Boardmaker Version 6 for Windows HELP SHEET

Transcription

1 Boardmaker Version 6 for Windows HELP SHEET Main toolbar for creating and modifying boards Silly Man takes you to the Symbol Finder Cell/ button tool Use to draw cell/button Sprays out button copies to make a grid. Use this to write on a board or change text in cell Use it to colour buttons, text, symbols, borders and backgrounds Zoom in/zoom out tool Gives a closer or farther image of the screen Use to round the corners of a button Pointer Tool Used to select items or cells Freeform button tool Use this to create freeform and polygon buttons. Line tool Draws lines Symbolate Button Tool Creates a button where symbols appear as you type Shadow tool Toggles 3 D button shadows Line thickness tools Changes thickness of a line, or border of a button. Moveable button tool Create moveable/ destination button pairings 1

2 Boardmaker & Boardmaker Plus for Literacy Development HELP SHEET Using The Symbolate Tool The new Symbolate tool in Boardmaker v6 family enables you to easily combine pictures and words as you type. You can quickly create printable reading materials for individuals who require picture support to develop confi dence and a level of independence when reading. Using Boardmaker Plus, symbolised text can be read aloud with highlighting so that learners can engage in independent reading. Using the Symbolate Tool 1. From the toolbar click on the Symbolate button. 2. Click in the document window where you would like to place the text or click and drag the outline of the size of the button you require. 3. The height of the button displayed will depend on the text size you have chosen. 4. Start typing to see text and pictures appear. 5. Resize the button by fi rst clicking on the pointer tool then clicking and dragging the left or right border. Changing the font Change the font size, style and colour in the symbolate window by right clicking to display a menu and selecting. The appropriate option. You can also change the font by going to the Text option on the menu bar at the top of the screen. Spectronics - PO Box 88, Rochedale QLD 4123 AUSTRALIA Ph: (07) Fax: (07) mail@spectronicsinoz.com Web: Spectronics New Zealand - PO BOX , Auckland Airport, MANUKAU CITY 2150 Ph: (09) Fax: (09) mail@spectronics.co.nz Web: 1

3 Editing the text Click on the text tool or the symbolate tool from the toolbar and click on the text you want to change. Text Tool Symbolate Button Tool Typing without symbols Hold down the Alt key, then continue typing. This feature may be useful when you want to fade the use of picture cues in the text for a particular learner. Changing the word but not the symbol Hold down the Alt key and click on the word that you want to change so that it is highlighted. Hold the Alt key down while typing the new word. You will notice that the associated picture stays the same. Viewing symbols associated with words 1. Click on the word. 2. Press F1 or F2 key to step forwards or backwards through the list of pictures that may be associated with that word. 3. Press esc with the word highlighted or double click on the picture to view the other pictures available. The Symbolate Candidates window will be displayed. Spectronics - PO Box 88, Rochedale QLD 4123 AUSTRALIA Ph: (07) Fax: (07) mail@spectronicsinoz.com Web: Spectronics New Zealand - PO BOX , Auckland Airport, MANUKAU CITY 2150 Ph: (09) Fax: (09) mail@spectronics.co.nz Web: 2

4 Choose the default symbol-word link 1. From the Symbolate candidate window select a picture, then Make Default. 2. Click OK. Adding a new symbol To add a new symbol to the list of symbols linked with a particular word follow these steps: 1. With the Symbolate tool active, double click on the picture to display the Symbolate Candidates window. 2. You will see a modifi ed version of the Symbol Finder. 3. Search for the symbol you want (for example type in vehicle ). You may want to check the thumbnail view to see other choices,then click OK. 4. The new symbol will appear with your original pictures in the Symbol Candidates window. Spectronics - PO Box 88, Rochedale QLD 4123 AUSTRALIA Ph: (07) Fax: (07) mail@spectronicsinoz.com Web: Spectronics New Zealand - PO BOX , Auckland Airport, MANUKAU CITY 2150 Ph: (09) Fax: (09) mail@spectronics.co.nz Web: 3

5 5. Click Make Default if you wish to make this picture the one that links with the word car when you type it. Spectronics - PO Box 88, Rochedale QLD 4123 AUSTRALIA Ph: (07) Fax: (07) mail@spectronicsinoz.com Web: Spectronics New Zealand - PO BOX , Auckland Airport, MANUKAU CITY 2150 Ph: (09) Fax: (09) mail@spectronics.co.nz Web: 4

