BushArts.com - RealDrawPro FAQ
Often we read, in various unrelated forums around the world, people asking questions about RealDraw. Often these are asked in places that have nothing to do with RD, graphics or any remotely related subject. Naturally, many of the answers that people receive in situations like this, are ill informed, to be polite.
Should you have a question re: RealDrawPro, then ask it in the genuine
Real Draw Forum. Even the program authors occasionally attend, so your answers should at least be accurate.
Many questions to the forum are frequently repeated, here are a few of the most common, with some additional FAQ quoted from Mediachance RealDraw web site...
Is RealDraw a vector or a bitmap editing application?
It is none and it is also both. RD uses vector principles to create an output with bitmap characteristics and effects which would be very hard to do in a true vector application.
Unlike in a true bitmap editor, all in RD is always editable, you can move, resize, change shapes, apply or remove different effects anytime and as many times as you want - same as in known vector applications. Unlike a true vector application the output is intended to be an image, not a scalable vector document. The output from RD can look more realistic than from most known true vector applications since RD is not bound to the vector only requirement. It happily mixes all available tools to produce great looking graphics. RD blends the differences even further since you can use true bitmap features such as painting with brushes or nozzles over the vector objects. (c) Mediachance
What do you mean by bitmap?
Some people confuse the word bitmap with Microsoft Windows Bitmap format *.bmp, but these are not the same. Bitmap is a general name for an image format which is built from pixels not from curves (as is vector). For example JPG is also a bitmap. As such, bitmap editor is not an editor for editing exclusively *.bmp files but for editing any general supported image files (jpg, png, bmp, tif...).
RD uses vector editing to produce bitmap kind (jpg, bmp, png, psd) of images. The objects in RD behave as if they are vector (you can change shape, move them, apply effects, lights, colors, texture..), but they are not true vector objects. (c) Mediachance
What then, is the strong point of using RD?
You can easily create images which would be very hard to produce in any other vector or bitmap application. In RD this is a very easy task, a few objects, textures and lights - all done in few minutes and always editable. This would be quite a lot of work to do in a true vector package while in a true bitmap package you would loose the editability. (c) Mediachance
Can RD replace my current vector editor?
Depending on what you do. If you use your vector editor to produce graphic for web or multimedia, then probably yes. However RD is not built for creating printed materials such as brochures where a true-vector editor is at home. Because of the very low price of RD the best and most recommended way is to use it as an addition to your current software, it is better to have 2 good applications for different tasks than one which claims to do everything. (c) Mediachance
Can I print with RealDraw then?
Yes, RealDraw has all the normal print options, but it is not a DTP program. It also has the advanced "Fine Print" options allowing you to print to an advanced format or sizing.
I need 200DPI
RealDraw works at 72DPI, as it was designed primarily for screen graphics. However, if you wish to use a RealDraw created image in a program that outputs at a larger DPI, you just need to adjust the size that you create the RealDraw image at. Need 200dpi? just make the image roughly 3 times larger than you would normally. It will then import into your 200dpi program close to the expected size. Or, you can just mark the dpi tab when exporting as a jpg.
Can RD replace my current bitmap editor?
Depending on what you do. A true-bitmap editor such as Adobe PhotoShop or Mediachance PhotoBrush is built for a different task. An image editor is mostly for adjusting or enhancing an already existing image, while RD is built for creating a new image from scratch. Yes, you can adjust or enhance existing images with RD, but that would be underestimating its power. (c) Mediachance
Then how does RealDraw compare to Photoshop (Coreldraw, Xara etc)?
Short Answer - It doesn't, it is unique. RealDraw is deliberately designed to be different to anything else. Some things it will do easier than others, some things not as well. It will tackle virtually every graphic task the others can, but you should not limit your options to any single program, when another may have features that specialize at that very same task.
How can I create an image for the web with transparency?
