USER GUIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS

Getting Started
FastTrack
Creating a customized calendar
Navigation
Customization
Toolbar and menu commands
- Toolbar buttons – (left to right)

Creating personalized cards
Card Types
Customizing a Card
Templates (Frames)
Printing
More about images, colors, resolution, and printing
Support

GETTING STARTED

Upon launching My Photo Calendars and Cards, you will be offered Five options:

Open Saved File - either a calendar or cards project.
New Calendar -creating a new calendar project.
New Card - creating a new cards project.
FastTrack – a guided semi-automated process to create a calendar or cards project.
Cancel - Quit

Select the option that fits your need. The next window that will open depends on the selection you make here.

NOTE: If you would like to create cards or calendars quickly and with amazing ease, why not give our new FastTrack feature a try. See the section on FastTrack further on for more information.

FASTTRACK

Just when you thought that creating calendars & cards couldn’t get any easier! My Photo Calendars and Cards has a new feature called FastTrack that virtually automates the design process. FastTrack guides you all the way along, so that in no time, your calendar or cards project is ready to print!

To use FastTrack to create calendars or cards, begin by clicking the “FastTrack” button on the “Open or create project” dialog:

Next, you will be prompted to select a calendar or cards project:

From this point on, the FastTrack process will proceed with slight variations, depending on whether you choose to create calendars or cards. For example, let’s say you decide to create a calendar project. This is the dialog that will now come up:

After you click “Next” you will see the following dialog:

Select a size that suits your needs and click “Next”:

Now it’s time to select a design scheme, or “template” for your calendar. Click “Change Calendar Template” to see your options:

The templates are divided by calendar size, though only the relevant tab (the calendar size you had previously selected) will be available at this time. A description of your selected calendar size will appear in the box at the bottom of the dialog. Once you find the template that suits your needs, click “OK”. REMEMBER: you can always use the “Back” button to select different printing options.

Click “Next”. Here you will select a year and starting month for your calendar:

Next, select a national holiday set or sets that you would like to have appear on your calendar:

Next, you will be prompted to add images to your calendar:

You can add images one-by-one to some or to all months, or use the “Auto Fill” option to add the contents of a folder of images. You can also choose to add images later. Once you’ve finished here, Click “Next”:

Here, you have the option to

Continue with the guided customization process
Advanced Design Mode (i.e. manual mode)

Let’s say you decide to continue with the guided customization process:

Here, you can add captions to each of your months. You can add images now even if you have opted to add images later. Click “Next”:

Again, you have the option to

Continue with the guided customization process
Switch to Advanced Design Mode (i.e. manual mode)

Let’s say you decide to continue with the guided customization process

Here, you can choose to display thumbnails of previous/following months on your calendar pages. Click “Next”:

Here, you can add personal events to your entire calendar all at once. REMEMBER: you can always add events later. Click “Next”:

Now, you have just one option:

Switch to Advanced Design Mode (i.e. manual mode), where you will be able to send the file to Chrome for printing.

Once you’ve made your choice, click “Finish”.

The software will create the calendar and open it in a new window. You will be able to send the file to print at chrome by clicking on the button Send to Chrome.

The FastTrack process for cards is similar to that of calendars, they key difference being a cropping tool that is available when you select the image that will appear on your cards:

CREATING A CUSTOMIZED CALENDAR

Upon selecting New Calendar… from the “Open or Create Project” dialog, a template selection screen will come up.

Select the desired template by double-clicking on it or by selecting it and pressing the OK button.

Each calendar starts with a template, though once selected, you can customize almost any visual aspect of the calendar. Please note: DigiLabs printing services currently prints only 12” x 18”, 11” x 17” (flat or center bound), 8.5” x 11” size, and desktop calendars. Select one of the aforementioned size templates if you are planning to send it to DigiLabs for printing. If you plan to print your calendar at home, select a template that is designed for a paper size supported by your printer.

Make sure to select the right template size! You can change the template at any point during the design process—just be sure to confirm that your new template is in harmony with the design scheme you have already set. If it isn’t, you can always modify your design scheme to fit the new template.

