CompuServe Messages

Hi, Michael! Windows actually places 20 system colors in the first ten and last ten slots of the 256-color palette. For your info, the color values are as follows: Red Green Blue Slot 0 0 0 0 Slot 1 128 0 0 Slot 2 0 128 0 Slot 3 128 128 0 Slot 4 0 0 128 Slot 5 128 0 128 Slot 6 0 128 128 Slot 7 192 192 192 Slot 8 192 220 192 Slot 9 164 200 240 Slot 246 255 251 240 Slot 247 160 160 164 Slot 248 128 128 128 Slot 249 255 0 0 Slot 250 0 255 0 Slot 251 255 255 0 Slot 252 0 0 255 Slot 253 255 0 255 Slot 254 0 255 255 Slot 255 255 255 255 I have a partial palette saved with these color values placed in it just for this very purpose! The remaining slots in this color palette are black, so I know where the remaining 236 colors have to be placed. I generally do all my palette work in Animator Pro. What I usually do is this: I am assuming that all frames of the animation contain the same palette. If not, you can apply the same palette to each frame using the "One Palette" option in the Animator Pro Palette Menu. Then, save one frame of the animation as a .GIF or other format (it doesn't matter at this point). Create a 1-frame animation, and load in the single frame, and choose the PIC|CLEAR command. This will clear the picture from the screen, but still leave the palette contents. Now, from the Palette Menu, select the entire palette (right click in the bar next to the "A" or "B" button, whichever is active, then left click on the first color, then the last color). Choose either the HGRAD or VGRAD ink, and fill the entire screen with all the colors contained in the palette. Now, from the Palette Menu's VALUE Menu, choose SQUEEZE. Squeeze the palette down to 236 colors, leaving room for the 20 standard Windows colors mentioned above. The reason that you can't perform this step on the single frame from the animation is that it might not contain all of the 256 colors contained in the palette. Create a second frame of the animation, and set the values of the first ten colors and last ten colors to those I mentioned above. These are the 20 standard Windows colors that are created when making a Windows Identity Palette. Go back to the first frame, and select the 236 colors in your current palette. Cut them to the clipboard by using the Value|Cut command in the Palette Menu. Now, go back to the second frame, where your 20 Windows colors exist, and select the 236 "blank" slots in the palette. Then choose the Value|Paste command. The 236 colors you clipped from the first frame will be pasted in the appropriate spots in the second frame. You will then have a palette containing the standard Windows colors that can be pasted into your animation. Save it as an Animator Pro palette. Now, load in your animation. Turn the Time button on, and go to the Palette Menu. Choose the Palette|Files command, and select your new Windows palette. Render the palette to all frames. There you go! This sounds more complicated than it actually is, but I've used this method quite successfully on many occasions. Good luck! Denise