Shadowed Outlined Text
1. Type text object. Works best with large, bold fonts with lots of black in the characters.
2. Drop the Shadow FX onto the object.
3. Right click and choose Transparent Color > Choose Color
4. Click in a character (on black portion).
5. Characters become transparent so you can now "see through" the characters. The shadow is only remaining part of the text that can be seen. If you have a colored background, set the background of the text object to the same color.
Patterned Text
1. Do "Shadowed Outlined Text" above.
2. Place a patterned graphic on top of the text. Make sure the graphic is large enough to cover all of the characters in the text.
3. Select the graphic, and choose Send To Back.
4. The transparent characters in the text allow the pattern to show through.
Text Within Text
1. Do "Shadowed Outlined Text" above.
2. Create another text object and fill it with whatever text you want.
3. Select the text object and choose Sent To Back.
4. The transparent characters in the first text object allow the text in the second object to show through.
5. Make sure the second text object is large enough and has enough text in it to fill all of the characters in the first text object.
Text Filled with Picture
1. Do "Shadowed Outlined Text" above.
2. Place a picture on top of the text. Make sure the picture is large enough to cover all of the characters in the text.
3. Select the picture, and choose Send To Back.
4. The transparent characters in the text allow the picture to show through.
Edge FX's
1. Using the same edge effect on different sized graphics gives different effects.
2. Drop the Reverse FX onto your graphic and then drop an edge effect on it.
3. Then "Reverse" the resulting graphic. This reverses the edges on the Edge FX.
4. Do the same thing with the Flip FX.
5. Do the same thing with the Flip and Reverse FX.
These effectively multiply the number of edge FX's available.
Combining Edges and Patterns
1. If you want to add a pattern (or texture) from the FX tab and also an Edge FX, you should drop the pattern onto the graphic first.
2. Then drop the Edge. If you do it the other way, you'll get the white, transparent area outside the edge back again but with the pattern on it.
This could be another effect however, if you like it.
Spray Painted Walls (Graffiti FX)
1. Create a text object and type your text.
2. Make it the size, font, color, style you want.
3. Drop the Brick Pattern FX onto the text object. It looks like spray paint on the wall.
4. First dropping the Blur FX onto the text and then the Brick Pattern can enhance the effect.
5. Use the first Blur and see how it works, try the others as well.
Use the one that looks best.
Offset Text
1. Create a text object and add the text.
2. Add any font, styles, colors, sizes to the text.
3. Duplicate the text object.
4. Change the color of the text.
5. Put one object on top of the other.
6. Nudge the top one around such that just a pixel or two offsets it horizontally and vertically.
7. The result is text with a colored "shadow."
You can use more than two text objects with different color to create rainbow effects, graduated shadows, etc. Just create more duplicates of the first object, change the text color as appropriate, stack the objects on top of each other and offset them.
Don't worry about using a lot of space on the Web with this effect. The size of the resulting graphic is relatively small, since all of the text objects are automatically combined into one graphic by the program when the site is uploaded.
Cropping Pictures and Graphics
1. To crop a graphic, simply use a rectangle with the same color as the page's background to cover the part of the graphic to be cropped.
2. If the background is white, use a white rectangle that is not transparent.
3. Make sure the rectangle is not transparent.
4. If the rectangle is covering up another object you want to see, simply select that object and choose "Bring Selected Object to the Front".
Fixing Ragged Text
1. If the font you are using has jagged edges when viewed in a Web browser, simply drop the Blur FX onto the text object.
2. Continue to drop Blur until you get the desired result.
Using Text as a Background
1. Create a text object with the text, font, style, sizes you want for your background.
2. Drop the Reverse FX onto the text; the text object is now a graphic.
3. Drop the Reverse FX onto the object again, it now reads correctly.
4. Copy (or Cut) the graphic. Choose Paste as Background. The text is now used as your background.
Embossed Text Background
1. Repeat steps 1-4 of Using Text as a Background but use the Emboss FX in place of the Reverse FX.
2. Use Lighten or Darken FX to make the background the correct brightness.
Note: Once the embossed text is in the background, you can simply drop the Lighten or Darken (or any) FX directly onto the background.
Embossed Photo as Background
1. Place a picture on the page.
2. Copy or Cut it to the clipboard.
3. Choose Paste as Background.
4. Drop the Emboss FX onto the background.
5. Use Lighten or Darken FX to make the background the correct brightness.
Using Photo Correction Wizard on Backgrounds
1. If you have used a graphic as a background, you can drop the Photo Correction Wizard from the Special FX tab onto the background of a page.
2. This enables you to change the hue, brightness, contrast, sharpness of the background just like with a photo on a page.
