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ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿
³ ÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜ Ü Ü ÜÜÜÜ ³
³ Û Û Û Û Û Û ßÜ Üß Û ³
³ Û ÜÜ ÛÜÜÜß ÛÜÜÜÛ ÛÜÜ ßÜß Üßß ³
³ Û Û Û ßÜ Û Û Û Û Û Û .00 ³
³ ßÜÜÜÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û Û ÛÜÜÜÜ ³
³ ³
ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ
GRAFX 2.00 á96.5%
- USER'S MANUAL -
ÚÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ¿
³ CONTENTS ³
³ ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ ³
³ ³
³ - Presentation ³
³ - Required equipment ³
³ - Configuration files ³
³ - Available options ³
³ - Let's talk about $$$, baby ³
³ - Drawing tips ³
³ - Trouble-shooting/General hints/FAQ ³
³ ³
ÀÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÙ
Presentation:
ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ
This program is designed for drawing 256-color pictures in a huge range of
resolutions (actually, there are 60 with some coming from the Amiga world).
No one can contest that most of the beautiful GFX of the Scene were drawn
on Amiga. But these GFX are in video resolutions that aren't the common PC
modes. So we wanted to make the first paint program on PC that could
visualize those pictures, and that could allow you, of course, to draw yours
in the video mode that you want.
This program was first shown at the Wired'96 where it met a big success
(bigger than all our expects) so we hope you'll like it too.
It's made up of many drawing tools, effects and menus. All the effects
will work with any drawing tool.
This software has been created for YOU, PC users who envy Amiga owners
for their fantastic paint programs. This software doesn't pretend to replace
the best programs on Amiga, but it modestly tries to fill the gap between PC
and Amiga in the field of bitmap drawing.
If you dream about a very useful option we haven't thought of yet, do not
hesitate to tell us. If we also think it can be useful, and above all if it
is possible to include it in the program :), then we'll implement it as soon
as possible.
Required equipment:
ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ
To run GrafX2, you'll need:
- a PC (386DX or higher),
- DOS 5 or higher (maybe it works with DOS 3.1 but we don't remember which
functions of the INT 21h we use),
- a VGA compatible video card (a VLB or PCI card is strongly recommended)
- a mouse (and its driver),
- 3 Megabytes of RAM (can work with less if you use the DOS4GW or Windows
disk-cache).
But if you want to use it more efficiently, you'll need:
- at least a 486DXý66 (to improve global speed),
- at least 8 Mb of RAM for grabbing very big brushes and to use multi-undo,
- a VESA 1.2 (or later) compatible video card (to access more video modes).
Configuration files:
ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ
GrafX2 needs two files to store its configuration: 'GFX2.INI' and
'GFX2.CFG'.
GFX2.INI:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
This file contains the parameters defined in the settings menu and some
others. You may edit this file with any standard ASCII editor.
When you click on Reload in the settings menu, all the data contained in
this file are restored. When you click on Save or when you quit the
program with the Auto-save option on, all the current parameters are
written into (updated in) this file.
If you corrupted this file and don't manage to fix the problem, then
delete it and run GFXCFG.EXE. It will automatically create a default
initialization file when it is absent.
GFX2.CFG:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
This file contains the keyboard configuration plus the state of the
following variables in the program:
þ video modes
þ shade tables
þ stencil
þ mask
þ gradients
All these variables are saved when clicking on the Save button in the
settings menu or when exiting the program with the Auto-save option on.
However, when you click on Reload in the settings menu, only the state
of each video mode is restored.
Note: the GFX2_FRA.CFG file is a default configuration file for AZERTY
keyboards. If you have got an AZERTY keyboard, you may replace the
GFX2.CFG file by GFX2_FRA.CFG.
Important: from version 2.00 á95.5%, .CFG files will have ascending
compatibility. This means that you'll be able to retrieve most of their
contents from a release to another by copying your old .CFG file into
your new GrafX2 directory and running GFXCFG.EXE. Indeed, this program
will convert your old file for it is usable by the new version of GrafX2.
But copying a .CFG file from an earlier version than version 95.5% won't
work. Moreover, (I don't see why you would do that, but...) copying a
recent .CFG file to an older version shouldn't work neither.
Note: We highly recommand not to modify the keys related to the mouse
emulation in the GFXCFG program because the values you could use may inter-
fere with the keyboard shortcuts used in the menus.
Available options:
ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ
The different options available in GrafX2 will be listed and detailed
below. They will be described as follows:
ÉÍÍÍÍËÍÍÍÍËÍúúúÍ» ÉÍÍÍÍ»
º 1 º 3 º º triangular buttons will º1 / º
º º º º be detailed like this: º / 2º
ÌÍÍÍÍÎÍÍÍÍÎÍúúú͹ ÈÍÍÍͼ
º 2 º 4 º º
º º º º
ÈÍÍÍÍÊÍÍÍÍÊÍúúúͼ
1 - Paintbrushes
2 - Adjust picture / Effects on the picture
3 - Hand-drawing
4 - Splines
5 - Lines
6 - Spray
7 - Floodfill
8 - Polygons / Polyforms
9 - Polyfills / Filled polyforms
10 - Empty rectangles
11 - Filled rectangles
12 - Empty circles/ellipses
13 - Filled circles/ellipses
14 - Rectangles with gradation
15 - Gradation menu
16 - Spheres / Ellipses with gradation
17 - Brush grabbing / restore
18 - Polyformed brush grabbing (lasso) / restore
19 - Brush effects
20 - Drawing modes
21 - Text
22 - Magnifier mode / Menu
23 - Pipette / Invert colors
24 - Screen size / Safety resolution
25 - Spare page / Copy current to spare
26 - Save picture / Autosave
27 - Load picture / Reload
28 - Settings
29 - Clear picture
30 - Help / Statistics
31 - Oops (Undo/Redo)
32 - Kill current page
33 - Quit program
34 - Palette menu
35 - Scroll palette left / right
36 - Palette window
37 - Hide menu
When you will use any drawing tool, left-clicking will draw with the Fore
color while right-clicking will draw with the Back-color.
When dialog boxes or windows will come on the screen, Cancel (or No) will
always be emulated by the <Escape> key, and OK (or Yes) by the <Return> key.
In the different menus, the titles of the buttons that contain an under-
lined letter can be emulated by pressing this letter on the keyboard.
In some menus, you can select a color range in the palette. This means
that you can click on a color and move the mouse to another by maintaining
the button pressed to select a color range.
