PalmPilot Image Creator Copyright © 1997 Art Dahm (adahm@cyberramp.net) Introduction ------------ PalmPilot Image Creator (pimg.exe) is a Windows 95 application for converting windows .BMP images into PalmPilot .PRC images compatible with the PalmPilot Image Viewer. Installing Image Converter -------------------------- Unzip the file pimg.exe and NViewLib.dll into their own separate folder. To start the Image Converter, double click the pimg.exe file from the Windows 95 Desktop or Explorer. Creating an Image ----------------- The steps involved in creating an Image Viewer image are: - Select the image source. The source of an image can be a graphic file, the Windows clipboard or an area of the screen. - If the image source is a graphic file, click the 'Open' button to select the graphic file to convert. - If the image source is the Widows Clipboard, click the 'Open' button to load the contents of the clipboard into the image converter. - If the image source is the screen, click the 'Open' button to hide the image converter window. Click the left mouse button in the upper left corner of the area of the screen to be converted. Drag the mouse to the lower right corner and click the left mouse button again. The image converter window will be restored and the selected area will be loaded into the image converter. - The Image Title is the name of the image as it will appear on the PalmPilot. - The Image File is the name of the PalmPilot database file (.PDB) containing the image which will be hotsynced to the PalmPilot. - Check the 'Compress Image' checkbox if you want the image compressed. Compressed images take up less space on your PalmPilot, but take longer to view and may not be viewable under low memory situations. - Click the 'Convert' button to convert the image. The new PalmPilot database file will be stored in the same folder as the .BMP file. - If the image is too large, a dialog box will pop up with a suggested amount to decrease the size of the image by. Tips ---- Use your favorite paint program to convert an image to grayscale to get a better idea of how it will look on your PalmPilot. The PalmPilot uses four levels of gray (white, light gray, dark gray and black) which are evenly distributed among the range of grays used in a paint program. If an image loses certain details when converted, try changing the brightness of some of the colors so they map to a different grayscale level. If an image is too large, use your paint program's Crop feature to decrease the size of the image. Updates ------- v2.8 - Improved process used to convert color pictures to grayscale. v2.7 - Added image compression. v2.5 - Added support for GIF, JPG, PCX, DIB, RLE, and TGA graphic file types. v2.4 - Added a light next to the Convert button which turns red if an image is too large to be converted v2.3 - Added ability to convert an image in the Windows clipboard - Added ability to capture and convert an area of the screen v2.2 - Fixed multiple user auto-install bug v2.1 - Added grayscale 'dither' option - Added black & white 'dither' option v2.0 - Redesigned UI: Tabbed dialog replaces multiple windows. - Added auto-install option: No more need to run USR Install Tool. Just convert and hotsync. - Added preview tab: See how PalmPilot images will look before installing them. - Removed 'dither' option V1.3 - Added support for black & white images V1.2 - Added support for attaching notes to images V1.1 - Added 'dither' option to simulate three more grayscale levels. - Increased maximum image size by about 10%