6 Boardmaker Version 6 for Windows HELP SHEET Creating A Board Select Printer Settings 1. Go to File then Print setup. 2. Choose Print setup. 3. Select A4 for paper size and Portrait for orientation then OK. 4. Choose Use Printer page. 5. Select Remember Board settings and/or Remember Printer Orientation if you want to use the same settings with other boards. 6. Select OK. Draw a button 1. Select the button tool from the toolbar. 2. Place the crosshair on the top left hand and click and drag the button to the size you would like on the screen. 3. Use the rulers on the screen to help you obtain the required size. (Shift + click and drag to draw a square button.) Using the button sprayer tool to quickly draw more buttons 1. Choose the button sprayer tool from the toolbar. Click and drag from the button you have just drawn across and down the page until you have 16 cells. 2. To resize all buttons in the grid 3. Press and hold down Ctrl + click and drag red dashed border to resize selected buttons. 4. Move all the buttons by clicking and dragging the selected cells so that they are centred on your page. 5. Click outside the buttons to deselect them. 1

7 Using the Symbol Finder 1. Click on the Symbol Finder button. 2. Type in I like that in the Symbol Finder window. 3. Click in the highlighted button on your grid to copy the graphic. You will notice that the next button is highlighted. Using thumbnail view 1. Type I don t like that in the Symbol Finder. 2. Click on the thumbnail icon to see other pictures available for these words. Click on the one you want to use. 3. Click in the highlighted button to copy the graphic into it. 2

8 4. Type the word inside in the Symbol Finder. 5. Click on the thumbnail icon to see other pictures available for these words. Click on the one you want to use. Change border colour around buttons 1. Go to the pointer tool. 2. Shift + click on each button to select them. Select the palette tool. Select Border then choose the colour you want from the palette. 3. To change the button colour, select Button from the Palette and then select the colour you want. Change thickness of border 1. Click on the thickness tool on the toolbar. 2. Choose the thickness required. 3. Deselect buttons by clicking on the background. 3

9 Refine your search for symbols From the Symbol Finder click the Select Categories icon. 1. Clear all standard categories. 2. Under Sports/Games, select Games, Sports and Swimming/beach categories by clicking in the box beside them, then click OK. 3. Click on the thumbnail icon in the Symbol Finder. You can scroll through all the sports games related symbols. Click to select one you like, then click on a button in your board to copy it there. 4. Go ahead and select symbols of recreational activities and copy them to your board by selecting the symbol then clicking on a button to copy it there. 4

10 Remember, you can search for symbols by typing the name of the symbol you want in the Symbol Finder window. When you have completed your board, go to File, Save as and type in a name for the board then click Save. 5

11 Boardmaker and Boardmaker Plus Version 6 HELP SHEET Importing Pictures into Boardmaker and Boardmaker Plus What graphics come with Boardmaker? Boardmaker comes to you with a library of Picture Communication Symbols (PCS) to help you easily create printable visual supports and interactive activities to help support learners of all ages. There are additional (addendum) libraries that can be added to Boardmaker that provide you with more symbol choices. A new addendum library for Boardmaker is the Widgit Literacy Symbols. These symbols have been developed to support literacy and to help make information accessible to those struggling with traditional orthography. The simplicity of the line drawings makes them ideal for reinforcing the meaning of text. Enhancing your activities by using more pictures What pictures or symbols you use in the activities you create will largely be based on the needs of the learner(s) and the task involved. Some learners may find it difficult to generalise across picture and symbol types and may need to learn and use a consistent set for communication or literacy support. Others find photos easier to understand. Personal preferences of the learner may play a part in deciding what pictures are used. There will be times that you just can t find the picture or symbol you really want from the existing collections in Boardmaker? Here s how you can add more. 1

12 How do I add new images? You can now easily import different images temporarily or permanently into your Boardmaker picture collection. These include digital images taken with your camera and saved onto your computer scanned images clipart images directly from the web. File formats supported by Boardmaker are jpeg, bmp, emf, wmf, gif, png. There are two main ways of adding new images to your Boardmaker creations or symbol library: 1. by using the import tool from the File menu and 2. by dragging and dropping an image from a saved file or web page. Adding pictures has never been so easy. Importing a saved image into the Symbol Finder The Symbol Finder is the part of Boardmaker that enables you to search for and view images that are part of the Boardmaker symbol library collections. It is accessed by clicking on the picture of the silly man on the toolbar. If you add a new image to the Symbol Finder, it means that this image will be available to you in any activity you may create. Follow these steps to import an image. 1. Open up a new document in Boardmaker. 2. Click on the silly man icon on the toolbar to open up the Symbol Finder window. 2

