Library creation

Mosaizer Pro 12 - Help

Library creation

A picture library is a set of miniature pictures. These pictures are used by Mosaizer Pro to build the photo mosaic picture. Mosaizer Pro uses a built-in picture library generator to make sure that each library is valid and can be used without error messages. The library file extension is '*.lst' and all library files are stored in the subdirectory '/Libraries'. This location can not be changed by the user.

With the installation of the application comes one picture library, so the user can start immediately. To make a new picture library from a folder containing (small) pictures, select 'Library' | 'New'. This will guide you through the process of creating a new library of pictures.

Library creation in 3 easy steps

Step 1: Select the source directory
On the left side of the pop-up window a folder explorer is seen. Use this explorer to navigate to the folder that contains the miniature pictures. Make sure that all pictures are of about equal size, and preferably not much larger than the intended cell size use (e.g. max 256x256 pixels). Currently only bmp, jpg and png files are recognised. When png files are used the transparency options can become available for that tile. It it advised to keep the types of files the same for a library (avoid mixing png transparency and non-transparent jpg or bmp files).

Step 2: Check the content of the library
Before continuing to actually create a library, make sure the pictures are large enough, but not too large. The reason to emphasize on the right miniature size is to avoid excessive long rendering times because each miniature pictures needs to be resized when used in the photo mosaic. This may increase the rendering time with a factor 10 or more.
To check the size of the pictures in the folder, press the 'Analyse folder' button. When analysing is done, the summary shows the smallest and largest size of a picture in the selected folder. If too small, you better remove these pictures first before continuing with library creation. When too large, use the 'Resize pictures' option (explained below).

Step 3: Create the new library
When the button 'Make library' is pressed, the library is created. You are now prompted to choose a library name. We recommend to also add the amount of pictures in the name, for quick reference of its size. After the new library is created, it will be analyzed on its colours (this may take seconds to minutes, depending on the size and amount of pictures). The new picture library is added to the library selection in the library list. You can now select the library via 'Library' | 'Open' | <lib names>.

Resize pictures

In case the miniature pictures are too large it may be useful to copy and resize the entire folder, and save these pictures in another (new) folder on the hard disk. The resizing has two basic controls:

new picture size, ranging from 48 to 1800 pixels
new aspect ratio, ranging from 2:3 to 3:2

Use the two sliders to set the desired resize dimensions. The miniature picture may be of help to see what size is currently selected. In case a landscape or portrait size is selected ALL pictures will get this new size. When a photo mosaic picture is made from landscape pictures, but require portrait miniatures, a large part of the miniature will be cut out. It is therefore recommended to only select non-square resize dimensions when this library is intended for similar non-square photo mosaics.
When a resize is selected, also the new folder must be selected, since Mosaizer Pro won't overwrite the original pictures of a picture library.

Library quality check

The application has a built-in security check if the library pictures are of sufficient size. When a library picture on hard disk (ready to be taken into the library) is empty (size = 0 kb) or is smaller than 16 pixels in width or height, this picture will be discarded from the library and the user is informed/advised to remove this file from the folder. It is highly encouraged to really remove such a small (or corrupt) picture and avoid error messages during mosaic creation.

Some rules of thumb to create a good and versatile library

A prime condition for a good library of pictures is a good colour spread. Usually a large number of files will finally lead to a sufficiently palette of colours. Mosaizer Pro is as good as the library that is used. We provide some picture libraries on the website. For a good start. Other useful suggestions:

Use the Windows Explorer to gather copies of the pictures in a single directory to assure that original pictures are not changed during library creation

preferably use one directory for all files in each library; rename that directory to the intended library name

do not move or alter the library directory or its content, it will lead to error messages when a file is not available during rendering and the library becomes unusable

make sure that the library files are not too large, but merely matches the maximum intended use (e.g. 96 x 96 pixels as the intended use for this library); the larger the library picture difference with the mosaic cell size, the more time is required for cell resizing and build the mosaic picture

only use high quality jpg files because uncompressed bitmap files can take up to 10 times more space

make sure that pictures are not too multi-coloured because this will lead to false colour impressions when no dominant colour is present (as a consequence: holiday pictures are not always a good source for a library)

Merging two libraries into a new library

Via ' Library' | 'Merge libraries' a small pop-up window appears. In this window you need to indicate which two libraries must be merged, and what new name this merged library must have. Then press the 'Merge library' button and this new library is created. This new library is fully comparable with normal library creation, where after completion this new library is added to the library-list and also made the active library.

Information about the current library

A simple summary of the library is shown when selecting 'Library' | 'Library info'. Perhaps in next versions also the content (pictures, sizes) is shown.