Chapter 13: Setting Preferences

You can set preferences in RAYZ to customize the interface and specify default parameter settings. General Preference settings apply to all RAYZ project files, while Project Settings apply only to the current file.

In This Chapter

Editing General Preferences

Hotkeys

Editing Project Settings

Image showing contents of RAYZ Edit menu.

Fig. 13.1 The RAYZ Edit menu.

Preferences can be edited in the Preferences panel and in the Project Settings panel, both of which are accessed from the RAYZ Edit menu.

Using the Panel Interface

The Preferences and Project Settings panels use the same interface, which is divided into three main panes:

The first two panes are used to select the preference to be set or modified, and the third pane is where you specify the preference value.

Image showing panes into which preference panels are divided.

Fig. 13.2 Example of Preferences Panel being used to set Autosave Interval.

Editing General Preferences

The Preferences panel is used to customize the look of the interface and edit default search paths, hotkey assignments, and file browser behavior. You can also specify how nodes are grouped into menus.

Where Preference Settings Are Saved

The file that holds the current Preferences Panel settings is located by default in .rayz/2.0/Preferences/Defaults.pref.

To change the path to the Defaults.pref file, set an environment variable by typing the following at the prompt in a shell, replacing "[pathname]" with the actual path to use:

setenv RAYZ_PREFERENCES_PATH /[pathname]

To restore the factory default preferences, delete the Defaults.pref file and RAYZ will create a new one with the factory default settings.

You can copy the Defaults.pref file from one RAYZ workstation to another to share preference settings with other users.

Tip:

 

You can also copy or delete other user settings, such as custom layouts, custom nodes, and node presets, using the corresponding files in the Layouts, Presets, and Custom directories, which are in the same location as the Preferences directory.

File Paths

This category specifies the file path RAYZ will use to search for various directories and files. To change a default path, select a File Path preference. A text entry field will appear in which you can type a new search path.

To enter multiple file paths into a search path preference, use the pipe character (|) to separate each pathname.

Search Path

Description

Temporary Directory

path to directory RAYZ should use to write temporary cache, if necessary, while application is running

Layout Search Path

path to directory of custom layouts saved by the user

Help Search Path

path to directory containing the RAYZ HTML manual used for online help

Plugin Search Path

path to directory containing RAYZ plugins

Node Preset Search Path

path to directory containing node presets saved by the user

Custom Node Search Path

path to directory containing custom nodes saved by the user

System Search Path

path to directory containing system binaries

Font Search Path

path to directory containing fonts used by RAYZ

Settings

This category specifies autosave and help options, as well as how mouse events should be interpreted. Most of these preferences offer numeric data entry parameters.

Setting

Description

Autosave Days to Keep

specifies how long to keep autosaved files

Autosave Directory

specifies directory in which autosaved files should be stored

Autosave Enable

turns autosave on and off

Autosave Interval

specifies the interval between autosaves

Button Repeat Delay

specifies the interval before buttons that repeat start repeating

Button Repeat Speed

once a button starts repeating, specifies the interval between repeats

Double Click Timeout

maximum time allowed between mouse clicks that should be interpreted as a double-click

Help Browser

specifies the HTML browser application in which to open the online help files

Help Tag Enable

sets the default state of the help tag toggle

Help Tag Start Timeout

specifies the delay time before help tags pop up

Marking Menu Delay

specifies the delay time before menus pop up

Mouse Sensitivity

specifies how close to an object the cursor must be to affect it

Nudge Size (Large)

Number of pixels to move when using Shift modifier with the nudge (arrow) keys

Nudge Size (Small)

Number of pixels to move when using the nudge (arrow) keys

Pan Size (Large)

 

Pan Size (Small)

 

Window Border Sensitivity

specifies how far past a window border the cursor can range while autoscrolling without being interpreted as being outside the window

Image Viewer Settings

The Image Viewer settings are accessed by expanding the Settings group. They include preferences for Magni-zoom and the color of the background area in the Image Viewer as well as the scale factors to use when viewing an image at other than full size.

Click on the Image Viewer group to select it, rather than expanding it, and the Magni-zoom and Outside Image Color preferences will appear in the right pane.

Magni-zoom Preferences

There are two Magni-zoom preferences, one for the scale factor to use in the zoom box and the other to set the size of the zoom box.

Viewspace Color

This preference specifies the color RAYZ should use to fill in the viewspace in the background of the Image Viewer. By default the viewspace color is set to black. To change it, click the Outside Image Color preference to access the standard RAYZ color parameters, which are described in detail in Using the Color Parameters in chapter 14.

Medium and Low Scale Factors

Expand the Image Viewer group to access the Scale Factors item. When you click on Scale Factors, the Medium and Low preferences appear in the right pane. These preference settings specify the scale factor to use when Medium or Low is selected from the Size menu in the Image Viewer.

By default, Medium is set to 50 percent of full size, and Low to 25 percent, where "full size" refers to the native spatial resolution of the image.

