Converting the palettes later is time consuming. Work with objects and characters on a [black]#0 background because black is transparent when using the cut copy and paste tools. Then the series of clips with a black background can be placed on a series of background clips for more professional looking animation. When you have done something good, save it using the [SAVE AS] option. The program never harms originals because it only works on copies of the originals loaded into the program. [TEMP.VCX] is used. Clips are at risk of being overwritten so use different Clip Prefixes to protect them. Switching back and forth between your scratch work and your good finished product. If you wish to use the Shade Poly to add shading for more realistic looking images, do it last or you may have trouble matching up the shadows on the next frame. #72 {Using The Pad] The scratch Pad is very handy for working with small bits of an object or character, or for referencing your [Thumbnail]s or for seeing how a palette mapped clip will look. It is just like having a scrap of paper on your desk. Click on the Button to display it and click again on the same button to put it back. The Pad itself has three buttons. One to move the Pad to another spot on your desk, one to handle loading saving and clearing of Pads, and one specifically for working with Clips or frames. On the left, middle, and right, of the top of the Pad itself. #73 {Saving PADs] You may wish to save your [Thumbnail]s or other scrap pieces etc and so the option to save the contents of the Scratch Pad has been provided by clicking on the word "Scratch Pad" at the top of the pad itself. Select Save PAD and name the file with a PAD extension. Otherwise it will be lost when you exit the program. Each time you run the program a new pad is created. #74 {Clip Hnandling] There are many Clip options under the right top button of the Scratch Pad. The operations they perform do not affect the clip permanently but work on copies. It is a good way to test how something will look prior to performing the operation on the clip itself. #75 {Positioning the Pad] Use the top left button on the Pad to move the pad to another area of the desk top. It may be obscuring a part of the image you are working on. You can use the pad while zoomed in but you cannot zoom a portion of the pad. ************************** line Click on a line thickness and it becomes the thickness of the lines you draw with. arrow With all arrow buttons, if you click Button 1 on an arrow it increments or decrements by one. If you click Button 2 on an arrow, it increments or decrements by ten. animation Any Clipboard or cutting can be thought of as an animation frame because they are the same file type. CLIPS\*.VCX BOX A box area has been provided to use as a capture area for your animation clips. Click once it shows the box, click again it captures the area inside the box. S Click on the S and the Capture Box size and position is locked. Click again and it is unlocked. AVI These are common file types used for animated movies. Windows can play AVI's. You need a conversion program that can read PCX files to convert to them. VID EDIT or Graphic Workshop are available on the Internet. You can add sound etc and actually create your own movie or cartoons of a professional quality. background A background can be a single image or series of images captured using the Moving Backgrounds option. CLIPS\BAK1.VCX... black Black color #0 has a 0 on the color bar. It is the only color that is transparent when cutting and pasting. It is very important when placing characters on a background. SAVE AS After you have finished drawing a picture and you want to save it, you must use SAVE AS to save the image under a different name. The program only creates and edits one file called TEMP.VCX. Each time you load a file it creates a new TEMP.VCX SAVE AS a PCX to allow other programs to load the images you create. Load a PCX to allow this program to edit images created with other programs PCX A PCX file is an image file type that is common to almost all paint programs. Loading and Saving As a PCX allows compatibility between different programs. Conversion programs can convert a PCX to any other format such as GIF or JPG. The best conversion program and a must for any serious graphic artist is PAINT SHOP PRO available for Windows on the Internet. Cut When you cut an area out it still becomes a clipboard or clip or frame and can be treated like any other VCX file. It will be placed in the CLIPS subdirectory using the current clip prefix eg: CLIPS\CLP1.VCX... TEMP.VCX This is always the current image file being worked on. Load any new image eg: IMAGE.PCX or CLP2.VCX and a copy will be converted to TEMP.VCX. A VCX file is very similar to a PCX or BMP image file. It is the file type used by this program. To transport your image into another program, SAVE AS a PCX Load In the FILE menu is the option to load a file into the program. If the file you wish to load is a PCX it is copied to TEMP.VCX if it has a PAL extension, the palette will be loaded and the image unchanged. The image will probably need to be mapped to the new palette. If you load a ZIP file you will need a copy of PKUNZIP in your path. Netscape A browser is a program used to surf the Internet. When you sign up for Internet access you get a free browser program which will allow you to use the Internet. panning If you move a video camera from one side to the other this is called panning. You can recreate this effect by holding the camera still and moving the background instead. When you zoom in on an image it gets larger. Zoom out it gets smaller. You can recreate