Chapter 8

Whiteboard

Overview

The Whiteboard is a collaborative tool that provides a shared drawing environment for conference participants. Conference members can load images and paste them on the Whiteboard, and a number of markup tools are provided for users to draw with. The Whiteboard can also be used before a conference, so that images can be prepared for presentation during a conference.

In this chapter you will learn about

The Whiteboard Interface

There are four main sections of the Whiteboard’s interface: the Menu Bar, the Toolbox, the Canvas, and the Status Bar.

The Menu Bar

The Menu Bar provides access to the Whiteboard controls.

The menus are File, Edit, View, Capture, Page, Options, and Help. These menus contain commands that allow users to load images, magnify images, copy to and paste from the clipboard, capture images, use pages, and adjust preferences.

The Toolbox and Tool Characteristics

The Toolbox provides painting and annotation tools. Tool characteristics are items modifying the behavior of certain tools.

The Canvas

The Canvas is the actual area that is available to users for drawing and displaying images. The Canvas is made up of two layers: the image layer, where pictures are placed, and the markup layer on top of that. The markup layer contains changes made with the various drawing tools.

The default canvas size for the Whiteboard will be equal to the size of the current system display. If you are conferencing between platforms, it is possible that each member will have a different size Whiteboard. The Change Canvas Size feature can be used to select a common setting.

The Status Bar

The Status Bar provides users with help on the usage of menu items and tools, as well as notification of conference events. When you position your mouse pointer over a tool icon or menu item, a short note in the status bar will remind you of that item’s function.

In the right hand corner of the Status Bar, the current page number and total page count are displayed. You can use the left and right arrows to move between pages. There are also shortcut buttons that allow you to set certain tool properties from the Status Bar.

The Toolbox

The Toolbox contains icons representing the drawing tools available to Whiteboard users. With the tools, you draw on the Canvas.

With the Toolbox you can:

Marker

The Marker allows you to draw freehand on the Canvas.

To use the Marker:

1. Click the icon in the Toolbox that looks like a marker.

2. Hold the left mouse button and drag the cursor over the Canvas to draw a line.

When you let go of the mouse button, the Marker stops drawing. The width of the line you draw depends on which Line Width is currently selected. The Marker will draw in the current Color and Fill pattern as well.

Eraser

With the Eraser, you can remove either markups or both markups and background image from the Whiteboard’s Canvas.

To use the Eraser:

1. Click the Eraser icon in the Toolbox.

2. Hold down the mouse button and drag the cursor over the Canvas to erase.

The Eraser stops erasing when you let go of the mouse button. The width of the Eraser’s path depends on which Line Width is selected in the Toolbox.

To toggle the Eraser to erase from both the image and markup layers, choose Image from Erase Style, a cascading menu item found in the Options menu. You can also toggle your Erase style by double clicking on the Markups/Solid button on the status bar.

Box

With the Box tool you can draw rectangles on the Canvas.

To draw with the Box tool:

1. Click the Box icon in the Toolbox.

2. Press down the left mouse button to anchor one corner of the rectangle on the Canvas.

3. Drag the cursor over the Canvas to define the area of the rectangle.

As you move your mouse, you will see an outline of the rectangle you are creating. The outline will expand and shrink relative to your mouse’s movement.

Pressing Shift while making a rectangle will cause the Box tool to create a square.

The Box will draw the rectangle according to the tool characteristics, Line Width, Color and Fill Pattern, currently chosen.

Filled Box

As with the Box, the Filled Box creates rectangles on the Canvas. However, the rectangles created with the Filled Box have their areas filled with the currently selected Color in the chosen Fill pattern.

To use the Filled Box:

1. Click the Filled Box icon in the Toolbox.

2. Press the mouse where you wish to anchor one corner of the rectangle you are going to draw.

3. Drag the cursor over the Canvas to define the area of the box.

As you move your mouse, you will see an outline of the rectangle you are creating. The outline will expand and shrink relative to your mouse’s movement.

