TypeStudio
RISCWorld present the TypeStudio manual
Reference section
This section gives a summary of the menus, dialogue boxes and the toolbox used within TypeStudio and outlines those areas not covered in the main tutorial section.
Many of the menu options have keyboard shortcuts. These are indicated on the menus. As you become more familiar with TypeStudio you will be able to use these instead of going through the menu system.
The Toolbox
This has five tools. From the top they are Line drawing tool, Curve drawing tool, Text Entry tool, Apply tool and Select tool. The use of these tools is covered in the main section of this manual, but here is a brief description of their functions:
Line drawing tool - for drawing straight line segments; operates in exactly the same way as its counterpart in Draw.
Curve drawing tool - for drawing curved line segments; operates in exactly the same way as its counterpart in Draw.
Text entry tool - to enter text on which TypeStudio will operate.
Apply tool - to apply, remove or adjust effects for the selected object. Also to place previously transformed text along a selected path or within a selected mould. This is more easily achieved by selecting the mould or path before transforming the text.
Select tool - to select objects. Operates in the same way as its counterpart in Draw.
The Main menu
The main menu gives access to all the options for TypeStudio. The last two items perform actions which we will discuss nearer the end of this chapter.
The Misc menu
Info - This leads to a window giving details about the application such as the version number, program serial number and the name of the Registered User.
Grid - This opens the Grid sub-menu. Show draws the grid in the window and Lock turns gridlock on. Both of these are ticked when selected. Spacing defines the gap between the crosses on the grid in millimetres. The default value is 10mm, the minimum 5mm and the maximum 100mm.
Zoom - This has a zoom dialogue box which lets the user zoom in and out on a document.
Print - This opens the Print dialogue box. The name on the title bar tells the user what printer driver is installed, in the case shown no driver has been loaded. The centre icon is writeable and will take the number of copies the user requires to print. Clicking SELECT on the Print icon starts the printing process. To cancel printout press ESCAPE.
Toolbox - This controls whether the toolbox is displayed or not. By default the toolbox is on and this option is ticked. If the toolbox is removed by selecting this option then the menu is changed to give Toolbox a sub-menu as shown.
The menu shows which of the drawing tools was selected when the toolbox was turned off by ticking Line or Curve. Abandon will abandon a drawing operation in the same way as clicking on the Select tool would. The Select tool is represented on the main menu by the Select option, clicking on Select will turn on select mode. The Apply tool is represented by the Apply option on the main menu.
Save menu - The Save menu has two options both of which open a 'Save as' dialogue box:
The first option 'Draw file' saves the file as a Draw file. If you do this, moulds, paths and text objects that have effects applied will become ordinary grouped objects. Saving files in this form will let you export your work to any package that imports Draw files.
When saving a Drawfile if a part of the drawing has been selected then, if Selection is ticked, just the selected part of the drawing will be saved instead of the whole drawing. If the object is a mould, path or text object that has effects applied to it then it is saved as an ordinary grouped object.
Saving using the TypeStudio format will maintain paths, moulds and objects with effects as attributes. Use this format when you want to keep paths and moulds either to be used again or so they can be modified later. When saving in TypeStudio format you can only save the entire drawing.
Select menu
The Select menu gives options to allow objects created within TypeStudio, or imported into it, to be manipulated. This menu is similar to that in Draw and most options have the same effect.
Select all - This will select all the objects in the current document.
Clear - This option will deselect the currently selected objects.
Copy - Copy makes a copy of the selected object as in Draw, but has the additional facility to specify an offset for the copy so that you can position the copy precisely. The sub-menu for Copy is shown.
X shift specifies the distance in millimetres that copy is to be shifted horizontally. Y shift does the same in the vertical direction. Either can be negative. An X shift negative value moves the copy to the left, a Y shift negative value moves the copy down. The values are retained so there is no need to click SELECT or to press RETURN until both values have been entered.
Delete - This option will delete any selected objects.
Front - Selecting this option will bring the selected object to the top of the stacking order.
Back - This option will put the selected object at the bottom of the stacking order.
Group - This option will be grey unless two or more objects are selected. Clicking on this option will group the selected objects together and they will then have one selection box which encompasses all of the previously selected separate objects.
