Introducing the Microsoft Chat Character Editor
Introducing Microsoft Chat Character Editor

Using Microsoft Chat Character Editor, you can create and distribute graphical characters to use with Microsoft Chat.

Microsoft Chat is an Internet chat program that gives you the option of conversing inside a comic strip.

With Microsoft Chat Character Editor, you can:

•	Create characters by using familiar paint tools, or import and edit images from a wide variety of file formats.

•	Create separate poses to represent up to 12 emotions for each character, and up to 10 levels of intensity for each emotion.

•	Create black-and-white or color characters. You can create color characters for different color resolutions (for example, 256-color or High Color).

•	Create a character icon.

•	Make a character file which you can distribute but which cannot be edited by other people.


Changing the color resolution of a character
To change the color resolution of a character

1	On the File menu, click Properties.

2	Click the Colors tab.

3	In the Editor palette mode area, click a color resolution.

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Changing the transparent color of a character
To change the transparent color of a character

The transparent color is used to mark those areas of the character that you want the comic panel background to show through, when the character is used in Microsoft Chat.

1	On the File menu, click Properties.

2	Click the Colors tab.

3	In the Transparent color palette, click a color.

Note

•	When you draw in black-and-white mode, using the eraser or the right mouse button produces the transparent color.


Assigning a color to a shortcut key
To assign a color to a shortcut key

You can assign a keyboard shortcut for each of up to six colors in the color palette (located on the right side of the window). The number appears next to the color in the palette.

1	Click the color in the palette.

2	Press ALT and a number from 1 to 6.

Note

•	To use a color assigned to a shortcut key, you can type the corresponding number instead of clicking the color in the color palette.


Creating multiple color versions of a character file
Creating multiple color versions of a character

With Microsoft Chat Character Editor, you can create different versions of your characters for different color resolutions. Each color resolution requires a separate character source file and a separate character file.

This allows you to provide the richest detail and color for computers that can display High Color, while providing alternate versions for lower resolutions (256- and 16-color). In addition, the lower the color resolution, the smaller the file size. That means that a black-and-white character file takes less time to download than a color version of the same character file.

You can set the color either when creating a new character in the Create New Character wizard, while you are working on the character source file, or when you are creating the character file.

To create multiple versions of a character file, you may find it easiest to follow this order:

1	Create a black-and-white version of the character file.

2	Open the same file, change the color properties for the character, and save the new color file in a different folder but using the same file name.

3	Repeat for each color resolution, using a different folder and the same name for each color resolution.

By storing each resolution in its own folder, you'll find it easier to group and distribute sets of characters by color.

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Getting started with Microsoft Chat Character Editor

Microsoft Chat Character Editor is a fast, fun, and easy way to create characters to use with Microsoft Chat.

To create a character, you just:

•	Open an existing character source file (*.avs), or create a new one with the Create New Character wizard.

•	Create a series of poses to display the different emotions and intensities for this character.

•	Assign the emotion(s) to each pose.

•	Position the talk balloon, by marking the center of the head for each pose.

•	Create an icon for this character.

•	Create a character file (*.avb), which you can distribute so that other people can use the character on their computers. To view your character on their computer, other people must have a copy of this character file in the folder on their computer where their other Chat character files are stored.

Microsoft Chat Character Editor provides paint tools and a color palette to draw your poses. In addition, you can import a wide variety of image file formats, from bitmaps (.bmp) to Virtual Chat (.png) files. As you create poses, you can preview how they'll look in a Chat window.

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Create the character icon
To create the character icon

1	In the pose list (on the left side of the window), click Character Icon.

2	Draw the icon.

Note

•	The character icon will be displayed in the list of current room members in Microsoft Chat.


Temporarily removing a pose when creating the character file
To temporarily remove a pose when creating the character file

You can exclude specific poses when you build your character file. That way, you can create a character file that includes only the poses you have finished.

In the pose list, click the plus ( + ) sign next to the pose you want to exclude, and then select the Disabled check box.

