Resizing Text Block by % in PSP X5

[VWP1]

I have PSP X5, and am adding text to a new image canvas (I think it's called). I'm making worded buttons for my website. The Candy Cane font is much too wide, and so I am using the handle on the right side of the text block and dragging it to the left a little bit. However, I wish to do the exact same amount of squeezing for each new button, for uniformity. Is there a percentage I can type in somewhere?

[LeviFiction]

Yes and no. Technically the Pick tool can do this, but only if you're working on a raster layer. It's stupid really. You can use the resize dialog and turn off "resize all layers" in the advanced menu. That might do it. And it would be possible to do this with a script. But I think I have a better way for you.

You can use the Objects menu to make two items the exact same size.

Objects -> Make same size -> Horizontal (width)
Objects -> Make Same Size -> Vertical (Height)
Objects -> Make Same Size -> both

Very handy, it works with both vectors and rasters. What you do is in the layers palette you select the object you want to use as the source size. All other objects will match this size when you're done. Then Ctrl + Click on the objects you want to resize to match the first object. Finally use one of the three options mentioned above and they'll resize to match the first selected object/layer.

[VWP1]

Or - God forbid - I can use MS Word, Type my text using the Candy Cane font, and then block it off and right click, and choose font. The choose character width (100%, 90%, 80%, etc.) under the advanced tab. Does something like this exist on X5?

(If I stick with the MS Word method, I'll need to do a print screen, save it, and then use X5 for the rest of the operation.)

[JoeB]

Or - God forbid - I can use MS Word, Type my text using the Candy Cane font, and then block it off and right click, and choose font. The choose character width (100%, 90%, 80%, etc.) under the advanced tab. Does something like this exist on X5?

(If I stick with the MS Word method, I'll need to do a print screen, save it, and then use X5 for the rest of the operation.)

That would be a lot more work. However, following LeviFiction's suggestions it's pretty simple. If you make one button and use the Resize dialogue with Resize All Layers unchecked and resize the text to where you are satisfied, then on each other button you can use the resize dialogue again and it will have retained the same settings that you used on the first button, so you wouldn't have to change any of the Resize dialogue's settings.

Also, using Print Screen to capture an image from Word and pasting that into PSP is going to give you an image with a print resolution (PPI) at the resolution of your monitor, which I can guarantee will be different from the PPI of the image you have been working on in PSP. And, of course, you won't have an image with layers that you can play around with. If you don't mind a low print resolution image or maintaining layers for present or future use then I guess it doesn't really matter.

[VWP1]

Agreed.... I also thought of the arithmetic route. Subtract the "new squeezed" pixel width, from the original text block pixel width, and calculate the percentage. Then use that percentage in future text block "squeeze" sessions to find the desired pixel width for each of the subsequent buttons. Just type the desired text, log the original text block width of it, and multiply i.e. * .8 and squeeze. The candy cane font, however, is hard to read before it is squeezed. It's just that the characters are much wider than is practical to make left menu buttons on a website. When squeezed, the characters are even more difficult to read. ' Gave thought to using another Christmas font altogether. Any suggestions?

[JoeB]

No suggestions as to another better Christmas font to use. But after reading in your post that the Candy Cane font was difficult to read even before squeezing I was going to suggest that you simply find a more readable font.

[hartpaul]

Would making a selection the size of your buttons and then paste into selection work?

[LeviFiction]

Paste into selection would force the text to become a raster. Seriously, the match size options work with both rasters and vectors. You can easily resize the text to fit in the button using the Objects menu.

[JoeB]

Paste into selection would force the text to become a raster. Seriously, the match size options work with both rasters and vectors. You can easily resize the text to fit in the button using the Objects menu.

I agree that both of your options provided for the OP would do the job. It seems, however, from his last post that even before resizing the font he was using isn't all that readable so, before using one of your suggestions, he's going to have to find a more readable font IMHO.

[hartpaul]

As the OP was " I'm making worded buttons for my website." I wonder if it matters to maintain a vector. Does a word button eg Click here need to be a vector ? The buttons are usually operated by a mouseover and some mapping to decide the action when clicked. So it is mertely the sizing and readability that is important. So better font or larger buttons may solve problem.

[JoeB]

As the OP was " I'm making worded buttons for my website." I wonder if it matters to maintain a vector. Does a word button eg Click here need to be a vector ? The buttons are usually operated by a mouseover and some mapping to decide the action when clicked. So it is mertely the sizing and readability that is important. So better font or larger buttons may solve problem.

Having - back in the day! - created dozens of websites for personal and small business clients, it's true that "maintaining" a vector isn't important in the end, because of course the final result will be a raster layer. But it's definitely a convenience during the site layout and object creation stage when trying out different fonts for button text to see which resizes best to fit the button with best readability. Doing it with vector text allows you to maintain quality while playing around with it.

And as I don't know the OP's website page layout I can't say, but in my experiences I created the buttons first to fit the page layout and then the text to fit the button. Changing button size is generally not an option if you start with your page layout for every page object (banners,images, text and button links, copy, perhaps rotating ads, etc.) because then they won't fit the page layout in the proportion you want.

Really, he should simply find a better font that, if necessary, resizes smaller and still retains readability. Fancy fonts don't generally work well with buttons, which tend to be relatively small in proportion to the overall website page layout. JMHO, of course.

EDIT: Just another suggestion for the OP. Given he seems to be trying for a seasonal (ie., Christmas) theme for his buttons, perhaps he should consider forgetting making the button text represent the Christmas theme but instead give the buttons a Christmassy look and use a regular type of font for the button text. Just a thought.