1.0 Overview
1.1 Getting Started
1.2 The Status Line
2.0 Object
Basics
2.1 Basic Rules for Primitives
3.0 Menu
Options
3.1 The File Choices
3.2 The Edit Choices
3.3 The View Choices
3.4 The Grid Choices
3.5 The Options Choices
3.6 Security Choices
3.7 Size & Scale Choices
3.8 Special Effects
3.9 Help Choices
4.0 Animation
4.1 Spin Control
4.1.1 Spinning Groups
4.2 Track Creation
4.3 Track Assignments
4.3.1 Moving Groups
Intended
Audience
This document is intended
for use by licensed customers of Alpha Software Express' ExpressDesigner.
It contains all the basic information required for those using any
edition of the product.
© 2002, 2003
Alpha Software Express, LLC - San Rafael, CA USA
Send any questions or comments
to: aex@alphase.com
ExpressDesigner refers to the product
BDI refers to the Basic Designer Interface
CDI refers to the Complex Designer Interface
CLI refers to your platform's Command Line Interface
Text in ThisType refers to on screen buttons
Text in ThisType refers to top level menu items
Text in ThisType refers to specific menu selections, or input field labels
Text in ThisType refers to file names
Text in ThisType refers to text you enter into the CLI
Text in ThisType refers to text generated by the CLI
1.0 Overview
ExpressDesigner
is an inexpensive software package created to satisfy the more limited
needs of many amateur and professional designers - from model builders
to architects. It provides a 2D graphics alternative to the high priced
CAD and drawing products at one end of the spectrum, and the low priced,
often free paint products at the other end.
From a more technical perspective,
ExpressDesigner
is 100% Java, so it will run on any OS that supports
the Java Runtime Environment,
which includes 99% of all computers (PC, Mac, Linux, Unix, etc.). It requires
only Java version 1.2.2, or above, which is freely available to anyone.
While the Java runtime environment adds some overhead, the product runs
well in a PC windows environment, using only a 300Mhz processor and 64MB
of memory.
Architecturally, ExpressDesigner employs both vector and raster methodologies to create and maintain its discretely drawn, or included, objects. A complete drawing is often achieved by including custom developed (drawn) objects with pre-existing (GIF or JPEG) images. The resulting combination can be saved as an ExpressDesigner file, printed, or exported to any of 3 image types (BMP, GIF or JPEG). All, or any part, of a drawing can also be exported, then read back in as a single image.
Pre-existing images, like other drawn objects can be resized, flipped over, mirrored, turned, rotated or split into sections. Images can be static (saved within the main drawing as they were when first included) or dynamic (pulled in as they are at the time when the main drawing is loaded). All drawn objects can be re-colored and some, like polygons, can be reshaped. Full font editing is also included for text objects.
Drawings and grids can be expressed independently in any scale (British, Metric, even astronomical). Saved drawings can be imported as part of other drawings with accurate scale conversions automatically performed as required. A tape measure, an easy scale definition tool and a scale sensitive read-out box complete the group of scale related functions.
In addition, animation of
any object, or group of objects, can be realized by spinning the object
at its center or moving the object along a track, previously defined by
you.
1.1 Getting
Started
ExpressDesigner
is a Java based application, which, for users means, it can run on any
platform and is dependent on an installed Java Virtual Machine (JVM), or
Run Time Environment (RTE). This means that Java must be started and told
to start ExpressDesigner.
PC users can just double-click on the ExpressBDI
shortcut. Others may have to start from a CLI and enter
java com.alphase.aex.bdiAfter a few seconds, ExpressDesigner will appear.or,
jre com.alphase.aex.bdi
Depending upon your platform and its display settings, you may not be able to see the whole window, or it may be too small to see easily. If you don't see all the widgets above, try stretching it's frame until they all become visible. If the text is too small, you can alter it via the Alter Base Font... (from the Options menu). The default base font is Arial, 11 point.
1.2 The
Status Line
On the bottom of the bottom
toolbar is the status line, which contains two sections (see
Figure
2-2). The leftmost part are the object counters: two numbers
separated by a colon (:). The left number shows current count of
visible (drawn) objects and the right number shows
the total number of objects in the drawing.
The right section of the
status line (the remainder), is the Information Area. This shows errors,
warnings, help and informational messages.
Once the BDI is visible, you can just press your mouse button and begin drawing lines. To draw any other basic object, just select from the Object Type Selector pull down list. Many of the objects available also make use of the Line Width Selector (just next to the Object Type Selector) and the Fill Indicator. (the 2nd check box in the bottom toolbar). If the Fill Indicator is selected, the object is drawn with its shape filled in by the color/texture palette currently active. If the Fill Indicator is not selected, the object is drawn in lines of the currently active palette, but only as thick as specified by the Line Width Selector.
