When pasting CrystalMaker-generated graphics into other programs the default behaviour is to retain the rectangular background. In some cases it would be useful to dispense with this - leaving just the structural image on a "transparent" background.

Windows Version

If you are using CrystalMaker for Windows, you have the option of directly exporting an image with a "transparent background", provided that you choose the right file format...

When you export a graphic, you can choose from one of a number of different image formats such as JPEG, BMP, TIFF, PNG, etc. Only the TIFF and PNG formats have alpha channel support, and hence allow "transparent" backgrounds. However, in our experience, many Windows graphics programs cannot recognize alpha channel information in TIFF files, so the safest and most reliable format to use for this purpose is PNG.

To export an image with a transparent background, choose the following command:

After you have specified the size and resolution, a save dialog appears. Choose the PNG format and check the Save Transparency checkbox.

Mac Version

The Mac version of CrystalMaker works slightly differently to the Windows version: there is currently no option to export pixel graphics with transparent backgrounds, but you can take advantage of Vector Graphics, which can easily be edited in a destination program.

To export an image as a Vector Graphics file, choose the following command:

You can then specify an output size and resolution. Even if you require "screen resolution", we recommend exporting at 144 dpi or higher, because some programs tend to degrade image quality, and the higher the resolution (or the larger the output size), the better the overall results will be.

Note that at this stage you will have a vector graphics file that still contains a background. You can remove this by opening the file in your destination program, ungrouping the graphics, selecting the background rectangle, and deleting it.