To add a background to a custom page or message, first put your background into the photo album.  Then open to full size.  Right click on it, choose properties, highlight the url - (you must scroll to get it all or triple-click on it), and copy (Control+c).  You then should paste to note pad so you will have it if you need it again later.

On your page or message board where you want the background, put your cursor where you want the table to be and click the table icon from the edit menu.  Change the columns and rows to 1, and create the table as usual.

When you click on 'Background' this window opens and you paste (use control V) into the box (you may also choose a color to go behind the graphic if you like).  Click Insert Table and you are done.  Note that there will be a tiny little box with the background in it.  Put your cursor in the box and build your page inside of it.

NOTE:  If you are changing an existing background or adding one after the table has been created, you must click on the EDIT TABLE tab (which is the grayed out tab heading in the illustration above).  The old URL will show in the URL location if you had a background previously.  Delete that and control+v copy in your new one.  The button at the bottom will say "Update Table" instead of insert table.

• When you have the screen up that you want to copy, press the "alt" key and then press the "print scr" key (usually located on the top right side of the keyboard.
• Open Paint
• Right click in the work area and select "Paste"
• Click on File>save as
• Type in a title.  In the drop down menu for the file format, select .jpeg, .jpg, or .gif.  (Paint normally defaults to saving pictures as bitmaps and those file types are generally a lot larger than others.)  If you find you do not have any other save options (other than bitmap) clean out cookies and temporary internet files and try again.

Press both keys at the same time

1.Ctrl+D= Bookmark a page.
2.Ctrl+B= Open bookmarks-favorites Folder.
3.Ctrl+N= Open a new browser window.
4.Ctrl+W=Close a browser window.
5.Ctrl+H= Open the history folder.
6.Ctrl+R=Reload current page.
7.Ctrl+A=Copy all text on the page.
8.Tab=Move from link to link on a page.
9.Ctrl+L=Open the location field (url).
10.Ctrl+C=Copy to the clipboard (text).
11. Ctrl+V=Paste from the clipboard (text).
12.Ctrl+P=Print current page.
13.Ctrl+S=Save as.
14. Esc=Stop a page from loading.
15.Space=Scroll to the end of a web page by pressing right
side of space bar.

How to get rid of the ugly yellow background....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When you open a new message box, click the above on the tool bar.

This box will come up

 

 

If you'd like to center it, click on the right outside the box and click the center . Your box is centered now. If you'd like to center your message, click inside the Table, backspace 1 time, and click the center again. Now click inside your Table and start typing with whatever color you want to use. The box will grow as you type your message. When you get finished with your message, send as you usually would.

I hope this helped you learn how to post a nicer message

How to use the Onionskin feature in Animation Shop

This is a wonderful tool that I wished I'd known about when I first started struggling with animations!  Hope your learning it now, speeds up your learning curve and prevents some of the bumps and bruises I got from bangin' my head on my computer desk from frustration! 

See the little pointy finger on the example below?  That's the icon you click to activate the Onionskin tool. 

 Here's how you use it:

Say you have a little truck that you want to back up in several frames.  You can do this so easily by:

1) Bringing your truck up in AS.  Make several copies of it.  (Note:  It's always a good idea to make a few more than you think you might need.  You can always delete the extras.)

2) Click on the Onionskin icon and you'll get a "ghost" image on the frames following the first image.  See below