KPT ShatterBox
A truly unique extension, ShatterBox allows you to create artwork that looks as though it was struck, dropped, crumbled, or otherwise mistreated. These effects are accomplished through the use of impacts, objects which determine the size, location, and intensity of individual effects. Multiple impacts can be used to create complex effects, which may cause some delays when rendering or printing.

Options Menu
As with all of the KPT Vector Effects extensions, the first of the four “umbrella” buttons above the ShatterBox preview window contains a pop-up Options menu.

Pressing on this symbol will give you access to the following options for the ShatterBox extension, each of which is discussed in detail below.

Help, Reset, and Preferences
The Help, Reset, and Preferences commands in the KPT ShatterBox Options menu are identical to the same commands in the Options menus of all of the other extensions. For a detailed discussion of these commands, please see the Options Menu section of the User Interface discussion.

Copy Original
Selecting this option tells the extension to perform its operations on a copy of the original artwork, rather than making changes to the artwork itself. When this option is selected and you exit the extension, the modified copy of the original is placed directly on top of the artwork. This modified copy is automatically selected, and can be repositioned or further modified as desired. If this option is not selected, the operation will be performed on your original artwork, and no new structures will be created.

New Impact
Creates a new impact. This new impact is automatically sized to match the height and width of your artwork, and is, by default, a radial shatter with zero intensity.

The keyboard shortcut for New Impact is Command-N.

Kill Impact
This deletes the selected impact. 

The keyboard shortcut for Kill Impact is Command-K, or you can just hit the Delete key.

Duplicate Impact
This creates an exact copy of the selected impact. This copy is sized to match the original impact, is automatically selected, and can be reshaped or repositioned immediately.

The keyboard shortcut for Duplicate Impact is Command-D.

Fragmentation
These three controls determine not only the intensity of the effect, but also what type of effect will be applied to the selected impact. The selected fragmentation type will be indicated by a blue checkmark on the right-hand side of the control button. Note that after applying a fragmentation effect, you need to increase the Fragment Offset setting for a true “shatter” effect.

Radial Shatter
Creates an “impact” shatter effect, as if something had struck your artwork at the center of the impact object. Pressing and dragging on this control determines the number of fragmentation lines projecting from the center of the impact. Dragging to the right increases the number of lines, while dragging to the left decreases the number. The slider range produces up to 50 lines.

Random Lines
Creates a “dropped” shatter effects, as if the artwork were made of glass and dropped onto a hard surface. Pressing and dragging this slider determines the number of random breaklines (not the number of fragments). Dragging to the right increases the number of breaklines, up to a slider maximum of 50 lines. Dragging to the left decreases the number of lines.

Random Curves
This can be used to create a “crumbling” or curved shatter effect. Pressing and dragging this slider determines the number of random, curved breaklines. Dragging to the right increases the number of breaklines, up to a slider maximum of 50 lines. Dragging to the left decreases the number of lines.

Displacement
The four displacement controls affect how far apart the shattered pieces appear, how smooth or jagged the radial shatter pieces look, and the amount of the variation in lightness and darkness of the broken pieces.

Fragment Offset
This control slider lets you determine the distance between broken pieces. If this control is not used, then your artwork will look as if it was broken and then pieced back together. With this control, we can leave it broken. Pressing and dragging creates small purple lines in the preview window, giving you a rough indication of the direction and distance between pieces.

Radial Disruption
This control is only effective when used with the Radial Shatter fragmentation option. Normally, your fragments are smooth “wedges,” like in a pie chart, but by using this control you can make the fragments as jagged as you want (randomly determined). Pressing and dragging to the right increases the amount of jaggedness, while dragging to the left makes the fragments less jagged.

Lighten
Determines the range of random lightness variation that may be applied to your fragments, ranging from 0% (no lightness) to 100% (white). The default is 25%.

Darken
Determines the range of random darkness variation that may be applied to your fragments, ranging from 0% (no darkness) to 100% (black). The default is 25%.

Global Intensity
This will scale up or down the intensity of impacts simultaneously.  Regardless of the current settings for each control, thay are all scaled and driven towards or away from zero as a percentage of current settings, thus maintaining the relationships among settings.

You can have the Global Intensity settings apply to all shatter parameters (the default), or to any combination of Fragmentation, Displacement, and Lighten/Darken.