The Reference Guide familiarizes you with some general ways in which the program works. Then it brings you through the program step-by-step for designing a page, so that you have a working knowledge of the program's features.
Using the Directory Menus
On each directory menu, you have two to three areas. Area one is the list of the files on the disk and the "arrow" bar. Area two contains the standard "buttons" that let you access different parts of the disk, and area three is a text input area. The program only lets you see files related to the area that you're in.
For example, if you're selecting a background, you'll only see background files.
If you see <NO FILES>, the program is unable to find those files that are needed. This also appears when there are no files. You can change disks or drives to correct the problem.
Picking a File
You can highlight a file by using the ARROW KEYS or MOUSE. The ARROW "BUTTONS" or KEYS move the highlighted bar up or down one entry. The smaller light gray arrows tell you if there are more entries to the top or bottom of the list. Or you can press the letter key of the first letter of the item you want to select. The first word that starts with that letter will be highlighted. Press ENTER, double click on the item, or click on OPEN with the MOUSE to "open" the file.
Saving a File
When you type in a name into the text area, you're saving the page with that filename. You're allowed to use 8 characters for the filename.
Moving Through Directories
When you highlight a directory name and double click on it or press ENTER, you "enter" that directory. The menu disappears and reappears with the files of the sub-directory listed. You can't have something in the text area and go into a
sub-directory by pressing ENTER. The program assumes that you want to save, and saves your design under the name you have typed. To exit a directory, press F3.
Resetting or Changing the Disk
If you swap disks in the middle of an action or you insert a new disk with the old directory menu on the screen, the program won't know that you have swapped disks. Press the F3 KEY to correct it. This resets the drive, gets the directory from the new disk, and lists the files from the new disk.
Changing Drives
If your machine has more than one disk drive, you can use the other drives as data drives. Press the F2 KEY to select the drive that you want to use. A list of drives appears, from A to G. A and B refer to the floppy drives, C and D refer to hard disks, and everything else refers to network drives. If you select a drive that doesn't exist, the program ignores your selection.
Designing in Layers
The program breaks down your page into three layers: permanent frames and backgrounds, clip art and object frames, and text. The first layer is the bottom layer and the third layer is the top layer. Therefore, if you type text and then stamp clip art over it, your page prints out with the text over the clip art. It always prints as you see it in View My Page.
MAIN MENU
There are five choices on the Main Menu:
∙ Start a New Page allows you to design a new page.
∙ Load a Page loads a page that you previously saved.
∙ Print lets you print out your design in four sizes and allows you to print the two larger sizes in sections.
∙ Utilities lets you delete a saved page, create a directory, and change the setup.
∙ Quit returns you to DOS.
MOUSE USERS:
a single click on an option highlights that item.
a double click on an option selects that item.
a single click on a button selects that option.
Start a New Page
Make sure Start a New Page is highlighted and press ENTER or use the MOUSE to select it. The Page Menu appears.
Select Design My Page. The Design Menu appears.
Select Backgrounds. (If you're using floppy disks, you need to insert the Background Disk to see the files containing the backgrounds. Press F3 if you insert it into the same drive or F2 if the disk is in a different drive. If you press F2, select a disk drive and press ENTER.)
A list of the background files appears.
NOTE: To select any menu item, highlight your choice by pressing the ARROW KEYS and ENTER or by using the MOUSE and clicking the LEFT MOUSE BUTTON.
No Background
Select No Background. The Color Select Menu appears.
Highlight a color for your blank background and press ENTER (or click on OK with the MOUSE). A blank background appears in the color you selected, and the Design Menu appears. From here, you can add clip art, frames, and text.
Selecting Backgrounds
Highlight a background from the list of backgrounds and press ENTER. The selected background and the Design Menu appear.
View My Page
Select View My Page to scroll up and down your design page. Use the MOUSE or the DOWN ARROW KEY to scroll through the page. When you reach the bottom of the page, use the UP ARROW KEY or the MOUSE to scroll back to the top. Press ESCAPE or ENTER to go back to the Design Menu.
Selecting Clip Art
Select Clip Art from the Design Menu and the Clip Art Menu appears.
Select a clip art category and the first piece of clip art appears on the screen.
NOTE: If you've placed the ARROW ICON off the screen with the MOUSE or the ARROW
KEYS , the clip art won't be visible when it's loaded. Simply move the clip art back into
view using the MOUSE or ARROW KEYS. The F1 function key accesses the Help Screen.