UI Themes

A UI theme is a set of values that define the current look of the RAYZ interface, including colors to use for backgrounds, foregrounds, borders, buttons, text, and other elements, as well as the type of bevel and border width to use for buttons, menus, etc. Themes also specify the font to use for labels and other text.

Current Look Settings

The Current Look Settings are used to edit the values assigned to the currently selected theme. You can specify the color to use for interface elements throughout RAYZ by selecting a look preference from the list and adjusting the associated color parameters.

These color parameters work like the equivalent parameters available in a number Node Panels. For more information about them, refer to the section on Using the Color Parameters in chapter 14.

The look preferences that set a value other than color, such as font or border style, provide menus in which you can choose a value.

File Browser

The file browser is the dialog box that appears when you open or save RAYZ files or import image files in the Image In node. The File Browser preferences affect the default contents of the navigation menus in the file browser, as well as how files are listed and displayed.

Node Menu Group

These preferences are used to customize node menus by changing the order in which node menus appear and changing the menu to which any node is assigned.

Timeline

This group of preferences controls size and spacing of filmstrips in the timeline of the Clip Editor. You can adjust the horizontal and vertical size of the frames and the spacing of the vertical strips between frames.

With smaller frames and spacers, you can see more frames at once, but larger frames and spacers are easier to manipulate.

Worksheet

The Worksheet preferences are used to specify the size of the nodes in the Worksheet, the size of the (unattached) node inputs, and the size of the invisible grid to which new nodes align when placed in the Worksheet.

Text Only Node Menu Strip

In addition, to save space in the Worksheet, you can change the Icon Node Menu preference from On (the default) to Off to display a text-only node menu strip in the Worksheet in place of the iconic node menu.

Hotkeys

The Hotkeys category in the General Preferences panel is used to create or modify keyboard shortcuts--keys that can be pressed to issue commands in place of using the mouse to manipulate the RAYZ interface.

Virtually every command in RAYZ can be assigned a keyboard equivalent, or hotkey. And default hotkey assignments can be modified or eliminated.

Hotkeys are divided into two categories, hotkeys for Global commands and hotkeys for Context Sensitive commands:

Hotkey Editor

When you select a command from the Hotkeys list, a hotkey editor is displayed. The top line of the editor consists of a checkbox that turns the hotkey assignment on and off for the command. When the box is checked, the controls on the second line become active.

Image showing the hotkey editor panel.

Fig. 13.3 Hotkey Editor in the Preferences Panel.

Modifier Keys

The first three checkboxes are used to assign an optional modifier key: Control, Shift, and/or Alt. Modifier keys are held down while the assigned key is pressed.

Typical examples would be the ubiquitous cut, copy, and paste hotkeys: Ctrl-x, Ctrl-c, and Ctrl-v.

Grab Key Button

The final button is used to assign the hotkey. This button is labeled "Grab Key" unless a hotkey assignment has already been made, in which case it is labeled with the current key assigned.

Assigning a Key

  1. Check the "Hotkey Assigned" box to activate the controls.
  2. Check the box for any modifier keys you want to use (this is optional).
  3. Click the Grab Key button to tell RAYZ that the next keyboard key you press should be assigned as the hotkey.
  4. Press the key on the keyboard that you want to assign.

If that key (or key combination, if you also specified one or more modifier keys) is already assigned to another item, a dialog box will pop up to inform you of this. You then have the option to reassign the key to the current item or to cancel, in which case you can try another key.

Default Hotkeys in RAYZ

The single most useful hotkey in RAYZ may be the Space bar , which can be held down while working in any view to access the popup node menu, as described in Creating and Connecting Nodes in chapter 5.

The other "factory default" hotkey assignments for common commands are listed below in functional groupings.

File Commands (Global)

Hotkey

New File

Ctrl-n

Open File

Ctrl-o

Close Window

Ctrl-w

Quit RAYZ

Ctrl-q

Help

F1

Import Footage

Ctrl-i

The cut, copy, paste, and delete commands in the following list apply to selected text (including numerical values) in parameter fields, as well as to curves in the Curve Editor and nodes in the Worksheet.

Selected or targeted nodes in the Worksheet can be deleted, as described in Deleting Nodes in chapter 5. The undo and redo commands are described in Levels of Undo and Redo in chapter 9.

Edit Commands (Global)

Hotkey

Cut

Ctrl-x

Copy

Ctrl-c

Paste

Ctrl-v

Undo

Ctrl-z

Redo

Ctrl-r

Delete

Del

The frame navigation commands change the current frame selected in the Time Scooter and Flipbook, which in turn affects the data displayed in the views:

Frame Navigation Commands (Global)

Hotkey

Go to Previous Frame

, (comma key)

Go to Next Frame

. (period key)

Go to First Frame

Shift-,

Go to Last Frame

Shift-.

For more information on working with the following view options, see Changing the Layout in chapter 4.

