Flaming Pear Pixel Trash Guide

What it does

How to install

Controls

Versions

Questions

Pixel Trash

What it does

Pixel Trash gives pictures the crude, blocky look of early 1980's graphics.

How to install

Illustrated installation instructions are online.

To use this software, you need a paint program which accepts standard Photoshop 3.02 plugins.

Just put the plug-in filter into the folder where your paint program expects to find it. If you have Photoshop, the folder is Photoshop:Plugins:Filters or Photoshop:Plug-ins. You must restart Photoshop before it will notice the new plug-in. It will appear in the menus as Filters->Flaming Pear->Pixel Trash.

Most other paint programs follow a similar scheme.

If you have Paint Shop Pro: you have to create a new folder, put the plug-in filter into it, and then tell PSP to look there.

PSP 7:

Choose the menu File-> Preferences-> File Locations... and choose the Plug-in Filters tab. Use one of the "Browse" buttons to choose the folder that contains the plug-in.

The plugin is now installed. To use it, open any image and select an area. From the menus, choose Effects->Plug-in Filters->Flaming Pear->Pixel Trash.

PSP 8, 9, X, and later:

Choose the menu File-> Preferences-> File Locations... In the dialog box that appears, choose Plug-ins from the list. Click "Add." If you are using PSP 8 or 9, click "Browse". Now choose the folder that contains the plug-in.

The plugin is now installed. To use it, open any image and select an area. From the menus, choose Effects->Plugins->Flaming Pear->Pixel Trash.

Controls

When you invoke Pixel Trash, a dialog box will appear:

Quick start |  |  |

If you just want to see some effects quickly, click the dice button until you see something you like; then click OK.

Using the dice is the easiest way to use Pixel Trash. If you want to hand-tune your own effects, it helps to learn the controls, which are arranged in three groups.

> Dithering

> Sharpening

> Glue

...and there are some other controls that affect the overall look.

dice

original picture

Dithering |  |  |

Dithering means mixing a limited number of pixel colors to approximate other colors.

Coarseness: you can use fine or blocky pixels.

Range: the pixels don't all have to be the same size.

Colors: you can use black & white, eight basic colors, or five greys.

dithered

more range

colors

Sharpening |  |  |
Sharpness: this slider makes the edges contrastier, which repairs some of the intelligibility lost to blockiness. Radius: the thickness of the sharpened edges. |  | less sharp |

Glue |  |  |
Glue controls how the dithered image is combined with the original to produce the final result. There are about forty modes and many of them produce complicated color effects. |  | different glue different glue again |

Other controls |  |  |

Dice The dice choose a random effect. Click as much as you want to see different effects.

The reset button discards all settings and gives you a standard nice cloud.

Plus, % and minus buttons: If the selected image area is larger than the preview are, these buttons will let you zoom in and out. You can also reposition the preview by dragging it around; your cursor will turn into a hand.

Load preset Pixel Trash comes with some presets, which are files containing settings. To load one, click this button and browse for a preset file.

Save preset When you make an effect you like, click this button to save the settings in a file.

Undo backs up one step.

OK Applies the effect to your image.

Cancel Dismisses the filter, and leaves the image unchanged.

dice
reset
load preset
save preset
undo

Hints Click the dice a lot and try the glue modes called 'and,' 'or,' and 'xor.' |  |  |

Version History

Version 1.6 August 2008

Adds convenience features to the interface. The Macintosh version is resizable.

Version 1.4 May 2007

Universal binary for Macintosh.

Version 1.2 May 2004

New glue modes. Works with 16-bit-per-component images.

Version 1.1 December 2003

Recordable as a Photoshop action.

Version 1.0 May 2003

The first release.

Questions

Answers to common technical questions appear on the Frequently Asked Questions page.

For bug reports and technical questions about the software, please write to support@flamingpear.com .