Pressing Shift while making a rectangle will cause the Filled Box tool to create a filled square.

4. When the box displayed on the screen is the proper size and shape, release the mouse button.

A solid rectangle will appear on the Canvas within the specified borders.

Ellipse

With the Ellipse tool you create ellipses on the Whiteboard.

To use the Ellipse:

1. Click the Ellipse icon in the Toolbox.

2. Press your mouse at some point on the Canvas to begin drawing an ellipse.

3. Drag your cursor across the Canvas.

As the mouse crosses the Canvas, its vertical and horizontal movements define both the major and minor axes of the ellipse.

4. When you have outlined an ellipse of suitable size and shape, release the mouse button.

Pressing Shift while making an ellipse will cause the Ellipse tool to create a circle.

The tool characteristics you have chosen, Line Width, Fill Pattern and Color, specify the attributes of the ellipse that you draw.

Filled Ellipse

Like the Ellipse, the Filled Ellipse creates ellipses; however, ellipses created by the Filled Ellipse shade all covered areas according to the current Fill Pattern and Color settings.

To use the Filled Ellipse:

1. Click the Filled Ellipse icon in the Toolbox.

2. Press your mouse at some point on the Canvas to begin drawing an ellipse.

3. Drag your cursor across the Canvas.

As the mouse crosses the Canvas, its vertical and horizontal movements describe both the major and minor axes of an ellipse.

4. When you have drawn an ellipse of suitable size and shape, release the mouse button.

Pressing Shift while making an ellipse will cause the Ellipse tool to create a circle.

Pointer

The Pointer appears on the Canvas as a large arrow-shaped cursor. Unlike the other tools, the pointer itself can be seen by other conference members and is therefore useful for pointing out specific items on an image to other conference members without altering it.

To use the Pointer:

1. Click the Pointer icon in the Toolbox.

2. Move the Pointer around the Canvas.

When your pointer is positioned over the Canvas, other conference members can see it.

If another conference member is using the Pointer, you can differentiate your Pointer by choosing a different color from Color palette.

Text

With Text you can place text on the Canvas.

To use Text:

1. Click the Text icon in the Toolbox. It appears as a capital ‘T.’

2. Click in the Canvas to place the cursor.

3. Type.

The text that you type is not distributed to other conference members until you press return or select another tool.

The text will appear in the color, fill pattern, and font that are currently selected. The font is chosen using a dialog available under the Options menu.

To choose a new font:

1. Choose Font Attributes from the Options menu.

This will bring up the Select Font dialog. With the dialog you may select both the font’s typeface and size. There are also boxes that enable you to toggle boldface and italicized text.

2. Specify a typeface from the Font drop-down selection box.

3. Choose a point size for the font using the Size drop-down selection box.

4. If appropriate, check the Italic or Bold boxes.

5. Close the dialog window.

Changing fonts affects all text typed since the last carriage return.

Line

Using the Line tool you can draw straight lines on the Canvas.

In order to draw a line:

1. Click the Line icon in the Toolbox.

2. Click on the Canvas where you want to anchor the first endpoint of the line.

3. Drag the cursor across the Canvas, releasing the mouse button at the desired endpoint for your line.

The line’s appearance is dictated by Line Width, Fill Pattern, and Color.

Constrained Line

The Constrained Line is a tool that draws only vertical or horizontal lines on the Canvas.

To draw a Constrained Line:

1. Click the Constrained Line in the Toolbox.

2. Select the point on the Canvas where you want to anchor the first endpoint of the line.

3. Drag the cursor across the Canvas and release the mouse button at the point where you want the line to end.

As with Line, the constrained line’s appearance is specified by Line Width, Fill Pattern, and Color.

Line Width

The Line Width setting enables you to select the thickness of lines drawn by the Whiteboard’s markup tools. There are four different pen widths available. The only tools that do not use the Line Width characteristic are the Filled Box, Filled Ellipse, Pointer, and Text Tool.

