Support

Getting Started

To start from the Web site: Choose a template from the Featured Templates pages at MyDesignBySnap.ie,then click DOWNLOAD THE FREE EDITOR NOW (customise with this template).. The template set downloads, then the template you selected displays in the MyDesignBySnap application and you can begin customising it right away. When you save your customised document, it is saved to your hard disk so you can work on it any time.

To start from the MyDesignBySnap application: If you already have downloaded the MyDesignBySnap application, launch the application from your desktop or laptop, then click Browse Online Designs to see the template sets that are available for download. To see templates for a specific category of organisation, choose an option from the View drop-down menu. Click a template set to see its contents. When you find the template set you want, click the template you want and it will move to the center. To download it to your computer and start customising, double-click the template or click Open.

Customising Templates

When you save a document you’ve created from a template, it is saved to your hard disk so you can work on it any time.

To zoom, use the zoom control or press Ctrl and use your mouse’s scroll wheel.

To scroll, use the scroll bars or Alt+drag the template.

Editing Text

To edit text, select the text and type over it. You can also use standard cut, copy, and paste operations.

To change text formatting, use the controls in the Text area on the left.

To add a text box, click Add Text in the customise Text area on the left, or right-click where you want the box and choose Add New Text.

To remove a text box, right-click the box and choose Remove Text Box.

Changing Colour Themes

To change the colour theme of the template, use the controls in the Change Colour Theme area on the left. Each colour theme consists of a set of harmonious colours that are applied to the template together. You can use the drop-down menu to browse different sets of colour themes. The set named “Designer’s Themes” is designed to go with the template, but you can also choose the “Application Themes” set and choose any colour theme you like. When you hover over a colour theme, MyDesignBySnap displays a tool tip that describes that colour theme.

To preview a colour theme with the active template, roll the mouse cursor over the colour theme. To apply a colour theme to all of the templates in the template set, click the colour theme. (You may want to try several themes, because not every theme looks good with every template.)

To revert to the original colour theme, scroll to the bottom of the Change Colour Theme area and click Revert to original colour theme.

Adding and Replacing Pictures

To add a picture, choose Picture > From File in the Change Pictures area on the left. You can also right-click in a blank part of the document, choose Add Picture From File (to choose a picture on your computer) or Add Picture From Free Stock Photos (to choose a free image from the MyDesignBySnap stock image bank), and then select the picture or logo file you want to add.

To replace a picture, double-click the picture or right-click and choose Replace From File (to choose a picture on your computer) or Replace From Free Stock Photos (to choose a free image from the MyDesignBySnap stock image bank).

When adding a picture from your computer, you can add PNG, TIFF, and JPEG picture files. For best results, pictures should be in CMYK mode and have a resolution of 175dpi. If you use a picture or logo that has a resolution less than 175dpi, a warning will be displayed when you click Checkout.

Every picture you add to a document in a template set is displayed in the Change Pictures area on the left. You can drag-and-drop a picture from this area onto an existing picture to replace it, or drag-and-drop it onto the page to add it as a new picture. This makes it easy to reuse an image in several documents.

To crop the selected picture, press Ctrl and then click and drag one of the handles on the outline of the picture box.

To remove a picture, right-click the picture and choose Remove Image.

Adding QR codes

A QR code is a box that contains coded information in the form of a grid of black-and-white squares. You can use a QR code to store a variety of types of information, including URLs and VCards (electronic business cards). If you have an application on your phone that can read QR codes, you can simply point the phone’s camera at the QR code, and the phone can add the coded VCard to its contacts and/or navigate to the coded URL in its Web browser.

By adding a QR code to your printed materials, you can make it easier for your customers to add your VCard to their contacts and to visit your Web site on their mobile devices.

To add a QR code, click Add QR Code in the Change Pictures area on the left. You can also right-click in a blank part of the document and choose Add Picture From QR Code. Either way, the QR Code Generator dialog box displays.

To create a QR code that links to a URL, choose Web Link from the QR Code Type drop-down menu, then enter the URL in the Link field. To create a QR code that contains a VCard, choose VCard-contact information from the QR Code Type drop-down menu, then fill out the fields that display. and then Next, click Generate QR Code Image. A preview of the QR code displays. When you’re finished, click Place QR Code Image to insert the QR code in your design.

Note: You can change the size of a QR code image, but it must always be square.

Guide lines

There are two lines around the outside edges of a document.

• The red line is the trim line. This line shows you where the printer will trim off the edges of the paper after printing.
• The blue dotted line is the safe zone line. Text and pictures that extend outside this line on the outside edges may or may not be cut off when the printer trims off the edges of the paper after printing. Text and pictures that extend beyond this line toward a fold line may be folded.
• The red dotted line is a fold line. This indicates where the document will be folded.

Note: If you want a picture to go all the way to the edge of the printed item, make sure it extends outside the trim line, not just outside the safe zone line.

