This Read Me file contains last-minute additions and corrections to the Adobe Dimensions documentation.
1. Installer
• Canceling an installation while the installer is building the application may leave files on your hard disk.
• If you select Easy Install, Adobe Dimensions will install the version most appropriate for your system's configuration. If you want to install a different configuration, select Custom Install and specify the versions you want to install. Your Adobe Dimensions application is compatible with three types of Macintosh Computers: 680x0 Macintosh Computers without math-coprocessors, 680x0 Macintosh Computers with math-coprocessors, and Power Macintosh Computers. It is also possible to install a version of Adobe Dimensions that will run on both the 680x0 Macintosh with a math-coprocessor and the Power Macintosh. To do this, choose Custom Install and select both 680x0 and Power Macintosh. This will create one version of the application that can run on both machines. Note: The Custom Install option will allow you to select all three platforms at once, however, the software installed will only run on the Power Macintosh and the 680x0 Macintosh with a math co-processor. If you want to install the non-fpu version of Adobe Dimensions you must select only that option.
• If you are using a Power Macintosh, 840AV or 660AV, installing Adobe Dimensions over a network may cause your hard disk to be renamed. If it is not possible to avoid installing over a network, make sure that you are using only the extensions necessary to access the network and that you are using the most recent versions of Apple system software and extensions. No data will be lost.
• If your computer has both an 800K drive and a high-density drive the installer will ask for Disk 2, but won't eject Disk 1. This is a bug in Apple's Installer. To avoid this bug, you can either disconnect the 800K drive before running the Installer or you can install from your hard disk. To install from your hard disk, make four folders on your hard disk and name them exactly as the disks are named. Then copy the contents of each disk into the appropriate folder. Open the Installer in the "Disk 1" folder and proceed with your installation.
2. Running Adobe Dimensions Over a Network
Certain combinations of drivers and inits (extensions) may cause any application to crash when operating over a network. For this reason, it is recommended that you avoid opening files over a network, and instead copy files to your system's hard disk before working with them. Similarly, do not run Adobe Dimensions off a server. Instead install the application on your system's hard disk.
3. Multiple Master Type Faces.
Multiple master instances created in Adobe Illustrator are not preserved when artwork is saved and imported into Adobe Dimensions via the Clipboard. To preserve a font instance in Adobe Dimensions, you must use FontCreator and save the outlines to your Font folder. Alternatively, you can convert the text to outlines before exporting or copying to Dimensions.
4. GX Printing.
GX printer drivers are not supported.
5. Editing Grouped Objects.
Multiple objects created in a 2D window and then extruded or revolved become a group in the 3D window. Transformations, such as move, scale, and rotate, can then be performed on each 3D object by first selecting the object using the object-selection tool. However, if changes are made to the base art, transformations not applied to the group as a whole will be lost. For this reason, it’s recommended that you ungroup objects before transforming them individually. The base art can still be edited; each base or profile will have its own 2D window.
Note: Ungrouping 3D text permanently converts the text to outlines. If you want to transform a group of letters individually but you still want to edit the text, you must put each letter in its own text block.
6. Scaling 3D Objects.
When a primitive (a cone, cube, cylinder, or sphere) or an extruded object is scaled, the numbers representing the object in the primitive or extrude dialog box are not scaled. For example, if a sphere has a radius of 100 points and is scaled 200%, the radius is still displayed as 100 points in the Sphere dialog box, although the actual radius is now 200 points (100 points scaled 200%). If you need to maintain precise numbers, it is recommended that you use the extrude dialog box to scale extruded objects along the z-axis and the primitive dialog boxes to scale primitives.
7. Artwork Mapping Guides and Large Objects.
If you create a large object and then select Map Artwork, the guides may not fit in the work area. To avoid this problem, scale the object to a smaller size before mapping the artwork and then rescale the object after the artwork has been placed.
8. Importing Artwork from Adobe Illustrator.
The Adobe Illustrator workspace is much larger than the Adobe Dimensions workspace. To avoid creating artwork in Adobe Illustrator that will not fit in the Adobe Dimensions workspace, keep in mind that the Adobe Dimensions workspace is 18 inches by 18 inches.
9. Bevel Library Proxies.
All the bevels that ship in the Adobe Dimensions bevel library have proxies that show the bevel and an extruded circle with the given bevel applied. To create proxies for your custom bevels :
1) Create an 80 x 80 PICT resource id 128 that has the bevel drawn in 2D.
2) Create an 80 x 80 PICT resource id 129 that has a rendered version of the bevel applied to something like a circle so you can tell what it does.
3) Paste the resources into your bevel file using Apple Computer's ResEdit utility.
10. SuperMac Video Cards and Virtual Desktop Mode.
You may occasionally experience a redraw error when using the Virtual Desktop feature of certain SuperMac video cards. The error occurs only on-screen and does not affect the integrity of your file. To correct redraw errors, use the hand tool to scroll your artwork.
11. Manual Corrections
On page 84 the manual states, "If the object you are copying is part of a group, the copy becomes part of the same group. If the copy is made from objects in a number of groups, the copied objects become part of the topmost group." This is not the case. A copy of a grouped object is not part of a group.
On page 11, the manual states, "Gradient fills will be converted into Adobe Illustrator 3.2 blends when imported into an Adobe Dimensions document." This is not the case. Adobe Dimensions does not support gradient fills. If you want to bring gradient fills into Dimensions, save the file in the Adobe Illustrator 3 format. This converts the gradients into shape blends that can be imported into Dimensions.
Note: If you intend to shade mapped artwork in Adobe Dimensions, avoid using masks in the artwork to be mapped. Adobe Dimensions uses masks to shade mapped artwork; therefore, artwork that contains a mask may cause double masking and lead to unpredictable results.
12. Operations on 2D Grouped Objects
Objects in groups cannot be made into guides or compounds. To convert objects in groups to guides or compounds, first ungroup the object; then perform the desired operation and regroup.
13. Clipboard Behavior
PostScript artwork copied to the Clipboard in Adobe Illustrator is 2D artwork. To import the artwork into Adobe Dimensions, you must open a 2D window and paste into the window. You can then use the Apply button to place the artwork into a 3D window.
To copy 3D artwork from Adobe Dimensions to Adobe Illustrator or to a 2D Adobe Dimensions window, the artwork must first be rendered. In addition, copying and pasting 3D objects within the 3D window must be done in Edit Mode.
