Getting the most of MMF for Power Users!
Getting the most of MMF for Power Users! |
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by Andy
H The first Multimedia Fusion Getting the most of described how to configure the working environment for an 800 by 600 display. This article targets the power users who want to get more out of MMF at a higher resolution, typically 1280x1024 or bigger. However many topics covered here are applicable to other configurations.
Select an option to jump right to the section:
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The
layout of the toolbars are really a personal preference, however
here is one productive layout with the toolbars down the side of
the screen:
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Navigation Toolbar - Next down is the Navigation toolbar.
Normally containing the next, previous frame and editor buttons.
I have only kept hold of the Previous and Next Frame buttons. The
Frame Editor and Event Editor are the most common editors I use,
but I have opted to remove these too as the shortcut keys are much
quicker. Use CTRL+M for the Frame Editor and CTRL+E
for the Event Editor.
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Vertical Settings Toolbar - It's best not to mess with this
toolbar as it changes for each window you have focus on. It also
has all the commands you need.
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Custom Toolbar - For editing graphics in the Picture Editor I
need quick access to my favourite functions. I have created a new toolbar
(use View-Toolbars...) to house these functions.
Crop - The first button I've added is Crop, which is normally located under the Object menu. This button allows you to reduce the canvas size by cutting off the empty space around a graphic.
Horizontal Settings Toolbar - As with the Vertical
Settings toolbar, leave this one alone. It is normally found near the
top of the screen, here I have positioned it at the bottom close to
the other picture editing functions.
Run Toolbar
- Over the other side of the screen, I have docked the Run toolbar
at the top right. I like to keep the Play button on here because
sometimes I'll need to see what is going on in the grey holding
area outside of the frame.
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Objects Toolbar
- This toolbar will also be found at the top of the screen by default.
Again, I opt to position it down the right edge of the screen to
give me quick access to them.
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Text Toolbar - This is another custom toolbar.
Very useful for formatting text objects, it has the most commonly used
text formatting functions. To use space more efficiently, this toolbar
is positioned over the top of the title bar. Care must be taken not
to dock the toolbar while positioning it here.
PreferencesMuch of what is discussed here has been covered in Getting the most of MMF on a 800x600 display, so this section will be brief.
Working with windows maximisedThe original Click and Create had very few windows and they were usually maximised. The main windows were Storyboard, Frame Editor and Event Editor. The Picture and Animation editors were modal dialog boxes which the user had to close when they had finished working in them. This way of working was adopted and loved by the majority of users.
Multimedia Fusion changed all this in the most chaotic way a CnC'er could image! Instead of three main windows and a few dialogs, everything was in a window. Experienced CnC users suddenly had to learn a new way of working. Upon closer inspection however, things do make sense! The trick is learning to work with MMF instead of against it. This section is probably the most valuable part of the article.
When you create a new application, or load in an existing one, open one Frame Editor window and maximise it. This is how we will work from this point on.
To open the Frame Editor, always press CTRL+M. Train yourself to get into the habit of using the short cut keys where they are available. In the long term this will save you time.
To open the Event Editor, always press CTRL+E. Never open a Frame or Event Editor while you are editing in any other type of window, such as the Picture/Animation Editors, Behaviour windows and Edit the Actions windows (see below). Doing so will leave these windows open!
You will notice that there are navigation controls at the bottom of the Frame and Event Editors. Use these to go to the next and previous frames in your application. If you open one of these editors from the Application window, you will begin to have duplicate editor windows left open in the background.
Remember we set the Picture / Animation preferences to save and close when the Escape key is pressed? Do this to close the window when you have finished editing in them. Never leave these open if you need to move elsewhere!
When you open a Behaviour window, you'll see a conventional event editor. If you leave behaviour windows open, they will accumulate in the background. Likewise, when you choose the Edit the Actions command in the event editor, it will remain open until you close it which can cause problems later on.
To close these windows, simply press CTRL+F4. Do not confuse this with ALT+F4 as this will close Multimedia Fusion! Always close these windows when you have finished using them.
Essential Short-cut keysThere are a lot of buttons, menus and options in Multimedia Fusion. Like most software, MMF has accelerators, or short-cut keys for some of the most popular commands. Short-cuts can also be defined for the majority of menu options and buttons, so MMF can be tailored to your needs.
To work faster in MMF, train yourself to use these short-cut keys where ever possible. Keys marked with an * are custom key commands I have added to the cncdef.acl file. Copy it to your MMFusion\Programs folder if you want to use them, but back up the original file first if you wish to return to your configuration.
Open Frame editor window
Open Event editor window
Open Time Line editor window
Open Event List window
Open Storyboard window
Run Project
Run Application
Run Frame
Play the Frame
Undo last operation
Redo last Undo operation
Cut the selected object into the paste buffer
Copy the selected object
Paste contents of paste buffer
Select All
New application, project, library or image
Open file
Save file
Close open window
Close Picture/Animation editors
Next Window
Zoom to fit
Zoom in
Zoom out
Object Properties
Bring to Front
Send to Back
Forward one
Backward one
Lock selected objects (full stop)
Unlock all (comma)
Insert new object into frame
Grid and Rulers set-up
Toggle Hotspot on/off
Toggle Action point on/off
Resize Canvas
* In CnC, you could press D for Draw tool and F for Fill bucket tool amongst others to select drawing functions. This feature does not yet exist in MMF...
Choose Typeface
Plain, no formatting
Bold style
Italic style
Underline style
Align Left
Align Center
Align Right
ProductivityGetting the most out of Multimedia Fusion should not end with Fusion itself. To conclude this article, here are some ways of getting more out of your working environment.
A wheel mouse can help you work faster in the Event and Frame editors, as they allow you to turn the wheel to scroll the workspace area without moving the mouse to the scroll bars This may sound like a gimmick, but it really does save you time.
The most common wheel mouse is Microsoft's Intellimouse. This has one vertical wheel that also acts as a third button. There are other alternatives that offer two wheels, one for vertical and one for horizontal scroll bars. Having two wheels makes it even easier to navigate the MMF workspace, especially in the Frame editor. A two wheel mouse that I would recommend is the Ami Pro Wheel mouse.
If you are serious about producing graphics for your MMF applications, you will benefit greatly from a graphics pen tablet. Using a pen shaped stylus does make a difference when drawing, but is not as easy to use for navigation in heavy applications. If possible, have a separate graphics workstation. If not, set up Windows profiles for a mouse and tablet.
Multimedia Fusion has a collection of advanced editors. For example, its picture editor is especially powerful. However, to seriously get the most out of your multimedia, you do need to use features available in specialised software.
Some suggested software include (but not limited to):
by Andy
H
Please do not copy or re-use without written permission.
Tip: To insert dividing lines between toolbar buttons, while the
Customize window is displayed, drag the button a couple of pixels
away from its neighbour. To remove a dividing line, drag it back
towards its neighbouring button.