Ungroup - This option will be grey until a grouped object is selected. Clicking on this option will split the grouped object into its component parts. Use this option to change paths and moulds back into ordinary Draw objects.
Edit - This will be grey unless a single object is selected that can be edited, i.e. it is not a grouped object. Clicking on this option will change the selected object back into line segments and control points so it can be edited. This is equivalent to clicking with Adjust over an ungrouped object when one of the line drawing tools is selected. If you click on this option with Adjust the menu will be closed and the Edit menu opened.
Rotate - This option needs a value to be entered. Its units are degrees and when SELECT is clicked or RETURN pressed the selected object will be rotated by the amount given. This option can take negative and positive values for the angle of rotation.
Magnify - This needs the user to enter a value. When it is selected the object will be magnified by the amount given. The minimum value for Magnify is 0.01, the maximum value 100.
Text menu
Enter text - This leads to the Text Entry window described earlier.
Typestyle - This opens a window where you can specify and preview the font you wish to use.
As you can see it lets you set most of the options associated with the chosen font. Once you have set the parameters you can click on Try and this will let you preview the text with your chosen settings before you transfer it to the main window.
Font - Font has a sub-menu showing all the fonts available when the application was started. Select a font by clicking on the menu entry. The default is SwissB.Medium, if this is not in !Fonts then the first font of those available will be used.
Size - This specifies the point size of the text to be transformed. Choose one of the standard values or enter a value into the last option in the range 1-1000 pt.
Column - This converts the transformed text into a column.
Style menu
Fill colour / Outline colour - These both open a colour selector dialogue box. Colours can be picked from those shown or mixed using the slider icons. Note that the style of Effects is controlled from the Effects sub-menu, options set here only affect the style of the original text object.
Line width - This opens a sub-menu similar to the one in Draw from which you can choose or enter the width of the outline for the selected object.
Effects menu
Shadow - The Shadow dialogue box lets the user choose between three types of shadow by clicking on the radio icons. Changing the type of shadow changes the shadow representation in the white box.
Values for Angle and Distance can be set in three ways. After setting the values clicking on OK will store them so that they can be applied when the Apply option or the Apply tool is clicked on. There are three methods for setting the values.
- Type in the values as normal. Clicking on the Show button will update the representation of the shadow in the white box.
- Clicking on the arrow icons changes the Angle in 5 degree steps and the Distance in 1mm steps. The shadow representation is updated automatically.
- Clicking in the shadow representation positions the apex of the 'A' under the pointer, and dragging with SELECT moves the shadow around under the pointer.
The last three options on the Shadow sub-menu set the style for the shadow selected from the dialogue box shown above. The style options operate in the same way as those described for the Style entry on the main menu, but only affect the shadow.
Graduated shadow - When graduated shadow is used several shadows of differing shades will be applied to the text object. The number of gradual shadows is dependent on the Fill colour of the original object. If you change the Fill colour to a colour, such as red, the shadows will be changed to shades of red. In 16 colour modes the shades cannot be represented.
Slant - The Angle value for Slant can be set in exactly the same way as the values were set in Shadow as described above. If the value is set to between 90-270 degrees the text will be slanted but will be upside down.
Mirror - This lets you place a mirrored object Above, Below, or to the Left or Right of the original. Gap specifies the distance between the original and the mirrored objects and can be between -100 to 100mm. Style options for Mirror are the same as those described above for the Style option on the main menu except that they only apply to the mirror effect.
3-D - The interface for the postioning of the 3-D effect is similar to Shadow. The Colour option defines the Fill colour for the 3-D effect. Outline colour and Line width options are unnecessary for this effect.
Plinth - The positioning of the plinths is set by two values. Edge specifies the distance from the largest bounding box of all the characters in the text string to the edge of the plinth. By default this is 2mm, but can be between 0 - 100mm. Gap sets the spacing between each of the plinths. By default this is 1mm, but can be between -100 to 100mm. Again the style options for plinth operate in the same way as the options off the main Style menu except that they only apply to the plinth effect.
Path/Mould - This in not available until a valid object or objects are selected from which a path or mould can be created.
Path menu
If one line is selected the option will change from Path/Mould to Path. Clicking on Path changes the selected line into a path. The selection box around the line will then change from red to grey. Any text that is now transformed will be placed along the selected path. If some text has already been transformed, selecting the text and the path and clicking on Apply will place the text along the path. When a path is selected, the option on the main menu becomes ticked and gains a sub-menu as shown.
