TumaSoft, LLC
 
 
Welcome to Preset Viewer v2.1!

Congratulations! You have taken the first step in turning your Photoshop presets from a natural disaster into a powerful, easy to access tool. Your design capabilities will no longer be stifled by the inability to locate the shape or style you just know you have but don't know where it is or what it was called!

1: Installing & Verifying Preset Viewer

Install Preset Viewer by running the installation package included with your purchase. This can be done by double-clicking on the Preset Viewer 2.1 Install.msi file included with your download.

Once Preset Viewer has been installed, you can launch the program by double-clicking on the Preset Viewer icon which looks like this:Icon.png

When you launch the program the first time, you will be prompted to verify your purchase. Preset Viewer will not operate without verification.

It is fastest and easiest to verify your purchase instantaneously via the internet. However, if your computer is not connected to the internet, you may generate a serial code from an alternate computer. The verification box is shown in Illustration 1.1.

To verify your software, simply fill in the boxes with the information from the sales invoice you received by email and press the Verify My Purchase Online button. You will need to have your Order ID number, First and Last Name, and Billing Address. These must match your sales invoice exactly or your verification will fail.

verification_1.jpg

In the event your verification fails, you will receive the message shown in Illustration 1.2.

verify_error.jpg

Please check the information you entered against your sales invoice. Our databases will only allow two (2) registrations per license. Please use the store contact form if you need additional licences.

Preset Viewer will automatically detect whether or not you are connected to the internet. If you do not have internet access on the computer on which you wish to install Preset Viewer, the section displayed below will be activated in the Verification Window. (Illustration 1.3)

verify_no_internet.jpg

You can obtain a serial code for verification by going to the verification page on the TumaSoft website at: http://www.tumasoft.com/preset_viewer/verification.php from a different computer. You will need the same information from your Sales Invoice to obtain the serial code.

Upon successful verification a serial code will be automatically generated for you and displayed on your screen. Keep this code in a safe place for your records. We recommend copying and pasting this serial code in to a text document for safe keeping.

Once you have received your serial code, go to the offline system you have installed Preset Viewer on and enter the serial code and press the Verify My Purchase by Serial Code button.

Now that your copy of Preset Viewer is verified, you will have the opportunity to import your keywords and search settings from a previous version of Preset Viewer. A dialogue box (Illustration 1.4) will be displayed with the option to either import your previous presets or to continue on with the activation of your product without importing.

import_data.jpg

It is important to import any data you wish to from version 2.0 on the first run of Preset Viewer. Once you have manually entered any preferences or keywords in Preset Viewer v. 2.1 you will no longer have the option of importing your version 2.0 data.

Now that you have installed and verified Preset Viewer and imported your data....

Let the fun and games begin!!!

2: Setting Your Preferences

If you have previously used Preset Viewer, when you launch version 2.1 for the first time, you will notice quite a few new tabs, both in the tree view and the center display area.

One of the first things you want to do is set up your preferences. By default, Preset Viewer will search all available drives for the following file types:

    • Image Files: .bmp, .dib, .jp1, .jp2, .jpg, .png
    • Photoshop Specific: .abr, .acb, .aco, .act, .ase, .asl, .csh, .pat, .psd
    • Jasc: .jbr

The Search Properties Dialog Box (Illustration 2.2) is accessible from the FILE menu.

preferences.jpg

The Search Properties Dialogue Box will allow you to tailor the way Preset Viewer finds and displays your files. Although it is recommended to occasionally do a complete drive scan to locate any files you may have forgotten about, not setting some search preferences can cause Preset Viewer to have a very long loading time as it searches hundreds of gigs of storage space for thousands upon thousands of files.

In Illustration 2.2, you will see the most important features of the Search Properties marked with a small letter.

A. This check box toggles the Folders Searched features on and off. This feature allows you to easily reset your drive for a complete scan without having to redo your customized search information. When checked, Preset Viewer will search all available drives on your system.

B. The Folders Searched box is used to indicate which folders on the system are searched. Any number of folders can be added to the list. Use the Add new folder to list button to bring up the Windows Browse for Folder interface.

C. The Folders not Searched box is used to exclude a folder from within one of the included search folders. For example: If you wanted to search all of the folders within Photoshop except for the Required folder, you would include Photoshop in the Folders Searched section, and the Photoshop / Required folder in the Folders not Searched section.