∙ Press the SPACE BAR to view the clip art in that category.
∙ Use the ARROW KEYS (or MOUSE) to move the clip art anywhere on the
screen. (Adjust the speed that a piece of clip art moves by pressing the
NUMBER KEYS. Press 1 to move a piece of clip art in small increments.
Press 9 to move a piece of clip art in large increments.)
∙ Press the S KEY to shadow a piece of clip art. Press the C KEY to select a color for the shadow. The Color Menu appears. Select a color and press ENTER. Now stamp the "shadow" anywhere on the screen. Press the S KEY again to return to the original piece of clip art.
∙ Press the H KEY to flip a piece of clip art horizontally or the V KEY to flip it vertically.
∙ Press the B KEY to view the clip art in reverse order.
∙ Press ENTER (or the LEFT MOUSE BUTTON) to "stamp" a piece of clip art
onto the background. The same piece of clip art appears directly over the
stamped clip art. Move it away from the stamped clip art and press the
SPACE BAR to view the rest of the clip art in the category. You can stamp
as many pieces of clip art as you want. (You can stamp clip art from one
category a hundred times before the program stops you.)
∙ Press BACKSPACE if you want to delete a single piece of clip art. If you
continue to press the BACKSPACE KEY, you can delete as many pieces of
clip art as you've stamped, in reverse order. Please be patient... if you
stamped a lot of clip art there will be a slight delay before each delete.
NOTE: If when stamping clip art you decide you don't want the piece of clip art
you stamped at the beginning, you'll have to delete the other clip art as well. This is true
for erasers, speech bubbles, and text boxes also. See the Edit section on how to delete
specific pieces of clip art.
∙ If you want to move a stamped piece of clip art, press the ALT L or the
RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. An ARROW appears. Use the MOUSE or
ARROW KEYS to the arrow to the piece of clip art (that you wish to move).
Press ALT L or click the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON and the ARROW ICON
disappears. This "picks up" the object. Reposition and press ALT L or click
the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to stamp the object. The ARROW ICON
reappears.
You also can use the BACKSPACE KEY to delete an object that you have
"picked up". It deletes the object and returns the ARROW ICON to the
screen.
∙ Press ESCAPE to get back to the Clip Art Menu.
NOTE: If you run out of memory while adding clip art, "Out of Memory" appears on the
screen. Press Enter and then Escape. The screen pauses and then the Design Menu
appears. Press Escape again to go to the Page Menu. If you're happy with your design,
save it; otherwise, go back and edit it. Select Edit from the Page Menu, follow the
directions in the Edit section, and delete what you don't need. When finished deleting,
you can add more to your design. First you must go to the Main Menu and reload your
design. Then make your additions.
Erasers
Select Erasers from the Clip Art Menu. The Erase function allows you to erase an area of your background as well as graphics and text. The Eraser is an adjustable solid block of white, which when stamped, erases anything underneath it (including your background). Press the SPACE BAR to view the different sizes. Use the ARROW KEYS or MOUSE to move the Eraser to the part of the page that you want to erase, and press ENTER. The section of the graphics or text underneath the Eraser disappears. The BACKSPACE KEY "replaces" what you've erased in reverse order. You can go back and replace erased areas at anytime while inside a clip art category.
Note: The eraser is a piece of clip art; therefore, you're able to shadow it by pressing the
S KEY and assign it another color by pressing the C KEY.
Speech Bubbles
Speech bubbles are special types of clip art because they let you create dialogue for your characters. Speech bubbles come in a variety of sizes and can be moved and flipped like any other clip art. Select a bubbles category from the Clip Art Menu. Press the SPACE BAR to view the different bubbles in the category. Once you have determined which bubble you want to use, move it anywhere on the page and press ENTER or the Right Mouse Button to stamp it. A cursor appears in the upper left corner of the bubble. Press F1 to see the Help Screen and you'll be shown the different options available to you in the speech bubble category.
Press any key and the Help Screen disappears. Begin typing. You'll hear a beeping sound when the bubble is full. Press Escape to access additional bubbles. Press Escape again to return to the Clip Art Menu.
Text Boxes
Select a text box category from the Clip Art Menu to place a text box on your page. Press the SPACE BAR to view the different boxes in the category. Once you've determined which box you want to use, move it anywhere on the page and press ENTER or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to stamp it. A cursor appears in the upper left corner of the box. Press F1 to see the Help Screen and you're shown the different options available to you in the text box category. Press any key and the Help Screen disappears. Begin typing. You'll hear a beeping sound when the box is full. Press ESCAPE to access additional boxes.