these effects using the Moving Backgrounds option. CAP Click once on BOX and it shows the capture box area. The word now changes to CAP. Click on CAP and it captures the area of the screen inside the box to the next CLP number. eg: CLIPS\NEW1.VCX In this example NEW is the Clip prefix. The number will be incremented automatically. Both Press Button 1 or 2 then while holding it down click the other button as well. CLP In the left top of the screen is CLP or other clip prefix followed by a number with arrows for raising or lowering this number. Click Button 1 on the arrow and it increments by one. Click Button 2 on the same arrow and it increments by 10. This number along with the clip prefix will form the name of the clipboard file. eg: CLIPS\CLP1.VCX or CLIPS\NEW34.VCX etc It is a fast and efficient way to handle clipboards or animation frames. Switch between prefixes to separate your scratch work from your animation frames. View Under the "P" button on the Clip Bar at the top of the screen, is an option menu. One of those options is VIEW. Click on view and your clipboards or animation frames will be displayed in a row on the top of the screen. Click on an image and it is surrounded by a rectangle. Choose OK or click outside the box and the clip number is set to paste that clip. P The "P" button opens a menu of options to paste the current clipboard that coincides with the current clip prefix and current clip number. eg: CLIPS\NEW2.VCX In this example NEW is the clip prefix and 2 is the clip number. A series of clips eg 2...32 can be used to create an animated movie. You need to convert them to PCX and then to a movie format using a program designed to take these frames and put them into one file using a form of data compression. VID EDIT or Graphic Workshop are available on the Internet to accomplish this. They will create an AVI or GIF animation file for you. Thumbnail Available under the menu option Show Clips or in the Scratch Pad middle button. Thumbnail will display the clips between the numbers you enter. Unlike the VIEW option under the "P" button, thumbnail will map the colors allowing you to see the clip images even if they do not have the same palette. Save Clips Once you have completed your sequence you can convert them to PCX and then export them to a movie making program. These movie making programs take individual frames - in this case PCX - and combine them into one file. VCX2PCX is used. It will size and convert them as such: CLIPS\CLP21.VCX converts to CLIPS\CLP21.PCX ... Once this is done, you can then load them into Windows, into perhaps VID EDIT to make an AVI or paste them into Graphic Workshop to make a GIF for use on a Web Site In the process they may add a video type of data compression which will make the file smaller. In order to share your animation with the masses, you need to convert the series into one easily handled transferable file. Standard Disclaimer ******************************************************* This program is the copyright property of Rick Sobie and any unauthorized use is prohibited. It is provided as is, free of any waranties or guarantees and I will not be held responsible for damages from its use or misuse. Graphic Drivers *************** There are more BGI drivers in DRIVERS.ZI_ You will need to unzip it. USe them at your own risk. You may need to reboot if they are incompatible. The graphic memory and adresses are machine specific. Dos -unlike Windows- makes no provision for graphic use. Therefore it is up to the individual to adapt to all the miriad of machines. This is done with the BGI interface. The screen can be adressed without problem but to paste requires graphic memory size and adresses that vary from machine to machine. The VESA256 driver will only paste to 64k because that is the largest block of graphic memory that applies to all machines. If you use the SVGA256 driver provided it contains high level routines to use all available conventional memory to paste. It is compliant to the vesa standard as well. It doesn't go into extended memory because that again is machine specific and would conflict with the programs use of memory. If you find an alternate BGI driver such as a Diamond Stealth driver, and you want to see if it will paste beyond the 64k limit, you will need to backup the existing SVGA256.BGI and rename the alternate driver SVGA256.BGI Do so at your own risk. The driver you wish to try must originally have a *.BGI extension. If it doesn't work you will recieve a graphics error message. If it does work, it may still have a 64k paste limit. If it does, it will merely not show the clip while pasting. In all cases it should still paste the clip to the screen but whether or not you can move the clip transparently to locate the spot to paste at, is the question. The animation you create with this program can be 1024x768 or actually up to 4024x4024. You will just have to save your frames as PCX and then load them into Windows into VID EDIT or Graphic Workshop for WIndows. This program is designed to create AVI, MPG, MOV, FLI etc for use on the Internet. Due to the limitations of information transfer on the Internet, small animation frames are used exclusively anyway. That is why a 640x480 mode is best. Perhaps I will make a Windows version some time, but then, many of the unique features would have to be abandoned in order to conform to the standard interface. If you like to work in higher modes such as 1024x768 and find that the paste size is still too small, contact me for high mode version which foregoes the ability to shell to dos in order to provide a larger paste size. It costs a little more but it may be what you need.