D. This check box determines whether or not all of the files on your computer are displayed in the My Computer tab in the Preset Viewer tree view. If it is unchecked, only the file types selected in the File Extensions available section of the Search Properties box within Preset Viewer will be displayed on the My Computer tab within the application.

E. File Extensions available section outlines the file types Preset Viewer can display and allows you to select which file types Preset Viewer searches for. Check the box next to each file extension to include it in the search.

When you click on the OK button in the Search Properties dialogue box, Preset Viewer will restart the drive search with the new settings in effect.

Choosing Which Program Opens What File

Preset Viewer can allow you to open files in your choice of programs. If you use anything other than Photoshop, or your Photoshop installation was placed in a custom location, you will need to set your file associations before using the program to open any preset files.

To select the programs with which Preset Viewer open a file with, open the Set Application Associations dialogue box from the FILE menu.

In this dialogue box, you will be able to select which programs you would like to have included by Selecting the Add... button to bring up the Windows navigation client. (Illustration 2.3)

apps.jpg

3: The User Interface: What's Where

Now that your search preferences are set up, let's take a look around the user interface of Preset Viewer (Illustration 3.1).

The Preset Viewer interface is divided into five distinct areas: the tool bar, the tree view, the primary display area, the swatch manager, and the status bar. Below the standard menu bar, is the tool bar. This section features quick access to the most commonly used options.

psv_ui_main_hilited.jpg

Beneath the tool bar, the interface is divided into three separate sections. The Tree View, the left hand section, is where the files located by Preset Viewer are listed. This is also where you will choose which file to display. The center section is the primary display area. And the right hand section is the swatch manager. This is where the color of the foreground, background and filter colors can be changed, and also where color swatches are built for export. At the very bottom is the status bar. This area provides important information about the type and number of files in the currently selected preset; the name of the file; and the current brush, background and filter colors

The Tool Bar

The primary Tool Bar is active when the Primary Display window is on the thumbnail, filmstrip, tiled or export set tab. It is divided into 4 sections of 3 buttons each. The first set of buttons handles search functions, the second set handles display properties, the third set - display sizes and the fourth set - swatches. Two additional sets of buttons are available when the Export tab is active. These buttons are for adding and removing files to be exported and exporting the current set.

Search Functions
search_all.jpg

Drive Search Properties On/Off
This button works as a toggle. When the button is in the down position, Preset Viewer will search all available drives regardless of the preferences set in the Search Properties dialogue box.

  • NOTE: The following Search Functions are also accessible from the FILE menu.
show_search_props.jpg

Search Properties Dialogue Box
Clicking this button will bring up the Search Properties dialogue box.

restart_search.jpg

Restart Drive Search
Clicking this box will cause Preset Viewer to rescan your drives for files.

   
Quality Functions
  • NOTE: All of the Quality Functions are also accessible from the VIEW menu.
show_alpha.jpg

Use Checkerboard for Alpha Channel
This button works as a toggle. When the button is in the down position, Preset Viewer displays a checkerboard pattern instead of the background color so you can easily detect transparent areas of a brush, shape, style or pattern.

quality_filter.jpg

Use Quality Filter
This button works as a toggle. When the button is in the down position, Preset Viewer will apply a filter when enlarging or reducing image sizes to provide the best display image possible. With this filter activated images display slower, but at a much higher quality.

stretch_small.jpg

Stretch Small Images to Thumbnail Size
This button works as a toggle. When the button is in the down position, Preset Viewer will proportionately enlarge a brush, pattern or shape to fill the thumbnail square. This feature only effects the display in the Thumbnails Tab.

   
Size Functions
  • NOTE: All of the Quality Functions are also accessible from the OPTIONS menu.
  Thumbnails Tab
thumbs_small.jpg

Use Small Thumbnails
This button is available when the Thumbnail or Export set tabs are active. Each thumbnail is displayed proportionately in a 48 pixel by 48 pixel area.

thumbs_med.jpg

Use Large Thumbnails
This button is available when the Thumbnail or Export set tabs are active. Each thumbnail is displayed proportionately in a 96 pixel by 96 pixel area.

thumbs_lrg.jpg

Use Extra Large Thumbnails
This button is available when the Thumbnail or Export set tabs are active. Each thumbnail is displayed proportionately in a 192 pixel by 192 pixel area.