1 - Paintbrushes:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Displays a menu where you can choose the shape of your paintbrush.
Paintbrushes are sorted by family. You can see some paintbrushes of
the same family but with different sizes. There is at least one paint-
brush from each family displayed in this menu.
Here is the list of all the different paintbrush families:
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û ÛÛÛ Û Û
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û ÛÛÛÛÛ Û
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û ÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û Û
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û ÛÛÛ
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ ÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û
Square Disc Sieve Sieve Diamond Random
square disc shaped
______________________________________________________________
Û Û Û Û Û Û
Û Û Û Û Û Û
Û Û Û Û Û Û
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ Û Û Û Û ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
Û Û Û Û Û Û
Û Û Û Û Û Û
Û Û Û Û Û Û
Horiz. Vertical Slash Back- Cross X Cross +
bar bar slash
The 3 last paintbrushes in the menu belong to the "miscellaneous"
family and their size cannot be modified.
Right click:
============>
Transforms your current user-defined brush into a paintbrush. This is
actually a "monochromisation" of your user-defined brush. This means
that every color of the brush that aren't the Back-color will be set to
the Fore-color. But this option doesn't alter the brush: you'll just
have to right-click on the "Get brush" buttons to get your brush back.
Note: When you press (not in the menu) the <Delete> key (default value),
the current paintbrush becomes the smallest member of the "Disc" family:
i.e one pixel.
2 - Adjust picture / Effects on the picture:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Allows you to scroll the picture to re-center your graph for example.
Any part of the picture that goes out of the image by a side comes
back by the opposite one.
It is assimilated to the drawing tools family.
Right click:
============>
*** Not implemented yet ***
3 - Hand-drawing:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the current hand-drawing mode as the active drawing tool.
There are 3 hand-drawing modes:
- Continuous hand-drawing: as you move the mouse, the paintbrush is
regularily pasted on the picture. This drawing tool allows to change
the fore and back colors when being in use.
- Discontinuous hand-drawing: as you move the mouse, the paintbrush is
pasted on the picture every time a delay is passed (actually, the
delay is 1 VBL (vertical blanking)). This drawing tool allows to
change the fore and back colors when being in use.
- Dot by dot hand-drawing: the paintbrush is only pasted at the
position where you first clicked.
Right click:
============>
Toggles the different hand-drawing modes and activates, at the same
time, the hand-drawing tool.
4 - Splines:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the current curve-drawing mode as the active drawing tool.
There are 2 different curve-drawing modes:
- 4 control points curves: define the basic line like a classical
line, then move, with the left mouse button, the inner control
points to choose the shape of your curve. When the curve has the
shape you want, click with the right mouse button to draw it
definitively.
- 3 control points curves: the same as above, but you'll have only one
inner control point to place. Moreover, the spline will be traced
just after placing this point.
Right click:
============>
Toggles the different curve-drawing modes and activates, at the same
time, the curve-drawing tool.
5 - Lines:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the current line-drawing mode as the active drawing tool.
There are 3 line-drawing modes:
- Classical lines: when first clicking on the picture, you'll define
the start of the line. Maintain your click to choose the end of the
line and release the mouse button to set it.
- Knotted lines: works like classical lines, but the end of your line
will automatically become the start of the next one. When you want
to stop chaining lines, use the opposite mouse button. "The opposite
button" means that if you started to draw lignes with the left
button (Fore-color), you'll have to stop the procedure with the
right button; and conversely.
- Concentric lines: when first clicking on the picture, you'll define
the center of the lines. In fact, the center is defined by the
position of the mouse when you release the mouse button. Then you
can draw lines from the center to the current mouse position by
clicking. To stop drawing concentric lines, use the opposite mouse
button. This drawing tool allows to change the fore and back colors
when being in use.
Right click:
============>
Toggles the different line-drawing modes and activates, at the same
time, the line-drawing tool.
6 - Spray:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the spray as the active drawing tool. This drawing tool allows
to change the fore and back colors when being in use.
Right click:
============>
Displays a menu where you can configure the spray:
- Size: Defines the diameter of the circle in which will effectively
fit the spray.
- Delay: Defines the number of VBLs that will be waited for between
two flows of spray.
- Mode: Defines whether you want to use a monochrome spray or a multi-
colored one.
- Mono-flow: Defines the number of paintbrushes that will be pasted in
the circle of the spray at each cycle.
- Palette: Left-click on a color of the palette to see how much it
will be used in the multicolored flow, and modify it by using the
gauge on the right. If the flow of this color was equal to 0, then
the "Init" value will be applied. Or set the flow of a color to 0 by
clicking on it with the right mouse button.
- Clear: Removes all the colors from the multicolored flow.
Actually, this puts a 0 value in the use of each color.
- Init: Allows you to define a value that will be set to the color you
click on in the palette if its value is equal to 0. This permits to
tag a set of colors more quickly.
- +1,-1,x2,ö2: Modify the values of all the tagged colors (and only
them).
Tip: If you often use the Shade mode, and are bored to click many
times on a color to reach the color you want, you can define a
spray with "Size"=1, "Mono-flow"=1, and "Delay"=2 (or more,
according to your reflexes). And then, you'll just have to click
a few hundredths of second to modify a color.
7 - Floodfill:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the filler as the active drawing tool. The filler, as any
drawing tool, will be affected by all the effects!
Note that only the visible part of the picture will be filled (as
every other drawing tools, the floodfill only alters the visible part of
the picture; this avoids unwanted effects that wouldn't be controlled by
the user).
Right click:
============>
Selects the color replacement as the active drawing tool.
Any rule has its exceptions and this one doesn't depart from that.
Indeed, this tool is the only one to be affected by no effect (except
Stencil) and to be able to modify non visible parts of the picture.
The function of this tool being replacing all the occurences of a
color in the picture by another, if would have been a shame to limit
modifications only to the visible part of the picture.
8 - Polygons / Polyforms:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the polygons as the active drawing tool.
This works just like knotted-lines but loops the extremities when
you're finished.
Right click:
============>
Selects the polyforms as the active drawing tool.
This works like a combination of free-hand drawing and knotted-lines.
If you keep the mouse button pressed, you'll draw as if you were in
free-hand drawing mode. And, if you release the mouse button, it will
work like knotted lines.
Click on the opposite mouse button (i.e.: click right if you started
to draw with the left mouse button, and vice versa) to terminate the
operation. The two extremities will be linked automatically.
