Plug-ins

A powerful feature of Photopaint is the ability to use "plug-ins". A plug-in is a mini-program that extends the operation of a parent program. To be used with Photopaint, the plug-in must be Adobe Photoshop™ compatible. A plug-in usually behaves in a similar way to a built-in filter.

Many design studios and freelance designers make their plug-ins available on the web. Although you will have to pay a fee to download some of these, there is still a huge number that you can download for free. Since most plug-ins are written to be compatible with Adobe Photoshop, you can begin your web search for suitable plug-ins by searching for something like: Photoshop plug-ins. Plug-ins are also available from time-to-time with computer magazines.

Installing and running plug-ins

  1. Follow the instructions that come with the plug-in. Usually, this will simply be a case of unzipping a compressed file into the correct target folder. Sometimes, the plug-in will come with its own setup program. In all cases, make sure the plug-in is installed in the Photopaint plug-in folder, which is typically:

    \Program Files\Ability Office\PlugIns

    In Photopaint, select Options from the Tools menu and view the General tab of the dialog to check and set the plug-in folder.

  2. Exit Photopaint and then restart it to activate the plug-in.

  3. To run the plug-in, make a selection on the current image (or select all of the image) and select Plug-ins from the Filter menu. A sub-menu is displayed showing all the available plug-ins.

  4. Pick a plug-in. Depending on the plug-in, either it will be applied immediately to the open image in your window or a filter dialog box will open. In the latter case you will be able to edit the settings for the filter. There will usually be a preview box to display the results before you apply the filter.

Note that some of the plug-ins act as true filters, that is they alter an image on the basis of those colors that comprise the image. However, there are plug-ins which overwrite the current image.