  Filmstrip Tab
 
  • NOTE: For all Filmstrip Tab display sizes, beneath the image displayed in the Primary Display Window, the percentage of actual size that the image is being displayed will be notated.
actual_size.jpg

Fit Image To Display Space
This button is available when the Filmstrip tab is active. The image selected in the selection area at the bottom of the Primary Display window (Illustration 3.2) will be reduced or enlarged in size to proportionally fill the display area.

selection_area.jpg

 

fit_width.jpg

Fit Image to Width of Display Area
This button is available when the Filmstrip tab is active. The image selected in the selection area at the bottom of the Primary Display window will be reduced or enlarged in size to proportionally fill the width of the display area. In the event that the scaled image is taller than the display area, a scroll bar will appear on the right hand side of the Primary Display Window.

stretch_to_fit.jpg

View Actual Size
This button is available when the Filmstrip tab is active. The image selected in the selection area at the bottom of the Primary Display window will be displayed at the image's actual size as embedded in the file. In the event that the actual size exceeds that of the display area, scroll bars will appear to the right and bottom of the Primary Display Window.

  Tiled Tab
4across.jpg

Display Image 4 Tiles Across
This button is available when the Tiled tab is active. The image selected in the selection area at the bottom of the Primary Display window will be displayed 4 images across with as many vertical rows as is necessary to fill the Primary Display area.

8across.jpg

Display Image 8 Tiles Across
This button is available when the Tiled tab is active. The image selected in the selection area at the bottom of the Primary Display window will be displayed 8 images across with as many vertical rows as is necessary to fill the Primary Display area.

16across.jpg

Display Image 16 Tiles Across
This button is available when the Tiled tab is active. The image selected in the selection area at the bottom of the Primary Display window will be displayed 16 images across with as many vertical rows as is necessary to fill the Primary Display area.

   
Swatch and Color Functions
  • NOTE: The Load Swatch & Load Default Colors options are also accessible from the VIEW menu.
default_palette.jpg

Load Default Colors
Replaces the colors in the Swatch Manager with a default set of 16 colors. This button is only active when a set of colors, other than the default palette is currently in the Swatch Manager.

load_swatch.jpg

Load Swatch File
Loads the swatch file currently displayed in the Primary Display window into the Swatch Manager to be used as brush, background or filter colors, or to be modified for export.

default_filters.jpg

Reset Brush, Background and Filter Defaults
Replaces the colors currently being used for the Brush, Background and Filter colors with the default colors.. This button is only active when a set of colors, other than the default colors is being used. (Illustration 3.3)

exportset_hilited.jpg

 

Export Tab Specific Functions
  • NOTE: All Export Tab Specific functions are also accessible from the OPTIONS menu.

add_remove_single.jpg

Add or Remove Selected
Adds (up) or removes (down) either the image selected in the Selection area or the first image to/from the Export Set

add_remove_all.jpg

Add or Remove All to Export Set
Adds (up) all of the images in the Selection Area to the Export Set or removes (down) all of the images in the Primary Display Area from the Export Set

export_abr.jpg

Export Set as ABR
Exports the set displayed in the Primary Display Area as a Photoshop brush file (.abr.) Images are exported at their actual size. Images that are larger than 2500 pixels square are resized proportionally to a size less than 2500 pixels. Due to the nature of the ABR file format, color images are exported as grayscale plus an alpha channel.

export_png.jpg

Export Set as Individual PNG Files
Exports the set displayed in the Primary Display Area to a folder location of your choosing as individual PNG files. Images are exported as they are displayed. This allows the user to apply brush, background and filter colors to the images before they are exported, creating several varieties of the same image with ease. Images are exported at their actual size unless they are larger than 2500 pixels square in which they are resized proportionally.

4: User Interface: The Tree View

The Tree View (Illustration 4.1), on the left hand side of the Preset Viewer user interface, is where files are listed, filtered and displayed for viewing. The frame utilizes a series of tabs, each which filters the search results by file type.

tree_view.jpg

4.1 Preset Viewer's file display mechanism, the Tree View, is a series of navigable tabs.

The default tab, My Computer, displays all of the files in the folders determined by your Search Preferences. It is highly recommended to select Show only files with selected extensions on the My Computer tab in the Search Properties dialogue box for performance reasons.

Additionally, Preset Viewer will display your folders separately according to your Search Preferences.

