Creating Image Resources

Images are imported and stored in the Resource Browser.

To import an image for use as an image resource:

1.	Open the Resource Browser by selecting Window > Palettes > Resource Browser.

2.	From the Resources menu, select New Resource to display the New Resource menu.

3.	Select Image.

4.	If a resource with an image is already present in the file, the Choose Image dialog box opens.

 

Parameter	Description
Import an Image File	Imports a new image; click OK and proceed to Step 5.
Reuse an Image from Another Resource	Reuses a previously imported image; select the resource that contains the image. Click OK and proceed to Step 6.

5.	The Open dialog box is displayed. Select the image file to use as an image resource, and click Open.

6.	If the image is in JPEG format, it is imported immediately. For images not in JPEG format, the Image Import Options dialog box opens. Specify the imported image options.

The current image information is displayed at the top, along with the image’s uncompressed size. Two compression methods are available; depending on the graphic, one of the methods may be more suitable. The compression method which produces the smallest file size is selected by default. Select the desired balance between compression and detail display. The resulting file size for each type of compression is displayed to help with the selection.

If the selected option results in a file size larger than the uncompressed size, the image is imported uncompressed.

 

Compression Method	Description
JPEG	Provides a high amount of compression, resulting in the smallest VectorWorks file size. However, fine detail may be obscured. JPEG compression is most suitable for photographic images.
PNG	Provides a moderate amount of compression, while preserving image details; an image compressed as a PND can also be imported as a 1-bit monochrome image by selecting Import as Black and White

7.	Click OK to import the image with the selected compression type. The image resource is saved, by default, with the name of the original image file.

Image resources imported into the file that are not in JPEG format can be compressed by JPEG with the Compress Images command. See Compressing Images.