Foundation Fireworks CS4- P4 pdf

69 WORKING WITH VECTORS Use the Round Points to Pixels/Round Points to Half- Pixels command for precision control of the anti- aliasing of the path of a vector object. Whereas Rounding Points to Pixels will force an object to the next nearest whole pixel location on the canvas, Rounding Points to Half- Pixels will force an object to move a half- pixel. Doing this will soften the edge of the path but give you even finer precision control over exact placement on the canvas. The Move Points command allows you to avoid manually moving a point to a desired location with either the mouse or the arrow keys. Instead, with the desired point selected, click the Move Points button. You will be asked to enter the number of pixels you would like the point to be moved horizontally and the number of pixels you would like to move the point vertically. Figure 4-36 shows the results of applying this command to a shape. Figure 4‑36. The Move Points command in action Scale Points is very similar to Move Points. However, instead of entering values that will move the point horizontally or vertically by a given number of pixels, the Scale Points command allows you to enlarge or decrease the size of the object, expressed in terms of a percentage. Rotate Points is a simple command used to rotate a vector object in a clockwise direction. The exact rotation is precisely controlled by entering a value (in degrees). Mirror Points is another simple command used to flip a vector object. Select an object on the canvas, click the Mirror Points button, and then select Horizontal or Vertical, which will flip the object accordingly. 70 CHAPTER 4 Sharpen Points is similar to the Straighten Points command mentioned earlier, except it will actually remove points in the path in order to make the remaining points sharp (that is, not smooth or curved), as shown in Figure 4-37. Figure 4‑37. The results of applying the Sharpen Points command to a circle shape Fillet Points is an extremely useful command used to round the corners of polygons or other shapes (see Figure 4-38). With an object on the canvas selected, click the Fillet Points button, which will then allow you to assign a value to the corner radius of each point of the object. With this command, you can not only round the corners of a square or rectangle, but also round the points on stars or triangles or even text that has been converted to vector paths. Figure 4‑38. The Fillet Points command lets you round a shape’s corners. 71 WORKING WITH VECTORS The Add Points and Subdivide Points commands allow for the addition of more points and evenly spaces them along the path of a vector object (see Figure 4-39). This is particularly use- ful if you need more points to more precisely modify the shape of an object. The main differ- ence between the two commands is the Add Points command enables you to add a specific number of extra points, whereas the Subdivide Points command only adds a point exactly between every other point along the path. Similarly, Add Points to Curves will add points to curves based on a threshold value. Adding points to curves allows for further modification points along a path. Figure 4‑39. Adding a specified number of points via the Add Points command Offset Points enables the enlargement of a vector object by entering an offset value. This offset value, which is a threshold, not an exact pixel value enlargement, can apply to all the points in a path or a single point (see Figure 4-40). Figure 4‑40. The Offset Points command allows you to enlarge an object by offsetting a value. 72 CHAPTER 4 The Knife on Points command is similar to using the Knife tool to bisect a path (see Figure 4-41). However, Knife on Points automatically bisects the path at the exact point, preventing the addi- tion of extra points, which would happen if the path was bisected between points. Again, this command can be applied to all the points within an object or a single point. Figure 4‑41. Bisecting a path using the Knife on Points command Make Handles Tangent and Make Handles Same Length commands are used to adjust the length and proportion of the Bézier handles on a given point. Make Handles Tangent adjusts the handles so they are tangent with the curve the point sits on. Make Handles Same Length evens the length of the handles on a given point. These tools are useful if you have edited the handles at some point, but would like to normalize them with some “automated” placement or positioning. Join Points is a handy command used to connect two open endpoints. For instance, consider two straight lines, which are separate vector objects. To connect the two open endpoints of the lines, select each endpoint using the Subselection tool and then click the Join Points button. The two lines are now one vector object (see Figure 4-42). Figure 4‑42. Joining lines to form one vector object with the Join Points command 73 WORKING WITH VECTORS Weld Points combines two adjacent points along the same contour, making them one, but fac- tors in their position and tangents to reshape the object accordingly (see Figure 4-43). The Weld Points command only works on adjacent points along the same path and can include any number of two or more points. Figure 4‑43. The results of applying the Weld Points command to an open path Summary In this chapter we’ve looked at the tools Fireworks offers to draw vector objects. You learned how to draw everything from simple lines and shapes, such as a square, to more complex, free- form shapes. You also learned how to modify the points along a path to change the contour and shape of vector objects. Now that you are familiar with the vector drawing tools and the many commands that assist in manip- ulating the objects you draw, you can harness the real power of Fireworks. With the understanding you’ve gained, you’re prepared to take advantage of Fireworks’ unique ability to mix vector objects and raster graphics on the canvas together, which will speed up your workflow and help you design more efficiently. [...]