Each file type is indicated by it's own unique icon. When the file list being displayed was created by overriding the Search Preferences (either by checking the box in the Search Preferences dialogue box or by depressing the Search All button on the tool bar) the folders which are either included or excluded in the Search Preferences are have special icons to indicate their status.

Preset Viewer Iconography

All of the files which Preset Viewer displays have their own unique icons. Each file has both a regular icon and an icon which indicates that the file has been keyworded. Files are selected in the Tree View List for display in the Primary Display Window. You can determine which type of file you wish to view by selecting the appropriate tab at the top of the Tree View pane. The following table provides quick reference to each icon and it's associated file type.

Drive and Navigations Icons

netdisk.jpg Network Disk

harddisk.jpgHard Drive

cdrom.jpgCD/DVD

ramdisk.jpgRAM Drive

closedfile.jpgClosed Folder

openfile.jpgOpen Folder

included.jpgFolder Included by User

excluded.jpgFolder Excluded by User

Photoshop Preset Files

abrbrushdocument.jpg.abr Brush

abrbrushdocumentkey.jpg Keyworded .abr Brush

acbswatchdocument.jpg.acb Color Book

acbswatchdocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .acb Color Book

acoswatchdocument.jpg.aco Swatch

acoswatchdocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .aco Swatch

actswatchdocument.jpg.act Color Table File

actswatchdocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .act Color Table

aseswatchdocument.jpg.ase Swatch Exchange

aseswatchdocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .ase Swatch Exchange

patterndocument.jpg.pat Pattern

patterndocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .pat Pattern

shapedocument.jpg.csh Custom Shape

shapedocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .csh Custom Shape

styledocument.jpg.asl Style

styledocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .asl Style

Document File Types

photoBMPdocument.jpg.bmp Bitmap

photobmpdocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .bmp Bitmap

photojpgdocument.jpg.jpg, .jp1, .jp2 Image

photojpgdocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .jpg, .jp1, .jp2 Image

photopngdocument.jpg.png Image

photopngdocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .png Image

comppsddocument.jpg.psd Photoshop Document

comppsddocumentkey.jpgKeyworded .psd Photoshop Document

document.jpgGeneric File

keyworddocument.jpgPreset Viewer Keywords

jbrbrush.jpgJasc .jbr Brush File

jbrbrushkey.jpgKeyworded Jasc .jbr Brush File

Right Click Features in the Tree View

Preset Viewer has become a highly right-click driven program.
A majority of functions are accessible through Right Click Menus. The first place we will examine these Right Click Menus is in the My Computer Tab of the Tree View pane.

All of the Right Click Menus in Preset Viewer are context sensitive... they change depending on where and what you have clicked on.

The right click menu for the My Computer tab allows you to quickly 1) Open a folder; 2) Refresh the selected file in the Primary Display window; and 3) add or remove a folder from your Search Preferences. (Illustration 5.1)

right_tree_my-comp.jpg

The Explore option will location of the selected file or folder in Windows. This can be useful if you need to rename a file or delete a duplicate file.

Additional options will allow you to add or remove folders from the folders listed in your Search Preferences. These options are only available on the My Computer tab.

The file options when right clicking on a file, rather than a folder are different. You will have the option to either 1) Explore the files location or 2) refresh the selected file in the Primary Display Window.

The right click menu varies when you are on one of the Filtering tabs, such as Styles or Photos. In these tabs you will have the option of 1) opening the folder where the file resides, 2) reloading the file in the Primary Display window or 3) Opening the file in the program you have specified in the Set Application Associations dialogue box. (Illustration 5.2)

right_tree_styles.jpg

A word about reloading: Reloading a file can be especially useful in the case of styles. Because styles are not image files in the sense of brushes or patterns, they must be drawn each time they are displayed. If you utilize the color features in Preset Viewer, which effect the way styles are displayed, the changes will not be displayed without reloading the style. This right click menu option gives you the ability to reload the file quickly.

A word about multiple instances of the same file: Often you will notice more than one copy of a preset. This occurs because some programs automatically install the file in more than one location. To see if this is the case, right click on the files and notice the complete file path. Chances are, the files are in different folders.

5: User Interface: The Status Bar

Located across the bottom of the Preset Viewer user interface, the Status Bar provides useful and interesting information.
(Illustration 5.1)

statbar.jpg

The first cell, on the left, indicates how many files Preset Viewer was able to locate during the search. This number will reflect the total number of files displayed in the Tree View list and is effected by the filter tabs. For example, in Illustration 6.1, the number indicates that 25 .asl style files were located during the search as conducted according to the user specified preferences.