Templates are designed for specific paper sizes. If you select one template and than change the paper in the printer to a different page size, your calendar will not print correctly.

The software comes with templates in the following sizes:

12” x 18” - Bound at The Top
Each 12”x18” page is single-side printed and bound at the top. Can be printed by DigiLabs professional printing service.

11” x 17” - Center Fold
Calendar measures 11" x 17" when open, 8.5” x 11” when folded at the center binding. Each 8.5” x 11” page is printed on both sides. This calendar size fits typical US home printers, and can be printed by DigiLabs professional printing service as well (full bleed printing supported).

8.5” x 11” - Bound at The Top
Each 8.5”x11” page is single-side printed and bound at the top. This calendar size fits typical US home printers, and can be printed by DigiLabs professional printing service as well.

11” x 17” - Bound at The Top
Each 11”x17” page is single-side printed and bound at the top. Can be printed on printers that accept tabloid-size paper, and can be printed by DigiLabs professional printing service as well (full bleed printing supported).

A3 - Bound at The Top
Each 42 cm x 29.7 cm page is single-side printed and bound at the top. This calendar size fits typical European home printers.

A4 - Bound at The Top
Each 21 cm x 29.7 cm page is single-side printed and bound at the top. This calendar size fits typical European home printers.

A4 - Center Fold
Calendar measures 29.7 cm x 42 cm when open, 21 cm x 29.7 cm when folded at the center binding. Each 21 cm x 29.7 cm page is printed on both sides. This calendar size fits typical European home printers.

Desktop CD Calendar
CD jewel case opens as a 5” x 5.9” (142mm x127mm) calendar that can sit on a desktop or on any flat surface. Full bleed printing is supported. Can be printed at home or by DigiLabs professional printing service

After double-clicking (or clicking OK), you will be presented with a calendar customization screen:

Here you can specify a starting month & year, a week start day, as well as the sets of holidays that you would like to have printed on your calendar. NOTE: You can always come back later and modify any of these selections.

After clicking OK, the calendar main project screen will open with the first month displayed:

NAVIGATION

There are two ways to move from front cover to last calendar month. The fastest way is to use the forward/backward arrows in the Management Control Center located at the upper left-hand corner and the page dropdown menu on the upper right-hand corner just under the toolbar.

Clicking the blue right/left arrow buttons will change the calendar page displayed on-screen. You can also use the drop-down arrow to display a list of calendar pages from which to choose.

The second way to move from month to month is by using the navigation column located along the right side of the screen. Here you have a thumbnail view of each calendar page. Just click a month and the month will appear on-screen.

CUSTOMIZATION

An assortment of customization options is right at your fingertips, allowing you to:

Add images.
Add graphic elements.
Add text.
Add & edit cell contents.

Each of these options allows customization in a variety of ways:
Images – The quickest way to add the digital photos that you would like have appear on your calendar is to simply drag them from your desktop and onto each month. You can also drag them to the Images tab of the navigation column (just below the Management Control Center) to use later (you also have the option of using the Add Image & Add Folder buttons located on the Images tab). And of course, you have the option of using the Menu to add pictures (Personalize->Add New Picture…) as well.

Once you have added an image, you can now manipulate it in a variety of ways. First click the image to select it. The Image Management Controls appear:

Using the Image Management Controls (located to the right of the Management Control Center), once you select an image you can:

Add borders to an image.
Rotate an image. Don’t worry about making mistakes here – the “reset rotation” button will always undo any undesired rotation of an image:
Round the corners of an image.
Fade an image.
Crop an image. A cropping box will appear over your image. Resize the image as you’d like and click outside of the cropped area to complete the cropping
Resize an image to fill the page.

Graphic Objects – You can add a square/rectangular object to customize your design scheme. Just create or select an existing object and the Objects Management Controls appear:

Selected objects:

Can have their borders adjusted.
Can have their fill adjusted.
Can have their borders rounded.

Text – You can add text to your calendar and customize it in all of the standard ways. Using the Text Management Controls, additional customizations become available. You can:

Add borders and fill.
Round the corners of borders and/or fill.
Rotate text. Don’t worry about making mistakes here – the reset rotation button will always undo undesired rotation of text.

