Dave,
Button Images and Non Rectangular Buttons
If you intend to use an image that will represent a non rectangular
shaped button (ie arrow, circle, or some other shape), then you need
to adhere to the following rules if you want the screen designer (and MACH)
to be able to display them properly.
* Never use a JPG image. Bmp is the preferred format.
* The area of the image that does not represent any part
of the button should be a single color only. This almost
never happens with JPG images which is why they cannot
be used.
* The image must not include a shadow or any other type
of blended effect outside the button (or on the button border),
because this violates the rule above and cannot be correctly
rendered in either MACH or the screen editor.
In order to correctly render a non rectangular button, a method
called Chroma Key (or Rotoscoping) is used in order to mask out the
button shape.
The movie industry uses this method (ie Blue Screen), to composite
images into a background frame. Non rectangular buttons are
composited in exactly the same way onto the MACH background screen.
So Dave, if you want to use any of those images you posted,
with the new editor, you'll need to clean them up first.
Which means, remove the shadows, give the shape a solid outline,
etc...)
What you gain by doing this, is the ability to Move/Size the button at any time
in the editor without the need to worry about the background the button will
be displayed on. The editor will correctly composite the button onto the
background for you.
regards
Stan