The next cell displays the number of images in the file selected in the Tree View pane. In the example above, the .asl style file contains 25 presets. This number includes any embedded patterns which are displayed. (To display the patterns embedded in a style or brush file, select the Show Embedded Patterns option from the OPTIONS menu. The patterns will then be displayed after the compiled presets in the file.) Image files, such as .psd or .png files will always indicate only a single image in the file.

This cell will indicate that a selection is an Unviewable Selection on occasion. There are a number of reasons this may be the case. The primary reason is that the file is not one of the types of files that Preset Viewer is designed to accommodate, for example a text (.txt) file or a word document (.doc.) Additionally, the file may have been mis-assigned a file extension. For example: changing a file extension to .abr does not make something a brush file that is usable within Preset Viewer for example. Additionally, Preset Viewer may not be able to display older versions of Adobe Preset files or files created in other graphics applications. These files will be marked as an Unviewable Selection in this cell.

The next cell indicates the full name of the file. It does not include the file location, only the name. To find the complete file location, right click on the file within the Tree View pane or right click on one of the thumbnails in the Primary Display window and select Properties.

On the right hand side of the Status Bar are a series of fields that address the Swatch Manager. The current user defined color set is indicated first, along with the number of colors currently residing in the Swatch Manager.

For more information about the Swatch Manager, see Chapter 8: User Interface: The Swatch Manager.

6: User Interface: The Primary Display Window

The Primary Display Window is where the action really happens within Preset Viewer. This is the area where the presets are displayed. Within the Primary Display Window are 4 tabs: Thumbnail, Filmstrip, Tiled and Export Set. We'll explore first three tabs in this chapter. The Export Set tab is the sole subject of Chapter 9.

The Thumbnails Tab

The Thumbnails Tab displays the images contained in a file as thumbnails. There are 3 display size options: 48 pixels square, 96 pixels square or 192 pixels square. Unless the Stretch Small Thumbnails to Fit option is selected (either from the Tool Bar or from the VIEW menu,) images smaller than the display size will be shown at their actual size. This allows you to quickly browse through files to find exactly what you are looking for.

You can also Right Click on any thumbnail to access several options. (Illustration 6.1)

primary_thumbs.jpg

6.1 Thumbnails displayed in the Primary Display Window. The right click menu is utilized to access
the file's properties and keywords or create a color swatch from the image.

Right clicking on any thumbnail will allow you to add the colors from the image to the current colors in the Swatch Manager Palette (called Merging) or replace the current colors completely (Replace.) This allows you to quickly generate a set of colors to compliment any image. These options are not available for custom shape files as these images reside in the Monochrome color space. Preset Viewer limits the number of colors which are generated from the image to 4,096.

Additionally, the right click menu will give you access to one of the most useful features in Preset Viewer, the Properties Dialogue box. (Illustration 6.2)

image_properties_box.jpg

6.2 Thumbnails displayed in the Primary Display Window. The right click menu is utilized
to access the file's properties and keywords or create a color swatch from the image.

The Image Properties dialogue box gives you access to detailed information about the image, including the type, color space, and dimensions of the image. Additionally, the complete file path of the file is readily available. Most importantly, the Image Properties box is where keywords are entered and managed for each file. Keywords will be examined in detail in Chapter 9: Using Keywords.

The Filmstrip Tab

The Filmstrip Tab display allows you to get a close up look at any image with which Preset Viewer is designed to work. The Primary Display Window is broken into two sections within this tab. The larger upper section displays a single image, with a percentage of scale notated beneath the image. The lower section displays thumbnails of each image in the selected file. To display an image in the large upper section, simply click on its thumbnail in the lower section. (Illustration 6.3)

primary_film.jpg

6.3 The Filmstrip tab allows for a close up look at images... much larger in fact
than Photoshop's native Preset Manager's largest setting.

Display size options, accessible from the tool bar buttons or from the VIEW menu, include actual size, fit in window, and stretch to width. The right click menus in this tab are accessed from the thumbnail images and present the same options as previously discussed for the Thumbnails Tab.

A word about .psd files: Preset Viewer displays the embedded thumbnail of these files. These thumbnails are consistently 160 pixels square or smaller. At this time, Preset Viewer is unable to display .psd files any larger than thumbnail size.

