How To: Scribus - Part 5
Last issue we looked at creating a set of colors for use in a document, this month we will discuss a very powerful feature of Scribus: layers. Just like in GIMP (and Photoshop) layers can be switched off/on to hide/reveal whatever items were placed on that layer. This can help enormously in a large document to hide articles that are not needed at the present time with a further advantage that the less there is visible, the more responsive Scribus will continue to be.
Written by Ronnie Tucker
So this is where we left off last issue:
We created some color styles, added a rectangle and applied one color to fill the rectangle and another color to create a colored outline to the shape.
The big problem is that the box is obscuring the image. What if we could shuffle their front to back placement, wouldn't that fix this problem? Yes, and that's the first thing we'll go into with layers. In the old days of animation everything was painted on a sheet of clear plastic. So you would have a foreground, a background, a character and a middle ground. Now obviously they are in the wrong order and they need to be sorted in the order of background, middle ground, character then foreground. This is exactly the same with our page here. We created the text boxes first, then the image and lastly the rectangle so that is the front to back order they will stay in until we say otherwise.
Left click on the rectangle to select it. There's two ways of getting the same result here, we can right click on the selected rectangle and choose Level > Lower
Or we can go to the main menu and choose Item > Level > Lower
Both give the same result:
Much better. Our rectangle is now on a lower level than the image. Let's enlarge the rectangle by clicking on it and dragging one of the handles to make it taller.
Now it's covering our text. Again all we have to do is select the text box and lower it, right? No, not quite. Think about it. The rectangle is covering the text, so the text is already on a lower level than the rectangle, we need to either raise the text above the rectangle level or lower the rectangle again to put it behind the text.
This is pretty much everything for levels. As well as Raise and Lower, you can also choose Raise to Top and Lower to Bottom. These are just quick ways to move from one extreme to another rather than have to click the menus dozens of times to make an item the absolute highest or lowest.
Now to layers themselves.
Layers work in the exact same way as my analogy with the traditional animation, think of layers as being sheets of clear plastic that we can put items on. First thing we need to do is show the list of layers that we currently have. In the main menu, click Windows > Layers and you'll see the Layers Window.
At the moment we have one layer called Background. The Layers Window also has four buttons, from left to right they are: Add Layer, Delete Layer, Raise Layer and Lower Layer. You'll notice we have a Raise and Lower here too just like we have with Levels, this is because layers also have a level and this is separate from the item level but we'll come to that in a moment. For now, click the button and Add a New Layer. Where it says New Layer, double left click there and give it a name.
I've called mine 'My New Layer'. Add some text and maybe a shape to this new layer. Make sure that you have this new layer selected in your Layers Window otherwise you'll be putting your items on the wrong layer.
TIP: At the bottom of the Scribus window, there's a drop down menu which lists your layers. This is a quick way to select your layers when you may have the Layers Window closed to give you more work space.
Okay, I've added my bits and bobs to my layer. This is where the magic happens. Above and to the left of your new layer you'll see three icons, on the left is an eye, in the middle a printer and on the right a padlock. Now, we have very little on our page, but you imagine you're making a magazine, like this, where you have dozens of pages and articles (each article consisting of text and possibly some images). Let me assure you, it can get very confusing! But not if you use layers to your advantage. Here's how I use layers in the creation of this magazine: I create a layer per article and on that layer I put all the text and images for that article. Why? Because by doing that I can lock and/or hide articles to make things less cluttered and keep Scribus up to speed. Let me show you how...
In the Layers Window, click the empty box beside the Background layer, this is in the padlock column (above).
Try selecting your image or filler text. You can't. It's locked. Untick the padlock box to allow access to that layer again. Uncheck the box below the eye for the Background layer.
Don't panic! The layer is hidden from view. Check the box to enable the layer again.
Make sure the Background layer is selected, right click on the image and select Cut. Now select the new layer, right click anywhere you like and choose Paste. That image is now on the new layer. If you don't believe me: try turning the new layer off then on and you'll see.
Now for an interesting effect: select the new layer and click the Lower button in the Layers Window.
Our text is overwriting the image! Why? Because all effects work from the top down, whether it be levels or layers. The image which pushed the text aside is now below the text and has no effect on it.
This is something to remember when you use multiple layers per article, and that's exactly why I keep it simple and use one layer per article.
We're almost at the point where we can put all these articles together to form enough knowledge to create any publication, but one last thing we need to know before we start adding pages and thinking about exporting to PDF is templates. Templates are similar to Paragraph Styles, Templates are page layouts which we can apply to pages and, like Styles, if we alter a template, all instances of that template will update accordingly. Templates are absolutely crucial to a good layout.