Using FX's on Backgrounds
1. If you have used a graphic as a background, you can drop any effect from the FX tab onto the background of a page.
2. Use the same background on all pages in your Web site, but make small "Special FX" changes to each one.
3. For Example: Use an increasing amount of the Blur effect on subsequent pages.
Adding Text to Pictures
1. Create a text object, choosing the text, font, style, color and size
2. Drag it on top of the picture.
3. Select the text object and choose Bring to the Front to put the text object on top of the graphic.
4. The program will combine them both into one graphic when the site is Previewed or Saved to the Internet.
Adding Pictures to Text
1. Create a text object, choosing the text, font, style, color and size.
2. Drag the picture on top of the text object.
3. You may have to move some text around by using tabs or spaces or the Enter key to make room for the picture.
4. Select the graphic and choose Bring to the Front to put the graphic object on top of the text.
5. The program will combine them both into one graphic when the site is Previewed or Saved to the Internet.
Antique Photographs
1. Place a photograph on the page.
2. Drop the Colorize FX onto the photo.
3. Choose a light brown color from the dialog.
4. Click on Custom Colors in the dialog.
5. On the far right side of the dialog, click and drag the graduated color until the color is a fairly light brown.
6. Click OK. The photo will be colored light brown.
7. Drop the Noise FX onto the photo. If you want more noise, drop it again.
8. Finally, drop one of the Edge FX's onto the photo. The ones that work best are the ones with black on their edges. This simulates the photo that has turned brown or sepia with age, its edges curling or cracking over the years.
Variation: Drop the Canvas Pattern FX onto the photo prior to dropping the Edge FX. This simulates an old drawing on canvas.
How to get the most of working with groups of objects
The advantage to working with a group of objects (i.e. clip art or photos) is that a command is applied to all the objects at once, significantly increasing the speed at which you can experiment with your layout. There are two distinct ways to work with a group of objects on your Web page.
1. Hold down the Shift key and click on the desired objects
2. Hold down the left mouse button and "drag the net" around the desired objects.
The objects that have been selected will now have "handles" around them. (For a detailed look at Handles, run the Web Studio Tutorial by going to Help>Tutorial in the program.) You can now align, resize, and relocate all of the selected objects.
Use the CTRL key in Web Studio.
With the CTRL key you can perform two timesaving, Web page enhancing operations.
Hold down the CTRL key and click on an object. This will place an exact copy of the image on the page. Simply click on the image again and drag the new image to a new position on your Web page.
Before you resize and object, hold down the CTRL key. When you finish resizing, Web Studio will automatically smooth, or "dither", the image. Dithering is the process of softening the pixels in the image. This keeps the image from looking grainy.
How can I use images from a different Web page?
You can add images to a Web Studio Web site via dragging and dropping the image from the browser to Web Studio. Here's how:
1. Start Web Studio and begin working on a site.
2. Open your Web browser and connect to the Internet.
3. Surf the Web until you find an image that you want to add to your Web page. (Remember copyright laws make it illegal to use copyrighted images on your Web pages!)
4. Resize your Browser window and Web Studio window so you can see both.
5. Click on the desired image and drag it to the Web Studio work place.
6. The image will appear! It is ready to be moved around, resized and edited!
7. Drag it into you're My Stuff Gallery to use later!
How do I use transparency in graphics?
Web Studio allows you to create unique and interesting effects by giving you full control of the transparent elements in any image. By making portions of an image transparent, the illusion of one blended image is produced. To select transparency do the following:
1. Right-click over the desired image and select transparent color>choose color.
2. On the left the image is displayed, and on the right all of the specific colors in the image are displayed.
3. Click on any portion of the image to preview with the desired color made transparent.
4. Alternately, click on any of the specific colors on the right to preview the image with that specific color made transparent.
Creative use of transparency will help you produce a one of a kind Web site!
How can I use a background from another Web page?
You can add a background from another Web page by using the "Paste as Background" command in the Edit menu. Here's how:
1. Start Web Studio and begin working on a new or existing Web site.
2. Open your Web browser and connect to the Internet.
3. When you find a page that has a background that you like right click over the Web page background and choose Copy Background.
4. Open the Web Studio window and right click over your work surface.
5. Choose "Paste as Background. The background will now grace your Web page.
Make your own wallpaper for your PC!
Web Studio allows you to save any page you create as a graphic itself. You can save the file and make your own wallpaper for you PC! Here's how:
1. Start Web Studio and create a cool Web page.
2. Go to File>Save Page as Graphic and save the image in the folder of your choice on your hard drive.
3. Minimize all of your windows and right-click over the Windows desktop.
4. Choose Properties.
5. Click on the Background tab.
6. Click Browse.
7. Go to the appropriate folder and double click on the graphic you just saved.
8. Click OK.
9. Your Web Studio Web page is now your Windows wallpaper!
How can I make thumbnails for my pages?
