Note: When selecting an item within the program, place the mouse cursor
over the button or item you want to select and press the left mouse button. Only the left mouse button is used throughout the program.
STAMP PAD IS
The paint program...
fun enough for kids
powerful enough for programmers
* Create pictures--then erase characters and re-position
them for creative fun.
* Design buildings, vehicles, and landscapes.
* Duplicate video game characters and action scenes.
* Programmers: Design graphics for your own games or other
programs.
CONTENTS
GETTING STARTED
System Requirements
Title Screen
Menu
USING THE PROGRAM
Create Stamps
Use Stamps
File Deletions
ADVANCED FEATURES
File Management
Edit Icons
Programmer Tools
GETTING STARTED
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
IBM PC or compatible (386 or better recommended), with color VGA monitor,
mouse, and 2 MB of hard disk space (hard disk requirements will vary
depending on graphic images saved).
TITLE SCREEN
Press the start button on the title screen to begin using STAMP PAD.
Press the order button to see ordering instructions for STAMP PAD.
(Pressing any key on the keyboard will also start the program.)
MENU
The three choices on the main menu are "Instructions," "Create Stamps,"
and "Use Stamps." Press the button of your choice.
INSTRUCTION BUTTON
The instruction section tells where to find instruction information.
Refer to this file for detailed information.
CREATE STAMPS BUTTON
The "Create Stamps" section is for making or editing "electronic" stamps
for use on the backgrounds ("electronic paper") in the "Use Stamps"
section.
USE STAMPS BUTTON
The "Use Stamps" section contains background drawings for editing,
freehand drawing, or placing stamps. It also contains blank pages for
creating new backgrounds.
USING THE PROGRAM
CREATE STAMPS
In the "Create Stamps" section, you create or edit stamps on a grid that
enlarges the stamp. Each square on the grid represents one pixel on the
screen. (A pixel is one dot on your monitor's screen.) The actual size of
the stamp is shown in the area between the "Load" and "Save" buttons.
A set of stamps is displayed in the file area on the right side of the
screen. Use the arrow buttons to view other stamps within this file or
press the "File" button to load other stamp files. To load a stamp, press
the "Load" button. Then move your mouse cursor over the stamp you want to
load and press the left mouse button.
Edit the stamp using the tools and colors of your choice. If you leave a
grid square blank, the color "transparent" is displayed (a white grid
square with a light gray center). Any part of a stamp that is colored
with transparent or left blank, will be clear (not white). That means
when you place a stamp on a background, the background will show through.
The tools are located on the left side of the screen and the color palette
at the bottom.
EXIT BUTTON
Pressing the exit button will return you to the main menu.
BOMB BUTTON
Pressing the bomb button clears the grid and replaces all of the squares
with the transparent color.
DOT BUTTON
Pressing the dot button activates the drawing tool that enables you to
draw dot by dot. Hold the mouse button down to draw continuous dots.
ERASE BUTTON
Pressing the erase button activates the eraser tool. It erases each square
on the grid that is selected. Holding down the mouse button provides continual erasing as you move the mouse. When a square on the grid is erased, it is filled with the transparent color.
Another way to erase an area is to select the fill tool and the transparent
color. This is useful for irregular shaped areas.
FILL BUTTON
Pressing the fill button activates the fill tool. The fill tool will fill
an area with the color that is currently selected. The area that will be
filled is the group of squares of the same color surrounding the selected
square. The fill will continue outward in the horizontal and vertical
directions until a different color is encountered.
VERTICAL FLIP BUTTON
Pressing the vertical flip button will flip the entire grid area upside
down. Press the button again and the whole grid will be flipped back to
its original position. The image will continue to flip each time you press
the button.
HORIZONTAL FLIP BUTTON
Pressing the horizontal flip button will flip the entire grid area
sideways. Press the button again and the whole grid will be flipped
back to its original position. The image will continue to flip each time
you press the button.