Shadow Bubbles or Boxes- You can give your speech bubble or text box a shadow. Select a bubble or box category from the Clip Art Menu. The first bubble or box appears on the screen. Press S and a black version of the bubble or box appears. (You can't type text into a shadowed bubble or box.) Press the C KEY to access the Color Select Menu. You can choose any color for your speech bubble or text box shadow. Press ENTER or the Right Mouse Button to select a color and the bubble or box appears in that color. Press ENTER or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to stamp it. Another bubble or box appears directly over your stamped bubble or box. Press S and it turns white. Use the ARROW KEYS or the MOUSE to stagger it over its shadow and press ENTER or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. A cursor appears and you're ready to type.
NOTE: If you want to connect speech bubbles or boxes and eliminate the line between
them, select a small eraser to "white out" the line.
Color Type- Press F6 to select a color for your type. Use the ARROW KEYS or MOUSE to move the white box around the color of your choice and press ENTER or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. Press ESCAPE when finished typing and another bubble or box appears.
Edit Text- To edit a speech bubble or box from within a clip art category, press the ALT L or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to change the clip art into an arrow. Move the ARROW over the bubble or the box that you want to edit and press ALT L or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. The cursor appears so you can make text changes. Press ESCAPE when finished and the arrow reappears. Press ESCAPE again and the Clip Art Menu appears.
NOTE: When you press ALT L, there will be a pause while the program searches for the
bubble or box that you want to edit. Computers with less memory take longer.
Write
Press ESCAPE and select Write from the Design Menu. A cursor appears in the upper left corner of your page. Use the SPACE BAR and ENTER KEY to move the cursor anywhere on the page and type. You can edit what you type with the keys listed below. (F1 accesses the Help Screen).
NOTE: You'll hear a beep when you reach the bottom of your page. If you're unable to type
and you haven't yet reached the bottom of your page, either the font is too large to type into
the remaining line or you already filled the space with a blank line (by pressing
ENTER). If it's too large a font to fit in the last line, you'll need to choose a smaller font.
If the last part of the page is filled with blank lines, you'll have to delete them with the
BACKSPACE KEY.
Here is a list of keys and their functions:
∙ ALT - B - bold
∙ ALT - U - underline
∙ ALT - I - italics
∙ ALT - P - set to plain text
∙ F1 - help
∙ F6 - set text color
∙ F7 - set text style
∙ F8 - set font
∙ Arrows - move cursor
∙ Home - go to beginning of the line
∙ End - go to the end of the line
∙ Enter - next line
∙ Delete - deletes the character in front of the cursor
∙ Backspace - deletes the character behind the cursor
∙ Escape - go to the Design Menu
∙ Control Y - delete to end of the line
∙ Control Left Arrow - tab to the word on the left
∙ Control Right Arrow - tab to the word on the right
∙ Control End - go to end of page
∙ Control Home - go to beginning of the page
Select Text Color
Press F6 to select a color for the text. The Color Select Menu appears.
Use the ARROW KEYS or the MOUSE to move the white highlight box to the color of your choice. Press ENTER to select and to return to your page, or press ESCAPE to cancel the color you selected and to return to the your page.
Select Text Style
Press F7 to change the style of the text.
Use the MOUSE or press the (F2 - F6) key(s) that corresponds to the type of text style that you want. An "X" appears in the box to the left of the selected style. If you don't want the selection, press the key or click on it and the "X" disappears. Press ENTER when finished or ESCAPE to cancel. If you select the Outline or Shadow text styles, you have the option to choose colors for the inside and outside of the letters. Press F6 to get to the Color Select Menu. Select a color for the inside and press ENTER. The Color Menu appears again. Select a color for the outside and press ENTER.
NOTE: Since the program has to generate the extra styles, you'll notice that the program
slows down as you add more styles to the page. We recommend that you keep as few text styles and fonts on your design as possible.
Select Font
Press F8 to select a font. The Fonts Menu appears.
The fonts are on the program disk. (If the program disk isn't in the boot drive, you'll see "Please insert program disk". Insert the program disk and press ENTER.) The numbers after each file represent the point size of the font, 9 being the smallest, 10 the next size up, and so forth. Highlight the font and size you want and press ENTER.
