1. Selecting a layout

Tap "New Strip" in the upper left corner of the screen:

Select a category and a layout template that you wish to use.

2. The editing screen

Once you have selected a template, it will appear in the editing screen where you are able to insert photos, add speech balloons, and much more.

At the bottom of the editing screen you can select the following:

	To browse your stored strips, and add a new strip. Strips are automatically saved when you tap "Strips" or exit the app.
	To share the strip with email, Facebook, Flickr or Twitter, save it your photo album, or save to clipboard.
	To select a different template for layout, change background color, or change page size.
	To add speech balloons, cells, and other items to the layout.
	To enable/disable pan/zoom mode.

Note: Items can appear slightly pixelated on the editing screen, but may look fine once the strip is shared.

3. Selection, zoom and Pan

To select an item from the layout, tap on the item.

You can pan and zoom while editing. Pinch to zoom. Drag (without selecting an item) to pan.

To avoid accidentally selecting or moving items while you drag/pinch, tap the "pan/zoom" button. You will not be able to select items until you tap "pan/zoom" again.

Tip: When the pan/zoom button is on, you can zoom to a specific item, with a double tap on it.

4. Photos

To insert a photo, tap one of the black "Add Photo" areas of the layout.

You can select the photo from your photo-album, paste from clipboard, take a photo with your camera (iPhone only), select a map, or simply insert a blank white image (for drawing on).

Photos can be repositioned within their cells by dragging them, and resized or rotated with a pinch.

Photo cells

To change the position, size, or rotation of a photo's cell, start by tapping the lock icon next to upper-right corner of the cell:

Once unlocked, you can drag the cell to move it, drag its corners to resize it, or drag the yellow rotate symbol, to rotate it.

Tap the "cross" above the unlocked lock to remove the photo and its cell from the strip.

Tap "Snap" at the top of the screen to alter coordinate snap (moving/resizing/rotating).

Tap "Order" at the top of the screen to raise the photo-cell to the front of the layout or put it at the bottom of layout.

Adding additional photo-cells

To add additional photo-cells, tap the add button and then "cell".

and then

Photo properties

When selected, you can tap on the following icons to alter the appearance of a photo:

	Alter the border color and thickness.
	Alter cell frame style. Examples: round corners or reflections.
	To paint on the photo.
	Photo filters. Examples: Brightness, contrast, sharpness, sketch/cartoon look.
	Add vignette with various styles and colors.
	Replace the photo with another photo.
	Horizontal/vertical flip, and fine-adjustment of position, rotation, size within the cell.

Once you are done manipulating a photo, tap outside the photo, or tap "Done" at the bottom of the screen.

Tap on the photo, to select it again later

5. Speech balloons

To insert a speech balloon, tap "Add" at the bottom of the screen, select "balloon", and tap on the style of the balloon you wish to add or drag it onto the strip.

Once inserted, you can move it by dragging, resize it by dragging the green corners, or rotate the balloon by dragging the yellow rotate symbol. You can also change from where the balloon starts, by dragging the corresponding green marker.

Remove the balloon by tapping the cross symbol at the upper left corner.

To edit the text, double tap the balloon.

In addition, you can change the following balloon properties by tapping the corresponding icon at the bottom of the screen:

	Select font for the balloon.
	Select text color. You can also select fill/background and border colors.
	Select size of the drop shadow.
	Select text alignment within the balloon.
	Change the balloon's outline style.

Once you are done changing balloon properties simply tap "Done".

6. Sharing and email

To email, upload, or save the strip to your photo album tap "Share". This gives you a preview of the strip.

You can zoom and pan the preview by dragging and pinching.

To change the strip tap "Back".

When you are satisfied with the strip, you may tap "Share" to save the strip to your photo-album or email. "More ..." will allow you to send the strip in higher resolution, copy it to the clipboard, or publish the strip on the web with either Facebook, Flickr or Twitter.