LINE BUTTON
Pressing the line button activates the line drawing tool. The line drawing
tool will draw a line between two selected points. Select a square on the
grid by pressing (and releasing) the left mouse button. Now move the mouse
cursor to another grid location. When another grid square is selected,
press the mouse button again and the line will be drawn with the selected
color.
RECTANGLE BUTTON
Pressing the rectangle button activates the rectangle drawing tool. The
rectangle drawing tool will draw a rectangle between two selected points.
Select a square on the grid by pressing (and releasing) the left mouse
button. This defines one corner of the rectangle. Now move the mouse
cursor to another grid location until the rectangle is the size and shape
you want, then press the mouse button again and the rectangle will be
drawn with the selected color.
CIRCLE BUTTON
Pressing the circle button activates the circle drawing tool. The circle
drawing tool will draw a circle between two selected points. Select a
square on the grid by pressing (and releasing) the left mouse button.
his defines the top of the circle (or bottom, depending on the direction
you are drawing). Now move the mouse cursor to another grid location until
the circle is the size you want, then press the mouse button again and the
circle will be drawn with the selected color.
COLOR PALETTE
Across the bottom of the screen are the color palettes. The first nine
colors (on the left) are the most commonly used colors and therefore are
always present. The second group of nine colors (on the right) are shades
of the first nine colors with one exception. The first color of the shade
palette is the transparent color. It is represented by a grid-like section.
Use it like any other color, but any dot (pixel) that contains transparent
will be clear when the stamp is placed on a background. Transparent can be
used with the fill tool for quick erasures.
To select a color, press the button that is the color you want to use.
Press an arrow beside the palette, to select another palette.
LOAD BUTTON
Pressing the load button allows the selecting of a stamp displayed in
the file area. As the mouse cursor is moved across the stamps, the
selectable stamp is highlighted by a red border. Pressing the mouse
button while on the stamp will load the stamp into the small screen and
the large grid so it can be edited. The stamp also remains in the file
section and does not change unless you save over it.
SAVE BUTTON
When you want to save your current changes, select the save button.
Then move your mouse cursor to the file area and select a position where
you want to save your stamp. A stamp can be saved multiple times to any
of the 2,250 possible stamp locations. You may want to save your stamp
to two different locations while working on it just in case you accidently
overwrite it or you decide you like an earlier version of it better.
Because it is so easy to save stamps, you will want to save frequently
to avoid mistakes. Saving is permanent, so be sure to backup important
stamps in another directory or on a diskette. Stamp files are identified
by *.stp. See "File Management" for more information.
FILE ARROWS
The file arrows select different stamp pages.
FILE BUTTON
Pressing the file button displays a menu for selecting other group of
stamps. Selecting a file icon will load that group of stamps.
USE STAMPS
The "Use Stamps" section gives you a large drawing area--your electronic
paper. Place stamps or use drawing tools from the menu at the top of the
screen to create all kinds of pictures.
EXIT BUTTON
The exit button will return you to the main menu.
TOOLS
The tools button brings up the tools menu. When you are finished selecting
a tool and/or color press the left mouse button anywhere but on the tools
or colors and the menu disappears.
BOMB BUTTON
Pressing the bomb button clears the screen.
DOT BUTTON
Pressing the dot button activates the drawing tool that enables you to
draw dot by dot. Hold the mouse button down to draw continuous dots.
To draw with thicker dots, make a stamp of a thick dot and use the stamp
as your drawing tool (for instance 4 by 4 pixels).
ERASE BUTTON
Pressing the erase button activates the eraser tool. It erases the area
covered by the square mouse cursor. Holding down the mouse button provides
continual erasing while you move the mouse. When an area is erased, it is
filled with the transparent color.
Another way to erase an area is to select the fill tool and the
transparent color. This is useful for irregular shaped areas.
FILL BUTTON
Pressing the fill button activates the fill tool. The fill tool will fill
n area with the color that is currently selected. The area that will be
filled is the area surrounding the color that is selected with the mouse
cursor. The fill will continue outward in the horizontal and vertical
directions until a different color is encountered.