13 3. Go to File, Import then select Picture. 4. Browse your hard drive to a folder containing saved pictures (for example My Documents, My Pictures). 5. Click on a folder then choose Open. 3

14 6. Click on a picture you want to import, then select Open. 7. A window entitled My Symbols\Mine will now be displayed. The picture you are saving will appear in the right hand side of the window 4

15 8. To assign a name to the picture so you will be able to search for it within the Symbol Finder, click in the box below Add a Name, type a name for your picture then click on Add a Name. 9. Click on the Assign Categories button to save the image within a category. 10. Click the relevant category name, then click OK. 11. Click OK again to return to your Boardmaker page. 5

16 Dragging a saved picture into the Symbol Finder 1. Open up a new document in Boardmaker. 2. Click on the silly man icon on the toolbar to open up the Symbol Finder window. 3. Resize the Boardmaker window to about half the size on the screen. 4. Browse your hard drive to a folder containing saved pictures (for example My Documents, My Pictures). 5. Click on a folder then choose Open. 6

17 6. Resize the window so it takes up about half the screen. You should be able to see the Boardmaker window as well as the window containing your images. 7. Click on and drag the picture you want to put into your Symbol Finder onto the open Symbol Finder window. 8. You will now see the My Symbol/Mine window. 9. Add a name for your picture. 10. Assign a category. 11. Click OK. 7

18 Dragging more than one image into the Symbol Finder It is possible to add a number of pictures or symbols to the Symbol Finder all at once using the drag and drop method. Here s how to do it. 1. Have a Boardmaker page open and make sure the Symbol Finder window is open. 2. Resize the window so it is about half the size of the screen. 3. Browse your hard drive to find saved pictures (eg My Documents, My Pictures). 4. Click on a folder then select Open. 5. Resize the window so it is half the size of the screen. 6. To select more than one image, first press the Shift key on your keyboard, then click on each picture in turn. 7. Drag and drop the selected images onto the Symbol Finder window. 8. This window will appear. You have the option of using the filenames of the pictures or manually adding your own names for the pictures. You can also assign the symbols into one category or manually choose the categories as you would if your were adding an individual picture. 9. If you want to delete a picture from the Symbol Finder later, with the Symbol Finder window open, go to the Edit menu and select Cut, or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + X. 8

19 Adding a saved picture to a button or page Importing a saved picture onto a button or to an entire page as a background means that the picture will only be available for that file. To import a picture, follow these steps. 1. Make sure you do not have the Symbol Finder open. 2. Using the pointer tool click on the button you want to place the picture into. 3. Go to File, Import, Picture. 4. Browse for a picture on your hard drive. 5. Click on the picture required, then click Open. 6. The picture will now appear in the button you selected. To import the picture onto a page as a background, follow the above steps, but do not have any buttons drawn on the page. Drag and drop a saved picture onto a button or background 1. Resize the Boardmaker window to about half the size on the screen. 2. Browse your hard drive to the folder containing saved images. 3. Click on a folder then choose Open. 4. Resize the window so it takes up about half the screen so you can see the Boardmaker window as well as the window containing your images. 5. Click on and drag the image you want onto the button or background. 9

20 Dragging images from the web into the Symbol Finder, onto a button or background Use the same drag and drop method that you used for adding saved pictures to buttons, backgrounds or the Symbol Finder. 1. Make sure you have Boardmaker open. 2. From your internet browser, go to Google Image search. 3. Type in the name of the picture you want to find. 4. Click on a picture. 3. Now click on See full-size image. 4. Click and drag the image into the Symbol Finder, onto a button or onto a background page. Just dragging the picture will bring across the filename. If you do not want the file name to be copied too, press the Alt key on the keyboard as you click and drag the image. What do I do if the image will not drag and drop? Different web browsers sometimes use different ways of displaying and storing images. You may find that not all images will drag and drop into Boardmaker. If not try this. 1. Right click on the image and select copy from the displayed menu. 2. Right click again on you Symbol Finder, button or background in Boardmaker then Paste. 10