Welcome to e-Picture 1.0, the professional solution for creating dynamic web graphics! To ensure that you get all the advantages of this powerful software, please take a moment to read the following important information.
This is a beta version of e-Picture. As such, we want and encourage you to test e-Picture for durability, ease of use and your ability to achieve the desired results. And, of course, we want you to tell us what you think. If you find a bug, please describe how to reproduce it in as much detail as possible. Enhancement requests, likes and disklikes, and general usage feedback are all equally important to us. In order to process your feedback, we have set up a special e-Picture feedback form for you to use at https://secure.cnchost.com/beatware.com/products/bughunt.shtml. Thank you for helping make e-Picture great!
This document contains information on the following topics:
The e-Picture 1.0 beta package contains the necessary files for use with the BeOS Release 4 for Intel. Double-clicking on the e-Picture package icon starts Software Valet and begins the installation process. The e-Picture files will be installed into the /boot/apps/BeatWare/e-Picture_beta3 folder.
e-Picture is designed specifically to give the professional graphic artist all the tools he/she needs to create dynamic, web-ready graphics. By combining drawing, animation and compression into one tool, you can retain all the characteristics of your file as you move through the different design stages. That means every element of your web graphic is editable up until the final compression. If you want to change some text, just select it and edit as needed. If you want to modify the blur applied to a layer or individual object, open up the blur filter for the layer or object and make the change. Don't worry about the rest of your image; unrelated objects are not affected.
Another benefit that e-Picture offers is the ability to open multiple views of your document simultaneously. This gives you the advantage of being able to work in RGB and see the impact of your changes as they would appear using the web 216 color palette, the BeOS color palette, and even the Windows color palette all at the same time. And if your change doesn't look good, you don't have to undo your change and start again. Instead, just change the image until you have achieved the look you want.
When you are ready to breathe life to your web graphics, animation is the way to go. With e-Picture, animation is an integrated part of the image creation process. You can create, animate and test ideas incrementally instead of having to imagine and create the finised product before beginning the animation process (and then starting over from scratch if things aren't quite right). All you need to do to create an animation in e-Picture is:
e-Picture automatically calculates and generates the changes needed to build the smoothest animation possible between your starting and ending frame. If everything looks good, then continue building your animation. If not, changing the animation is easy. If things aren't smooth enough, you can add some frames, move the ending point, and run the animation again, all in a couple of seconds. If you decide you want to add an additional effect such as a blur that gets phased in over the course of the animation, simply add it to the last frame. e-Picture's animation engine will recalculate the intervening frames automatically.
Once you are satisfied with your static image or animation, the next logical step is to export it for use on the web. From e-Picture, you can export your image as a GIF, animated GIF, JPEG or PNG file, as well as to other popular non-web file formats. Depending on which file format you choose, you will be presented with various options so that you can precisely determine the optimal tradeoff between file size and image quality to meet your particular needs. You can even have e-Picture generate the HTML or Javascript code and display your image in the web browser of your choice.
Further information on the above topics is provided in the sections that follow on Documentation and Examples.
Like the application itself, the documentation is very much a work in progress and will not be completed until e-Picture is ready to be released. However, to help you get the most out of e-Picture, a brief overview has been written to get you started. This overview and those chapters that are closest to completion are included for your reference. You can access the overview either by opening index.html from the e-Picture folder or from within e-Picture by selecting the Window.On-line Help menu option. The overview contains links to the formal on-line documentation, which includes chapters on e-Picture basics, objects, layers, animation and exporting for use on the web.
In addition, a brief list of undocumented Essential Keyboard Shortcuts is also available from the e-Picture Windows menu. If you can't find the answer to a question anywhere else, it just might be here! All documentation is in HTML and can be viewed through any web browser.
e-Picture is a unique and powerful application that, in many cases, provides simpler and easier ways of performing many graphic techniques. The Examples folder contains several examples of how to utilize e-Picture to save time and effort when creating your graphics.
In addition, BeatWare has a web site dedicated to providing information on e-Picture graphics techniques and examples that is updated regularly. You should visit this web site frequently to pick up the latest insights and techniques offered by BeatWare's graphics professionals.
We want to hear from you! Please send us your comments, enhancement requests, bug reports and suggestions and help make e-Picture great. In order to help streamline and manage beta feedback, we have set up a special e-Picture feedback form on our web site. This form is also accessible from within e-Picture by choosing Send Feedback to BeatWare from the Window menu.
BeatWare does not warrant either the content or performance of this software, or that it either is or will be defect or error free. The software is provided to you "as is," without warranty as to the performance or results you may obtain by its use, or as to its merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement of another's rights. You assume all risks of loss, injury or damage that arise from use of the software.
In no event or circumstance shall BeatWare's or its suppliers' liability for any claim arising out of the use of or any defect in the software include any special, incidental or consequential loss or damage, inclusive of any liability for lost profits, even if BeatWare or its representatives had knowledge of the potential for such loss and damage.
We wish to take this opportunity to thank you for your support as we usher in a new era of web graphics software.
Copyright ©1999 BeatWare Incorporated. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of BeatWare, Inc. is prohibited. BeatWare, the BeatWare logo, and e-Picture are trademarks of BeatWare, Inc. Be and the BeOS are trademarks or registered trademarks of Be, Inc. Other product or brand names mentioned may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Icons used herein are the property of BeatWare, Inc. All rights reserved.