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Creating a character file to distribute
To create a character file to distribute

To use your character in a chat room, both you and the members of the chat room must have a copy of the character file in the folder where character files are stored on your computers. Once you've created a character file, you can share the file by sending it in e-mail, posting it on the Web, or by sending it through Chat itself.

1	On the File menu, click New or Open to create or open an .avs file.

2	If you clicked New, create and save the character.

3	On the File menu, click Make a Character File.

4	Specify a file name.

5	Specify your border settings and color mode.

6	Click Create Character.

Notes

•	You can temporarily remove poses so that they are saved in your source file but do not appear in the character file.

•	You can choose only one color mode for all poses in a character file. If you want to provide more than one color mode for this character, you must save a separate file for each color mode.

•	The higher the color, the larger the file. Monochrome (black-and-white) files are the smallest and take the least amount of time to download.

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Creating a new character
To create a new character

1	On the File menu, click New.

2	Follow the instructions on your screen.

Tip

•	Once you've completed the Create New Character wizard, you can begin drawing the first pose, or you can import images from image files.

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What are emotions and intensity?

One of the features that makes Microsoft Chat characters interesting and fun to use is the wide variety of emotions you can use to communicate.

When you are using Microsoft Chat, you can change the emotion of the character by moving the black dot around the emotion wheel. The middle of the emotion wheel is neutral, and the edge of the wheel represents specific emotions. When you assign an emotion to a character in a given frame in a Chat comic strip, the “intensity” determines how close or far from neutral the expression is that the character will use.

When you create a character with Microsoft Chat Character Editor, you create multiple poses to represent the different emotions and intensities. In Microsoft Chat Character Editor, the higher the number for intensity, the closer to neutral the emotion is.

Neutral does not have intensities, but to make your character interesting you should create several different poses for neutral. That way, when using the character in Microsoft Chat, if you choose neutral, and then press ENTER several times (to send a series of messages in Chat) without moving the black dot on the emotion wheel, the character cycles randomly through the different neutral poses.

The greater number of emotions and intensities you provide poses for, the wider variety of expressions you can choose from by moving the black dot around the character wheel.

When you preview your character in Microsoft Chat, you can see what emotion, pose, and intensity corresponds to different positions on the emotion wheel.

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Adding a pose to a character
To add a pose to a character

1	On the Character menu, click Add Pose.

2	Type the pose name.

3	Choose an emotion and then click or drag the slider to an intensity.

The higher the intensity, the closer to neutral the emotion is.

4	Click Add.

5	Draw your character.

6	Click [image] and then drag the cursor to mark the center of the character's head.

Notes

•	You can select more than one emotion to add to this pose by clicking the Character menu and then clicking Add Emotion.

•	Neutral does not use intensities, but you can assign more than one pose to Neutral.

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Editing an existing character
To edit an existing character

1	On the File menu, click Open.

2	Locate and double-click the character source file (*.avs) you want to open.

Notes

•	You can create poses by drawing them or by importing images from other files.

•	You can add poses to represent different emotions and intensities.

•	You cannot edit a Chat character file (*.avb).

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Adding an emotion to a pose
To add an emotion to a pose

1	In the pose list, click the pose.

2	On the Character menu, click Add Emotion.

3	Click the emotion you want to add to this pose.

4	Click or drag the slider to select the intensity for the emotion.

5	Click Add.

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Positioning a talk balloon in a pose
To position the talk balloon in a pose

Microsoft Chat positions the talk balloon next to the character in the Chat comic strip. Because the balloon can appear on either side of the head in the comic strip panel, it is important that you mark the center of the character's head.

1	In the pose list, click the pose.

2	In the toolbox, click [image].

3	Drag the cursor to mark the center of the character's head.

Note

•	The center marker is hidden in the editing window whenever you choose a different tool.


Previewing a character
To preview a character

1	On the View menu, click Preview Character.

2	On the emotion wheel, move the black dot around to view the different emotions and intensities.

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Renaming a pose
To rename a pose

1	In the pose list, right-click the pose.

2	Type the new name, and then press ENTER.

Tip

•	This name is also displayed in the character preview. You may find it helpful to name poses after the emotions they represent.