View Commands (Global)

Hotkey

Replace Current View with Clip Editor

F5

Replace Current View with Curve Editor

F2

Replace Current View with Image Viewer

F3

Replace Current View with Node Panel

F4

Replace Current View with Worksheet

F6

Replace Current View with Render Control

F7

Maximize View

F11

Restore Default Layout

F10

The following commands affect the scale and position of the image displayed in the Viewer and the node network in the Worksheet:

Image Viewer and Worksheet Commands

Hotkey

Center in View (also works in Clip Editor)

Backspace

Center and Reset Scale to Normal (also works in Clip Editor)

Home

Zoom In (scale up)

=

Zoom Out (scale down)

-

Nudge Up

up arrow

Nudge Down

down arrow

Nudge Left

left arrow

Nudge Right

right arrow

Nudge in Larger Increments

Shift-arrow

The next group of commands control how image data is displayed in the Image Viewer.

Image Viewer Commands

Hotkey

Display RGB (Color) Channels

c

Display Alpha Channel

a

Display Red Channel

r

Display Green Channel

g

Display Blue Channel

b

Display Other (Fifth) Channel

o

Display Luminance Channel

l

Source Image Display (cycle thru each Source menu option for current node in turn)

s

Toggle Buffer Display (front buffer/reference buffer)

F8

Auto Update Mode

Shift-a

Continuous Update Mode

Shift-c

Update Image (when in Manual Update Mode)

y

Play Flipbook Forward

k

Play Flipbook Backward

j

Magni-zoom Toggle

m

The node commands apply to the node you target (position the cursor over) when the command is issued, with the exception of Find Nodes, which can be invoked when the cursor is anywhere in the Worksheet:

Node Commands

Hotkey

Create Separate Image Viewer Window

1

Create Separate Node Panel Window

2

Create Separate Curve Editor Window

3

Pass Thru Toggle (also works in Node Panel)

p

Thumbnail Display Toggle

t

Icon Display Toggle

i

Find Nodes

Ctrl-f

The following commands apply to the Node Panel parameter over which the cursor is positioned:

Node Panel Commands

Hotkey

Open Expression Editor

Shift-e

Export Parameter to Group Node Panel (applies to nodes within a Group node)

e

"Un-export" Group Parameter (remove from Group Node Panel)

u

Editing Project Settings

Project settings are preferences that apply to the current project file only, such as default values for node parameters and swatch values to use in color palettes. Many of these settings are used to set defaults that match the type of imagery you are using on a project.

Project Settings are saved in the project file itself.

The Project Settings panel interface is described in the section on Using the Panel Interface. Specific project settings are described next.

Current Colors

Expand the Current Colors group to specify the default values of colors used to display various interface elements, including

And you can use the Image Sample Color Palette preferences to set the default fill colors assigned to swatches in the Color Picker.

The individual color preference values are set in the same way for all of the Current Color preferences, by using the standard RAYZ color parameters. For more information, refer to the section on Using the Color Parameters in chapter 14.

Node Defaults

Select Node Defaults in the left pane to access a list of default node parameter settings in the right pane. For example, the default formula for computing luminance is film standard. For a video project, however, you could change the Default Luminance Model preference to NTSC.

Tip:

 

Whenever you find yourself repeatedly changing the default setting in a Node Panel for parameters that control basic setup or output options, consider changing the default for that item in the Project Settings panel.

Settings

Click on the Settings item itself to display a list of default settings relating to the type of imagery you are using on a project, such as the default size and bit depth to use for new Color, Gradient, and other source nodes.

Time Display Style

This is where you specify the units in which time will be displayed in the sliders of the Time Scooter and Flipbook. You can display time in Frames (the default), Seconds, Edge Code, or Time Code.

Playback Rate

Use the Frames per Second or Frames per Foot settings to specify the default playback rate in the Flipbook.

Scale Factors

You can expand the Settings group to access the Thumbnail Scale Factors parameters, which specify how thumbnail node images, if displayed, are scaled when you zoom out in the Worksheet.

Globals

Select the Globals category to get a list all global variables currently defined.

Defining $JOB

The $JOB global is set by default to the directory from which RAYZ was launched. To redefine it, click on the JOB item in the list in the upper pane and type a new path into the text field in the lower pane.

Creating a New Global

Click "Add New Item" to display the Globals editor in the lower pane.

Image showing the Globals editor panel.

Fig. 13.4 Globals Editor is used to create new global variables and redefine existing ones.

Type the name of the global in the first text field, using all uppercase letters (A to Z; no numbers or non-alphabetic characters). Do not type the "dollar sign" that is used to signify the global when typing command strings.

Define the global in the second field.

Deleting a Global

Image showing the delete button in the Globals editor panel.

Fig. 13.5 Press the Delete button to delete the currently selected global.

The Delete button becomes active whenever a global is selected in the Preferences list. Press the button to delete it.