To choose a Line Width, select one of the four Line Width icons in the Toolbox.

Fill Pattern

The Fill Pattern tool characteristic lets you select the pattern that markups will appear in. In addition to a solid pattern, there are three different degrees of hatching that you can select from. From the Options menu, you can select whether the hatched patterns are solid or clear, meaning that they completely cover the image under them or they show the underlying image through the pattern.

Choose your Fill pattern by clicking one of the four Fill Pattern icons in the Toolbox. Additionally, you can choose either Solid or Clear from the Fill Style cascading menu selection under Options. The two tools from the Toolbox that are unaffected by your Fill Pattern selection are the Eraser and Pointer.

Color

Any markups that you make on the Canvas will appear in the color that you have selected. The color palette includes twenty different hues.

To select a Color, click a colored square in the palette. The only Whiteboard tool that does not use Color is the Eraser.

Using Files

One of the most powerful features of the Whiteboard is the ability to open files for collaborative editing.

From the File menu you can:

Loading an Existing Image File

To Open an image file:

1. Choose Open from the File menu.

A file selection dialog window will appear.

If you are unfamiliar with using the File Selector, see Chapter 17 for a short tutorial.

2. Specify the file you wish to load into the Whiteboard.

Using the Image Format selection box, you can filter the list of files by format. Selecting All Files lists every file in the directory. Alternatively, you can load images of any supported format with All Files selected.

By highlighting an image file and selecting Image Info, you can get statistical information on the image, including pixel depth, image size, and file size. In order to get Image Info, the file must be in a Communique! supported format.

3. After the image has loaded, choose a spot on the Canvas where you wish to place it.

Once the image has loaded, an outline of the image’s border, indicating the size of the image, will appear on the Canvas. In order to preview the image before placing it on the Canvas, press Shift.

If you have second thoughts about loading an image, you can press Escape to cancel the placement.

4. Click on the Canvas where you want the upper left corner of the image to be placed.

The image will appear on the Canvas page at the chosen location, overlapping any existing images or markups on that page. The image will be transmitted to other conference members immediately upon placement.

If you load a 24-bit image, it will be dithered to 8-bits pixel depth regardless of your display format. The Shared Imager is an optional Plugin available for users who need 24-bit True Color support or slide show presentation capabilities.

Saving the Whiteboard Contents

You can save the contents of the Canvas using the Save As or Save commands from the File menu. The Canvas is saved as a file in the image format you choose. You can opt to save the entire contents of the Canvas, or only the visible portion.

To Save the Whiteboard contents to your disk drive:

1. Select Save As from the File menu.

The Whiteboard’s Save Image window, a file selection dialog, appears.

If you are unfamiliar with the File Selection dialog, please see Chapter 17 for a brief introduction.

2. Select the name and location where you wish to save the image file.

3. Select the desired image format from those available in the Image Format list.

Images can be saved in the following formats: Windows Bitmap, EPS, GIF, JPEG, PCX, Sun Raster, TARGA, TIFF, and XWD.

4. Specify whether you want to save the whole Canvas or only the visible area.

The image will be saved to disk. Once a name is specified for saving a file, you can update the file on disk by selecting Save from the File menu. If you wish to preserve the file on disk, and save any changes to a different file, select Save As again.

You must have write permission in the directory where you would like to save your file.

Printing the Canvas

The contents of the Canvas can be printed to a PostScript printer.

To Print the Canvas:

1. Choose Print from the File menu.

The Print window appears.

2. Select a printer available to your workstation.

You may also print the Canvas image to a PostScript file on disk by making the appropriate Print To selection and specifying a path for the resulting file.

3. If you wish to print only the visible portion of the Canvas, check the button setting this feature.

4. If necessary, make any other appropriate selections from the available options.

If you are using lp as your printer command, you will need to add the -c option to copy the temporary file to the print spool rather than linking to it.

5. Click OK.

Closing the Whiteboard

To close the Whiteboard, choose Close from the File menu.