9 - Polyfills / Filled polyforms:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Work exactly the same way as the polygons et polyforms above, but fill
in the interior of the drawn shapes.
10 - Empty rectangles:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Selects the empty rectangles as the active drawing tool.
Set a corner of a rectangle. Maintain the click to move the opposite
corner and release the mouse button to set it definitively.
11 - Filled rectangles:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Selects the filled rectangles as the active drawing tool.
Works like an empty rectangle.
12 - Empty circles/ellipses:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the empty circles as the active drawing tool.
Position the center of the cercle and maintain the mouse button to
select its radius.
Right click:
============>
Selects the empty ellipses as the active drawing tool.
Position the center of the cercle and maintain the mouse button to
select its dimensions.
13 - Filled circles/ellipses:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Work like empty circles and ellipses.
14 - Rectangles with gradation:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
*** Not implemented yet ***
15 - Gradation menu:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Opens a window where you can define the way gradations are processed.
The different sections of this menu are:
- Direction (arrow): Switches the direction of the gradation.
- Dithering method: Toggles the 3 following methods:
- No dithering
- Basical dithering
- Enhanced dithering
- Mix: Mixes the gradation with a more or less random factor.
- Palette: Select a color range to build a gradation.
- Index scroller: Defines the current gradation among a set of 16 that
will be memorised.
16 - Spheres / Ellipses with gradation:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Selects the spheres as the active drawing tool.
Position the center of the sphere and maintain the mouse button to
select its radius. Then place the spot-light.
Right click:
============>
Selects the ellipses with gradation as the active drawing tool.
*** The current version of this tool isn't the right one; ***
*** so we'll explain how to use it when it will be done ***
If you trace a sphere or an ellipse with gradation with the right mouse
button, the result will be the same figure filled with the Back-color.
17 - Brush grabbing / restore:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Engages a brush grabbing.
Click on a corner of the rectangle containing the brush then maintain
the click to define the opposite corner of the rectangle. Release the
mouse button to grab the brush. Performing this operation with the right
mouse button will erase the area where the brush was grabbed with the
Back-color.
Right click:
============>
Restores the old brush.
18 - Polyformed brush grabbing (Lasso) / restore:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Grabs a brush of any shape by defining a polyform (please refer to
section 8 for more explanations).
Right click:
============>
Restores the old brush (same as above).
19 - Brush effects:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Displays a menu where the following options are available:
- X: Flip-X.
- Y: Flip-Y.
- Rotate by 90ø: Rotates the brush by an angle of 90 degrees.
- Rotate by 180ø: Rotates the brush by an angle of 180 degrees.
- Rotate by any angle: Triggers an interactive operation that allows
you to rotate the brush. For this, start by placing the center or
rotation with the left mouse button (if, at this moment, you press
the right button, the operation with be cancelled). After that, you
can define the angle of rotation as many times as you want by moving
the mouse and left-clicking. Then validate with the right button
when you are satisfied.
Meanwhile, you can press on the 8 outer digits of the numeric pad
for defining angles multiple of 45ø:
135ø 90ø 45ø
\ | /
'7' '8' '9'
180ø -'4' '6'- 0ø
'1' '2' '3'
/ | \
225ø 270ø 315ø
- Stretch: Triggers an interactive operation that enables you to stretch
the brush. For this, start by placing the upper-left cornerof the
brush with the left mouse button (if, at this moment, you press the
right button, the operation will be cancelled). after that, you can
place the opposite corner as many times as you need, then validate
with the right mouse button when you are satisfied. If you place
this point at coordinates inferior to the ones of the first point,
the brush will be inverted.
Meanwhile, you can press the following keys whose effects are:
'D' : double the brush in X and Y
'H' : reduce the brush by half in X and Y
'X' : double the brush in X
'Shift+X': reduce the brush by half in X
'Y' : double the brush in Y
'Shift+Y': reduce the brush by half in Y
'N' : restore the normal size of the brush (can be useful
because it's the only way for cancelling)
- Distort: *** Not implemented yet ***
- Outline:
This option permits to draw the outlines of the brush with the Fore-
color.
- Nibble:
This option "nibbles" the outlines of the brush. It's in some way
the opposite effect of the Outline option.
- Recolorize: Remaps the brush so that it looks like it would in the
spare page, using the current palette.
- Get brush colors: Transfers the spare page's colors used by the
brush to the current palette.
- Brush handle: Allows you to choose where to place the handle of the
brush.
- Load / Save: load or save a brush from disk.
20 - Drawing modes:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
This button opens a menu where you can switch on or off the different
drawing modes. ([F1]-[F9] keys correspond to the 9 buttons)
In this menu, the "All off" button switches all the drawing modes off.
The [Del] key is the keyboard shortcut for this button.
The "Feedback" button is only used in "Shade", "Quick-shade, "Transpa-
rency" and "Smooth" modes. When it is set, it means that the _current_
state of the picture has to be taken into account for the effect instead
of the state in which the image was when you started to click for drawing.
The best, as often, is that you try by yourself with and without Feedback
to see the difference.
The other buttons are the following:
* Shade mode / Menu:
--------------------
It consists in increasing or decreasing the color number within a user-
defined range. This shows its real dimension when used with a range of
colors that shade off. Then, you can work on a part of your picture where
colors belong to the same range without having to change your brush color
all the time.
You can choose the incrementation or decrementation of the color by
pressing the left or right mouse button while drawing. If you click on a
color that does not belong to the range, it will remain unchanged.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Shade mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can define one table of shades within a range
of 8 memorised by the program.
The different sections of this menu are:
- Palette: You can define in it the color blocks that will be inserted
into the table of shades.
- Scroller: Used to change flick through the tables of shades.
- table of shades definition area: The 512 squares should be widely
sufficient to define the different shades since every 256 colors of
the palette cannot be present more than once in each table.
- A window (on the top-right side) permits to visualize the different
shades defined in he current table.
- Copy: Copy the contents of the table in a buffer.
(Each time you open this menu, the current table is automatically
transfered into this buffer).
- Paste: Copy the contents of the buffer above in the current table.
- Clear: Reset the "shades" table.
- Insert: Used to insert the block selected in the palette at the
cursor's position in the table of shades.
IF you click with the left mouse button on this button THEN
IF a block of more than one color is selected in the table THEN
It is deleted and the block defined in the palette is inserted.
ELSE
The block defined in the palette is inserted at the postion just
before the selected square.