The following table shows the relationship between object type, line width and fill usage:
|
Use
Line Width |
Use
Fill Indicator |
Lines | yes | no |
Circles | yes | yes |
Ellipses | yes | yes |
Squares | yes | yes |
Rectangles | yes | yes |
Quick CircleArc | yes | yes |
Quick OvalArc | yes | yes |
Exact Arc | yes | yes |
Single Pixel | no | no |
Rounded Squares | yes | yes |
Rounded Rectangles | yes | yes |
3D Rectangles | yes | no |
Random Polygon | yes | yes |
Equilateral Polygon | yes | yes |
Freehand | yes | no |
Text | no | no |
Dynamic Image | no | no |
Static Image | no | no |
Dynamic Transfer | no | no |
Static Transfer | no | no |
2.1 Basic
Rules for Primitives
Any of the first 18 choices
in the Object Type pull down list are considered
to be primitive objects. The last 2 choices are complex objects, which
are composed of a permanently linked set of primitive objects. Although
the BDI can use complex objects, it cannot create
new ones, or edit existing ones (for more information, see
Guide
to Complex Objects). Here's how to create any of the simple
objects.
2.1.1
Lines, Circles, Ellipses, Squares, Rectangles, Equilateral Polygons and
Freehand Objects
To draw any of these, just
click on the drawing area and drag in the appropriate direction to the
desired size. When the mouse button is released, the object is added in
the selected palette.
2.1.2 Arcs
There are a couple of other important points regarding the use of static and dynamic images. First, when drawings are saved that contain dynamic images, the explicit image file name and location is stored in the drawing file (rather than the image itself). This results in a smaller drawing file and always allows the drawing to display the latest version of the image, but this also implies the dynamic image must be kept in its original location for future reference. If a dynamic image file is missing when the drawing is reloaded, a file selection box will appear; pre loaded with the original file path and name for you to select a different file, or file location.
When drawings are saved that contain static images, the expanded image is stored in the drawing file, which will increase the size of the drawing file by the original size of the image file. It will also take a little longer to load these files, since ExpressDesigner must first make a temporary copy of each file in your current working directory. Be sure to check the information line, which will show the progress of the load and indicate when it's ready for you to draw the image frame (usually just a second or two). Note, when you close your drawing these temporary image files are automatically deleted, but on some platforms animated GIF files will remain. At that point, of course, they can be deleted manually.
2.2 Additional
Attributes
As described in the beginning
of this section, in addition to Line Width,
most objects have at least one additional, optional attribute. When a new
object type is selected from the Object Type Selector,
its primary, optional attribute is displayed on the bottom toolbar, after
the Move attribute, as a check box. In figure
2-2 below, the object selected was Random Polygon
and its optional attribute is Fill Object.
Figure 2-2
Bottom Toolbar and Status Line
Table 2-2
Object Attributes
|
Attribute |
Lines | none |
Circles | Fill |
Ovals | Fill |
Squares | Fill |
Rectangles | Fill |
Quick CircleArc | Fill |
Quick OvalArc | Fill |
Exact Arc | Fill |
Single Pixel | none |
Rounded Squares | Fill |
Rounded Rectangles | Fill |
3D Rectangles | Raise Effect |
Polygons | Fill |
Equilateral Polygons | Fill |
Freehand | none |
Text | Embossed |
Dynamic Image | Scaled |
Static Image | Scaled |
Dynamic Transfer | none |
Static Transfer | none |
There are additional attributes associated with Rounded Rectangles and Squares, as well as with Equilateral Polygons and Text. These attributes can be modified via the Options menu. Once changed, they affect all new objects of their type, until they are reset. These 3 additional menu items comprise the center section of the Options menu.
Figure 2-3
Options Menu
The first of these entries - Set Rounded Corner Arc % - allows you to set the percent (%) of arc used in the rounded square and rectangle objects. The greater the value, the more the corners are rounded - 100% would be a circle. The options go from 10 - 90 %. The default is 10%. Generally these 10% increments are sufficient, but if a more precise number is needed, the exact percent can be set from the Edit menu, when editing a specific rounded object.
The second entry - Set Equal Polygon Side Count - specifies the number of sides to use when creating an Equilateral Polygon. Options range from 3 to 32.
The third entry - Set Text Font - brings up a Font Selection Box, which will show all the fonts on your platform.
Select the FontName and Size to see an example of the font. Optionally, select the Bold and/or Italic check boxes. When done chick OK, or Cancel.
2.3 Palette
Choices
Simple objects, other than
images, are always drawn in the palette entry selected. The entry is determined
by selecting one of the 5 choices shown at the bottom of the window (see
Figure
2-2). This method allows quick access to your most commonly
used solid colors, color gradients and textures. These choices constitute
your active palette. All 5 choices are modifiable by clicking on the attached
Color/Texture button. This will cause the Palette Style Choice Box to appear
(see Figure 2-5). To set
your palette choice to a solid, or gradient, color, click
Colors.