The only format (currently fully supported in web browsers) that supports a transparent color is GIF. However in GIF only one color can be transparent which would most of the time create a hard or jagged edge around the image - an effect often visible on various personal pages where bitmap background was used.
The new format PNG can have all that gif doesn't - it can use smooth alpha blending for transparency which would look good on the page! Real-Draw has full support for transparent PNG files. Unfortunately currently only some browsers have serious support for transparent PNG files. While Internet Explorer 6 supports PNG, the transparency is often badly implemented.(c) Mediachance
The latest versions of both Internet Explorer (IE7) and Mozilla Firefox fully support RealDraw generated transparent .png's, but it will be several years before people stop using unsupporting browsers such as IE6.
How do I make the rectangle (Square, circle etc) without any fill?
Menu: Object - Break Path. A slider will appear allowing you to set how thick you want your outside lines.
Can I do web pages with RealDraw?
Yes, RealDraw can produce a fully valid working web page, complete with rollover menus or buttons. However, RealDraw is NOT a Html editor - no graphics program is. It is still advisable to use a program specifically designed to edit web pages, to enhance, adjust, or even improve the basic RD output. BushArts own CSS export scripts can help here, as most of the webstuff is already done for you.
How do I add my own objects into the object box?
Click on your item and Drag it into the Quick styles Object Library, and let go. Alternately, select your item, then Right click in the library for a menu of choices.
How do I create my own styles?
The same way as you would add an object into the object library. The styles library will only hold the information about any effects (bevels, textures, transparencies etc) that you have applied.
Are there any tutorials?
There are several RealDraw tutorials around the BushArts site, with more at other sites listed at the bottom of our
"Resources" page.
Where can I get extra objects?
Old clipart collections, Dingbat fonts,
our image Nozzles, or from many of the forum members.
How do I make my item an exact size?
Sizes are shown in the Status bar or you can use the sizes/dimensions toolbox. Type the numbers for the exact size you require, and press Enter. Same method for placing an object in a particular page location. You can also "Lock" these settings here.
How do I cut out part of my picture?
Several different methods; paint out the parts you do not want; crop it to a shape; mask off the unneeded pieces; paint parts transparent. Each image will have its own requirements, use whichever method works best for you.
How do I rotate my item?
Menu: Object - Rotate, (then choose by how far), or just use the freehand object rotate tool icon.
When I am finished, how do I crop out just my picture?
Menu: Project - Trim Canvas will trim the screen canvas around all your images, or use the crop tool icon to draw around just any item/s that you want. Then file Export.
How do I get my picture into Word,(Publisher,Web page,Powerpoint etc)?
Use Menu: File - Export, to send your image out in any of the normal picture formats. This could be as a .bmp file, a .jpg, .gif, .png or one of several other formats. Import into your other program in the usual way.
Images - the Ins and Outs
How do you get your own pictures into RealDraw?, and how do you make your projects available elsewhere? It is very easy, but a few things need to be understood first. RD works with its own file type; the .rdw format, therefore when you choose File New, Open, Save or Save as, you are using that .rdw format, and not a normal image type extension.
Save your entire project in this native .rdw format, and you can come back and re-edit as many times as you like.
Whilst you can use File Open to choose, for example, an image file of the type .jpg, this is generally of no benefit to you. The proper method is to "import" that .jpg (or other), file into your .rdw project. Realdraws' exclusive E-Jpg format is the only exclusion to this rule.
The toolbar button "Insert image from file" (then click on screen wherever you want to place it), will allow you to import your own image. (Also Menu: File - Import). This creates a copy of your image on screen, leaving no risk of any damage to your original file. Once imported, all of the usual RD features become available.
Getting your image out of RealDraw depends upon what you intend to do with your image. Making a Web Page?, you would use either the HTML slicer, or script export options. Just making an image to be used in another program?, the File - Export Menu, will give you a drop down list of choices. Which of these you choose will depend upon the intended destination.