END IF
ELSE
The block defined in the palette is inserted by erasing the colors
following the beginning of the bloc selected in the table.
END IF
- Delete: Delete the block selected in the table.
- Blank: Follows this algorithm:
IF you click with the left mouse button on this button THEN
Replace the block selected in the table by blank squares.
ELSE
IF a block of more than one color is selected in the table THEN
Insert blank squares to the left and to the right of the block.
(this is useful for isolating a shade quickly)
ELSE
Insert blank squares to the left of the selected square.
END IF
END IF
- Invert: Invert the order of the block selected in the table.
- Swap: Allows you you move a block (this exchanges it with what is
where you want to move it).
- Undo: Cancel the last modification of the table.
- The 2 numbers displayed on the right of these buttons are:
(above) - the number of the color selected in the palette if only
one color is selected.
(below) - the number of the color contained in a square in the
shades table if this square is the only one selected.
- The "mode" button displays 3 different modes:
"Normal":
Shades in the range and saturates to its boundaries.
"Loop":
Shades in the range and loops if boundaries are passed.
"No saturation":
Shades in the range and doesn't saturate if boundaries are passed.
If the Step (see below) is set to 1, this option does exactly the
same as the Normal mode.
- Set/Disable: If you want to define several shades in the same table
but you'd like these shades not to be effective at the same time, you
can mask (disable) some parts of the table so that they will be
interpreted a blank squares.
To do that, select a block in the table of shades and click on "Set".
The block will be underlined with a white line; this means that it is
disabled.
- Clear/Enable: This does exactly the opposite as the button above.
- Step: Defines the step of incrementation of the shade. The bigger,
the faster you run through the colors of the shade.
For example: if the step is 2 and that you have defined a shade with
the colors 0,1,4,5,9 and that you click on a pixel of color 1, it will
take the value 5 which is 2 positions next in the la table.
(We are sorry for these technical considerations quite far from a
purely artistic point of view; but know that this effect is really very
useful and it is preferable that you understand its whole functionment
if you want to fully take advantage of it).
* Quick-shade mode / Menu:
--------------------------
This drawing mode has about the same effect as Shade mode's except that
it is faster to configurate but a little bit less powerful.
When you draw on a color of the image which is between the fore- and the
back-color in the palette, the color tends towards the fore-color
(according to the step defined) if you draw with the left mouse button, or
it tends towards the back-color if you are using the right mouse button.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Quick-shade mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu with a few parameters that mean exactly the same as in
the menu of Shade mode. These parameters are the step and the loop/satu-
ration mode (normal, loop, no saturation).
* Stencil mode / Menu:
----------------------
It is used to prevent some colors from being modified if you draw on
them. The main application of the stencil is when you want to change one
color or more into another.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Stencil mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can define a stencil.
The different sections of this menu are:
- Clear: No color is protected.
- Invert: Colors that were protected are unprotected and vice versa.
- Palette: Select colors that should be protected with the left mouse
button or unprotect colors with the right mouse button.
* Mask mode / Menu:
----------------------
This effect could have been called "True stencil" because it protects
some parts of the picture instead of some colors. The colors you tag
represent the pixels in the spare page, corresponding to the pixels in the
current page, that you don't want to alter.
For example, draw a simple white figure on a black background in the
spare page. Then, tag the black color in the menu of the Mask mode. When
you'll draw in the current page, only the pixels corresponding to the
white (non-black) ones in the spare page will be modified.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Mask mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can set the colors of the Mask.
This menu works the same way as the one of the Stencil, so please
refer to the Stencil paragraph to know how to use it.
* Grid mode / Menu:
-------------------
This is useful to snap the cursor to the cross-points of a grid. It's
generally used to draw a grid before drawing sprites of the same size such
as a font or tiles, or for drawing figures or grabbing brushes with their
dimensions multiple of the step of the grid.');
Left click:
============>
Switches the Grid mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can define the grid parameters.
These parameters are:
- X,Y: Steps of the grid.
- dX,dY: Offsets of the grid.
* Sieve mode / Menu:
--------------------
This effect allows you, by defining a pattern, to draw only on
particular points of the picture.
If you are a Manga drawer, you might find this useful to make patterned
shades or color transitions.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Sieve mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can define the Sieve parameters.
This menu consists in:
- 16x16 drawing area: You can define a pattern in it (left click =>
white pixel / right click => black pixel).
All the white pixels indicate that, when you'll draw, pixels will be
applied on the picture at the corresponding positions whereas black
pixels won't modify the picture: whites pixels are the "holes of the
sieve".
- 12 default patterns: They can be copied to the drawing area.
- "Transfer to brush": Copies the pattern to the brush (white pixels
=> Fore-color / black pixels => Back-color).
- "Get from brush": Puts the brush into the drawing area (back-color
=> black pixels / others => white pixels).
- Scrolling 4-arrows pad: Scrolls the pattern in the drawing area.
- Resizing 4-arrows pad: Defines the dimensions of the pattern.
- Default-value (black or white square): Indicates which value must be
inserted when you increase the dimensions of the pattern.
- "Clear": Sets the whole pattern with the default value (see above).
- "Invert": It... inverts :) ... black and white pixels.
* Transparency mode (Colorize) / Menu:
--------------------------------------
This allows to mix the color(s) of the paintbrush with the colors of the
picture. It's used to make transparency effects like with watercolors.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Transparency mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can define the Transparency parameters.
These parameters are:
- Interpolation rate: Indicates the percentage of the applied color
that will be considered upon the replaced color.
- Interpolation method: Uses an interpolation algorithm to compute the
color, according to the interpolation rate.
- Additive method: Uses the lightest colors to choose the color to
apply.
For example: if you want to apply a color RGB:30,20,40 on a color
RGB:10,50,20, the color applied will be the one, in the palette,
that is the closest to the theoretic color RGB:30,50,40.
- Subtractive method: uses the darkest colors to choose the color to
apply.
For example: if you want to apply a color RGB:30,20,40 on a color
RGB:10,50,20, the color applied will be the one, in the palette,
that is the closest to the theoretic color RGB:10,20,20.
* Smooth mode / Menu:
---------------------
It provides an easy but not as efficient anti-aliasing as any artist's
touch. Anyway this effect finds a better use in making a blurry aspect.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Smooth mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can define the Smooth matrix or choose one
among the 4 ones predefined.
The middle square represents the pixel on which you draw and the 8
others represent the neighbour pixels. Then, the point on which one draw
will be replaced by the weighted average (according to values of each
squares) of the 9 defined points.
