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Rodents
Make A Change! cont.
Get
the "Magic Wand" tool and click any where on the light blue
border you just made. Next, choose "Image", then "Effects",
and then "Sculpture" (you'll have the same sharp blue which
is in your logo). Now, Float your image and "Defringe" by
2, then add a Drop Shadow, and Presto! Your first button!
Look something like this?

Behind
The Scenes
Now,
let's go in and make the other 3 buttons we need. This next
one will be the "Highlighted" button.
In
PSP Layer Palette, be sure the layer with the gray "tiles"
is highlighted. Get the Magic Wand and click the white space.
In the menu choose "Selections" then "Invert". You now should
have just the gray tiles selected. Click the "Copy" button,
then in the menu click "Edit" and "Paste As New Layer". Do
this two more times so you end up with a total of 4 gray tile
images, all in different layers.
Cool
KROW Clue
If
you can't see all 4 gray tile images, use your "Mover" tool
and click and drag them to different areas of the page. When
PSP pastes layers into the same image, it pastes them into
the very same place as well.
Deselect
your image (menu, "Selections", then "Select None"). Highlight
one of the new gray tile images. In the menu choose, "Colors",
then "Colorize. A new pop-up window will appear where you
can set the Hue and Saturation as you choose. This will change
the color of only that one gray tiled image.

The
KROW chose a brighter shade of blue remembering this is the
"Highlighted" button. Now, go back and follow the same step
for the other two gray tile images, but choose different shades
of blue.
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News
Of A Merger!
Now
were getting ready to create 4 separate images (buttons) out
of this one. (Now's a good time to do an SOS!) By now you
have quite a few layers going. In the Layer Palette, "Hide"
the three newest tiled images you just made. Next, RIGHT click
on any layer and choose "Merge" then "Merge Visible".
Take the Magic Wand, click in the white space and Invert your
selection. Now just hit "Copy" and then "Paste" and you have
your first separate button.
Now, go back to your layered image. Click "Undo" until you
"Undo Merge Layers" (probably about 3 times). Your Layer Palette
should show all your layers again.
Now,
repeat these same steps for each of the other tiled images.
Only, this time, "Hide" the tile you already copy and pasted.
Then move the new tile into the blue sculptured frame. If
needed, use the "View Grid" (under "View) to ensure you move
each tile to the same place as the previous. Copy and paste
each different colored tile and you'll end up with 4 different
buttons:
 

Save each of the buttons for later use. Be sure in your PSP
to go back and "Undo" the last merger you did and then do
another SOS to make sure you have a full template of your
buttons.
Quick
Additions
For
an added touch to the site, we'll make a dividing line and
bullets. These are very quick and simple to do. You can even
do them on your button template image by creating a new layer
and working on it! This keeps ALL your graphics for one website
in a single working file! Very convenient!
In
your PSP, use your Preset Shapes to make a circle or a small
Rounded Rectangle in a light blue. Select the shape and add
your current Sculpture and a drop shadow, and that's it! A
good size for bullets is something not much bigger than 20x20
or 25x25 pixels.
For
a dividing line, use the "Draw" tool to make a line (usually
about 5 to 10 pixels) and then apply the same as your bullet
and that's all there is to it! You're now done with all the
basic graphics you need for a web site!
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