Tab Background Pictures

This will ensure the image consumes less memory when used as a background image, and ensures you can see the full picture within the window.

Before you open a picture for resizing, we suggest you make a copy of the image file, and resize/use the copy (rather then the original file) - this is so you still have the original full sized image file.

Copy the file, and then open the picture in Paint. From Paint, click the Resize button.

From the window that appears, you can enter a new size for the image. Select Pixels and then enter a new Horizontal width - the Vertical width will automatically adjust (although you can turn this off by unticking the "Maintain aspect ratio" option).

You may want to experiment with different sizes for your image (the undo option in Paint is your friend here!) and see which size you like the look of - we usually find that 350 is a good width.

Click the OK button to apply the new width.

If you like the new width, you can save the image - otherwise you can use the undo option (by pressing CTRL+Z or using the undo button in the titlebar) and then try the above steps again with a different image size.

Other editing options

Try experimenting with some of the other editing options within Paint (or your desired image editing application) - you can select an area and crop it, set the background image to black and white, etc. Experiment and see what you like, and what works and what doesn't work!

Setting the background for a tab

Each tab can have different background images.

You can set the background image when you add a new tab, or modify that tab's details.

Go to the tab you wish to modify, go to the Tabs menu and select Modify Tab.

From the Modify Tab window, you can set the Background Image from the Appearance section.

Click the button beside the text box to select a file.

When you click Update the tab will now display your background image.

Other options and things to consider

• Depending on the background image, the icon captions may be difficult to read (although you can hide the icon captions from the Options menu).
• If you delete, move or rename the background image, PittLaunch will not be able to open that file and set it as the background picture.
• Background pictures can help make PittLaunch look more attractive and friendly, and is also a great way of seeing your favourite photos. However larger images can consume a bit of memory, so if you find PittLaunch running slower then normal, you might want to edit the image you are using, or not have a background picture.
• If you no longer want to have a background picture within a particular tab, just remove the text from the Background Image text box.
• When you edit an image file that is set as a background picture, the changes to that picture will apply to the tab background next time you start PittLaunch. If you want to edit a photo that is used by PittLaunch, you may want to close PittLaunch while you edit that image file, to prevent any problems with saving.

Need further help?

If you have any questions about background images in tabs, or any other questions about PittLaunch, contact Simon at: simon@pittlaunch.co.uk