Lesson #13 - More Tips and Tricks

 
 
This is the first in the series for the more advanced users.  I won't say don't read this if you are new to PSP, but be advised that this may be a little more difficult to grasp. 
 
These are some very helpful hints I have learned writing tutorials, reading about PSP or discovered on my own.  I hope they will be as much help to you!
  1. Holding down CTRL while using a selection tool REMOVES from the existing selected area; similarly holding SHIFT while using a selection tool ADDS to an existing selection.  In either case, the resulting selection area need not be contiguous - you can end up with 2 (or more) separate, unconnected selection zones if you want to.
  2. Dragging a image from the Browser in vs. 9 & 10 or the Organizer in 11 into an open image in the workspace will combine the two images together.
  3. The only tool that is new in XI is the color changer tool.  It is different than the color replacer tool in that it takes into account the shading variables in the image.  It can detect and analyze variations in image brightness and apply the recoloring based on that illumination.  This is a really cool tool! 
  4. One of the disadvantages I have found in XI is that drop down lists of items, such as shapes, tubes or patterns do not have labels, you see only the thumbnails so if you want a particular tube you either have to choose the picture or mouse over an item which then will show the name of the item. 
  5. Jasc Corp, which was the original designer of Paint Shop Pro and since Corel has purchased the rights of PSP it has stopped bundling Animation Shop with the program.  Jasc still offers a free copy of Animation Shop 3 along with some patches for the other versions.  http://www.jasc.com/support/customercare/articles/psp9components.asp
  6. In PSP 9 and above you need to select the tool before choosing the color or it will go back to the last color used for that tool.  Another way to choose colors first is to make sure that the Check All Tools box is checked.  Then each time you choose a color it changes all tools to that color.
  7. Looking for a copy of an older PSP Program.  Go to Old versions dot com and there is a listing for Paint Shop Pro, from version 2 to version 9. www.oldversions.com
  8. Help the Effects are not working on my image!  That is because effects only work on grayscale and 24bit images in older versions and 8 bits/channels in 10 & 11, you have to increase the color depth before applying effects.  Image / Increase Color Depth.
  9. Sometimes when editing a raster layer you get jagged edges, or what we like to refer to as "Jaggies"  You can smooth some of those jaggies by using the Selections / Modify / Smooth and enter a number for the level of smoothing on corners of the boundary make sure the anti-alias box is checked for smoothing the edges.
  10. Layers can be arranged by the Layer / Arrange menu but they can also be arranged by dragging and dropping.  Click on the layer and move it up or down as needed then drop.
  11. Eraser Undo - If you erase an area by mistake, you can always hit the undo button. But, with this tool when you are working on a transparent layer, you can right click and drag over the area you have erased and this will restore the color pixels you previously erased.
  12. Perfectly Spaced Text You can use kerning to space the letters in your text or you can convert the text to Character Shapes and move each letter individually. You will find that moving each letter individually will give you more control over text spacing than kerning. To move each letter, click on a letter with the Object Selector tool active, hold down the Shift key and hit an arrow key in the direction you want to move the letter.
  13. Can't find your toolbars or Palettes?  Control + Shift + T delivers them back to the workspace.
  14. Do you hate having to scroll through the options when you "Save As?"  Just set your General Program Preferences on the Dialogs & Palettes tab to "Remember last type used in file save-as dialog" and you will only have to scroll once!
  15. When you want to repeat the last command you entered, use CTRL + Y.
  16. When you want to get a perfectly horizontal or vertical line while using the Pen tool, hold the shift key down while drawing the line.
  17. Move Layers by using the arrow keys.  Just select the Move tool, and then press the arrow buttons to move the layer up, down, or to the right or left. The arrow keys, or the arrow keys with the CTRL key held down, move the layer 1 pixel at a time. To move the layer 10 pixels at a time, hold the SHIFT key down and use the arrow keys.
  18. Sometimes, when you do a gradient fill, the bands of color seem to show up too clearly, and they don't seem to blend well. This is often monitor-dependent, but you CAN get rid of those bands. Just use Adjust...Add/Remove Noise...Add Noise, and use about 3-5% uniform noise. Magically, the bands have disappeared.
  19. To add new layers quickly, bypassing the New Layer dialog, press SHIFT while clicking the New Raster Layer button new raster layer button,the New Vector Layer button new vector layer button, or the New Art Media Layer button new art media layer button.
  20. To copy a layer from one image to another, drag the Layer Name button from the Layers palette of the first image and drop it (release the mouse button) onto the second image.
Enjoy!
 
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