The Tiled Tab

The Tiled Tab is incredibly useful, not only for displaying Patterns, but also for quickly getting ideas for other pattern possibilities from any viewable image. The tab presents the same viewing configuration as found in the Filmstrip tab with a large center section displaying a single image and a scrolling filmstrip of images below. Coupled with the Swatch Manager functions, the Tiled Tab is a powerful tool. (Illustration 6.4)

primary_tiled.jpg

6.4 The Tiled tab makes it easy to tell quickly if a pattern is truly seamless.
It's also quite handy for getting pattern ideas from other images.

Display size options, accessible from the tool bar buttons or from the VIEW menu, include tiling the image 4, 8 or 16 images across. The image is repeated in as many rows as necessary to fill the viewing area. Additionally, the percentage of actual size that the image is shown at is displayed beneath the display field. The right click menus in this tab are accessed from the thumbnail images and present the same options as previously discussed for the Thumbnails Tab.

The Export Set tab will be discussed in detail in Chapter 8: Exporting .ABR & .PNG Files.

7: User Interface: The Swatch Manager

Undoubtedly some of the coolest enhancements in Version 2 of Preset Viewer reside on the right hand side of the program in the Swatch Manager. This new pane allows you to create and export swatches from images displayable in Preset Viewer. Additionally, you can apply these colors as brush, background and photo filter colors to images prior to exporting them as .png files. (Illustration 7.1)

primary_swatch.jpg

7.1 The Swatch Manager makes swatch management a breeze. Easily add colors to the palette and
use them as brush, background or photo filter colors on any image within Preset Viewer.

By clicking right clicking on any color thumbnail within the Primary Display window you can add the color to the existing palette, or empty the existing palette and start a new one. You can also manage keywords for a swatch from this right click men.

All of the functionality of the Swatch Manager is accessed by the right click menu. (Illustration 7.2) This is where you change the color filters for the program. Changing the brush color will effect only Brushes, Custom Shapes and some Styles. Changing the background color will change the background color of the Primary Display area. Changing the Photo Filter will add the color to the image similarly to standard Multiply blending modes. The Photo Filter color effects photographic images, styles and patterns.

swatch_rightclick.jpg

7.2 Right clicking on a color square within the Swatch Manager pane give you access
to the Swatch Manager's wealth of features.

Also accessible from the right click menu is that ability to remove individual colors from the color palette or to export the current palette set as an .aco file for use in other applications.

The palette can be reset with the default 16 colors either from the tool bar or from the VIEW menu. The Swatch Manager background color can also be changed via the right click menu. It's a handy way to judge the contrast of a palette set against a different color.

Using Color Filters

Now that you can see your files, let's get them to do some tricks! The color filters are the first step to creating some fantastic designs quickly. To select a Brush color, either left click on a color in the Swatch Manager or right click the color and select Change Brush color from the right click menu. Change the Background color by holding down the Alt button while left clicking the color and change the Photo Filter color by holding down the Ctrl button while left clicking. Alternately, these colors can be changed via the right click menu. The new color set will be viewable in the status bar, beneath the Swatch Manager. (You can return the Filters to their default values from the button on the tool bar.) Once you have a new set of Filter colors, it is easy to get ideas for patterns by viewing shapes or brushes in the Tiled Tab. (Illustration 7.3)

color_filters_shapes_tiled.jpg

7.3 Using the Color Filters with shapes or brushes in the Tiled Tab is
an easy way to get a feel for color combinations and patterns.

The brush color also effects Layer Styles when the image color is unaffected by the style. (For example, a layer style with just a drop shadow.) Additionally, the Photo Filter color also affects Styles. (Illustration 7.4)

styles_color.jpg

7.4 Changing the Brush and/or Photo Filter Color effects the way Styles are displayed.
Now you can get a feel for what the style will REALLY look like.

The Photo filter color will effect an image similarly to the Multiply blending mode in most graphics programs. This feature will allow you to quickly alter grayscale images for export. When exporting as .png files, the filter colors are retained. Abr files are exported in grayscale plus alpha format. (Illustration 7.5)

pngs_4_export.jpg

7.5 The Photo Filter is a quick way to recolor grayscale images for export as .png files.

A note about custom filter colors: In the event that the same color is selected for more than one filter setting, it is possible that your images in the Primary Display window will no longer be viewable due to lack of contrast. To resolve this issue, simply change any of the filter colors from within the Swatch Manager, or restore the default filter colors from the tool bar.