The Whiteboard will be removed from your desktop but may still be open and active for others in a conference. Click the Whiteboard button from the Conference Manager to open the tool again; your Canvas will be updated to the conference’s working Canvas.

If the conference has ended and you close the Whiteboard, the contents will be discarded. After a conference ends, if you wish to preserve the Whiteboard’s contents, you should save them before closing the Plugin.

Editing the Canvas

With the Edit menu you can:

Using the Clipboard to Copy and Paste

The Whiteboard can share information with other Communique! tools or OpenDVE applications by using the OpenDVE Clipboard.

The OpenDVE Clipboard can store images copied from the Whiteboard, or it can be used to paste images to the Whiteboard.


Copy

To Copy an Image to the OpenDVE Clipboard:

1. Choose Copy from the Edit menu.

The cursor will turn into a cross-hair when you move it over the Canvas.

2. Press the mouse to anchor one corner of the area you wish to copy into the Clipboard.

3. Drag the cursor across the area you are capturing.

A rectangular outline—a bounding box—will appear around the Canvas area you specify. The outline will change dimensions as you move your mouse.

4. Release the mouse at the opposite corner of the area you want to copy to the Clipboard.

The area encompassed by the bounding box will be copied to the OpenDVE Clipboard for use by other OpenDVE based applications.


Paste

To Paste an image from the OpenDVE Clipboard:

1. Choose Paste from the Edit menu.

An outline of the OpenDVE Clipboard’s contents will appear, following your cursor across the Canvas.

2. Click the Canvas to paste the image from the OpenDVE Clipboard.

The image will appear at the location given by its outline.

Clearing the Canvas

You can use the Clear Markups and Clear Whiteboard selections to quickly erase the Canvas. Clear Markups will clear only the "markup layer" of the canvas, the layer that contains any annotations or drawings made using the markup tools. Clear Whiteboard, wipes all data from the Canvas, including markups and any images that you have loaded or pasted from the clipboard.

Both the Clear Markups and Clear Whiteboard are commands available from the Edit menu.

Synchronizing Pages

The Whiteboard can store multiple pages containing drawings and images. However, when a conference begins, other conference members receive only a single Canvas page: the page currently in use by the individual initiating the conference. Additional pages can be created by anyone using the Page menu. Further, any conference participant changing pages causes all other members to change pages; conference members work with one page at a time, the same page.

Sometimes, due to networking issues or conflicting commands entered simultaneously, one or more conference members’ Whiteboard pages may be different than those of the others. Synchronize Current Page should be used to correct this problem.

When the Synchronize Current Page command is issued, everyone in the conference has their Canvas’ contents updated to that of the issuer of the command. In order to insure that important data is not lost, conference members should agree on who will issue the Synchronized command before it is executed.

The View Menu

From the View menu you can:

Magnification

By using Zoom In and Zoom Out, you can change your perspective of the Canvas, making it easier to view. Zooming In allows you to view specific areas of the image more closely. Zooming Out allows you to see a greater portion of the image without increasing the size of the Whiteboard’s window.


Zoom In:


Actual:


Zoom Out:

Zooming In

1. Pull down the View menu and pick one of the Zoom In commands—1:8, 1:4, or 1:2.

The cursor will change to a magnifying glass when you move it over the Canvas.

2. Click on the Canvas where you wish to magnify.

The view in the Whiteboard will magnify accordingly and pan (shift) to center on the clicked point.

Using the magnifying glass to select a center point is not strictly limited to the Zoom In commands. Also, you must use the magnifying glass to choose a center point any time you reduce scaling (i.e. going from 9:1 to 3:1).

Zooming Out

Pull down the View menu and pick one of the Zoom Out commands—3:1, 5:1, or 9:1.

The view in the Whiteboard scales down relative to the original Canvas size.

Original Size

To return to the original image size from either Zooming In or Out, pull down the View menu and pick the Original Size command.

Refreshing the Image

The other option available from the View menu is the Refresh command.

Using Refresh is a deliberate means of updating the image information on the Canvas page.