To set your palette choice to a texture image, select
Textures.
For colors, the Color Plus Selector window will appear (see Figure 2-6), where you can select the appropriate color or gradient. The color selection box appears with 56 solid color boxes and one color gradient box. Initially, one of the boxes is set to the color, or gradient, of the button you clicked on and that box is selected (indicated by a black and white square drawn within it).
To select a different solid color, just click on the color you want and click OK. If you don't see a color you want, click on the closest choice, then use the red, green and blue adjustment slider bars to alter it. The Color Picker will remember any new colors you create. You can also use the bottom (white) slider bar to alter all three colors in unison. If wish to lock a color slider at its current location, click the check box to the left of it. Then the bottom slider will only adjust the other two colors in unison.
To select a gradient color, you need to declare 2 solid colors to smear. To do that, select a solid color as above, then click on the Set Color 1 button. Select a second color in the same way, then click on the Set Color 2 button. Of course you can reverse that order if you like. The current gradient color will always be reflected in the long horizontal box just below the solid colors. To select the gradient, be sure to click on it, or the last solid color will still be set as the selection.
Once you decide on a color, or gradient, just click OK and the attached button on the BDI will change to the new selection, thereby adjusting your active palette. To use the new selection, be sure to click on the indicator beside the button.
To select a texture, just click on the image that you like in the Texture Selector and press OK. Use the scroll bar to scroll through all the choices (note: the number of choices available is shown as Pattern Count). You can add or change these patterns yourself, by creating small, new GIF or JPEG files and copying them to the right location. To find out more see the Advanced Features Document.
The Fill Style box within the Texture Selector determines how the image patterns will be distributed across various shapes. When Fill Style is set to Tile (the default), the selected pattern will be repeated over and over across a shape. To stretch a texture over an area, rather than repeating it, select the Stretch check box.
As with colors, once you decide on a texture and Fill Style, just click OK and the attached button on the BDI will change to the new selection, thereby adjusting your active palette. To use the new selection, be sure to click on the indicator beside the button.
2.4 Object
Selection
Each object in a drawing,
whether primitive or complex, is identified by its ordinal number. The
numbers are automatically assigned as each new object is added, starting
from 1 and continuing until the maximum object value is reached. To see
all the ordinal number assignments, select the
Object
ID's option from the View
menu. To see what your maximum object value is, click the
About
option in the Help menu. To adjust the
maximum value see the Advanced Features
Document.
In order to edit, move, delete, copy or split an object, you must first select the object of interest. Objects can be selected in one of two ways. Usually, the easiest method is to click on the Select button, then click on the object of interest. When ExpressDesigner identifies the object you clicked on, its ID is automatically entered into the Selected Object Indicator (see Figure 2-1). If it cannot find an object at the point you clicked, you will hear a beep and a message will appear in the Information Area. In that case just try to click on an object again. If you have trouble selecting this way, you may want to activate Loose Selection Criteria from the Options menu. The other method requires you know the object's ordinal number. In that case you can key the ID directly into the Select Object Indicator.
Regardless of the method used, the selected object is now ready for modification and the Undraw/Redraw Indicator is updated to reflect the number of objects that were added after the selected object. This makes it easy to un-draw back to the level of the selected object if you need to.
2.5 Using
Groups
A powerful new feature of version
1.3 is the concept of Groups. A Group is any collection of
2 or more objects. Once created, the entire Group is treated as
one object for the purposes of moving, copying, deleting, altering colors
or textures and animation. For all purposes, except animation, only one
Group
can exist at any time and it can be either active or
inactive.
To create a Group, simply click on the New button within the Group section of the bottom toolbar. You will automatically be setup to draw a rectangle. Draw a rectangle, as you normally would, around all the objects you want in the Group. Don't worry about including unwanted ones at this point. When you complete the rectangle, your new Group is created and activated (as indicated by the ACTIVE check box). At this time, if you included unwanted objects in the Group, click on the Trim button and a box will appear showing all the object numbers in the Group (see Figure 2-8). Just deselect those objects that do not belong in the Group, then click OK. For Groups that contain many objects, a Row check box is added to allow you to deselect all the objects in that row with a single click.
While the Group is active, you will notice several restrictions are imposed. First, only the Move, Copy and Remove buttons are enabled. Also the Object Type and Line Width Selectors are disabled, forcing you to perform only Group activities at this time. The Edit menu is also restricted to the entries shown in Figure 2-9.