* Smear mode / Menu:
---------------------
It smears pixels in the direction you are moving your paintbrush, just
as if you wanted to spread fresh paint with your fingers. You can combine
this effect with the transparency effect.
Any click:
==========>
Switches the Smear mode.
* Tiling mode / Menu:
---------------------
It consists in displaying parts of the brush that are adjusted on a
tiling when you are drawing. It's mainly used for quickly drawing a
background with a pattern, but there is a great number of other
possibilities.
Left click:
============>
Switches the Tiling mode.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can define the Tiling parameters.
These parameters are the offsets of the tiling.
21 - Text:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
*** Not implemented yet ***
22 - Magnifier mode / Menu:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Engages/Disengages the choice of the zoomed window. If you're already
in magnifier mode, you'll return to normal mode.
Right click:
============>
Displays a menu where you can choose the magnifying factor.
Note: When you are in Zoom mode, you can move the "split" bar by
clicking on it and moving your mouse left or right while holding the mouse
button down.
23 - Pipette / Invert colors:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Engages a color grabbing.
Click on the picture to get the color of the pixel you're on. You can
either get a new Fore-color or Back-color with respectively left or
right mouse button.
Right click:
============>
Swap Fore-color and Back-color.
The color currently pointed will be displayed in the tool-bar right
after the coordinates.
If you click outside the picture, the color 0 will be returned.
24 - Screen size / Safety resolution:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Displays a menu where you can define the size of your picture (up to
1024x768) by clicking in the boxes named "Width" and "Height"; and the
resolution in which you want to draw (in the list).
Clicking on a resolution button with the right mouse button will not
only set the resolution of the screen, but also set the picture
dimensions to the screen ones.
Resolutions written in dark gray are VESA modes that aren't supported
by your video card. If you have some modes like that, you should try to
run a VESA driver such as Univesa or Univbe before running the program.
If these modes still aren't available, then this means that your video
card really doesn't support them.
The small buttons on the left-hand side of the lines in the list of
modes have been designed to allow you to disable some modes that are not
supported by your card. So, the modes that you will disable won't be
used when loading pictures with "Auto-set resolution" ON.
When you click on one of these buttons, its color changes to one of
the 4 following. The signification for each color of these buttons is:
- Light gray: The video mode is OK. It can be used by the auto-set
resolution option when you load picture, and you can select it in
the menu of resolutions.
- White: It works exactly the same as above. Moreover, it allows you
to tag your favourite modes. Indeed, the huge number of video modes
makes it more difficult to find the mode your want in the list; so
you can tag your favoutite ones in white, so that it will be easier
to locate them. (Note: you cannot disable the standard 320x200 mode)
- Dark gray: It allows you to indicate which modes are not really
perfect (flickering, not centered, etc...) but which can be used
even so. The difference with the light grey button is that these
modes won't be used by the auto-set resolution option.
- Black: Use it for totally unsupported modes. Thus, these modes won't
be selected the "auto-set res." and the program will prevent you
from selecting them from the menu of resolutions.
Right click:
============>
Automaticaly switches to the 320x200 MCGA mode.
25 - Spare page / Copy current to spare:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Jumps to spare page. The current page is then considered as the new
spare page, and the spare page considered as the new current page.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu where you can choose whether you want to copy the whole
picture (keyboard short-cut in this menu is [Return]), only the pixels,
only the palette, or only some colors.
In this last case, a second menu (stencil-like) will propose you to
tag the colors you want to copy (they are all selected by default).
Please refer to section "18 - Stencil" to know how to use this last
menu.
The last option the menu ("Copy palette and remap"), remaps the spare
page with the current palette and replicates this palette to the spare
page. This option is useful to quickly remap a picture with the palette
of another.
26 - Save picture / Autosave:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Displays a fileselector where the following options are available:
- Drives: Allow you to change the current drive. You can use <Alt>+
<Letter> to change drives too.
- Format: Allows you to choose the file format you want. (PAL and KCF
file formats are "palette" files).
- Filename: Allows you to give a new name to the picture. If no
extension is given, the default (according to the format) will be
used.
- File-list: Allows you to flick through the disk tree or to overwrite
an existing file.
- Delete: Allows you to delete the item under the selection bar.
If the item is a directory, it must be empty to be removed.
- Save: Saves the picture with the current filename, with the chosen
format and with the current comment (for PKM files). If the current
filename represents a directory, you'll enter it.
- Comment (Txt): If you're using the PKM format, you can type in a
comment on your picture.
Note: The Backspace key brings you directly to the parent directory.
Type in the 1st lettets of a filename you are looking for to
access it faster.
Right click:
============>
Save the current picture with its current filename, format and
comment.
If the file already exists, a confirmation box will appear.
27 - Load picture / Reload:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
This works the same way as Save.
You'll have access in the format selector to a "*.*" filter. And of
course, you won't be able to type in any comment.
Right click:
============>
Reloads the picture.
If you want to load a picture and that you haven't saved the last
modifications of the current picture, a confirmation box will appear.
28 - Settings:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Displays a menu where you can configure some miscellaneous elements of
the program:
- Number of UNDO pages: indicates the total number of pages that
GrafX2 will memorize. Each time you modify the picture, its current
state is memorized in one of these pages. To flick through these
pages, use the "Oops" button (Undo/Redo).
- Font: determines whether you want to use GrafX2 with a classical
font, or another one a bit funnier.
- Mouse sensibility: Modifies the speed of the mouse.
- Show/Hide in file list: Defines whether some particular files or
directories must be displayed by the fileselectors or not.
- Show/Hide picture limits: Indicates if the picture boundaries must
be displayed when you are in a resolution bigger than the picture.
- Clear palette: Indicates if loading a file with a palette of less
than 256 colors must erase the rest of the current palette (replace
by the black color).
- Maximize preview: maximizes the preview of the pictures so that it
is as big as possible. If you're not in the same resolution as the
picture's one, it can try to correct the aspect ratio, but if the
picture does not fill the whole screen, it can be worse.
- Backup: when you'll save a picture over an existing file, the
program will rename this file to "*.BAK" where * is the name of the
picture without its extension. If the backup file already exists in
the directory, it will be replaced. If you save a picture with the
name of the backup file, no backup file will be created (of course!)
;).
- Cursor: allows you to choose whether you prefer a solid cursor or a
transparent cursor.