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Specifies that the existing pose will show through your selection and that the background color of the selection will not be displayed.


Specifies that your selection will cover the existing pose, using the foreground and background colors of the selected object.


Copying and pasting part of a pose
To copy and paste part of a pose

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	Drag the pointer to define the area you want to copy.

3	Click to select a method of pasting.

To paste opaquely, click [image].

To paste transparently, click [image].

4	Drag the selection where you want it.

5	Click  [image].

Note

You can remove the selection box by clicking outside the box.


Drawing a straight line
To draw a straight line

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	At the bottom of the toolbox, click a line width.

3	To draw the line, drag the pointer.

Notes

•	The default background and foreground colors appear at the left in the color box. You can draw with the foreground color by clicking, or you can draw with the background color by right-clicking.


Drawing a free-form line
To draw a free-form line

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	At the bottom of the toolbox, click a line width.

3	To draw the line, drag the pointer.

Note

The default background and foreground colors appear at the left in the color box. You can draw with the foreground color by clicking, or you can draw with the background color by right-clicking.


Drawing a rectangle or square
To draw a rectangle or square

1	In the tool-box, click [image] to create a hollow rectangle or square, or click [image] to create a solid rectangle or square.

2	To draw a rectangle or square, drag the pointer diagonally in the direction you want.

Notes

The default background and foreground colors appear below the tool-box and line widths. You can draw with the foreground color by clicking, or you can draw with the background color by right-clicking.

The border width of a hollow box is the same as the thickness selected for the line tools. To change the border thickness, click the line tool in the toolbox, and then click the desired thickness in the box below the toolbox.


Drawing an ellipse or circle
To draw an ellipse or circle

1	In the tool-box, click [image] to create a hollow ellipse or circle, or [image] to create a filled ellipse or circle.

2	Position the pointer at the center of where you want the circle, and then drag the pointer diagonally.

Notes

The default background and foreground colors appear below the toolbox and line widths. You can draw with the foreground color by clicking, or you can draw with the background color by right-clicking.

The border width of a hollow box is the same as the thickness selected for the line tools. To change the border thickness, click the line tool in the toolbox, and then click the desired thickness in the box below the toolbox.


Filling an area or object with color
To fill an area or object with color

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	Click the area or object you want to fill.

Notes

If the shape being filled has any breaks in its border, the filling color leaks through to the rest of the drawing area. You can find any openings by pointing to Zoom on the View menu and then clicking the zoom magnification. Then you can close the openings.

The default draw and erase colors appear below the toolbar buttons. You can fill with the draw color by just clicking, or you can fill with the erase color by right-clicking.


Erasing a small area
To erase a small area

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	At the bottom of the toolbox, click an eraser width.

3	Drag the pointer over the area you want to erase.

Notes

The selected eraser color shows what color the eraser will leave behind. You can change the eraser color by right-clicking another color in the color box.

You can undo changes by clicking Undo on the Edit menu for each change.

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Erasing a large area
To erase a large area

1	In the toolbox, click [image] to select a rectangular area.

2	Drag the pointer to select the area you want to erase.

3	On the Edit menu, click Clear Selection.

Note

The current background color will be used to fill the cleared area. You can choose a different background color by right-clicking a color in the color box.

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Undoing changes
To undo changes

On the Edit menu, click Undo.

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Flipping an item
To flip an item

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	Drag a box around the item you want to flip.

3	At the bottom of the toolbox, click one of the following.

To reverse the top and bottom of the selected area, click [image].

To reverse the left and right of the selected area, click [image].

4	Position the selected area if needed, and then click [image].

Note

You can undo changes by clicking Undo on the Edit menu.

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Zooming in or out of a pose
To zoom in or out of a pose

On the View menu, click Zoom, and then click 2x, 4x, 6x, or 8x.

Note

To restore the view to normal size, click the View menu, and then click Normal View.

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Changing the color of an existing line
To change the color of an existing line

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	In the color box, click a different color.

3	Position the pointer so that it is touching the line you want to change, and then click to change the color.

Notes

If the line is part of a shape, any connecting vertical and horizontal lines will also change to the new color.

