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BOOT CAMP 041 -- PAINTING BY NUMBERS
Computers have been doing all sorts of useful things with
words and numbers since day one but it's only recently have they been able to
handle graphics and complex images. It began back in the late 1980s, following
the launch of the 386 family of microprocessors and version 3 of the Windows
operating system. However, PCs and pictures really got going with the
development of the Pentium processor, cheaper memory chips and the arrival of
Windows 95.
Over the next two weeks Boot Camp is devoted to still image
processing on the PC. In part one we're going to take a close look at that
often overlooked utility Microsoft Paint. Next week it's the turn of PaintShop
Pro, a powerful graphics program that no PC should be without, but more of that
next Thursday.
You have probably discovered Paint already, if not you will
find it by clicking on the Start button, then Programs and it should be in the
Accessories folder. Double click the Paint icon and if the desktop doesn't fill
the screen use the maximise button, (next to the Close button), to expand the
window. Make sure the Tool Box and Colour Box options are enabled on the View
menu. By the way, most versions of Paint are broadly similar though the one
included in Windows 98 has a few extra bells and whistles, including the
ability to work with compressed JPEG images. Earlier versions included with
Windows 3.x and Windows 95 are limited to bitmap (*.bmp) and PCX (*.pcx) files,
(see Jargon Filter). The best way to get to know Paint and what it can do is to
play around with it.
Start by drawing a few squiggles with the paintbrush,
experiment with different brush sizes and colours. It's easy to draw lines and
shapes using the various tools. Try the paint can, this is used to fill in an
area with colour, the airbrush can be used to give subtle shades and the
eye-dropper picks up a colour from any area of the picture, for drawing or
painting. Notice that if you click on the letter 'A' in the Toolbox a
re-sizeable box appears on the screen, into which you can type text. A dialogue
box appears that allows you to choose the typeface and font size. Now try
editing your image, the eraser is especially useful. For really precise changes
use the zoom facility, at the highest magnification levels you can easily
change a single pixel.
Now it's time to put those new found skills into practice
and do something useful with Paint. Here's how to turn your signature into an
image file. Writing with a mouse is difficult so draw a large version of your
signature on a sheet of paper and trace it with the mouse, using a simple
pointer -- a matchstick or cocktail stick -- stuck to the mouse with some
sticky tape will do the trick. When you're happy with it give the image file a
name and save it. Now use the rectangular Copy tool to put a dotted box around
it, then copy it to the clipboard using Ctrl + C or the Copy function on the
Edit menu. Now you can add your signature to a fax cover page, or a standard
letter template by pasting the image (Ctrl + V or Paste on the Edit menu) into
the open document. Once it is in place use the mouse to re-size the image by
clicking on the corners of the outline box.
You can use Paint to create a simple logo or letterhead design, and don't
forget the facility to include text in your design. When you've finished, make
sure you name and save the file somewhere you can easily find it.
Our second little project is a response to the many requests
we've had to repeat an earlier Tip of the Week. We're going to have a fiddle
with the annoying 'Please wait….' And 'It is now safe….' shutdown screen that
appears when you exit Windows. The same techniques can also be used to modify
or even create your own opening and closing screens.
The two Windows closing screens are called 'logos.sys and
logow.sys and they are filed in the main Windows directory. The opening Windows
95 and 98 clouds screen is called logo.sys and it too lives in the Windows
folder, though on some PCs it may end up embedded in a file called io.sys, and
you won't be able to get at it using Paint. However, any suitable image file,
with the name logo.sys, placed in the root of the C: drive will override the
original clouds image, but more about what that entails in a moment.
The first thing you must do is rename the original image
files, otherwise you won't be able to restore them, should you ever wish to do
so. Open Windows Explorer, find the picture file you're going to work on and
either right click and use the rename option, or left click on the file icon to
highlight it, wait a second and click again to activate the name field. Change
the .sys extension to .old or something similar. Now back to Paint, open the
image file and immediately rename it with its original .sys extension, using
the Save As command.
You will notice that the image looks a bit odd, it's
squeezed horizontally into a 320 x 400 pixel shape, but it assumes its correct
proportions when shown by Windows. Now you can do whatever you like with it.
Have a doodle, add your own witty message, use the paintbrush, fill can or
airbrush. You can erase or change the shape of the clouds by picking up the
blue or white colour with the eyedropper and using a paintbrush or airbrush.
Why not create your own opening or closing screen from
scratch? That's easy too. The only points to bear in mind are that any image
must be saved as a 256-colour 320 x 400-pixel bitmap. You will find the latter
option on the Image menu, under Attributes; the 256-colour designation is on
the Save As window listed under 'File As Type'. The same parameters must also
be applied to any other image you want to use as an opening or closing screen.
You can use photographs but you will find that the limited number of colours
makes it look a bit messy, it works best with simple images and designs, but
the point is you decide. Have a go;
it's very liberating, putting you back in charge of Windows!
Next week: working with PaintShop Pro
JARGON FILTER
BITMAP
Picture file format used by Windows and many PC applications
JPEG
Joint Photographic Experts
Group, compressed picture file format used for photographic images
PCX
Picture Exchange format, a type of common image file, used
by a number of drawing packages, allowing files to be easily exchanged
PIXEL
Picture Element -- the basic building block in computer
imaging, effectively a single dot on the screen or printout. The greater the
number of pixels in an image the finer the resolution
TOP TIP
Having problems with your printer? You may be surprised to know Windows 95 comes with a
sophisticated printer troubleshooting program. It's on the CD-ROM, you can find
it with Windows Explorer, click on the D: drive icon, then open the Other
folder and inside you'll find a folder called Misc, open that and then the Epts
(enhanced printer troubleshooter). Click on epts.exe and the program starts,
first analysing your printer set-up, it then asks a series of questions and
suggests remedies to help you solve the problem.
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