- Safety colors: Brings back the 4 default colors of the menus if you
run an operation that passes the image in less than four colors in
the palette editor.
- Adjust brush pick: This option is used when you grab a brush in Grid
(Snap) mode. Then, the right-most and down-most pixels won't be
picked up with the rest of the brush. This option has been made
because, if people grab brushes in Grid mode, that's mostly when
they want to grab sprites.
For example: if you have 16x16 sprites on your page, you'll set the
grid mode to 16x16. But the cursor will snap at points like (0,0),
(16,0), (16,16) and so on... And the problem is that, from (0,0) to
(16,16), there are 17 pixels! But if you keep the adjust-brush-pick
option on, the unwanted pixels will be ignored.
Moreover, this option adjusts the brush handle so that the brush
still fits in the grid, instead of placing the handle in the center
of the brush.
- Separate colors: Draws a squaring around the colors of the tool-bar.
- Auto-set resolution: sets the best resolution for the loaded image.
- Coordinates: Choose if you want to display relative or absolute
coordinates when using tools such as circles, rectangles, etc...
for example, if you draw a circle: if coords are relative, the
radius of the circle will be displayed, while in absolute coords,
the coordinates of the cursor will be displayed.
- Reload: loads the previously saved configuration.
- Auto-save: means that the configuration will be automatically saved
when you'll quit the program.
- Save: saves the configuration at once.
All modifications will be effective just after closing the menu.
29 - Clear picture:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Clears the picture with the color number 0.
Right click:
============>
Clears the picture with the Back-color.
30 - Help / Statistics:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Displays an info window where you'll find some credits, help about the
credits, different effects, greetings, registering...
Right click:
============>
Displays a window where you'll find miscellaneous informations about
the system.
Note: you should take care to keep more than 128 Kb in order to let the
program run in a proper way.
31 - Oops (Undo/Redo):
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============> Allows you to undo the last modification on the picture.
Right click:
============> Allows you to redo the last modification undone on the
picture.
The maximum number of UNDO that you can perform can be defined in the
settings menu.
Undo/Redo aren't effective after page switching, picture loading and
picture size modifications.
32 - Kill currenty page:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Removes the current page from the list of "Undo" pages. This allows
you to free some memory if you need it. For instance, this will allow
you to delete the start-up page after having loaded an image. A message
will appear if you've already erased all the pages except the last one.
Note: Another way to free some memory is to decrease the number of
"Undo" pages. Or else, if you have recentlt grabbed a very big
brush that you don't use any more, you can grab a new smaller one.
The memory allocated by the big brush will be thus freed.
33 - Quit program:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Allows you to leave GrafX2. If there are unsaved modifications in the
current or spare page, a confirmation box will ask you if you really
want to quit GrafX2, if you want to save (Auto-save, no fileselector) or
if you want to stay in GrafX2.
34 - Palette menu:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Displays a menu where the following options are available:
- Palette: Allows you to choose a color-block to edit. If you click
with the right mouse button, you'll choose a new Back-color.
- RGB gauges: Allow you to modify the current selection.
- "+" and "-": Allow you to lighten or darken the current selection.
- Default: Restores the predifined GrafX2 palette.
- Gray: Transforms the current selection into its gray-scaled
equivalent.
- Negative: Transforms the current selection into its reverse video
equivalent.
- Invert: Swaps the colors of the current selection so that the first
colors become the last ones.
- X-Invert: Works as above but modifies the picture so that it looks
the same.
- Swap: Swaps the current selection with another color-block. Click on
the beginning of the new color-block.
- X-Swap: Works as above but modifies the picture so that it looks the
same. This may be useful if you want to sort your palette.
- Copy: Copies the current selection to another color-block. Click on
the beginning of the new color-block.
- Spread: Computes a gradation between two colors. If your selection
is only made up of one color, select the second color in the
palette. Otherwise, the two colors used will be its extremities.
- Used: Indicates the number of colors used in the picture.
- Zap unused: Erases the unused colors with copies of the current
selection. (The keyboard shortcut for this button is <Del>).
- Reduce: Allows you to reduce the palette to the number of colors you
want (and modifies the picture).
- Undo: Allows you to recover the last modifications made on the
palette. If the last operation modified the picture, it won't
recover them: you'll have to click on Cancel to do so.
If you press <Backspace>, the program will replace, as well as
possible, some unused colors by the four default colors of the menu.
The image won't look altered because the modified colors (in the case
they were used on a few points) will be replaced by the closest colors
in the rest of the palette.
This option is really useful when you modify the palette so that there
are no colors that fit for the menu (eg: "Zap unused" while very little
colors are used in the picture; or "Reduce" with a very small number of
colors).
If you press the key below <Escape> or <,> (QWERTY), the menu will
disappear and you will be able to pick up a color from the picture
easily. Press <Escape> to cancel.
If only one color is selected (not a block), the <[> and <]> keys can
be used to select the previous or next Forecolor (Backcolor if you press
<Shift> at the same time).
Warning! If you press Undo after an action that modifies the picture
(X-Swap, X-Invert and Reduce colors), the picture won't be remapped as
it was just before this action. Only Cancel will.
Right click:
============>
Opens a menu from where you can access the following menus:
- A menu in which you can select the colors that have not to be used
for smoothing, for the transparency mode and for remapping.
- A menu in which you can define color series.
*** Not implemented yet ***
35 - Scroll palette left / right:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Scrolls the palette window in the right of the menu.
Right click:
============>
Same as above, but faster.
36 - Palette window:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Left click:
============>
Defines the Fore-color.
Right click:
============>
Defines the Back-color.
37 - Hide menu:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
Any click:
==========>
Allows you to hide the menu. If you do this, take care to watch before
the key to press to show the menu back (the default key is <F10>).
Let's talk about $$$, baby:
ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ
Please refer to the "Register?" section in the internal help of GrafX2.
To sum up this section, let's just say that GrafX2 is freeware. But you
can anyway send us money, graphics, or just a postcard to show us that we
made a useful program.
You must note that the version you have is already the "complete" version
(the same as the registered version) so we won't send you any other copy of
GrafX2. But if you register for one version, we'll consider that you won't
have to register for the next ones.
Drawing tips:
ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ
This section deals with tips that can help you to draw some cool effects,
or just to draw faster.
Note that, in most cases, these tips only make a big part of the work and
that you'll have to touch up in zoom mode if you want to draw a picture
worthy of the name! ;)
Moreover, if you've found out nice tips by yourself, and if you want to
share them with the others, don't hesitate to tell us.