SCISSORS BUTTON
Pressing the scissors button activates the cut and paste tool. This
function selects an area to be deleted, copied, or flipped. Press the
mouse button when the cursor is at the corner of the area you want to
select then release the mouse button. Move the mouse cursor to the
opposite corner of the area you want to select, then press the mouse
button again. The area will be surrounded with red dashed lines and the
cut and paste menu will appear.
Now you can either cut (and later paste, if needed), copy, or flip the
marked area. If you want to leave the cut and paste menu without cutting
or copying, press the mouse button with the cursor anywhere but on the cut
and paste menu.
CUT BUTTON
Pressing the cut button "cuts" (deletes) the marked area from the drawing
area. Your mouse cursor then becomes the cut-out area. Pressing the left
mouse button draws the cut area to the screen in that position. Holding
the mouse button while moving the cut area to various areas on the screen,
repeatedly draws the copied area. You can change pages or groups of
backgrounds while the cut area is active and place it on different pages.
The entire drawing area (the whole page) can be moved to another page in
this manner.
COPY BUTTON
Pressing the copy button copies the marked area and attaches it to your
mouse cursor. Pressing the left mouse button draws the copied area to the
screen in that position. Holding the mouse button while moving the copied
area to various areas on the screen, repeatedly draws the copied area. You
can change pages or groups of backgrounds while the copied area is active
and place it on different pages. The entire drawing area (the whole page)
can be copied to another page in this manner. This is a good way to backup
your favorite drawings or modify an existing background without deleting
the original. (NOTE: The save function is available only on the
full-featured version.)
VERTICAL FLIP BUTTON
Pressing the vertical flip button will flip the marked area upside down.
Press the button again and the area will be flipped back to its original
position. The image will continue to flip each time you press the button.
HORIZONTAL FLIP BUTTON
Pressing the horizontal flip button will flip the marked area sideways.
Press the button again and the area will be flipped back to its original
position. The image will continue to flip each time you press the button.
DISKETTE BUTTON
Pressing the diskette button will save the marked area to an ASCII file on
your hard disk. The file will be called ASCII.TXT. This function converts
the color of each pixel to its ASCII hexadecimal equivalent and creates a
file that can be merged into an assembly language program. See "Programmer
Tools" for further information.
LINE BUTTON
Pressing the line button activates the line drawing tool. The line drawing
tool will draw a line (one pixel in width) between two selected points.
Select a starting position by pressing (and releasing) the left mouse
button. Now move the mouse cursor to another location. When the line is
the length you want, press the mouse button again and the line will be
drawn with the selected color.
To draw thicker lines, draw two or more lines beside each other.
RECTANGLE BUTTON
Pressing the rectangle button activates the rectangle drawing tool. The
rectangle drawing tool will draw a rectangle (one pixel in width) between
two selected points. Select a starting position by pressing (and
releasing) the left mouse button. This defines one corner of the
rectangle. Now move the mouse cursor to another location until the
rectangle is the size and shape you want, then press the mouse button
again and the rectangle will be drawn with the selected color.
To draw thicker rectangles, draw one inside (or outside) of the other and
use the fill tool to fill in the area between the rectangles.
CIRCLE BUTTON
Pressing the circle button activates the circle drawing tool. The circle
drawing tool will draw a circle (one pixel in width) between two selected
points. Select a starting position by pressing (and releasing) the left
mouse button. This defines the top of the circle (or bottom, depending on
the direction you are drawing). Now move the mouse cursor to another
location until the circle is the size you want, then press the mouse
button again and the circle will be drawn with the selected color.
To draw thicker circles, draw one inside (or outside) of the other and
use the fill tool to fill in the area between the circles.
COLOR PALETTE
Across the bottom of the screen are the color palettes. The first nine
colors (on the left) are the most commonly used colors. The second group
of nine colors (on the right) are shades of the first nine colors with
one exception. The first color of the shade palette is the "transparent"
color. It is represented by a grid-like section. Use it like any other
color, but any area that is transparent will allow the background to show
through if this area is cut and pasted. Transparent can be used with the
fill tool for quick erasures.
