Layer Properties

Jazz Creation Station Help Layer Properties | | Index |

The layer properties dialog allows you to change various aspects of a layer in JCS. Everything that distincts one layer from another is editable from this dialog.

Layer selection
This drop-box shows you the current layer and allows you to change it. The rest of the dialog shows you the properties for the layer that is selected here. If you select a different layer in this drop-box, the rest of the items in this dialog will change to the corresponding properties of that new layer.

Speeds
Each layer has a speed, expressed as a rational number which is the layer's speed relative to layer 4 (the sprite layer). Layers that have a speed value higher than 1.0 move faster than the sprite layer, creating the illusion that they are closer to the viewpont. Layers that have a speed value lower than 1.0 move slower than the sprite layer, making them look farther away. This way of scrolling is called parallax scrolling. In Jazz2 you can have up to 8 different layers.
The auto-speed for a layer is added to the position of the layer for each game-tick. If the auto-speed values are 0, the layer doesn't move by itself. An auto-speed value that is greater than 0 will make the layer move in a positive direction, a value less than 0 moves the layer in the opposite direction.

Dimensions
This part of the layer properties dialog holds the dimensions of the layer. The Width and Height values are the layer's dimensions in tiles. The maximum dimensions of a layer is 1023 by 1023 tiles (that is more than one billion pixels).
The tile width and tile height flags make the specified layer repeat into the horizontal- or vertical direction endlessly. This effect is called tiling. These flags are often used to create infinite scrolling backgrounds.

Background Effects
The background effects settings select an effect to be used for the background layer. There is currently only one background effect which should only be used on the background layer (layer 8). If the Texture mode check is not selected, the background effect is disabled. When the background effect is enabled, the layer's size is automatically set to 8x8; this is a requirement for textured layers.
The parameters for the Warp Horizon background effect are Red, Green and Blue values to which the sky will fade when the layer goes on to infinity.
The background effect is not visible in the parallax view.

| Star Wars If you enable this check mark, the background of the level will show a number of sub-pixel-accurate parallaxing stars. You should only use this effect in combination with a textured background.
| OK button Press this button to apply the changes you made in the layer properties dialog.
| Cancel button Press this button to discard the changes you made in the layer properties dialog.
| Help button Press this button to display the help you are reading now.