User Interface

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> # User Interface

> This chapter outlines the general features of the user interface.

> Command Menus (A)
> Command menus are accessible when you launch any filter. Macintosh users will see the menus in place of their usual menu bar. Windows users will see the menus at the top of the filter preview window.

> Edit Menu
> The Edit menu provides an unlimited number of undos and redos. If you experiment with the sliders and find that you prefer a previous group of settings, select the Undo command from the Edit menu, or click Command+Z (Control+Z on Windows machines) to back up as many times as necessary. The Edit menu also lets you copy, cut, paste and delete values from parameter fields.

> Filter Menu
> The Filter menu lets you switch between Snap Art filters without leaving the user interface. Photoshop users should note that switching filters will make the Actions, History, and Last Filter Used functions behave oddly. These will record the filter initially selected, not the filter applied.

> View Menu
> The View menu lets you zoom the preview in and out. To display the preview at 100% magnification, select Actual Pixels. See Keyboard Shortcuts for some nifty zooming shortcuts.

> Help Menu
> The Help menu leads to local documentation and online Web pages. Clicking Help>Filter Help accesses filter-specific documentation. The same assistance can be reached by pressing F1 (Windows) or Help (Macintosh).

> To access a Table of Contents for the online Help file, click Help>Contents.

> Tabs (B)
> The left side of the user interface is organized into tabs. To bring a tab to the front, click on its name.

> Settings Tab
> The far left tab is always labeled Settings. The Settings Tab is the easiest way to get started exploring Snap Art. There you can select a setting and the preview window will render that effect. The top list is labeled Factory Settings and contains settings made by Alien Skin Software. The bottom list is labeled User Settings and contains settings that you create. Go here for more information on managing your own settings.

> Control Tabs (Basic/Colors/Tone/Canvas/Lighting)
> The rest of the tabs hold controls for adjusting the filter effect. These are described in detail in the chapter on each filter.

> Thumbnail Navigation (C)
> The Navigation Thumbnail is a copy of your image near the top of the Snap Art window. The red rectangle in the thumbnail indicates the part of your image that is being displayed in the Preview. To move the preview area, simply click anywhere in the Navigation Thumbnail. You can also click and drag the movable red box to move the preview.

> Move, Zoom, and Show Original (D)
> The Move (hand), Zoom (magnifying glass) and Show Original buttons are found above the preview window.

> Click the hand to enable the Move tool, then click and drag to move around the preview image.

> Click the magnifying glass to enable the Zoom tool. Click in the preview window to zoom into your image. Command + click to zoom out (Alt + click for Windows users). Double-clicking the magnifying glass at any time resets the preview window to 100% magnification.

> The Show Original button toggles the preview between filtered and unfiltered versions of your image. Click and hold the button to view the unaffected image. Release the button to preview the effect.

> UpToDate Message Indicator (E)
> When you see this visual cue, you have a new message from Alien Skin Software. See the UpToDate Messages section for more details.

> Preview Background Options (F)
> This menu lets you choose how transparent areas are displayed in the preview window. It is disabled when you are working on the background layer. For details, look here.

> Split Screen Preview (G)
> Above the preview area is a menu of options for split screen previewing. When enabled, this feature shows the original image in half of the preview. The entries in the Preview Split menu specify the orientation of the split line or simply turn it off.

> OK and Cancel Buttons (H)
> Clicking the OK button applies the filter with the current settings. Clicking Cancel closes the filter window without applying the effect.

> Preview Area (I)
> The Preview Area fills most of the Snap Art interface. This area shows what your image will look like after the effect is applied. You can make the Preview Area larger by resizing the window. The window is resized just like any other standard window on your system. On Macintosh, grab and drag the lower right corner of the window. On Windows, grab and drag any side of the window.

> Mouseover Help String Area (J)
> As you mouse over most parts of the Snap Art window, short helpful descriptions appear here.

> Progress Bar (K)
> This rectangle fills as the preview is rendered.

> Magnification Indicator (L)
> The current level of magnification is shown to the right of the render status bar at the lower right corner of the filter window.

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