To email the strip to a friend, select "Email" and fill in the email address and subject. The email will be put in your Outbox folder of the Mail app, and you may have to enter the Mail app to send the strip.

Facebook, Flickr, and Twitter

Select "More ..." to upload the card to Facebook, Flickr, or Twitter.

• Facebook. Use the login screen to login to Facebook, and remember to grant permissions to allow Lifecards to upload your photos.
• Flickr. Flickr upload requires that you use the login screen to log in to your account.
• Twitter. Lifecards uses Twitpic to publish photos on Twitter. Use your standard Twitter username and password.

The Strip Designer Flickr group

If you create a real marvel that you want the entire world to see, we encourage you to upload it to the Flickr group. Simply log into Flickr using your user id and password as you normally would and select "In Strip Designer group". This will upload the strip to your flick account but automatically add the strip to our group.

You can visit the group here: www.flickr.com/groups/1327216@N22/

7. Saved Strips

Your strips are automatically saved when you exit the application. To view your strips you can tap "My strips"

Swipe on the screen to select the strip you would like to edit and open it by tapping on it. You can chance the title of a strip by tapping on the title at the bottom of the screen. Strips can be duplicated or deleted by tapping the "2x" and "trash" icons:

Tap the four diagonals in the lower right corner to see a list of strips.

8. Page Options

Press the "Page" button to change background color, size of the strip, or select a different layout template.

To change the layout, tap "Template", or swipe left, right, up, and down to browse through and experiment with different layouts.

When you select a different layout, Strip Designer will automatically attempt to reposition photos and other items on the new layout.

You can also change the background and border color (if there are borders) of the strip.

9. Stickers and Cutouts

Stickers are text and symbolic graphics that can be used to spice up your comic. Cutouts are re-useable parts of photos from your photo library, or drawings you create within Strip Designer. You can add both stickers and cutouts, and position, scale, and rotate them freely on the strip. To add a sticker or cutout tap the "Add" button at the bottom of the display, and then tap on either "Sticker" or "Cutout":

, and

Stickers

When you add a sticker, choose the category and sticker you wish to add. Once added, your can move the sticker by dragging it, and rescale it either by dragging the corner control points or pinching it. You can also adjust opacity and add a shadow to the sticker.

Cutouts

When you add cutouts, you first see a list of your cutout library. You should tap "+" in the lower right corner of the "Cutout" list to add new cutouts to the library. Cutouts can be added from the photo library or the clipboard. When you add a cutout to your library, you'll be presented with the cutout editing screen, where you can crop and mask the image.

You can alter the cropping area of the cutout by dragging the 4 green markers surrounding the image. You can both paint and mask out portions of a cutout. Select the tool by tapping "Mask" or "Paint" in the lower left corner.

When painting you can select brush color (by tapping color) and brush settings by tapping "brush". When masking you can select additive or subtractive masking by tapping the "+" or "-" at the bottom of the screen, and choose masking brush style by tapping "brush".

You can zoom and pan on the cutout editing screen by pinching and dragging with two fingers.

Tip: Brush sizes can be set to exact pixels or approximately the size of a finger. Set brush size to finger-size, and zoom out to paint large areas.

Cutouts added to the cutout library can always be edited again, by tapping the "Blue arrow" icon to the right of the cutout in the list.

Note: Altering a cutout, will alter its appearance in all strips that you have used it in.

10. Installing fonts

You can install additional fonts that you download from the internet. To do this:

1. Select font for a balloon or text box.
2. Tap the blue/white arrow button.

1. Tap install.

1. Tap + and navigate the internet to find a TTF font for download.

11. Be inspired

Visit the : Flickr - Strip Designer group

If you have a great strip, please inspire others and upload it to the Flickr group.

12. Thank you

Thank you for purchasing Strip Designer.

Please email comments to us at strips@mexircus.com,

or write comments to us in our support forum at http://www.mexircus.com/iphoneforum.

Strip Designer version 1.9 (Nov. 2010)