The first five options are mutually exclusive and specify how text is to be formatted along the path. By default Size to fit is selected.
Left - Selecting this will left-justify the text along the path. With all except Size to fit the point size of the text is important. If it is too small the text will only flow along the first part of the path, if too big characters will be lost off the right end of the path.
Right - This selects right-justification of the text along the path. The same consideration about point size of text apply as mentioned above, except that if the size selected is too big then characters will be lost off the left end of the path.
Centre - When selected this option will centre text along the path. If the size of text is too large then characters will be lost off both ends of the path.
Size to fit - This is the only option where the user can ignore the size of text, since selecting Size to fit will alter the size of the text so that it will fit the path perfectly.
Width to fit - Size of text is less important with this than the first three because the width of the text is automatically adjusted to fit the path. However, if the size is too large the characters can become too thin or if too small then the characters can become excessively wide.
Upright - This option is really an effect, but as it can only apply to text flowing along paths then it has been placed on the Path sub-menu. It can be selected with any of the formatting options that have been described above. The result of selecting Upright will be to cause the vertical strokes of the characters that are placed along the line to remain upright, whereas the horizontal strokes will follow the line of the path.
Editing a path
A path can be edited by changing it back into a line. To do this select the path and then click on the Ungroup option on the Select sub-menu. The selection box will change from grey to red. If you click on Ungroup with ADJUST then the Edit option will become available. Selecting this will place the program directly into edit mode.
Mould
This option appears on the main menu when two lines are selected. Clicking on it will group the two lines together and change the selection box colour from red to grey. If a mould is selected then entered text will be transformed and moulded directly. If text has previously been transformed, it can be moulded by selecting the mould and the text object and clicking on one of the Apply options.
Important notes about moulding
As with paths, the lines that are used for the mould must be drawn from left to right. Equally important is the order in which the lines are selected when you create the mould. The first line selected will be the top line, the second the bottom. If you do not get the order right then the moulding will be out upside down.
Editing a mould
A mould can be changed back into the two lines from which it was created and these can then be edited. To do this select the mould and click on the Ungroup option on the Select sub-menu. The selection box will change from one grey box to two red ones.
Moulding other Draw objects
TypeStudio can mould any Draw object just as well as it can mould text objects.
In some of the examples given earlier you saw how a simple object drawn in TypeStudio could be moulded. In the example here the flag was imported in to the application and moulded. The mould was made up of two identical lines to give the ripple effect. The text was placed along a path created from one of the lines of the mould, using the Upright effect.
The speed of moulding is directly proportional to the number of points there are within the object that you are moulding. With text objects the number of points used is generally quite low, but if you import complex Draw files into TypeStudio it is quite possible that moulding may take some time on slower machines.
It is important to note that TypeStudio will strip out sprites and text areas from imported Draw files.
Apply
This final option on the Main Menu is the same as clicking on the Apply tool. It applies whatever effects have been chosen to the currently selected object or places previously transformed text along a selected path or within a selected mould.
Edit menu
The Edit menu is a separate menu which is available when a line is being edited.
To edit a line either select one of the line drawing tools and click with ADJUST over the line or select the line and from the Select menu choose Edit. The line will be changed back into the points specified when the line was drawn. Dragging with ADJUST over any of these points will move them accordingly. Clicking with ADJUST on a control point will turn part of the line red; this is the selected segment which three of the menu options will affect.
Change to curve - This changes the selected straight line segment segment into a curved line segment.
Change to line - This changes the selected curved line segment segment into a straight line segment.
Add a point - This adds a point to the selected segment midway between the two control points. In this way a line can be extended.
Delete segment - This will delete the selected segment and join the two control points at the end of the segment together.
Icon bar menu
The Icon bar menu gives the two normal options for RISC OS compliant applications; Info and Quit.
Info - This opens the standard info dialogue box, giving information about the application. It also shows the serial number and version number of the program which you should include in any correspondence with APDL about the package.
Quit - This will terminate TypeStudio. If any windows are open with files that have not been saved in TypeStudio format then a dialogue box will appear to warn you of this and give you the option to save your file before quitting.
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