ICONSMITH(1)ICONSMITH(1)NAMEiconsmith - an interactive tool for editing polygon-based icons
SYNOPSISiconsmith [-h] [-t templateFile] [editFile]
DESCRIPTION
IconSmith is an interactive drawing editor for artwork created from two-
dimensional polygons. This artwork is used in file-typing rules to
create icons for the IRIX 5.X and 6.X Indigo Magic Desktop and the 6.5
IRIX Interactive Desktop graphical user interface (see the IID(1G)
reference page). The fftr(1) compiler and the older ftr(1) compiler
combine this artwork with IRIX commands specified in file-typing rules to
produce icons. See the fftr(1) reference page for full details.
IconSmith data files are text files written in a graphics language
similar to the GL interface in C. This language is described in the
fftr(1) reference page. IconSmith saves its files in the GL-like
language for you; you don't need to know anything about that language to
use IconSmith to draw icons.
Sample IconSmith data files can be found under the /usr/lib/filetype
directory, in subdirectories named iconlib. By convention, files created
in IconSmith should have .fti as a filename suffix.
IconSmith is intended for use by graphics artists during application
development, not by end users, because you need root privileges to add
new icons to the system and because every icon is used across the system
rather than by a particular user. To use your artwork as an icon in the
IRIX Interactive Desktop, you need to define a file-typing rule to
control the icon's behavior (for example, when the user double-clicks the
icon to open it, or when the user drops the icon onto another icon). See
the fftr(1) reference page and the IRIX Interactive Desktop Integration
Guide for more information about creating icons and using them in the
IRIX Interactive Desktop.
Icon designing guidelines can also be found in the IRIX Interactive
Desktop Integration Guide. These include such tips as
* Draw within the icon boundary (outlined in royal blue)
to ensure all of the artwork appears on the Desktop.
* Use Icon color liberally as a fill color, to ensure
your icon responds visually to mouse events. (The
color named Icon available from the IconSmith palette
differs from white in that it responds to user input.)
* Draw your icon on isometric (slanted) axes to make
it appear three-dimensional, like all other Desktop
icons. IconSmith starts up with an isometric grid
by default.
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Press the IconSmith Help button for brief instructions about using
IconSmith itself. Detailed IconSmith instructions can be found in the
IRIX Interactive Desktop Integration Guide.
IconSmith interprets the following options:
-h Print usage.
-t templateFile
Display templateFile in the IconSmith background for reference
while creating or editing artwork in the IconSmith foreground.
The template file does not get changed or saved when you change
or save the foreground artwork.
editFile
Display editFile as the artwork to be edited in the IconSmith
foreground.
FILES
The generic*.fti files listed below have special visual meaning in the
IRIX Interactive Desktop. You can use these files as templates while
designing artwork in IconSmith, to make sure the artwork looks centered
and does not obscure the generic elements below. Then you can write a
file-typing rule to use these generic files along with your artwork, such
that the generic elements appear beneath your artwork in the resulting
icon.
The generic.exec.*.fti files are the "magic carpets" that appear in every
executable icon on the Desktop. For examples, select the Find toolchest,
then choose Applications to bring up the iconcatalog page showing
application icons.
The generic.panel.*.fti files are used in a similar way as the magic
carpets, but for customization panels, which are applications that
customize aspects of the user's environment. For examples, select the
Find toolchest, then choose Control Panels to bring up the iconcatalog
page showing all customization panel icons.
The generic.doc.fti file is used in icons that represent data files.
/usr/lib/filetype/iconlib/*.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/iconlib/generic.exec.closed.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/iconlib/generic.exec.open.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/iconlib/generic.doc.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/system/iconlib/*.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/system/iconlib/generic.panel.closed.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/system/iconlib/generic.panel.open.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/default/iconlib/*.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/vadmin/iconlib/*.fti
/usr/lib/filetype/local/iconlib/*.fti
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/usr/lib/filetype/install/iconlib/*.fti
/usr/lib/envm/iconsmith.hlp
SEE ALSOIID(1G), fm(1G), dirview(1X), fftr(1), IRIS Essentials, IRIX Interactive
Desktop Integration Guide.
AUTHOR
John Eisenman
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