If a text box or a picture extends beyond the safe zone line, a warning is displayed when you go to check out, and you have an opportunity to go back and fix the problem. Note that if the item that extends beyond the safe zone line is a text box, the text may be inside the safe zone, and no change may be necessary.

Using email options

You can use MyDesignBySnap to create an email message, using all of the same tools and features you use to create printed materials. When your customers receive an email from you, it looks just like it does in the editor. If a customer’s email client does not support HTML, the email includes a plain-text version link that lets them view your email in their Web browser. There’s even a link that lets your customers forward your messages to other people. When you use MyDesignBySnap to create an email message, there are two additional controls in the customise Text area:

• The Paint Bucket button lets you fill the background of the selected boxes with the colour of your choice.
• The Hyperlink button lets you apply a hyperlink to the selected text or picture.

In addition, there’s an Email Preview button at the bottom of the editing window that lets you view what your customers will see when they receive your email. The preview process takes a few seconds, and the preview displays in your default Web browser.

Creating a Hyperlink

To add a hyperlink:

1. Select the picture box or text that you want to apply the hyperlink to.
2. Click the Hyperlink button. The Edit Link dialog box displays.

   

3. To indicate how the hyperlink should display, enter or change the value in the Text to show field. If the hyperlink is on text, the selected text displays in this field, and any changes you make are also made to the selected text. If the hyperlink is on a picture, the text in the Text to show field displays in a tooltip when the end user hovers the mouse cursor over the picture.
4. If you want the hyperlink to point to a Web site, click Web address and then enter the URL for the Web site in the corresponding field. If you want the hyperlink to point to an email address, click Email address and enter the email address in the corresponding field.
5. Click OK.

If you create a hyperlink for text, the text uses the default display characteristics for a hyperlink (typically blue and underlined). However, you can remove the underline and change the colour of the text if you want.

To remove a hyperlink, select the hyperlinked text or picture, then click Remove link.

Creating a plain-text email

When you add an email to your cart, the Plain Text Version dialog box displays. This dialog box lets you specify how your email will look for customers whose email clients do not support HTML emails. By default, this dialog box contains the same text as the formatted version of your email, with the URLs and email addresses for all hyperlinks spelled out. You can edit the contents of this text any way you like. When you’re finished, click Save.

Note: If you edit this text, then decide you want to switch it back to the original version, click Restore

Specifying email campaign details

When you check out, the Email Campaign Details screen lets you specify additional details, including your “from” name and email address, the subject line, and the list of people you want to send your email to.

There are two ways to add contacts (people to whom to send your email):

• Enter a first name, last name, and email address in the indicated fields and then click the plus button to add the entry to the list. Repeat this for everyone in your contact list.
• Click Import Contact List and import a text file containing your list of contacts as a comma-separated list. The file name must have a suffix of .csv. The file should begin with the following line:
  Address,First Name,Last Name
  The following lines should follow this formula.

The price charged for an email depends on the number of contacts to which it is sent. The list on the right shows the cost for each price break. The highlighted price is the price for the number of emails currently in your Contacts list.

For information about the rest of the checkout process, see “Adding documents to your cart.”

Saving and opening document sets

To save the active document set, choose File > Save and then enter a name for the document set. To save a copy of the active document set with a different name, choose File > Save As.

To open and edit a document in a saved document set, choose File > Open, click an Open button, or click Open My Templates when you launch MyDesignBySnap, then click the document you want to edit, and then click Open.

Printing documents to your printer

To print a document, open the template in the editing window, then click Test Print or choose File > Test Print. The document prints with a watermark.

Adding documents to your cart

To add a customised document to your cart, click Add to Cart. The Print Options dialog box displays.

For printed documents, you can choose a type of paper, whether you want one side printed or both, a quantity, and a finish for each document.

To add another item to your cart, click Continue Editing. To check out, click Check Out Now.

Ordering printed materials

To order printed copies of a document by post, open the document in the editing window, add it to your cart, click Check Out Now, then click Order Prints by Post.

To have your order printed by your local Snap centre, open the document in the editing window, add it to your cart, click Check Out Now, and then click Find a Snap Centre near you. The Find a Printer Near You screen displays.

To locate a printer near you, enter your address in the top left part of the screen and click Find Printers. (If MyDesignBySnap cannot find a printer near you, you can click Order Prints By Post.) Select a Snap centre and then click Payment Information. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the transaction.

When your printed materials are ready, your selected centre will let you know and you can go pick them up.

Note: If no convenient local printer displays, check Show all capable centres, then click Find Printers again. If there is still no store that is convenient for you, click Order Prints By Post.

Using automatic document recovery

To make MyDesignBySnap automatically save a copy of your work at regular intervals, choose Edit > Preferences and then check Enabled under Automatic Document Recovery.

Keyboard commands