To select a color, press the button that is the color you want to use.
Press an arrow beside the palette, to select another palette.
STAMPS
Pressing the stamp button brings up the same set of stamps as in the
"Create Stamps" section. Select a stamp by placing your cursor over the
stamp you want and pressing the mouse button. Other groups of stamps can
be selected by pressing the file button. When you select a stamp, it
becomes your cursor. You can then move the stamp around the screen and
place it anywhere in the drawing area by pressing the mouse button.
Multiple copies of the stamp can be drawn by holding down the mouse button
as you move the stamp.
The stamp can be moved right up to the edge of the screen, but it may
appear that the stamp will not go to the edge of the screen if only a
small area of the stamp has been filled in. This is because the stamp
is 32 by 32 pixels no matter what the size of the actual image is. If
you need to place a stamp right on the edge of the screen and it is
centered in the stamp, re-position the image on the stamp. You can do
this by stamping the stamp on a page and then placing the magnifying
tool over the image so that the image is on the edge of the stamp.
Then save it as a new stamp or save over the old one. Another option
is to use the cut and paste function to place the stamp.
Stamps can also be used to make customized drawing tools. Begin by
drawing a pattern in a stamp, such as a few dots of different colors,
then hold down the mouse button while drawing with the stamp. The stamp
will be continuously stamped on the background creating the effect of a
line or different shape depending on the design of the stamp.
MAGNIFY BUTTON
Pressing the magnifying button activates the magnifying tool. Use this
function when you want to work on part of your background at a closer
view. This is useful for filling in small areas or drawing small details.
To zoom in on an area, place the red dashed square (32 by 32 pixels) over
a selected area and then press the mouse button. You can then edit this
area with the same functionality as though you were in the "Create Stamps"
section. Whatever image is in the grid will be on your background drawing
when you press the exit button.
You can also use the magnifying tool to re-position stamps or create new
ones. Place the red dashed square over a section of your drawing and then
press the mouse button. You can then save this section as a stamp.
Another function of the magnifying tool is to merge small stamps into a
larger one. For example, four 16 by 16 pixel stamps can become one 32 by
32 pixel stamp. To do this, first stamp the smaller stamps on top and
beside each other on a background page. Then magnify the area. The area
can then be saved as a stamp.
COLOR WINDOW
The color window is not a selectable item. The currently selected color
is displayed there.
FILE ARROWS
Pressing the file arrows changes pages within a background group so you
can select a page to draw on. An additional function of changing pages
is deleting unwanted drawings before you save a page.
SAVE BUTTON
The save button saves your drawing on the currently selected page. To
save the background on a different page, use the cut and paste tool.
Cut or copy the entire page, select a new page, then press the mouse
button. Then press the save button again. Saving is permanent, so be
sure to copy your favorite drawings to additional pages. Backgrounds
are identified by *.bkg. See "File Management" for more information.
(NOTE: This function is available only on the full-featured version.)
FILE BUTTON
Pressing the file button displays a menu for selecting another group of
backgrounds. Selecting a file icon will load that group of backgrounds.
FILE DELETIONS
Information on what to do should file deletion occur is provided in the
manual that is included with the full-featured version.
ADVANCED FEATURES
FILE MANAGEMENT
Information on file management is included with the full-featured version.
EDIT ICONS
Information on how to edit icons is included with the full-featured version.
PROGRAMMER TOOLS
Included on the STAMP PAD disk is an additional file that explains and
illustrates how to use STAMP PAD to incorporate graphics into assembly
language programs. SAMPLE.ASM shows how to use ASCII.TXT (the file that
is made with the diskette function in the "Use Stamps" section). The
compiled version SAMPLE.EXE is also included.
The full-featured version of STAMP PAD includes a file, SAMPLE2.ASM that
provides the source code and instructions for displaying the stamp and
background files. Source code for changing DAC colors is also included
