<Return to the Table of Contents> Glass Glass renders a shiny, translucent coating over selections; you know, like glass!. Compared to previous versions, the latest Glass renders smoother, shinier surfaces, instantly making glass buttons à la Macintosh. Other improvements include built-in drop shadow controls, reflection maps for creating a reflective surfaces and improved accuracy in simulating visual refraction and distortion beneath selections. Settings Tab See Using Settings for more information.
Bevel Width Smoothness Round Corners Bevel Placement | See Common Bevel Tools for more details.
Glass Color Choose any color for the bevel. For more information on selecting colors, see Color Selection Tools. Opacity Controls the transparency of the glass color. Increasing Opacity with red colored glass applied to blue type. Tinting Controls how much the original selection color is tinted with the glass color. Increasing Tinting with red colored glass applied to orange type. Refraction Controls the strength of distortion in opaque selections. Refracted selections look like they are under a distorted lens. Refraction must be used in an opaque selection. Creating a glass button in a transparent layer above an opaque selection will not refract the layer beneath the glass. Refraction distorts underlying images, like a lens. Inner Shadow Opacity Adds shading to the inside of the selection boundary. Drop Shadow Opacity Darkens the drop shadow under your selection. If you don't want a drop shadow at all, set the value to zero. Shadow Offset Controls the distance of the shadow from the center of the selection or layer. Shadow Glow Controls how much the drop shadow is tinted with color projected through the glass. Lighting Tab Direction Controls the direction from which the light falls on the glass. Click and drag within the lighting control box to change the direction, or enter a value between 0 and 360 degrees. Inclination Controls the angle formed by the light and the page. Click and drag within the lighting control box to change the inclination, or enter a value between 0 and 90 degrees. Highlight Brightness Controls the intensity of the shiny highlights appearing on the glass surface. Highlight Size Controls the size of the shiny highlights on areas facing the light; higher values yield larger highlights. Highlight Color Choose any color for the shiny highlights. For more information on selecting colors, see Color Selection Tools. Reflection Map Selects a reflection map file. Reflection maps provide a reflective, mirror like surface. Blur Obscures the reflection map image. A perfect reflection can sometimes looks unrealistic. Adding a little blur helps moderate the effect. If you want a mirror like surface, don't blur the selection at all. Increasing Blur defocuses the reflection map. Reflection Strength Controls the opacity of the reflection. Manage Reflection Maps See Managing Reflection Maps for more information. Bevel Profile Tab See Common Bevel Tools for more details. <Return to the Table of Contents>