Figure 2-9
Edit Menu with Group Active
To inactivate a Group, just de-select the ACTIVE check box and all menu and button choices will go back to normal. Note that the Group still exists and can be reactivated by simply selecting the ACTIVE check box again.
You can create a new Group
at any time by following the procedure explained above. Or, you can group
all the objects in your drawing (while
the current Group is inactive)
by choosing the Select All option from the
Edit
menu.
2.6 Actions
on Selected Objects
Once an object, or Group,
has been selected, you can use the 3 main button based actions (Move,
Copy,
and
Remove) located on the top toolbar. If a Group is not active,
meaning only one object is selected, you can also use the
Split
button.
2.6.1 Move
To move the selected object,
click the Move button, then click anywhere on the drawing
and drag to the new location. You don't have to click on the object
to begin the move, since the
BDI already knows which object you're
moving. Also, when the Move button is first pressed, the
Copy
button
becomes a Cancel button and the cursor becomes a move cursor.
At this point you can either cancel the operation or complete the move.
2.6.2 Copy
To copy the selected object,
click the
Copy button, which will then turn into the Insert
button. At that point, you can alter the object it will be copied after,
by keying the ID directly into the Select Object
Indicator. For example, to make a copy of object #2 and place
that copy in the object stack after object #5 (making
the copy object #6), you select object #2, click Copy,
then enter 5 into the Select Object Indicator
and click Insert.
Note:
the position (X/Y coordinates) of the new object will
be set to the point where you last released the mouse button, plus 10 pixels
to the right and 10 pixels down. Now, since the Copy becomes
the Insert button, you can make multiple copies stacked and
offset from each other, just by clicking the same button over and over.
2.6.3 Remove
To delete the selected object,
just click on the Remove button. If the object is not the
last one added, you will see a warning box appear to confirm the delete.
For convenience, you can always remove a newly created object right after
it's been created and you will not get a warning box. Or you can disable
such future warnings by selecting the, Do
not warn me of this again
option on the warning box.
2.6.4 Split
To split a single object
into 2 parts, use the Split
button. When the button is pressed,
the Copy button becomes a Cancel button and
the cursor becomes a cross hair. At this point you can cancel the operation
or you can click and drag a line across the selected object at any point.
The object will then be split along the line you drew. If your split line
does not cross the selected object, you will hear a beep and a message
will appear in the Information area. At that point you can try again, or
cancel the operation.
2.7 Using
UnDraw & ReDraw
Use the UnDraw
and ReDraw buttons to block the viewing of the most recent
objects in the drawing. The number of objects un-drawn, or re-drawn with
a single click, is contained in the UnDraw/ReDraw Indicator
(see Figure 2-1). Any value
in the Undraw/Redraw Indicator. is ok, since,
if it's invalid, it will calculate a valid one first - i.e. it will reset
to 1, or the number of objects in the drawing, depending on the need.
Important:
The un-drawn objects are not deleted, they are just unseen. At this point,
you can either insert new objects or replace existing ones.
Notice, that once objects are un-drawn, the Copy button again becomes an Insert button. If you want to insert a new item just below the stack of un-drawn objects, click the Insert button, then draw the new object in the usual way. Each time you click Insert you can add another object.
If you want to replace the last un-drawn object with a different one, just create a new object. Each new object created will replace a corresponding old object.
When done inserting or replacing, click ReDraw to redraw all the remaining objects. When using these functions pay special attention to the object counters on the status line.
Example: if you have 10 objects and UnDraw 4 of them, you will only see the first 6 objects. At that point you can replace object #7 just by creating a new object. If you create another new object that would replace #8, and so on. If, however, you wanted to insert a new object between #6 and #7, you would click Insert and the next object drawn would be inserted at that place in the object stack and your drawing would now have a total of 11 objects.
2.8.1 The
Auto Move Option
Accurate placement of newly
created objects often requires that you move an object right after you
create it. To automatically go into move mode after each object creation,
click on the Move check box (see
Figure
2-2). Remember, you will be required
to move every object
you create.
2.8.2 Audio
Confirmation
To enable audio confirmation of
all your actions, select the Enable Audio option
in the SpecialFX menu. Different sounds
are initiated for different actions. You can change these sounds by loading
your own .wav
audio files into the Audio directory under your installation root. See
the Advanced Features Manual for information
on how to do this.
3.1 The
File Choices
Of the 10 file choices available
in the Basic Edition, only 6 (View/Update..., Import...,
Export..., Save Settings, Clear All & Print...)
need further explanation. The others are typical for virtually any GUI
application.
In addition, if the imported drawing has a scale setting that is different than the scale setting of the main drawing, you will be prompted by a scale choice box, like the one below. See the Size and Scale section for more information on scaling.Figure 3-2
File Import Scale Change
For Image Size, select Full Size to export the entire drawing. Select Crop-to-Frame to export the entire visible drawing. Select Crop-to-Minimum to export the smallest rectangle that will include all drawn objects, ignoring any unused space from around the objects. Select Dynamic Crop to allow you to draw a rectangle of your own, which will then become the exported image's boundary.