Capturing Images

The commands on the Capture menu enable you to copy images from the desktop and paste them into the Whiteboard. Note that images that you capture are placed on the Image layer of the Whiteboard. Using the Capture menu you can:

Capture a Region

To Capture a region and place it on the Canvas:

1. Choose Capture Region.

Your mouse cursor will change to a symbol that looks like a corner.

2. Press the left mouse button and hold it down, anchoring one corner of the region that you wish to capture.

An outline of the area that you will capture appears relative to the movement of your mouse cursor; the outline will change dimensions as you move your mouse. The outline is a bounding box and defines the area of the image you will capture.

3. Release the mouse button when the bounding box encloses the desired region.

After capturing an image of the described region, an outline of the image will appear on the Whiteboard, following the movement of your mouse. Using this box, you can determine where you want to place the captured image. If you want to see a preview of the entire image before you place it, press Shift.

4. Click on the Canvas when you have the image in a suitable place.

The image will appear on the Canvas page at the chosen location. As soon as you place the image, it will be transmitted to the other conference members.

Capture a Window

To Capture a window and place it on the Canvas:

1. Select Capture Window.

2. Click on any window on your desktop.

An image of the selected window will be created, and you will see an outline of the image move with your cursor across the Canvas. The outline will help you decide where to place the image. If you want to see a preview of the entire image before you place it, press Shift. To discard the image rather than placing it on the canvas, press Escape.

3. Click on the Canvas once you’ve found a suitable place for the image.

The image will appear on the Canvas page at the location you select.

Capture the Desktop

To Capture your desktop and place it on the Canvas:

1. From the Capture menu, choose Capture Desktop.

An outline the same size as your desktop will appear on the Canvas, following the movement of your mouse.

2. Click on the Canvas in order to place the image.

As much of the desktop image will fit on the Canvas page. If you want to see a preview of the image before you place it, press Shift. To discard the image of the desktop and continue, press Escape.

Capture Options

Hide on Capture

Activating Hide On Capture from the Options menu causes the Whiteboard to vanish when you capture data. This allows you to capture sections of the desktop that may otherwise be obscured by the Whiteboard.


Fast Capture
With the Fast Capture feature from the Options menu enabled, the capture process limits the colors used in copying the image to those of the window manager.

Limiting the captured colors to a single, default colormap speeds up both the actual capture process and transfer to remote displays. Rather than duplicating every color in the area being captured, the Whiteboard uses only the colors available to it, and approximates the rest. Due to the speed increases afforded by this Option, it should ordinarily be used, and only be turned off if you have difficulties capturing images from a particular application.

Any 24-bit images that you capture will be dithered down to 8-bit regardless of your display setup. The Shared Imager is an optional Plugin available for users who need 24-bit True Color support or slide show presentation capabilities.

Working with Pages

Like a book, the Whiteboard can store images on pages, but only one is visible at a time. The Page menu lets you move between Canvas pages in the Whiteboard.

When you start the Whiteboard, there is only one page. Other pages are created as you turn to them. When you initiate a conference, only the page you are working with is transmitted to other conference members. However, as you turn pages to display more information, they are sent to the other conference members.

The numbers at the bottom right hand corner of the Whiteboard tell you how many total pages there are and which page you are currently viewing.

With the Page menu you can:

Turning Pages

If multiple pages already exist, you can flip to them:

1. From the Page menu, select Go To Page.

A dialog will appear where you specify the page you wish to view.

2. Type in the number of the page.

3. Click OK.

The Whiteboard will turn to the page you requested.

You can also turn to the Previous or Next Page using the status bar’s left and right buttons at the bottom of the Whiteboard. Clicking on the right arrow will take you to the next page, while the left takes you to the previous page.

Additionally, you can jump to the first or last page by choosing First or Last from the Page menu.

Creating New Pages

To create a new Whiteboard Page:

1. Choose Last from the Page menu.

You will turn to the last page stored in the Whiteboard.

