Text as Links: "Safe Area" margin size

Sierra Nomad Photography wrote on 10/23/2009, 10:56 PM

Don't know if I got the terminology right, but am referring to the area around the text ...the area that can't be invaded by other buttons.

I wanted to be able to put links on my main menu page relatively close together (i.e. like space and a half.) But the closest I can get looks more like double spacing. Is there any way to shrink this "safe area"?.

I think I already know the answer to this question, but decided to ask it anyway - just in case.

Appreciate any input,

Jon

Comments

TheHappyFriar wrote on 10/24/2009, 5:06 AM

you should be able to shrink the safe area if you set the font size to a specific size vs auto, then re-size the button. BUT: if you shrink it smaller then the font it will set the font back to auto size & shrink the font. :)

Sierra Nomad Photography wrote on 10/24/2009, 7:24 AM

Thanks HF:

Yeah, I've tried that; and was able to shrink it a smidge, but still looks like double spacing.

I was surprised because in DVDW2 the safe area isn't so large.

Jon

Steve Grisetti wrote on 10/24/2009, 8:21 AM

As HF says, you can certainly change the font size manually and it will better fill the button area.

But you say that your issue is that the text looks "double-spaced"? That's a different issue. That's related to automatic leading, something you can't control in DVD Architect.

Leading is space between lines of text. It varies greatly from font to font. Myriad, for instance, has much wider leading than Arial.

If leading between lines of text is your issue, you can experiment with different fonts. Or you could create the text block in a separate program (like Photoshop), where you can control the leading between lines of text, and bring the "text" in as a graphic.

Steven Myers wrote on 10/24/2009, 8:28 AM

Or if you hit <Return> after typing in your text, you will guarantee a double-spaced look.

Sierra Nomad Photography wrote on 10/24/2009, 2:12 PM

It's not that it IS double spaced. It's just that that's as close as I can get the text w/o the button space (safe margin, whatever) to overlap with the one above it. It just LOOKS as if it were double spaced.

Thanks for the tips on fonts. I'll try arial, and then others as well.

Jon

TheHappyFriar wrote on 10/25/2009, 5:24 AM

by the way, overlapping isn't an issue with a DVD player, it will only highlight what you want highlighted & the arrow keys will move where you tell them to.

it's only an issue on a computer where you have a mouse pointer selecting the button.

Sierra Nomad Photography wrote on 10/26/2009, 11:12 AM

Really! Wow, I didn't know that.

I'll try it out. Thanks HF!