Tool Bars and Palettes

Just like any application worthy of this name, Paint Shop Pro starts up by displaying tool bars. The figure below shows the tool bars displayed with the English version of Paint Shop Pro 5.01. However, we find more or less the same functions from one version to the next. It is a good idea to get used to the buttons on the right of the tool bar, as they allow you to access Paint Shop Pro's essential tools. We will come back to this later on.



Figure 1: Paint Shop Pro's standard tool bar.

A tool bar can be detached from the place where it is situated by a simple click-and-drag and then positioned anywhere in the window. All you have to do is click on the small raised bars on the left and, keeping the mouse button pressed, drag the palette to wherever you want it. You can even place it in the centre of the screen. It becomes a floating palette and you can even change its size. That's really useful when you need to free up some space.



Figure 2: A floating tool bar or palette can be made smaller.

The second palette contains the main work tools. We will be referring to it constantly during our workshops. It should always be displayed.



Figure 3: This palette contains all the most common work tools.