Anti-aliasing:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
This is not an effect proposed by GrafX2 but a drawing method. It
consists in placing medium colored pixels in the angles formed by
contrasted pixels for artistically smoothing their aspect.
From our point of view, this is essential for drawing really nice
pictures.
An easy but tiresome way (the best way!) is to start by adding 1 middle
color, then antialias the new colors "recursively" while you have
intermediate colors in your palette.
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ±±±±±±±±
±±±±±±±±ÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛ
ÛÛÛÛ²²²²²±±±±°°°°
°°°°±±±±²²²²²ÛÛÛÛ
Smear mode combined with concentric lines:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
By combining this effect and this drawing tool, you can spread an area
from a central point.
If you aren't in high resolution, it can be useful to switch on the
transparency mode too (see next section).
þ A possible application is to draw fluffy hair. For that, you can choose
one of the pre-defined paintbrushes loking like random points. According
to the hair density you wish to obtain, you can choose a paintbrush with
more or less points. Then, place the center of the concentric lines in the
middle of the plush, and rotate the mouse around it keeping the mouse
button pressed.
With the same method, by turning around more, you can manage to give
an explosion effect to an object.
þ You can also create easily and quickly sun rays with this method. For
that, after having drawn the primary shape of the sun in the sky, choose
a paintbrush according to the size of the rays you want (but a small one
will often be prefered), and place the center of the lines in the center
of the sun. Then trace the ray at the length you want. If you didn't take
a big paintbrush, you'll be able first to draw an aura around the sun by
rotating quickly, and then to add more important rays with precision.
Smear mode combined with Transparency mode:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
This two drawing modes, once combined, permit to spread parts of the
picture as fresh paint.
It is recommanded to use the transparency method which consists in
interpolating with an opacity of about 60% and the effects "Feedback" on.
þ As in the prvious section, it can be useful for drawing hair and
especially eyelashes if you have got a good palette (i.e. a palette that
contains color gradations between every colors you'll draw on during the
operation.
For drawing eyelashes for example, after having drawn the eye and the
eyelid, trace a quite thick black line representing the base of the eye-
lashes (this is that black line you'll spread out on the eyelid). Then, in
smear+transparency mode, draw with the freehand continuous tool (with a
small paintbrush: 1, 2 or 3 pixels wide according to what you draw: a face
or a close-up on an eye) starting from the base of the eyelashes in giving
their shape. You'll see your black bar looking more and more like eye-
lashes.
þ One can also use these effects for mixing colors on the screen like
paint. For example, if one want to draw a background made of abstract
shapes composed of color mixings, one can proceed like what follows:
- Define a palette containing a gradation between the different colors you
wish to use .
- Draw very vaguely the different colored areas with a big paintbrush (in
normal mode).
- With a smaller paintbrush, and with the spray, apply these same colors
but lighter or darker on the previously defined areas.
- Always with the same paintbrush in spray, but this time in smear mode
(not necessarily with transparency... but why not?), mix all these colors
on the screen to obtain a "multicolored pulp" vaguely conserving the
different color areas.
- At last, in Smear+Transparency mode, with a medium rounded paintbrush,
hand-draw by whirling or making waves, etc... conserving the same movement
to avoid breaks. This aims at eliminating the pixellisation made by the
spray and giving the final mixed paint aspect.
- Now, if it's ugly, it's either because my explanations are incomprehen-
sible, or because you have no talent! :p
Spray combined with shade mode:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
þ If you often use Shade mode, and you are tired of clicking plenty of
times on a pixel for reaching the color you want, you can define a spray
with "Size"=1, "Mono-flow"=1, and "Delay"=2 (or more, according to your
reflexes). Then you'll just have to click a few hundredth of second for
modifying a color.
þ With a wider diameter, it permits to add granularity to a texture,
because placing lighter or darker pixels creates some ruggedness.
Different textures appropriated to this effect are: sand, rock, etc...
Of course, you'll need a color gradation corresponding to color of the
texture.
þ You can also draw more elaborated textures - \
using a paintbrush of the shape of a small curve \ \
or line as these figures "try" to show. ;) ` \
Thus, you can create textures of straw, hair, | \
rock, marble (although hand-drawing would be
more recommanded than spray for this last one).
Shade mode used for replacing a color gradation by another one:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
þ If you drew something with colors belonging to a gradation and you'd
like to replace all these colors by the ones of another gradation (with
the same number of colors), proceed as follows:
- Define these 2 gradations in the same shade table in the shade menu
without separating them by a blank square.
- Set the "no saturation" shade mode.
- Define the step of the shade with the size of the two gradations (e.g.:
enter 16 if each gradation contains 16 colors).
- Now, you just have to draw on the area you want the colors to change
(with the left mouse button if you placed the gradation to replace first
in the shade table, or inversely).
Spheres combined with additive transparency mode:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
þ Starting from a dark background (if possible all of the same color),
trace overlapping spheres with their lighting point at their center.
You'll quickly obtain a "blob" effect.
How to draw drops:
ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ
þ Here is a fast and efficient method to draw drops.
Just draw very bright pixels on the side of the drop where the main light
is, and less bright ones on the opposite side. Then draw shadows according
to the position of the light.
Here are examples with a light ±±±±±±±±±±±± ±±±±±±±±
coming from the top-left corner. ±±±±±±±±±±±± ±±±±±±±±
(they are best viewed in 80x50 ±±±±²±°±±±±± ±±Û°±±±±
text mode) ±±±²Û°°±±±±± ±±±°²°±±
±±±Û²°±²°±±± ±±±±°±±±
You may think that the smallest ±±±²±°²²°±±± ±±±±±±±±
drop doesn't really look like a ±±±±±²Û±°±±± ±±±±±±±±
drop, but draw it in graph mode ±±±±±°°°±±±±
and you'll see it DOES look ±±±±±±±±±±±±
like a drop. ±±±±±±±±±±±±
If you don't trust me, then know that it's by looking at Lazur's graphs
that I found this method. And in a general way, it's always good to study
the work of the best artists to learn new techniques.
Trouble-shooting / General hints / FAQ:
ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ
* Video card problems:
- VESA modes are disabled by Windows NT. And it is said that it will be
the same under Windows 2000 (we haven't tried it yet, and we aren't in a
hurry!).
- If your video card is not VESA compatible in hardware, you should try to
run a VESA driver such as Univesa or Univbe.