Whichever size is selected, it will be expanded around the edge by the number of pixels specified by GraceValue (a parameter you can change from the Options menu). The default GraceValue is 10 pixels.
Select the Include Background Color option to include the current background color around and under the objects in the drawing. If this option is not set, the image will be generated with a white background, unless the file type is GIF. In that case the background will be transparent- i.e. the background around and under the drawing will be invisible.
Select Include Grid Lines to include those grid lines and labels that are visible at the time of export.
Make your selections and
click OK or Cancel.
If you selected Dynamic
Crop, click and drag
the special rectangle around the area you wish to export.
Finally, you will be presented
a file selection box where you can specify the file name and location.
Figure 3-3
Export Options
All the file options above, use the same file selection box, similar to the one shown here.
Select the Include Background Color option to include the current background color around and under the objects in the drawing. If this option is not set, the image will be generated with a white background.Select Include Grid Lines to include those grid lines and labels that are visible at the time.
Click the OK and your printer options box should appear. Make any changes there and click OK to finalize the print job. If your drawing is larger than a single page, it will be printed in the drawing order shown in the table below.Table 3-1
Printing Order
Page 1 |
..........
|
..........
|
..........
|
..........
|
..........
|
|
Vertical |
Horizontal |
|
|
Texture |
|
|
Object |
|
|
Line |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||
Circle |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ellipse |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Square |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rectangle |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
QuickCircleArc |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
QuickOvalArc |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
ExactArc |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
SinglePixel |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
RoundedSquare |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rounded
Rectangle |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
3D Rectangle |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
RaiseEffect |
Random Polygon |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Equilateral Polygon |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Freehand |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Text |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dynamic Image |
|
|
Yes |
|
|
|
||||
Static Image |
|
|
Yes |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dynamic CO |
|
|
Yes |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Static CO |
|
|
Yes |
|
|
|
|
|
|
² Conditional,
when scaled.
³ Via
Alter
Font menu item
º Except
for animated GIF images
When changing Size or Shape, you will see grab points, where you can click and drag the point to a new location. For polygons, there are as many grab points as there are lines drawn, less one (the initial point). When editing the shape of a polygon, the Copy button will become the Done button. You can then alter any, or all, of the polygon points. Press Done when complete. Equilateral Polygons can be re-sized only until they are reshaped. Once they have been reshaped they become Random Polygons and can no longer be re-sized.
Most of the other edit options present a dialog box when clicked. There you can change values, like Color and LineWidth and click OK, or Cancel, when done. Other options, like FillObject and Embossed are boolean options (either on or off ) and take effect as soon as they are clicked.
Turn provides a quick method to rotate an object 90° to the right. This results in four possibilities: 0°, 90°, 180° and 270°.
To rotate an object to a specific angle, select Rotate... and the rotation tool will appear.
3.3 The
View Choices
Figure 3-8
The initial menu has 8 viewing
options, plus a Primitives view option that allows inclusion, or restriction,
of all 20 object types.
Figure 3-10
The grid menu provides access
to all of the grid and grid label choices. There are 3 methods used to
draw a grid. Draw Over All will draw the grid
over the top of all objects shown. Draw Under All
will draw the grid under all of the objects, while Draw
Under New/Selected will draw the grid just under the selected
object, or the new object being drawn. The first 3 options enable/disable
these grid choices.
The grid can also be labeled. The units used to label the grid are dependent on the Pixel Scale selected from the Size&Scale menu (see Size and Scale Choices). If no pixel scale is selected, the labels are given in pixels and the last option in the Grid menu (Set Grid Scale Size...) is disabled. The grid size can be selected in pixels, or if available, in other units as specified from the Set Grid Scale Size... option. The units used are always displayed in the upper left corner of the drawing when the Label Grid option is selected. Labels are initially displayed in the same color as the grid. To alter the color of the labels only, use the Change Grid Label Color option.
Set Grid Pixel Size offers 20 choices for the grid size, ranging from 5 to 100 pixels. The default is 10.
The Set
Grid Scale Size... becomes available after a scale size has
been determined for the drawing (see Size
and Scale Choices).
If available and selected,
the Grid Scale Size Box appears where you can select the unit type and
number of units that constitute a grid space. If the unit and/or type is
either too large or too small in relation to the drawing's pixel size,
an error box will appear telling you of the problem. You can set the grid
scale in British or Metric units, regardless of the scale type used to
set the scale size of the drawing. ExpressDesigner
will accurately make any necessary conversions.