Cell Contents – Every aspect of the actual calendar grid can be customized: text, images (you can drag an image to any spot on the grid), cell shape – even the grid itself! Click on any text on the calendar grid and the following Cell Management Controls appear:

Events can be added & edited to the day cells by using the Personalize->Events menu items or by double-clicking on a day cell. You also have the option of adding clip-art:

That’s really all there is to designing a calendar. If it seems all too complicated don’t worry; this version of My Photo Calendars and Cards includes FastTrack, our new speedy calendar & card creation tool. See the FastTrack section further on for more information

There are still some things left to discuss, such as what do you do with your calendar after you’ve finished the design process. We’ll get to that, but first we will discuss some basics. Feel free to skip ahead if you come upon information that you already know.

TOOLBAR AND MENU COMMANDS

As with all software applications, My Photo Calendars and Cards.has a fairly standard Toolbar and menu arrangement, as well as aspects that are unique to this application. For the sake of brevity, we will discuss in detail only those toolbar buttons items and menus commands that are unique to My Photo Calendars and Cards.

Toolbar buttons – (left to right):

[New] [Open] [Save], [Print] [Undo] [Zoom In] [Zoom out] [Send To Chrome] [FastTrack]

Send to Chrome – This will send your calendar project to our facilities for professional printing and finishing. When printing at DigiLabs, your calendar will be printed on high quality image quality paper. We use the latest in digital printing technology to produce professional quality results. The calendar will be bound and shipped to your address within a few days, hassle free!

Menu commands:

File Menu

1. New…

New Calendar Project…
This will start you on your way to create a new calendar project.
New Cards Project…
This will start you on your way to create a new cards project (more about this in the Cards section).
New Playing Cards Project…
This will start you on your way to create a new playing cards project (more about this in the Cards section).

2. Send To Print At Chrome…

This will send your calendar project to our facilities for professional printing and finishing. When printing at Chrome, your calendar will be printed on deluxe image quality paper. We use the latest in digital printing technology to produce the finest professional results. The calendar will be bound and shipped to your address within a few days, hassle free!

3. Preflight/Preview…

This will check to see if your calendar photos are of adequate resolution. Photos whose resolution is considered to be too low (less than 300 DPI) will be listed on a resolution status screen that will come up. This screen will only come up if at least one photo has a resolution below 300 DPI.

Edit Menu

1. Global Font Change
This allows you to change the font, size, color & style of any or all calendar text at once.

2. Layout
This allows you to re-order the elements on the page (photos, graphic objects, text). The options are: Bring Forward, Bring To front, Send Backward, Send To Back

3. Grid

Define Grid
This allows you to place a (non-printing) grid over the calendar to help facilitate the design process.
Show Grid
Displays the design grid as an overlay on the calendar.
Snap To Grid
This will cause dragged or resized images, objects, and text to align with the nearest grid line. Great for achieving uniform alignment of multiple objects.

Personalize Menu

1. Select Template…

This brings up the template selection screen, on which you have the option to switch from your currently selected calendar template. NOTE: If you decide to switch templates mid-or post-design, please carefully review your calendar to be sure that your design scheme and new template choice are in harmony with each other.

2. Calendar & Holidays…

The will bring up a screen where you can specify a starting month & year, a week start day, as well as the sets of holidays that you would like to have appear on your printed calendar.

3. Events…

Manage Events…
This brings up the Events management screen where you can edit and delete existing events.
Insert Events…
This brings up the Insert Events screen where new events (with images & clip-art included) can be easily added to your calendar.

NOTE: You cannot delete predefined events (such as national holidays). If you do not want an event to appear on your calendar, use the “Visible” checkbox to hide it. You can also go back to the Calendar & Holidays customization screen (Personalize-> Calendar & Holidays…) and remove an entire set of holidays.