NOTE: If you're editing text and backspace into another font, you'll begin typing in that font. The program also changes fonts depending on how you approach the break between styles and fonts. If you approach it from the left, you'll get the color, style, and/or font to the right of the cursor line. If you approach the change line from the right, you'll get the color, style, and/or font to the left of the cursor line.
NOTE: If you use too many fonts, an "out of memory" message appears.
We recommend using one to four fonts.
Frames
Select Frames from the Design Menu. Select a frames category.
NOTE: We suggest that you add a frame to your design before you stamp clip art or add
text.
The Frame Options Menu appears.
View the frames, using the RIGHT and LEFT ARROW KEYS or the MOUSE. You have the option to make your frame permanent or object-based. Selecting Permanent will permanently place the frame on your design. Selecting Objects allows you to reposition pieces of your frame when you're in the clip art or edit modes. Press the P KEY and ENTER to place the frame permanently or press the O KEY and ENTER to place it as an editable object. When you select a frame, a prompt appears asking you, "Do you want this frame?" Press the Y KEY or ENTER for "yes" or the N KEY or ESCAPE for "no".
If you select Objects, you'll return to the Design Menu. Select Edit. Move the ARROW to a portion of the frame and press ALT L or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. After a pause, a "piece" of the frame will be movable just like a piece of clip art. All clip art functions apply as well (flipping, shadowing, deleting, etc.).
NOTE: A frame uses a lot of memory. If you place a frame onto your page, it'll slow down
loading editable time, some page design functions, and saving time. A frame placed as
permanent will be lost if you pick another background. A permanent frame appears
behind clip art and text. An object-based frame appears in front of clip art and behind
text. For best results with clip art and text, select a permanent frame. The frame will
appear in the background layer behind all clip art and text.
Edit
Select Edit to edit your frame or clip art. The ARROW appears on your design. If any text overlapped clip art on your page, the text now appears behind the clip art as long as you're in the Edit mode (except in the case of speech bubbles and text boxes). This makes editing objects easier. (Press F1 to view all of the options available to you. Press any key and the Help Menu disappears.) Using the
ARROW KEYS or the MOUSE, move the ARROW to the section of the frame or the clip art you want to edit. Press ALT L or click the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. After a pause, the ARROW disappears and a piece of the frame or the clip art becomes a separate editable object. Press ALT L or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to drop the object. Speech bubbles and text boxes can also be edited. Point to the bubble or box with the ARROW and press ALT L or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. The cursor appears. To edit speech bubbles or text as you would clip art, press the L KEY or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON. This will make it active. Press the
L KEY or the RIGHT MOUSE BUTTON to drop the object. When finished, press ESCAPE to get to the Design Menu. Press ESCAPE again to get to the Page Menu.
Page Menu
The following options are available from the Page Menu:
Design My Page
Select Design My Page to design your page with clip art, text, and frames. This is explained in detail in the Make a New Page section.
Print My Page
Select Print My Page to print your design. The Print Sizes Menu appears. This menu offers four different printout sizes:
Select the size you want and press ENTER to go to the Print Styles Menu.
Normal prints out your panel as you see it on the screen, while Outline removes patterns. When in Outline Mode, only BLACK prints and it takes precedence over COLOR.
To change your printer setup, press F2. The current printer setup is displayed.
Use the ARROWS to select a category and press the SPACE BAR to choose an item. To choose a different printer, highlight the current choice and press the SPACE BAR. A list of printers appears.
Select the printer of your choice and press ENTER. When finished press ENTER.
If you chose Mini Book or Book, your page is now printing (if it's not, check your printer setup). If you chose the Big Book or the Big Big Book size, the Section Menu appears after a pause. This menu allows you to print different sections of your page.
If you chose Big Book, the Section Menu offers you 3 options:
If you chose Big Big Book, the Section Menu offers you 4 options:
NOTE: Big Book prints out in 2 sections and Big Big Book prints out in 3 sections.
Select All to print out your entire design; otherwise, select the section that you want to print. This feature is offered as a safety measure so if something goes wrong while printing, you don't have to print the entire design over.
Save My Page
This option allows you to save your scenes onto a 3.5" or 5 1/4" formatted disk or onto your hard drive. Insert your work disk and select Save My Page. Press F2 to select the drive that you want to save onto. Press F3 if you want to close the folder that you're in.
NOTE: If you want to go into a directory, there can't be anything in the Filename Box;
otherwise, the program saves your scene with that name.