The Include
yards in measurements check box pertains to British units and
is not selected by default. If selected, values shown in the Read Out Box
and Tape Measurements will include yards. For example, with yards enabled
a display might appear as: 3
yards, 2 feet 9 inches.
That same measurement without yards enabled would be: 11
feet 9 inches:
3.5 The
Options Choices
Figure 3-12
Options Menu
Like the Coloration selection in the Edit menu, both the Change Background Color and Change Shadow Color selections will bring up the Color Picker (see Figure 2-6). Select the desired solid color and click OK. You cannot set these values to a color gradient. The Change Background Color fills all the unoccupied areas with the selected color. The Change Shadow Color will apply its color to grid lines and shadows of old locations, when an object is being moved.
The Import Background Colors is a check box item. If enabled, the background and shadow colors from an imported file are used in the base document. Otherwise, those colors will remain as they were set in the main drawing.
The next 3 items alter attributes for subsequently drawn objects of specific types, as discussed in Additional Attributes.
Alter Base Font... allows the user to set the font that ExpressDesigner uses to display all menus, buttons, messages, etc. Like Set Text Font... it is implemented by the Text Font Selection Box.
The Alter Grace Value... option sets a value in pixels that is used by the Export and Print functions to define a border area around objects. It is also used to include an extra area around the reshape and re-size selection boxes, so grabbing them requires less accuracy.
The Use Loose Select Criteria is a check box item that allows a more lenient method of selecting an object using the point and click method (see Object Selection). If enabled, selection is easier and faster in most cases, but may result in incorrect selections when many objects overlap in a small area.
The Enforce CO Lineage Check is meaningful only in the Standard, Professional and Enterprise Editions. When enabled, it checks whether the Complex Objects you're trying to include, from loaded or imported drawings, are valid in your environment.
Log Activities
is a check box item that allows you to track all your activity in a separate
log file. When selected the first time, a File Selection
Box will appear allowing you to specify a file to be used for saving
this information. If it is later deselected and subsequently selected
again, this dialog box will not appear and additional actions will be collected
in the same file you originally specified. For more information on the
format of the log file, see the Advanced
Features Manual.
3.6 Security
Choices
Figure 3-13
Security Menu
Security options and their impact on documents are discussed, in the Guide to Security Manual.
For users of the Basic and Standard Editions the only available option is Hard Doc Privileges. The default setting is to allow the user to perform all functions. Deselecting any of these will restrict the associated action until the privilege is reset. For example if Delete is deselected, objects can not be deleted. Also note that only the privileges under the OBJECTS label are enforced for the Basic and Standard Editions.
Hard Document
Privileges
3.7 Size
& Scale Choices
Figure 3-14
Size and Scale Menu
Zoom Level allows you to select the level of magnification applied to the document as a whole. Be aware, however, that magnifying a drawing significantly can require large amounts of memory and become problematic. The greater the magnification, the greater the memory usage.
Drawing Size... allows you to set the physical size of the drawing, in pixels. The choices are :
Figure 3-15
Drawing Size
The scale of a drawing refers
to the measurement represented by a pixel, or group of pixels. There are
2 ways to set the drawing's scale. Pixel
Scale... which allows you to set the drawing's pixel value directly.
Or Easy Scale... which allows you to draw a
scale line and define the size that scale line represents, indirectly
setting the pixel value.
To define the pixel value directly, select Pixel Scale... and fill out the scale Pixel Scale Box. The Include yards in measurements check box pertains to British units and is not selected by default. If selected, measurements include yards. For example, with yards enabled a display might appear as: 3 yards, 2 feet 9 inches. That same measurement without yards enabled would be: 11 feet 9 inches:
Easy Scale...
is usually easier to use and it automatically resets the value of the Pixel
Scale and leaves a special "scale object" in the drawing. Only one of these
special object types can exist on any one drawing. If Easy
Scale... is selected
a second time it will automatically delete the first scale entry when the
new scale has been established.
To use, just select Easy
Scale... then click
and drag in a straight line. This will cause a special type of line to
be drawn, which looks like a tape measure (a wide yellow
line with black borders). When you release the mouse to complete
the line, the Easy Scale Box will appear where you can define what measurement
that scale line represents.
Once you've defined your scale using Easy Scale, use can still go back and adjust the pixel size directly through Pixel Scale, but the special scale object will not be altered accordingly, so it is not recommended.
The default scale is pixels
(i.e. no scale). A document's scale becomes particularly
important when you're importing a document with a different scale than
the scale of your base document. In that case ExpressDesigner
will re-scale the imported objects so they display in their actual
size according to the current document's scale. This has the effect of
making imported objects appear bigger, or smaller, than they were in the
source document. If the differences in scale are too great, however, you
will be forced to either ignore the scale of the imported document or cancel
the operation (see Figure 3-2).