2. Choose Next from the Page menu.

The Whiteboard will create the new page. The Canvas will be empty and the page number and total number of pages will be incremented.

Any attempt to reference one page past the last current page causes the Whiteboard to create a new page.

Deleting Pages

Since having too many pages in the Whiteboard can become cumbersome, you can eliminate specific sets of pages. The Page menu provides three different options for deleting pages:

Delete Current Page—useful for eliminating a redundant or incidental page

Delete All Pages—discards all data in the Whiteboard

Delete All Except Current—useful when only the current page is necessary or pertinent

Options

With the Options menu you can set preferred behavior for many of the Whiteboard’s tools and features.

There are options for:

Choosing Fill and Erase Styles

To choose your drawing tool Fill Style from the Options menu:

1. Pull down the Options menu and select the Fill Style submenu.

2. Choose Solid or Clear.

The drawing tools will draw with the chosen Fill Pattern, in the selected Fill Style. With the Clear Fill Style, you will be able to see the image under your markups as if you were drawing with a highlighter. You will not be able to see through marks made with a Solid Fill Style.

You can also toggle the Fill Style from the Status Bar at the bottom of the Whiteboard. Double-click on the word Solid or Clear in the status bar to switch the Fill Style.

To choose your Erase Style from the Options menu:

1. Pull down the Options menu and choose the Erase Style submenu.

2. Pick Image or Markups.

With an Image Erase Style, the Eraser clears both the image and the markup layer. The Markups Erase Style will only erase data from the markup layer.

The Erase Style can also be toggled from the Status Bar by double-clicking the word Image or Markups appearing there.

Choosing a Floating Toolbox

You can place the toolbox anywhere on the desktop by using a Floating Toolbox. Pull down the Options menu and select Floating Toolbox.

Selecting this option again returns the Toolbox to its default position in the Whiteboard.

Setting Capture Options

The Hide On Capture option, when chosen, makes the Whiteboard disappear while capturing images. The option is toggled either on or off.

Fast Capture allows faster image capture. With this option enabled, Capture operations grab images using a default colormap. If the option is disabled, Capture operations must accommodate any private colormaps encountered. Accurate colors are guaranteed when this option is off, but may affect the color usage in other applications.

Fast Capture is enabled by default. Switch it off if you experience any particular problems capturing images from a specific application. Toggle Fast Capture by selecting it from the Options menu.

Compression

By default, the Whiteboard has Compression turned on. This switch causes Canvas pages swapped to disk or sent to conference members to be compressed. This compression creates considerable savings in both disk space and network bandwidth consumption, although it may actually slow down image transfer if the image is particularly large.

To toggle Compress, choose Compress from the Options menu.

Automatic Pop Up

The Pop Up On Receive option, causes the Whiteboard to automatically open on your desktop when a conference member loads a new image or creates new markups.

Setting Font and Canvas Size Attributes

Characteristics of Text markups are set through Font Attributes.


Font

To specify your Font Attributes:

1. Choose Font Attributes from the Options menu.

You will see the Font Attribute dialog window.

2. Pick the desired Font’s typeface and point size from the Font and Size boxes.

3. Click the Italic or Bold boxes if you desire either style.

Canvas Size

Canvas Size changes the total size of each Whiteboard page. The default Canvas size is 1,024 pixels by 768 pixels. Your maximum possible size is determined by the configuration of your workstation: RAM and swap space.

To specify a new Canvas Size:

1. From the Options menu choose Canvas Size.

You will see the Canvas Size dialog window.

2. Specify the pixel width and height of the Whiteboard.

3. Click OK to apply the size change. Click Cancel to leave the window without changing the Whiteboard size.

Background Repainting

If this option is on, then the Whiteboard will automatically repaint itself to match the colormap of other applications when it is in the background.

Getting Help

Online Help is available from many of the Communique! tools. Click any visible Help button for ready access to information about a tool or feature. Many tools, including the Whiteboard, have a Help menu to access further information.

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