8: The Export Set: Unleashing Your Presets

Having a million and one presets is fantastic... but even more useful when you can get them out of their tidy little files and re-purpose them. That's where the Export Set tab in the Primary Display Window comes in. Preset Viewer is capable of exporting either a folder of individual, RGB plus transparency .png files or a set of grayscale plus alpha .abr brushes. These files are exported at the embedded dimensions of the preset in cases where the preset is less than 2500 pixels square.

To create a set of files for export, you will need to utilize the Export Set tab in the Primary Display window. (Illustration 8.1)

export_rightclick.jpg

8.1 Right clicking on an image in the Export Set brings up a dialogue box
in which you can rename the image prior to export.

To add a file to the export set, either click on it in the filmstrip at the bottom of the Primary Display window or use the single yellow arrow button on the tool bar. You can also add an entire preset file to the Export Set using the double yellow arrow button on the tool bar.

To create different color versions of the same file, change the filter colors while in the Export Set tab. Add each filter color to the export set by clicking either on the image or the tool bar button. You can edit the file names of the images prior to their export by right clicking on the image in the Primary Display Window. That will bring up a properties box (Illustration 8.2) where you can change the file name.

export_props.jpg

8.2 The Export Properties dialogue box makes renaming files a snap.

When your set is ready to be exported, click on the red disk button on the tool bar to export a folder of .png files or the blue disk button to export a single .abr brush file. The appropriate Windows Save dialogue will be launched by either of these buttons.

Both .png and .abr files are exported at the embedded dimensions of the original image in cases where the preset is less than 2500 pixels square. For larger images, Preset Viewer uses a mathematical algorithm to determine the export size, which remains proportional to the original. To view an image's embedded size, look at it's properties by right clicking on the image in the filmstrip section at the bottom of the Export Set pane.

Please note: even vector based custom shape files have a native image size. Preset Viewer will use the same rules when exporting custom shapes to either .abr or .png files.

9: Working with Keywords

While being able to see your presets with Preset Viewer is great, keywords bring true efficiency to your design tools. Preset Viewer allows you to sort your presets and images by keywords that you define. And, unlike other products, if you move your files around after you keyword them, you WILL NOT lose your keywords!

Keywords are managed in two different locations within Preset Viewer. In the Tree View pane, you are able to view the files which have keywords associated with them. (Illustration 9.1) In the Image Properties dialogue box, you are able to edit the keywords associated with a file. (Illustration 9.2)

keywords_tab_filters.jpg

9.1 The Keywords Tab in the Tree View pane is the only filtered location where you can view different types of preset files. In this screenshot, you can see how the brush and background colors impact the display of the thumbnails

In the Keywords tab within the Tree View pane, files are displayed in groupings based on keyword. Each keyword can contain an assortment of files viewable within Preset Viewer. All files viewable in Preset Viewer can be assigned keywords.

To add keywords to a file, simply right click on the image in either the thumbnail tab or the filmstrip view of any other tab in the Primary Display window. When you do so, you will be able to access the image's Properties Dialogue box. This is where the keywording magic happens.

keywords_dialogue.jpg

9.2 The Image Properties Dialogue box contains the current list of keywords
and a field to add additional keywords as needed.

This dialogue box has a list of previously used keywords. If you wish to add one of these words, select it from the list and press the Add This Keyword button. Please note: you must press the button to add the keyword. If the keyword you want to use is not in the list, simply type it in the box beneath the list of previously used keywords. Once you click on the OK button, a keyword file will be generated for the file you are working on. Preset Viewer will retain the keywords associated with the preset regardless of where on your system the preset resides.

To delete keywords, simply remove them from the list by highlighting them and pressing the delete key on your keyboard.


There.... now that you can find
all those cool tools you've collected
over the years ...

Go Design Something!

Quick Links
Preset Viewer 2.1
System Requirements

PC
for use with Microsoft Windows XP or Windows Vista operating systems.

Mac
for use with Virtual Machine software such as: which allow PC software to run on your Mac.
Your Satisfaction is Guaranteed!

We've taken the risk out of purchasing Preset Viewer. If after 30 days, you don't think it is an indispensible tool, just let us know and we'll gladly issue you a full refund, no questions asked! Really!

Download Preset Viewer Today

Bookmark and Share