Once you have selected the drive and directory folder that you want to save your scene into, type in a filename. If you make a mistake, you can use the
BACKSPACE KEY to correct it. Once you have entered the name of your file, press F4 or ENTER to save it on disk. If you have a duplicate name on disk, the program asks you if you want to overwrite it. Pressing ENTER will overwrite the file and ESCAPE will not. Once you overwrite a file, you can't get the old one back!
Utilities Menu
Select Utilities from the Page Menu. The Utilities Menu offers you the following options:
Delete Saved Page
Insert your work disk and select Delete Saved Page. Highlight the file you want to delete and press ENTER (if the file is inside a folder, you must open it first).
A message appears asking, "Are you sure that you want to delete the file (name.PNL)?" If you press ENTER you'll delete the file, and if you press ESCAPE you'll return to the Utilities Menu. You can delete more files by repeating the above directions.
Create Directory
This menu allows you to group your saved scenes inside directories to keep your files more organized. Highlight Create a Directory and press ENTER. Type in a name for your new subdirectory and press ENTER. The program creates a subdirectory for you. If you've tried to create a subdirectory that already exists, the program beeps. When finished, press ESCAPE to return to the Utilities Menu.
Change Setup
This menu allows you to change the way your computer is linked to a printer. Select Change Setup. Use the MOUSE or the SPACE BAR to choose an item and the ARROW KEYS to change the category. Press ENTER to keep the changes you have made or ESCAPE to keep the setup that was already there. You're returned to the Utilities Menu.
Go to Main Menu
This option returns you to the Main Menu. If you haven't saved your scene, the program asks you if you want to save it. Press ENTER to save it or ESCAPE to return to the Utilities Menu without saving it. If you press ENTER, the File Menu appears. If it's a new file, type the name inside of the box and press ENTER. If you made a change to a file that's listed, select that file. A message asks, "Do you want to overwrite it?" Press ENTER to save it and then press ESCAPE. Pressing ESCAPE only, returns you to the Page Menu without saving.
Load a Page
Select Load a Page from the Main Menu and a list of your saved files appears. You can press F2 to select the drive that you want or F3 to move through any directories. Select a file and press ENTER. The program loads the document and the Page Menu appears.
Print
Select Print from the Main Menu to print a page. The File Menu appears. Select a file and the Print Sizes Menu appears. See the Print My Page section under Page Menu for further information.
Utilities
Select Utilities from the Main Menu to access the utility options as described previously in the Utilities Menu section under Page Menu.
Quit
This allows you to exit the program from the Main Menu.
Things to Remember:
∙ Save your creations frequently to avoid losing them in case something goes wrong.
∙ Big Book Maker does not format disks. You'll want to format a few work disks prior to beginning the program.
∙ If you try to save a screen and a message appears saying "Unknown Error," then you should insert another formatted disk because this means the disk is full.
∙ When you get a disk error and put in a new disk, sometimes the program returns another disk error. Re-try to continue.
∙ The text editor slows down as more text styles are added to a page.
∙ Saved screens can become quite large--keep in mind how much disk
space you have free.
********************** FOR ADVANCED USERS ONLY ***********************
If your machine has 512K and the program gives an "out of memory" error, you should try:
1. Removing most TSR's, or "Terminate and Stay Resident programs"
(i.e. calculator programs or other utility programs).
2. Reset DOS "files" & "buffers" to minimum in your CONFIG.SYS file.
∙ A "file" takes 36 bytes of memory and a "buffer" takes 528 bytes of
memory.
3. Avoid using a lot of different fonts in a single story. Each font uses up memory.
4. Don't install the MOUSE or the TouchWindow drivers. This saves 10K of memory.
Before calling, we suggest you read through the documentation. Should you still have a problem, or if you have technical questions, call Toucan at (800) 247-4641 (in Connecticut, Alaska, and Canada call (203) 674-8221). Defective disks will be replaced free of charge up to 180 days after date of invoice. Disks damaged after180 days may be replaced at $10.00 for the first disk and $5.00 for each additional disk in a program. Mail the damaged disk(s) with proof of purchase and appropriate payment to Queue, Inc. at 338 Commerce Drive, Fairfield, CT 06430 for a prompt replacement.
Backup disks are available at $10.00 for the first disk and $5.00 for each addititonal disk in a program. Customers are limited to one backup disk for each disk purchased. Backups are for archival purposes only.