The next 2 menu items ( Position Tool and Scroll Bars) define the method by which you maneuver around a drawing that is larger than the BDI's frame. This happens when the drawing size is set to a value larger than the frame, or when a drawing has been magnified, via the zoom feature. Select one method or the other. Do not enable both. While this will work, movement will be very slow and jumpy.
Position Tool... allows you to maneuver around a document in a more elegant way than scroll bars by allowing you to move directly to any place on the document. It works by creating a scaled down image of the entire document in a small, separate window, then drawing a movable rectangle inside of it, where the ratio of the rectangle to the small window is in the same proportion as the BDI frame is to the full document size. Then click and drag the rectangle in the Position Tool. As you move it, the BDI frame moves over the whole document proportionally. You can also re-size the Position Tool, just like any other window. There is, however a minimum size. It's best to do a little experimenting on this to get the hang of it. We think you'll find it easy and fun to use. Here's how the Position Tool looks on a document sized 1180x1480, where the BDI frame is about 700 x 450 :
Scroll Bars applies vertical and horizontal scroll bars to allow you to move around the document in the more standard way.
Tape Measure
allows you to measure distances in terms of the drawing's scale (or
pixels, if no scale was defined). When this option is enabled, you
can click and drag a tape measure across your drawing and see accurate
distances in terms of the units that were assigned in the Pixel Scale Box
(or pixels). The measurement shows up in the information
line and in the Read Out Box, if enabled. You cannot select or draw new
objects while this option is enabled. See the map
example on how you can measure distances between any 2 points on a
map.
3.8 Special
FX
Figure 3-19
SpecialFX Menu
The SpecialFX menu drives the animation and audio features.
The Enable Audio selection creates different sounds and dialog, depending on the actions you take. For example a mouse down action signals a bell tone. All of these sounds are generated from a set of .wav files that come with the product. You can substitute your own sounds if you like by using your own .wav files. To find out how to do this, see the Advanced Features Manual.
The remainder of the selections on
this menu relate to animation.
Track Control...
allows you to define paths on which objects will travel.
Track/Object Assignment...
allows you to define which objects will run on which tracks and how fast
they will travel.
Spin Objects...
allows you to spin an object about it's center at varying speeds.
Pause All Motion,
as the name implies, allows you to temporarily stop all the moving objects.
All motions resume when this option is deselected.
For a complete discussion of these functions see the Animation chapter.
3.9 The
Help Menu
Figure 3-20
HelpMenu
About reveals information about your installation of ExpressDesigner.
The 6 remaining selections provide
direct access to ExpressDesigner
documentation through a very simple Java based browser. This same information
can be viewed by any HTML browser by loading the pages found in the Documentation
directory, under your installation's Root Directory (see
line 5 in the About example above). The only exception to this rule,
is the Examples document, which provides a
Load
Me Now link that will only work from the Java browser provided. Standard
browsers will not know what to do with these links.
4.0 Animation
Animation provides another
powerful new feature of version 1.3. Both individual objects and Groups
can be set into motion to demonstrate actions, problems, features, etc.
of your designs and drawings. You can even create working devices, like
a clock (see the RealClock example). ExpressDesigner
provides you with 2 basic
types of motion: Spinning and Tracking. While Spinning
can be done in a single step - i.e. set the options and press Start
button - Tracking requires you to define at least one track (path)
first, then assign objects to it, similar to the way the spin function
assigns objects. The following sections explain in more detail.
From a technical perspective it is important to note that each motion assignment, whether Spinning or Tracking, creates a new processing thread. These threads sleep for a timed interval (the delay time) then wake up and make the appropriate adjustment to the object(s) in motion, then go back to sleep. So multiple assignments of very fast moving (short delay) threads may begin to have a noticeable impact on your computer's ability to handle other functions.
4.1 Spin
Control
When Spin
Objects... is selected from the SpecialFX
menu, an assignment box appears, which allows you to determine which objects
will spin, their
absolute and virtual speed and the direction
in which they will rotate.
To spin an object, first determine which object you want to spin, either by pressing the Prev and Next buttons, or just entering the object number into the Spin Object field.
Next, select the absolute delay (sleep) time by choosing the time metric (Minutes, Seconds or Seconds/100 -i.e. hundredths of a second). Then move the slider bar to the desired level. The setting will appear in the Click Delay field, which cannot be altered directly. The longest delay possible is 60 minutes and the shortest delay is 1/100 of a second.
Then adjust the virtual speed - aka. Degrees per Click. Setting this is just like the Click Delay slider, but sets the number of degrees the object turns at the end of each delay cycle.
Note that delay times shorter than 1/10 of a second are not encouraged, since the human eye cannot see those speeds. To achieve a faster virtual speed, increase the number of degrees per click. This will create the illusion of a faster speed, while reducing CPU overhead.
