Hopelessy Lost Re: Transparency PSP 8 1

[HollyMouse]

Hello, I have been using PSP since version 5 came out. I have 8 now. Everything was FINE until about 7 days ago, I could no longer make transparent images.

I make a lot of blog buttons and badges that have a little graphic in them and the surrounding area is transparent so that the webpage background can come thru. I also make images so that ppl can open them and export them to make their own Picture Tube, and the area around my graphic is of course left transparent.

I make these images as a crafter, for other crafters. I don't sell them, it's a labor of love. I used to work as a graphic artist back in the days of "Aldus PageMaker 1.0." Ha ha I'm older than dirt.

THE PROBLEM: All of a sudden, starting a week ago, I save my work as a .png or sometimes a .gif, BUT when I call them up again -- ALL TRANSPARENT PARTS ARE NOW WHITE. WTF??? I have tried to then change the background color to a weird color not in the main graphic, and "set" it to be transparent. I never had to do that before, and it doesn't work, now the graphics all have weird colored backgrounds and are NOT transparent.

I uninstalled and then reinstalled PSP 8, but to no avail. I put in my old version 7 but same thing. I put 8 back and it's still screwy.

Anyone know what I have done wrong? I am attaching one of the files from BEFORE it started getting crazy (or before I went crazy). Just so ppl can see it really was working to hold those trans areas. Now I try to duplicate such a graphic and it's all WHITE around her head. ARGH.

 

[vacunita]

Have you tried using the Export Feature?

File->Export->PNG Optimizer. That's what I use to preserve the Transparencies.

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Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

 

[HollyMouse]

Thank you vacunita, I have tried both the png and the gif optimizer and still the problem persists!!! It is maddening!

 

[vacunita]

Are you sure you are selecting the background color for he transparency?

Try cutting the parts of the image you want and paste them into a new transparent image. Then save it.

----------------------------------
Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

 

[HollyMouse]

I've done that, thanks. Selecting the white background, inverting, cutting and pasting into an entirely new file.

Or, changing the white to a diff color, and then choosing the background color as the transparent color, done that.

What I'm trying for is to once again be able to get an image with part of it transparent, part of it not. The image I attached works that way. No other one is now working that way. I'm just disgusted at myself that I can't replicate my successful graphics.

 

[HollyMouse]

I clicked to give ya stars, by the way, b/c your advice is exactly right, only something is screwball on my end!!!

 

[vacunita]

Thanks for the stars. Though I would hardly deserve them if I can't fix your problem.

Now Just for testing purposes, Create a new image make sure it has the background set to transparent.

Then place whatever you want on it such that you leave some transparent areas.

Then use the PNG optimizer to save it. Once that is done, upload it and put link here so that I may see it.

While you are at it upload some of the ones you say are not transparent so that I may see them.

That way I may be able to diagnose the problem better.

----------------------------------
Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.

 

[HollyMouse]

Hi vacunita, I uninstalled and then reinstalled and went thru your steps, I think this is now working, attached is a file that has both opaque and transparent areas. I think it worked. When I clicked "proof" it seemed to be working. I hope it is "holding" in the actual saved file. Yes, I know I did a horrible job on the pumpkin graphic I'm attaching, I didn't want to work too hard if it just was going to turn out screwy again.

Of course you get stars, you know the program and you know what ought to be working!!!

 

[vacunita]

Glad you got it working.

----------------------------------
Ignorance is not necessarily Bliss, case in point:
Unknown has caused an Unknown Error on Unknown and must be shutdown to prevent damage to Unknown.