... document or parts of a document as a single image file, multiple images, Adobe PDF files, a Dreamweaver library, or as HTML with CSS and images 85 Chapter 5 Exporting to Adobe PDF During a design review process, it may be very useful to export your design to PDF format for distribution and commentary Fireworks has a ­ uilt-­n PDF export option, show in ­ igure 5‑6, so that you can b i F export a single... the location you want the file to be saved to and to name the file To customize the PDF, click Options in the Export dialog The Adobe PDF Export Options dialog box appears You will be able to adjust the following settings in this dialog, as shown in ­ igure 5‑7: F Compatibility determines which version of the Adobe PDF application can read the file Compression sets the type of image compression Choose... 3 asks you about the final destination of this graphic 92 EXPORTING FROM FIREWORKS TO THE WEB 4 Depending on the options you chose in Step 2 or Step 3, you are taken to one of the screens in ­ igure 5‑14 Click Exit to move on F F ­ igure 5‑14 Step 4 gives you Fireworks recommendation for a file format Step 4 simply tells you Fireworks default recommendations for the settings you have selected This... sets a border of the specified pixel width around your file Use password to open document and Use password to restrict tasks set your password options F ­ igure 5‑7 The Adobe PDF Export Options dialog enables you to select PDF version compatibility, compression type, quality level, and password options Images only This is the most commonly used export function for professional web designers, allowing... Library (.lbi) option in the Export ­ rop-­ own, you can create a new Dreamweaver d d library using the graphics you have created, and HTML is automatically generated by Fireworks HTML and Images\CSS and Images (.htm)\Director (.htm) Fireworks has the ability to export your design as an entire web page (HTML file) with HTML, CSS, and images created for you This is useful for a ­ uick-and-­ irty export... button when exporting to HTML via the Export dialog 90 EXPORTING FROM FIREWORKS TO THE WEB Using the Export Wizard We presented the “Compression and color settings” section earlier so that you could ­ and-­ elect the h s best export settings for your graphic We recommend customizing the export settings by hand for the best results However, Fireworks does provide an Export Wizard, which will ask you a series...EXPORTING FROM FIREWORKS TO THE WEB PICT, developed by Apple Computer, is a graphic file format commonly used on Macintosh operating systems Fireworks supports two different bit depths for this format: 8 and 24 bits Having selected the appropriate file format, we now determine the... previously Summary In this chapter, you learned about the powerful, flexible, and simple file optimization and export functionality and workflow of Fireworks The export functionality allows you to save highly optimized images for use on a web page, as a PDF file for preview, as a Dreamweaver or Director library, as a working web site prototype, or even as production print graphics The simple workflow... textures and ZIP for illustrations or designs with large areas of solid colors Quality adjusts image quality settings for the JPEG formats Higher qualities produce a larger file size 86 EXPORTING FROM FIREWORKS TO THE WEB Convert to grayscale will create a smaller file size, without color Check the Enable text selection option if you want to be able to copy text from your exported file This will greatly... Selective quality option Choose a compression quality for the selected area Here you may also choose to preserve the quality of all text and/or button symbols to be exported with the image 82 EXPORTING FROM FIREWORKS TO THE WEB F ­ igure 5‑3 This photograph is being compressed using a selective JPEG mask The boat has been highlighted with a Marquee tool, allowing it to be compressed at a higher quality than . Adobe PDF files, a Dreamweaver library, or as HTML with CSS and images 86 CHAPTER 5 Exporting to Adobe PDF During a design review process, it may be very useful to export your design to PDF format. 75 Chapter 5 When we consider all of the functionality of Fireworks and the workflow born out of that functionality, the feature that sets Fireworks apart from its competitors as a superior web. format an ideal replacement for propri- etary GIF images. PNG is the native file format for Fireworks. A Fireworks PNG contains additional application- specific information that is not stored in