To make sure you change only the line color and not the surrounding area, you can zoom the pose to a larger size.

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Copying color from one area or object to another
To copy color from one area or object to another

1	In the toolbox, click [image].

2	Click the object whose color you want to copy.

3	In the toolbox, click [image].

4	Click the object or area where you want the new color.

Note

To use a color as the eraser color, right-click the color in your pose.

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Importing an image into the current pose
To import an image into the current pose

1	On the File menu, click Import Image.

2	Locate and double-click the image file you want to insert.

If the image is larger than the character size, follow the instructions on your screen to scale or crop the image to fit.

Tip

•	If you import an MSN VChat avatar file (*.png), Chat Character Editor creates a separate pose for each pose represented in the VChat file.


The foreground color is used for lines, borders of shapes, and text. To pick a foreground color, click the color in the palette.


The background color is used when you use the eraser or use the right mouse button when drawing. To pick a background color, right-click the color in the palette.


Provides a space for you to type the name for this file.


Click this to browse through folders to find the file you want.


Specifies whether to copy this file into the folder where Microsoft Chat looks for character files, in addition to the location specified in the Filename box.


Specifies whether to display a white border around the character so that it is set off from the background.


Specifies how wide to make the border around the character.


Specifies whether to automatically smooth the edge of the character when a border is specified, by blending colors around the edge. Smoothing only works with 256-color characters.


Click this to create the character file.


Displays all of the emotions not currently assigned to this pose. You can select more than one emotion for this pose.


Specifies the intensity of the emotions you are adding to this pose.

The higher the intensity, the farther towards neutral the emotion should be.


Adds the selected emotion(s) and intensity to this pose.


Closes this dialog box without saving any changes you have made.


Displays the name of the character as it will appear to Chat users in their list of Chat characters, and the name used for the file name. You can change the name.


Displays a description of the character.


Displays the gender for this character.


Displays the creator of this character file.


Specifies what color resolution this character file uses. The higher the resolution, the larger the file size and the longer it will take to download.

If you the file uses a higher resolution than the user has available, the character might not display correctly.


Displays the  color used for the areas of the character image where you want the Chat background to show through.

For black-and-white characters, you must choose a third color (not black or white) for your transparent color.


Displays the family of characters this character belongs to.


Provides a space for you to add copyright (©) or registered trademark (®) information about your character file. Click the button or buttons to place the character in the box, and then type or paste in other text such as the copyright date or trademark owner.


Provides a space for you to add an address (URL) for your Web page if you have one.


Specifies whether to use a password to control access to this character.


Click this to create or change the password. (If you haven’t created one, the button says Create Password.)


Specifies the color resolution for this character file.

When drawing the character poses, changing the color resolution allows you to see the color palette available at this resolution.

When you are making the character file (.avb), the higher the color, the larger the file. Monochrome (black-and-white) files are the smallest and take the least amount of time to download. If a user displays a character with a higher color resolution than his or her computer is capable of displaying, then the colors might not appear satisfactorily.


Specifies the name to identify this pose in the Emotion/Intensity/Pose list.


Displays the character with the emotion/intensity/pose, background, border, and color you have selected.


Displays the pose you are currently viewing. You can view a different pose by selecting one from this list, dragging the marker on the emotion wheel, or clicking View Current Character.


Enlarges or reduces how much of the panel is previewed.

Moving the slider to the left displays all of the character and the background in the panel. Moving the slider to the right enlarges part of the panel to display the character and background larger in the panel.


Specifies the size of the panel used to display the pose.


Specifies which background to use in the preview area.


Drag the marker around to preview the poses assigned to specific emotions and intensities. As you move the marker, the pose changes in the preview panel and the pose name will change in the Emotion/Intensity/Pose list.


Displays in the preview panel the pose currently displayed in the drawing area in the Chat Character Editor window.


Closes this window and saves any changes you have made to border settings.


Saves all the border setting changes you have made, without closing this window.


For Help using Microsoft Chat Character Editor, click the Help menu, and then click Help Topics.