Optimize That Image!
October 6, 2000
Format Panel
Once you've got all of the rollover images added, you could
save the document and be done. But while you're here, why
don't you take advantage of the Optimizer. PSP's Image Slicer
not only let's you select the image format of each
individual cell but also lets you optimize that cell
for the web.
Gif Optimizer
The Gif Optimizer dialog box has five tabs:
Transparency: The transparency tab is where you select the color
that will be transparent in your image. You can set it to none,
the existing transparent color, inside or outside of a selection,
or specify a color. Note that if the image already has a
transparent selection and you select a different color here, the
first transparency will no longer be transparent.
Partial Transparency: Partial transparency isn't allowed in a
gif file. There may be partially transparent pixels in the
image if you have reduced the layer opacity, added a mask,
used feather in a selection or erased at a reduced opacity
setting. The Partial Transparency tab is used to either change these
pixels to transparent, make them opaque, or blend them with
another color.
Colors: Gif images are reduced to 256 colors. When you
reduce the number of colors in an image the file size decreases,
but so does the quality of the image. The Color tab allows you
to 'tweak' your image while using the preview boxes to determine
the best setting.
Dithering arranges the images pixels to compensate for
missing colors. (Remember, colors are removed when you select
the .gif format).
There are four color palettes to choose from.
- Existing Palette: This option is only available if you've
already paletted your image.
- Standard/Web-safe: Use this option if you want to be sure
your image displays consistently on viewers monitors.
- Optimized Median Cut: This option reduces the image to
only a few colors.
- Optimized Octree: This option is best used if you want to
keep the exact colors of your original image, and if that
image contained only a few colors.
Format: The Format tab allows you to choose the
interlacing and version options. Non-interlaced images
download one line at a time, starting at the top. Interlaced
images are displayed incrementally, appearing fuzzy at first
and gradually sharpening. If you have elected to have a
transparent selection in the image you will have to choose
the 89a Version. Version 87a is only available if the
image doesn't contain a transparency.
Download Times: This tab tells you how long it will
take for your image to download at various modem speeds.
JPG Optimizer
The JPG Optimizer dialog box has three tabs:
Quality: The Quality tab allows you to set the compression
value for the image. Higher compression reduces the file size
but also decreases image quality. Watch the preview box while
adjusting the compression. When you find that fine line between
a clear image and the point where the image starts to deteriorate,
you've found the best compression value.
Format: The format determines how the image will appear as
it's being loaded. This is similar to the GIF Format tab.
JPGs have two formats, Standard and Progressive. A Standard
format downloads one line at a time while the Progressive format
is displayed incrementally.
Conclusion:
Now that you've got your image all sliced, diced and optimized
you'll need to save it. When you save as an htm file PSP saves
all of the HTML, JavaScript and image sections for you. All
that's left for you to do is open the .htm file in your favorite
editor, copy the code and paste it into your own HTML file!
OK, I lied. There may be just a bit more for you to do. PSP
doesn't write valid HTML so you may need to tweak the markup
a bit if you want valid HTML.
Have fun!
Rollovers are Cool
Slicing and Dicing with PSP 7
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