InkFlow Panel Basic Mode
InkFlow Panel (Basic Mode)
1. Flyout menu
See InkFlow Panel: Flyout Menu.
2. Panel banner
The InkFlow panel banner has a help button on the right which opens the help documentation in the Astute Manager. If this does not automatically appear, please ensure your Astute Manager is running first. Also, the panel banner can be clicked to activate the InkFlow tool. This is a quick method of locating the tool within the default Advanced toolbar or a custom toolbar.
3. Preset Pens
InkFlow offers four preset pens with different characteristics. Each may be selected by clicking on the corresponding icon in the top row, which will highlight in blue. Each pen may be customized by selecting it, changing its parameters using the panel controls underneath, and then Option/Alt-clicking on the icon. To reset a preset pen back to its default values, Shift-click on it (or all of the preset pens may be reset by using the panel flyout menu item Reset Standard Pens). If one or more InkFlow strokes are selected when a pen is selected, their strokes will be changed to match the selected pen’s.
a. Ballpoint Pen Preset: The Ballpoint Pen preset is designed to imitate a typical ballpoint pen, with a small round tip, and slight upstroke thinning.
b. Brush Pen Preset: The Brush Pen preset is designed to imitate a fiber-tipped brush, with a larger round tip and high upstroke thinning.
c. Calligraphic Pen Preset: The Calligraphic Pen preset is designed to imitate a shaped pen used for calligraphy. It has a highly-elliptical tip and very high upstroke thinning.
d. Marker Pen Preset: The Brush Pen preset is designed to imitate a wide, chisel-tipped marker. It has a larger, highly-elliptical tip and no upstroke thinning.
4. User-Defined Pens
You can define up to four pens of your own, which can be recalled by simply clicking on one of the boxes. To define a pen, adjust the panel parameters to their desired values and then Option/Alt-click on one of the boxes to store it. While a user-defined pen cannot be named, an image of its stroke will appear.
InkFlow Panel User Defined Brush
To remove a user-defined pen, Shift-click on its box.
5. Current Stroke Preview
Shows a preview of the stroke that would be produced by the current pen, if it were moved from left to right with increasing pressure. When the pen size is too large to be drawn correctly (more than about 30 pt), it will be shown in a dimmer color around its scaled-down version (drawn in magenta). The preview reflects the Thin Upstrokes parameter, and if enabled, the effective pen size may be smaller than the nominal size.
6. String Controls
The InkFlow cursor is pulled by a virtual “string,” the length of which is specified here, from 1 to 100 pixels. Changing the string length will not change existing selected InkFlow strokes; however, the parameter is saved and recalled with each pen preset. The virtual string acts very similarly to a real string. When it is taut, pulling the string has the effect of dragging the pen in the same direction. However, pushing on the string, or dragging when it is not taut, has no effect on the pen position. A very short string has the effect of stabilizing the pen and filtering out small tremors. This is particularly useful with stylus input devices, which are more susceptible to hand tremor than mice. A longer string changes the characteristics of the pen: it becomes smoother and draws either very shallow curves, or makes tight corners when the string is relaxed and pulled in a different direction.
7. Thin Upstrokes Controls
When Thin Upstrokes is enabled, drawing with the pen in the direction specified as “Up” will cause its size to decrease, reflecting the way some physical pens behave, and useful for calligraphy. The amount of thinning can be specified from 1% to 100%, where 20% means a stroke exactly in the “Up” direction would be only 20% of the width of a stroke in the opposite direction (a stroke only partly in the “Up” direction would get partial thinning). By default, the “Up” direction is actually upwards (90°, as specified in Illustrator), but can be changed to any value.
InkFlow Thin Upstroke Examples
8. Pen Size Controls
These controls specify the size of the pen. The slider and value input allow the size to be directly specified, from 1 pt to 1296 pt. The button at left allows pressure control for tablet input devices; when using a mouse it should be kept off. When it is enabled, the specified size value represents the maximum size; the minimum size may be specified by using the control on the Expanded mode panel (see InkFlow Panel Expanded Mode).
9. Pen Roundness Controls
These controls specify the roundness of the pen. The slider and value input allow the roundness to be directly specified, from 1% (an extremely narrow ellipse; nearly a straight line) to 100% (circular). The button at left allows tilt control for tablet input devices; when using a mouse it should be kept off. When it is enabled, the specified roundness value represents the maximum value; the minimum value may be specified by using the control on the Expanded mode panel (see InkFlow Panel Expanded Mode).
10. Pen Angle Controls
These controls specify the angle of the pen tip (which is only relevant if the roundness is set to a value other than 100%). The slider and value input allow the angle to be directly specified. The button at left allows bearing control for tablet input devices; when using a mouse it should be kept off. When it is enabled, the specified angle value represents the default value at neutral bearing; the variance may be specified by using the control on the Expanded mode panel (see InkFlow Panel Expanded Mode).
11. Feathering Controls
These controls may be hidden using the panel flyout menu Hide Ink Simulation Controls. Feathering occurs when capillary action causes ink from the pen to be drawn along the fibers of the paper. It creates very fine, thin lines perpendicular or near-perpendicular to the stroke. The InkFlow simulation is designed to be viewed at up to about twice screen resolution, where it creates a fuzziness to the edge and softens it. It doesn’t look realistic at higher zoom levels, due to point count considerations. The feathering value may be set from 0 to 100, with values below about 60 producing fairly subtle results, and values above 85 making the stroke look very spiky.
InkFlow Feathering Examples
12. Bleed Controls
These controls may be hidden using the panel flyout menu Hide Ink Simulation Controls. Bleeding occurs when the pen is brought into contact with and taken off the paper. When a pen is brought into contact with the paper, there is usually a pause, during which time the ink seeps into a circle around the contact point. When it is removed from the paper, it is generally not removed cleanly, and there is an uneven trail during the short period when pen is only partially in contact with the paper. Enabling Bleed in InkFlow simulates both of these effects. For the end of the stroke, the brush trails are randomly generated, and toggling the effect will generate a different look each time.
InkFlow Bleed Examples
13. Splatter Controls
These controls may be hidden using the panel flyout menu Hide Ink Simulation Controls. Although splatter generally isn’t seen with modern pens, it does occur in some historical manuscripts. It’s also an artistic way of suggesting real ink. When Splatter is enabled, tiny paths representing droplets surround the stroke, some of them forming teardrop-shaped splashes. The splatter dots are randomly generated, and toggling the effect will generate a different look each time.
InkFlow Splatter Examples