- If your card is VESA compatible but doesn't display the screen correctly
in VESA resolutions, that's probably because they don't fulfil all the
criteria that we expect. The explanation is that, for a better efficiency,
we have had to neglect some specificities on some video cards. However,
we always try to improve the compatibility with any kind of the VESA
standard in each new version.
- If you have an ATI Mach 64 video card (e.g. ATI Xpert), you should use
the m64vbe TSR supplied with the card to fully support our fancy XVESA
modes by typing "m64vbe vga".
* Memory problems:
- Since the 94.666% version, we use the EOS dos-extender Copyright (c)1996
Eclipse instead of the usual DOS4GW. The reason is that it is much
smaller in disk space (a smaller zip should please your phone bills) and
in memory (so you'll be able to run GrafX2 with more device handlers
using conventionnal memory). In addition, this dos-extender is inside
the main file, which reduces the number of files (your FAT will be happy
for that).
The backdraw is that this dos-extender doesn't manage disk-cache. So, if
you haven't at least 4 Megabytes of RAM, you'll have to use the batch
file GFX2_MEM.BAT .
Notice that:
- you'll have to configure this file according to the location of some
files in the tree of your hard-disk(s).
- you'll have to have the file DOS4GW.EXE somewhere in the tree of
your hard-disk(s).
- you'll need at least 16 Megabytes of free space on your current
hard-disk.
If you ever encounter problems using GrafX2 (with at least 4 Megabytes
of RAM) that would vanish using GFX2_MEM, we would thank you to let us
know.
EOS is a shareware dos-extender, with very interesting libraries for
music, graphism, ... for Watcom, Tasm or Masm applications. If you want
more informations on its features or its libraries, don't hesitate to
contact us in order to be put in relationship with its authors.
* Sound card problems:
Q: No sound comes out from my Ultra-maxi-sound-blaster-galaxy-64-3D-pnp,
so what can I do?
A: Well... You must understand that this program is not a soundtracker nor
a music-player :) ... So if you want some music, you'll have either to
play modules with a good player that can run background (with a DOS
shell), or to switch your Hi-Fi on.
* Miscellaneous:
- If you corrupted the GFX2.CFG file and that GrafX2 uses it as is, with
an incorrect behavior, don't hesitate to erase GFX2.CFG and to re-run
GFXCFG to create a new correct one. Indeed, the only tests of validity
we do on the configuration file are checking its size and its version
number.
- It may happen that you get a version already configured by one of your
friends who could have used some "Windows 95" keys while you haven't got
such keyboard yourself. In this case, you'll have to reconfigure these
combinations using GFXCFG.
* Frequently asked questions:
Q: How can I set the dimensions of the picture?
A: We thought it was obvious that you had to click in the areas where the
dimensions are written in the resolution menu (Width & Height) but many
people asked this question (?!). So, to sum up, everywhere you'll see a
value or text written in black in a sort of encrusted area, this means
that if you click on it, you'll be able to modify its value.
Moreover, if you want the picture dimensions to be the same as the ones
of the screen, you just have to right-click on the resolution in the
list.
Q: Where can I get the latest version of GrafX2?
A: The only place where you will find the latest version for sure is our
web site: http://www-msi.ensil.unilim.fr/~maritaud/sunset
Nevertheless, it isn't impossible that GrafX2 may also be found on FTP
sites dedicated to the "demo-scene" (e.g. ftp://ftp.scene.org).
Q: How can I make the brush become monochrome, and how can I get it back
to its normal state?
A: You can do it (assuming that you haven't modified the default keys)
with the keys <Shift>+<F4> to make the brush become monochrome, and
<Shift>+<B> to get the multi-coloured brush back.
Q: Why is the tool bar at the bottom of the screen instead of at the right
side like in Deluxe Paint (copyright Electronic Arts)?
A: Well... GrafX2 IS NOT Deluxe Paint! We know that you are used to Deluxe
Paint but you'll have to get used to GrafX2! ;) If you really can't
stand using GrafX2 like this, then you'll have to wait for GrafX3 but
we probably won't release it before year 2000! Actually, the main
reason why we put the tool bar with such a basical aspect is that it
was easier (therefore faster) to redraw the whole screen just by
telling the routine where to stop (where starts the tool bar).
Moreover, one of the best Amiga paint programs (Brilliance) has got the
tool bar at the bottom of the screen too.
Q: Why aren't the hidden parts of the picture filled when I use the "Flood
fill" tool?
A: For the simple and "quite" good reason that it is preferable that the
user controls perfectly what he is drawing. Thus, he won't see too late
that he has fucked up a part of his picture. The other tools work the
same way. And for the less good reason that is was more convenient for
us. ;)
Q: Is it possible to launch the program in a different resolution than
320x200?
A: Yes, you just have to type GFX2 <mode_number> at the DOS prompt. Type
GFX2 /? to get the list of all the video modes.
Q: Is it normal that some buttons don't work (e.g.: the Text button)?
A: Yes, this is because we haven't had the time to make them (I remind you
that GrafX2 is still at a Beta version state).
However, here is the list of the buttons that don't respond in GrafX2:
- Grad. rectangles
- Text
- Effects on the picture
- and the following button in the "Brush effects" menu: Distort.
Q: Will you release a Windows version?
A: GrafX2 would lose its soul by being adapted to a windowed system or a
system that doesn't support all its video modes. And anyway, it can be
run from Windows 9x (we don't know about Windows 2000 but we don't
care). So that's OK the way it is. The only interesting thing that
Windows could bring is the clipboard.
Q: Will you release a Linux version?
A: Although this is about the same problem as with the Windows version,
Linux lacks programs like GrafX2; so, even a limited version would be
interesting in this OS. Therefore, we would like to release a Linux
version. But we have no experience in Linux programming and our code is
completely indecipherable for others. So you'll have to wait...
Q: How can I contact you?
A: Actually, this is not really this question since those people managed
to contact us ;) but...
* Snail mail:
GUILLAUME DORME (Robinson) KARL MARITAUD (X-Man)
15, rue de l'observatoire 10, rue de la Brasserie
87000 LIMOGES (FRANCE) 87000 LIMOGES (FRANCE)
* E-mail:
dorme@msi.unilim.fr maritaud@ensil.unilim.fr
Do not hesitate to contact us; we love that! :)
We'll try to reply to every e-mails (if any answer is needed), and also
to certain normal letters (Yes of course, we won't ruin ourselves for
stamps just to say "Thanks for writing!" :)).
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