4. Insert Month Thumbnail

This allows you to add a thumbnail-size calendar to a previous, current, or next calendar month – or any combination of the three. These can be added to specific months or to all months at one time. You can also resize the month thumbnails, and they can be dragged to any location on the calendar page. Even more modifications are possible using the Month Thumbnail Settings screen (just double-click on the thumbnail to bring it up). Below are the menu items that you will see under Insert Month Thumbnail:

Add To All Months
Previous Month
Current Month
Next Month

5. Calendar Look

Lock/Unlock Date Grid
This allows you to fix the calendar grid in place, or allow it to be moved around on the page.
Date Location…
This allows you to set the location & size of the date cells as they appear on your calendar with pinpoint accuracy. NOTE: You can also use the mouse to relocate and resize the date cells. To enable dragging and resizing using the mouse:
Days Header…
This allows you to change the size & style of the day of the week headers.
Colors & Fonts…
This allows you to change the color scheme, font size & style for Empty, Holiday, and Default calendar day cells.
Day Contents…
This allows you to customize the location of every aspect of the date cell contents. Just left-mouse button click and relocate any of the various cell aspects for every cell on your calendar at once.
Day Style…
This allows you to customize the day cell border & background color and shape (rounded corners or diamond shaped, in addition to the default square shape). NOTE: The terms “border” and “frame” are used interchangeably with regard to calendar projects.

6. Localize

This allows you to set the language of static calendar elements to the language of your choice as long as the language is supported by your computer’s operating system.

7. Add New Picture…

This brings up an Open File dialog from which you can select an image. Acceptable image file types are: JPEG, TIFF, BMP, PNG, and GIF.

8. Replace Selected Picture…

Insert Object

Picture…
This brings up an Open File dialog from which you can select a image. Acceptable image file types are: JPEG, TIFF, BMP, PNG, and GIF.
Text…
This adds a text object (default text: “Your Text Here…”) to your calendar page. Please see the Text Management Controls section above for information on editing text.
Graphic Object…
This adds a graphic object (default: square, frame only) to your calendar page. Please see the Object Management Controls section above for information on customizing graphic objects.
Clip Art…
This brings up a clip art selection dialog where you have the option of choosing from an array of clip art images. The clip art that you select will be added to your calendar page, and can be resized & relocated.

9. Image Commands

Load Picture…
This allows you to replace a selected image or clip art object with an image from your computer. Acceptable image file types are: JPEG, TIFF, BMP, PNG, PICT, and GIF.
Resize Picture To Fill.
This allows you to enlarge a selected image or clip art object so that it fills the entire calendar page, side-to-side & top to bottom.

10. Image Auto Fix

This allows you to enhance a selected image, all images or automatically enhance when you import an image. You can also remove all enhancements.

Helpful Information

Mouse Right-button-Click
Placing the mouse over an object - or anywhere on a calendar page - and clicking the right-mouse button will bring up a context sensitive menu. This menu will include those commands that are relevant to the object/area. These menu commands have the same functionality as the like commands previously described. They also include Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete, and Duplicate, as applicable.

Dragging & Resizing
You can move any object on the page by selecting the Arrow curser in the Management Control Center, clicking the left-mouse button over the object, and dragging.

You can resize a graphic object by selecting it, and placing the mouse at the border or corner of the object until the curser becomes a resizing tool. For example:

NOTE: Pictures may also be resized, but they always retain their original width/height proportion regardless of how large or small they appear on screen.

CREATING PERSONALIZED CARDS

Upon selecting New Card… from the “Open or Create Project” dialog, a card size/style selection screen will come up. To begin creating a set of cards, a size/style must be specified. Once this is done, nearly every visual aspect of the cards can be customized to suit your needs.

You will see one columns of templates:

For Printing at Chrome, Inc: You must select one of these card size and make sure to select the right card size! You can change a card size/style at any point during the customization process, but doing so may create problems with the design scheme you have been working on.

Select the desired card size/style and click the “Continue” button.

CARD TYPES

My Photo Calendars and Cards allows you to create two different types of cards: folding greeting cards and playing cards. The card image that appears in the main application window will reflect the type of card you have chosen:

A Folding Greeting Card has three sides: front, back, and card inside. To switch between sides, use the “Front, Back, and Card Inside buttons at the left of the window, or simply click the desired side in the Pages column (directly under the Front, Back, and Card Inside buttons).