Set the direction of spin via the Clockwise and Counter Clockwise check boxes, then press the Start button. At that point the selected object will begin to spin, the Start button will be disabled, the Stop button will be enabled and the SPINNING label will be displayed in bright green.
To spin another object, start this procedure again by selecting a new object.
Also note that whenever an object displays the SPINNING label in bright green, you can dynamically adjust both the Click Delay and Degrees per Click sliders and observe the spin changes in real time. To reverse the direction, however, you must first click the Stop button, then alter the direction and restart it.
4.1.1 Spinning
Groups
If a Group is currently active,
selecting Spin Objects... will produce a modified
Spin Control Box.
Figure 4-2
Group Spin Control Box
This box will control the current Group just like the normal Spin Control Box controls individual objects, with two noticeable differences. First the Spin Object controls are disabled, since you are already dealing with a previously defined Group. Second, the bright green GROUP ACTIVE label replaces the disabled SPINNING label and when the the Group is actually spinning, it's again transformed to GROUP SPINNING. So the word GROUP is always apparent in bright green as a reminder you're dealing with a whole Group.
Another very important point is that Spinning Groups are persistent. In other words, once a Group starts spinning the Group's makeup cannot be changed by deactivating it from the BDI's bottom toolbar, or creating a new Group. If other Groups are created, they can also be set into motion separately, resulting in many, different spinning Groups. Since, this could become quite confusing, it is not recommended.
4.2 Track
Creation
ExpressDesigner
allows you to define 3 separate, active tracks. Each of these tracks can
be in the form of a line, a circle or a freehand object.
To create a track, select Track Control... and the Track Control Box appears in front of the lower part of the BDI window. This box is different from most of the product's other boxes in that it is non-modal. That is, it will allow access to the main BDI window, while keeping this box in front. This is done to allow you to draw your track on the main window while the Track Control Box remains in control of your activities.
Now select the Track
Type you want to create. The choices are line, circle or freehand
object. Then enter a name, for future reference, and click the Create
button. At this point ExpressDesigner
will
disable all of the BDI menus and buttons and set its drawing style
to the Track Type you specified. You are now
ready to draw the track on the main BDI drawing area. Draw your
track just like you would do for a normal line, circle or freehand. You
may use any part of the drawing area and the track may be any size you
wish.
Important
[The position of the track doesn't matter, because when you assign an object
to it, its track movement will always start relative to the object. It
works as if the starting point of the track is first moved to the starting
position of the object, just before movement begins.]
When you release the mouse button,
the main ExpressDesigner will
re-enable all appropriate BDI menus and buttons and set its drawing
style back to what it was before creating the track. Then a reduced version
of the track will be displayed in one of the drawing boxes in the Track
Control Box. The name you entered will appear just under it and the Delete
button, next to the name, will be enabled.
Up to 3 tracks can be created in this way. When you're done, click OK. You can return to Track Control any time to add or delete tracks.
4.3 Track
Assignments
If at least one track exists
and there is at least one object to assign to it, the Track/Object
Assignment... menu
item will be enabled for use under the SpecialFX
menu. When you select it, the Track Assignment Box will appear.
The top half of the Track Assignment Box looks similar to the Spin Control Box and works in a very similar way. To start an object along a track, you select the object, the time metric and the absolute speed (delay time). Then select the Jumps per Click, which is measured in pixels, rather than in degrees as with Spin Control. But the result is the same in that it defines object's the virtual speed along the track.
You must also select the Track to which you want to assign this object. They are identified here by name. Finally, you need to tell ExpressDesigner what to do when the moving object comes to the end of a track. The choices here are pretty self explanatory - Stop, Start Over or Reverse.
Other characteristics of track assignments are virtually the same as with Spin Control.
4.3.1 Moving
Groups
Like Spin Control, if a Group
is currently active, selecting Track/Object Assignment...
will produce a modified Track Assignment Box.
Figure 4-5
Group Track Assignment Control Box
This box will control the current Group just like the normal Track Assignment Box controls individual objects, with two noticeable differences. First the Track Object controls are disabled, since you are already dealing with a previously defined Group. Second, the bright green GROUP ACTIVE label replaces the disabled MOVING label and when the the Group is actually moving, it's again transformed to GROUP MOVING. So the word GROUP is always apparent in bright green as a reminder you're dealing with a whole Group.
Also, like Spinning Groups,
Moving
Groups are persistent. In other words, once a Group starts moving
the Group's makeup cannot be changed by deactivating it from the
BDI bottom toolbar, or creating a new Group. If other Groups
are created, they can also be set into motion separately, resulting in
many, different moving Groups. Since, this could become quite confusing,
it is also not recommended.
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