Using "save page as a graphic" you can create ready to use thumbnails for your Web site Here is an example of how to do it!
1. Create and complete a three page Web site in Web Studio.
2. When finished, go to the second page in the site and choose "Save Page as Graphic". Save the file to your Windows desktop.
3. Go to the first page and choose Insert>Picture from File.
4. Go to the Windows desktop and double-click on the file you just saved.
5. It will now appear as if the second page is on your first! Grab the handle in the upper corner and resize the graphic to thumbnail size.
6. Open the Links tab and drag the second page link onto the thumbnail.
7. You now have a thumbnail link.
8. Repeat the process with the third page.
Which version of HTML should I choose?
Choosing HTML 3.2 or 4.0 or Both!
Web Studio by default generates two complete versions of your Web site. Why two? Well, this allows you to be confident that all of the features you have placed on your site will be viewed properly by a visitor to your site regardless of what version Web browser (ex. Internet Explorer 3.0 or 4.0) they are using.
As the Web has developed so has HTML and Web browsers. HTML is the series of tags, or layout instructions, that is loaded behind scenes when you visit any Web site. (You can view any page's HTML by going to View>Source in Internet Explorer or by going to View>Page Source in Netscape Navigator) Web Studio allows you to produce a site without thinking about which browser will be used to view the site by creating a version specifically for 3.0 browsers and another specifically for 4.0 browsers.
Inside your Web Studio Web site is the Web site's properties. Click on the "Site Properties" button in the Page Palette. Click on the Advanced tab. Here is where you can determine what version of HTML to use.
Version 3.2 is older, and does not allow the overlapping of images on your pages. Version 4.0 is the latest standard and is best viewed by users who have version 4.0 or higher Web browsers. Note: HTML 3.2 without overlapping will create the highest quality sites. To prevent overlapping when designing enable the "highlight overlapping objects" feature of Web Studio. (See the View Menu in Chapter IV)
If you can be confident that everyone you know will view your site using Web browsers of 4.0 or higher than click on the "Use HTML 4.0 only" button. This will save you time when your pages are previewed and uploaded and will save you space on your Server allowing you to make more Web Studio Web sites!
If you are unsure about the browsers your acquaintances are using then stick to using both. In this way you can be confident that your site will look as it is intended.
What is an Anchor and how do I use one?
An "anchor" is used to place an "intra-page" link on any given page. They are most handy if you have a long Web page that requires considerable scrolling. This allows you to place a link at the bottom of page that will automatically scroll up to the top of the page. Another popular use for anchors is to have a series of questions at the top of a page and an anchor that links a specific answer to a specific question. Here's how you use anchors:
1. Start Web Studio and open a new or an existing Web site.
2. Place an icon (this can be any graphic) or button at the top of the page.
3. Click on the Links tab and drag "Add Anchor to Object" and drop it on top of the icon.
4. Name the Anchor. An example would be "Top of Page".
5. Scroll down your page and place another icon at the bottom of your page.
6. Drag the newly created Anchor link (in our example, "Top of Page") and drop in on top of the icon. The linking box will now appear indicating that a link has been placed on this icon.
7. Preview the Web site by hitting your F5 key to see the anchor link in action.
How do I add background color to my text?
Web Studio allows you to add fonts and adjust their size, color, and their transparency. It also allows you to create cool effects by adding a background color to the text itself! Here's how:
1. Start Web Studio and open a new or existing Web site.
2. Click on the Text tab. Drag a desired font onto your work surface and type your desired text.
3. Right click over the text and choose Text Background Color>Text Background Color. Choose any color you like and click OK. The color is now the background to the text box!
4. You can resize the text box to create your desired effect.
How do I add an E-mail link to word of text?
1. Open you Web page in Web Studio and click the Link tab.
2. Go to Insert>Add my own link.
3. Name your link "My E-mail" or whatever you decide.
4. For the Link URL, erase the http:// part and enter mailto: followed by your e-mail address. Example, mailto:Webstudio@sierra.com.
5. Click OK. The link will now be in the "My links" window.
6. Single click on your body of text and highlight the words you wish to "link" via e-mail.
7. Drag the My E-mail link from the Link tab to the highlighted word(s).
8. Preview the Web site and check your link.
9. If the link does not work, try the procedure again.
How do I change the speed of a Slide Show?
When you create a Web Studio Slide Show the default time between slides is 10 seconds. You can make this shorter or longer by doing the following.
Open Web Studio.
Create your Slide Show making sure you choose "Automatically every Ten Seconds" in Slide Show Options.
Right-click over the Slide Show and choose Properties.
Click the HTML Content tab.
Scroll down until you see <param name=DelayBetweenImages value=10>.
Change the value from 10 (seconds) to any number you prefer.
Click OK.
Preview your site to check for the desired results.