Playing Cards have only one side (the back of the card) that can be edited. The image that appears in the Pages column at the left of the window reflects the card suite, not the customized back.

CUSTOMIZING A CARD

An assortment of customization options is right at your fingertips, allowing you to:

Add images.
Add graphic elements.
Add text.

Each of these options allows customization in a variety of ways:

Images – The quickest way to add the digital photo or photos that you would like have appear on your card is to simply drag them from your desktop and onto your card. You can also drag them to the Images tab of the Navigation Column (just below the Management Control Center at the left of the window) to use later (you also have the option of using the Navigation Column Add Image & Add Folder buttons located on the Images tab). And of course, you have the option of using the Menu to add pictures (Personalize ->Add New Picture…) as well.

Once you have added an image, you can manipulate it in a variety of ways. First click the image to select it. The Image Management Controls appear:

To the image, you can now:

Add borders to the image.
Rotate the image. Don’t worry about making mistakes here – the reset rotation button will always undo any undesired rotation of an image.
Round the corners of the image.
Fade the image.
Crop the image. A cropping box will appear over your image. Resize it as you want and click outside of the cropped area to complete the cropping.
Resize the image to fill the page.

Graphic Objects – You can add a square/rectangular object to customize your design scheme. Just select an object and the Objects Management Controls appear:

Selected objects:

Can have their borders adjusted.
Can have their fill adjusted.
Can have their borders rounded.

Text – You can add text to your card and customize it in all of the standard ways. Using the Text Management Controls, additional customizations become available. You can:

Add borders and fill.
Round the corners of borders and/or fill.
Rotate text. Don’t worry about making mistakes here – the reset rotation button will always undo undesired rotation of text.

TEMPLATES (FRAMES)

To enhance your cards with that special added touch, try adding a template. A template is a frame or border that you can apply to your cards. We furnish you with a wide range of templates for nearly every occasion.

To apply a template to a card (and over an image), first access the card templates by using the Personalize->Set Card Template menu command from the main application window.

Select a template frame from any of the thirteen available categories.
Import the image you wish to place in the frame (you may do this before template selection as well).
Resize the image however you want. NOTE: At this point, the image is above the frame.
Send the image behind the frame by using the “Edit->Layout” menu (also available by right-mouse-button clicking).

And that’s it! Your image is now framed and your card looks great! If your results are not to your liking – maybe the template style doesn’t fit the image style, for example – you can always go back to the Personalize->Set Card Template menu to change templates, or click the “Remove Template” button if you do not want to use a template at all (for now).

PRINTING

My Photo Calendars and Cards will send your project to Chrome Imaging for professional printing. The process is similar for both calendars and cards.

Chrome Imaging offers high-quality professional printing of your calendars and cards.
Using Chrome Imaging's professional printing service provides you with the following benefits:

Your cards will be professionally cut & scored. The available stock sizes include those not supported by standard printers.
Your calendars & cards will be printed on high-quality stock, accentuating the beauty of your photos.
We use only the latest in digital printing technology. Your calendars & cards will have the look & feel of professional offset printing.
Your calendars & cards will be and shipped to you quickly, hassle free!
Print as may copies as desire – the effort on your part never increases, though the cost per copy decreases as the number of ordered copies rises.
You’ll save money – just add up the cost of high-quality paper, ink, and binders and see for yourself. You’ll be getting professional, high-quality results, while saving time & money.

Printing with Chrome Imaging couldn’t be easier, so why not go and give it a try! Your order is not complete until you approve it, so there’s no risk.

In order to send your project to Chrome Imaging for printing, you will need to be connected to the Internet and have a web browser. To begin:

Under the File menu, select the Send to Chrome… menu item, or click the Send to Chrome button located on the main window toolbar.
The software will lead you through the process of creating, uploading, and ordering your calendars & cards.
The system will process your calendar and prepare it for printing. When this is done, the system will need to upload your calendar to our Chrome server for print.
You are now ready to upload the file to our Chrome servers. You will need to be connected to the web to perform this upload. You will get the following dialog box:

Choose “View” to view the project file as it will be sent to print in a PDF format. It is highly recommended that you proof your project at this stage. Check for typographical errors, fonts used, missing or low quality images, or any element that may not be displayed properly on the page ― anything that does not look right. How your calendar appears in the PDF file is how it will appear when printed as well. You will need Adobe Acrobat Viewer to view the file. Select the ”Get Acrobat” button to download it from the web. Choose “Continue” to start the upload process. If you wish to correct anything in your calendar project, click “Cancel,” then simply go back to your project and fix what needs fixing, and repeat this process again.
Once the upload is complete, your web browser will launch to our web site.

Here you will provide information about the order, such as the quantity desired, the shipping address, and the preferred shipping method. You will approve the cost, provide billing information, and finally, approve the purchase.

Your order will be processed in seconds and should move into production within the hour.

MORE ABOUT IMAGES, COLORS, RESOLUTION, AND PRINTING

When dealing with digital images and digital printing, the main question is “Will my printed image look exactly as it does on my computer monitor?”

The answer is “Close, but not exactly.” There are some small differences between computer generated images and printed images:

Color scheme

Scanners and digital cameras create images using combinations of just three colors: Red, Green and Blue (or "RGB"). These are the colors that computers use to display images on you computer screen. Printing presses, on the other hand, print full color pictures using a different set of colors: Cyan (blue), Magenta (red), Yellow and Black (or "CMYK"). So, before printing can commence, your RGB images will be translated to CMYK. There are RGB colors that cannot be created with CMYK — such colors are said to be "out of the CMYK color gamut.” These colors cannot be reproduced in print exactly, but are approximated as close as possible to their RGB cousins.
You are not likely to notice this kind of color shift in a color photograph. The exception would be an image that has very rich, vibrant colors — in this case a difference may or may not be noticeable. However the image looks, it will appear spectacular when compared to the same page printed on an inkjet printer.

Image resolution

The captured digital image is built out of pixels. The amount of pixels used to create the image is known as the image DPI (or Dots Per Inch). Traditionally, Images are displayed on a computer screen using a 72-96 dot-per-inch metric (or screen DPI). Printing allows for better image resolution (Printer DPI). Printers can get a resolution of anywhere from 300 to 1200 DPI. However, printer technology is different than screen technology, and printers differ one from another. As color is created on the page by applying a combination of 4 colors (CMYK) per dot, the actual DPI depends also on the printer technology being used (i.e. Inkjet, Toner, Ink) and the color space. When printing, the printer will take the original image and stretch it over the printer space. In other words, if you have a 72 DPI image and you print it on a 300 DPI printer, an inch will still be an inch — the 72 image DPI will be used to fill in the 300 Printer DPI.

It is always better to start with higher DPI. As a rule of thumb, a 150 DPI image should print fairly well, while a 300 DPI image should look just as good as a traditional photograph. Keep in mind that most people will not be able to tell the difference between 150 DPI and 300 DPI unless they examine the image from close up and are looking for discrepancies.

To sum it up

If your images are of sufficient quality (300 dpi is the gold standard) and moderate compression, your images should turn out very nicely. If your images are low quality or too compressed, the results will be inferior. However, keep in mind that too much is not always better. A 4”x6” 300 DPI non-compressed image and a 200 DPI JPEG compressed image will probably produce similar results such that most people will not be able to see a difference between them. When you actually print though, transferring the image over a network using a 56KBps modem will take approximately 18 minutes vs. 25 seconds (for a compressed image), just for this single 4x6 image alone!

Printing and Bleed

Printers cannot print all the way to the edge of a sheet of paper, so to create that effect, the printer must use a printing area larger than the actual document size. The printer prints beyond the edge of the document size (usually 1/8” of an inch beyond) and then cuts the paper down to the actual document size. The overprinting is called “bleed.’Most Chrome calendars do not bleed!

They do actually print on a smaller area, typically ¼” of an inch off each side.
DigiLabs 11”x17. 8.5”x11” calendars and all sizes of cards do bleed. If you want an image to go all the way to the end of the paper, the image should bleed 1/8” off the page.

SUPPORT

If you have any problems, concerns or questions please do not hesitate to call us directly at 202.333.3270 where a customer service representative will be more than happy to assist you. Enjoy!