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Mach1pro

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Photos designed for Access with 256 colors

I have a customer who uses a database that references employee and client photos. This works great except they want to use this across Terminal Server with colors set at 256. Their current images look horrible when displayed at 256, but if you open Northwind database and look at the employee files there, they still look great when displayed at 256. I know that these photos have been created using dithering; however I haven't been able to reproduce anything close to this using Microsoft Photo Editor or Coreldraw Photopaint. In photopaint I can save the images using various dithered settings, but still achieve the quality as the photos in Northwind.
   Does anyone know how these photos were produced? Why program was used to edit them? Or have a suggestion on how I can create an image similar to the quality of the images in Northwind?
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TextReport
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I suspect they were saved as 256 colour images and consequently dont loose anything when you use a 256 colours, try looking at Northwind in 16 colour mode and you will see a loss. Scan your images as 256 colours rather than one of the higher options

Cheers, Andrew
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Mach1pro

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We are talking about over 600 images that were taken with a digital camera that need to be edited and future images that will be taken using a digital camera, not scanned.
The digital Camera will be using High (16Bit) or True Colour (32bit or 24bit) so you will always loose quality when your screen can only display 256 colours. Is there a way for Terminal Server to support True Colour?

Cheers, Andrew
A request has been made to delete this question; if there are no objections within 72 hours, the request will be granted.

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Netminder
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An explanation as to why this should be deleted would be appreciated.

Cheers, Andrew
Textreport,
No one has answered this question. Look at the question(actually 3 of them) again.

Does anyone know how these photos were produced?
What program was used to edit them?
Or have a suggestion on how I can create an image similar to the quality of the images in Northwind?
Avatar of Eric - Netminder
No, I don't know exactly how the images were produced, but it would make sense that Microsoft would use its own program to produce the pictures. I don't think their PhotoEditor program (the one that comes with Win98) was available when the Northwind db was created, so they most likely would have used Image Composer, which is about the only thing worth using that comes on the Front Page CD. I've used it to create images for use with databases and websites, and it's quite satisfactory.

ep
Mach1Pro, I do not like questions being deleted, I much prefer them to be placed in the PAQ and the points refunded as I am sure that would be the recomendation when this question is reveiwed.

Surely what you are after was a solution to the actual question, How can I produce a 256 colour image. My HP PrecisionScan Pro software that came with my HP ScanJet can scan to 256 colours and I am sure many other scanners will do the same. As for graphics packages, not sure.

Most of the pictures in Northwin were created in 1991 as they appeared in the Alpha and Beta versions of Access 1.0 which was launched in 1992. Therefore the knowledge of which package was used would probably not help you.

Cheers, Andrew
I think what I really need is an activeX addin for Access that will CORRECTLY display dithered 256 images.  I added dithering to some images using Image Composer as suggested by ericpete.
When I change my monitor display to 256, the image still looks great, but when I use the image control in Access to display the same image it looks like crap.  I thought at first that the Kodak ImgEdit control would do the trick and in fact it does for forms. It will display the 256 images correctly on an Access form, but it won't work at all on reports. Surely there are some third party image tools out there. I would gladly give a thousand points if some one could point me to a FREE third party add in that will display these 256 images correctly on both forms and reports in Access. By the way, it has to work dynamically on the reports also. Each record will link to a different image so the report image has to change as the user scrolls through the report pages.
Has the picture used the standards palette or does it use it's own. If it is the latter then in the OnCurrent Event you can say Me.PaintPalette = Me!MyControl.ObjectPalette this can also be used on the report so that it uses your pictures 256 colour palette rather than the windows standard palette.

I get the feeling we could be progressing this one, fingers crossed hey.

Cheers, Andrew
I don't understand what you mean by the picture using the standards pallete.
Are you suggesting this code for the Microsoft Image control or another control?
Have you tried setting your monitor to 256 and view jpeg photographs in both forms and reports in Access?
The PaintPalette applies to Forms and Reports and ObjectPalette applies to ActiveX controls, Bound Object Frames, Chart Controls, Command Button Controls, Image Controls, Toggle Buttons and Unbound Object Frames.

When you are using 256 color images you can only have 256 different colours in the picture, each colour is held within the palette.

Windows has its own set of 256 colours held in the Windows Standard Colour Palette if you scan your picture to that set of colours then your picture will display correctly in access.

If your picture has its own set of 256 colours then you need to use the code I mentioned earlier today to set the palette to the one of your picture.

When you dont have an exact match between the colours you can display and the colours in the picture it can just say "Use Color 197" and use whatever colour is located in the palette at position 197.

The HP Precision Pro software allows you to scan to 256 Web Palette, 256 System Palette or 256 Optimized Palette.

It is a long long time since I needed to use this myselft but if you try it I am your pictures will look correct on screen and also in your preview of your report. You may get some difference between the hard copy and the preview due to the nature of Light and Solid colours.

Cheers, Andrew
Lets try this question this way: I have a link to a sample database and 4 image files at the following url
   http://www.tradingtreasures.com/downloads/imagetest.zip

These images are jpeg images that have been web-dithered using  Image Composer. Once you've unzipped the database and images, change your screen resolution to 256. Open the database. The opening form has both the Access image control which will make the pictures look like crap and the Kodak image control which displays the image correctly.  I have a report also using the Access image control.
What I need is for someone to find a way to get the images on the report looking as good as the images shown in the Kodak Image control on the form. Send the database back to me and explain what you did.
You can email me at  Mel@tradingtreasures.com

If this can be done, I will raise the question point value to 1500 points before awarding.
Mach1pro,

I don't think it's appropriate to use email here; I realize you need a solution, but I think we should continue to work on it here.

Please download http://www.calpubco.com/mach1pro.zip. I've used Corel PhotoPaint 9.0 to save the images after changing them using Image/Mode/Paletted, as 1a.jpg, 2a.jpg, etc.

Also, when I opened the database using A2K, I got the following error:

The expression On Load you entered as the event property setting produced the following error: Object or class does not support the set of events.

In any case, see if that solves the problem.

ep
ericpete,
Please check the url that you provided.
I'm getting a page not found error.
Mach1pro,

http://www.calpubco.com/mach1pro.html

You get your own page... *grin*

ep
Ericpete,
Did you forget to change your monitor to 256 before testing the report image.
Look at the following url. This is how the images displayed on my computer using 256. The report image is still unacceptable.
http://www.tradingtreasures.com/accessimages.htm
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
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Eric - Netminder
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No, the error message just had to do with the registration of the Kodak Active X being registered differently from one OS to another.
The problem still lies in how the pictures are being Rendered.
As you can tell with the identical images side by side in the form with the Kodak Active X displaying properly and the Microsoft Image control distorting the image.
Mach1pro,

Okay... I did a little fiddling around with Corel 9... and I'm going to see what I can do with AI.

Same URL, but there's a new zipped file there (1b.jpg, 2b.jpt, etc.)... And I'm still looking through Access stuff to find out what I can.

ep
Administrative Action - Force Accepted split

TextReport, points for you at:
https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/20574648/points-for-TextReport-re-20425624.html

SpideyMod
Community Support Moderator @Experts Exchange
Spideymod, what triggered the Force Acceptance?

Cheers, Andrew
TextReport,
I'd rather not say, I'll let Mach1pro divulge that if desired.

SpideyMod
Community Support Moderator @Experts Exchange
SpideyMod,
Why not email me and let me know why you closed out this question. There has been dialogue on it in just the past few days.
Mach1pro,
I can't email you for reasons of my own.  You should have received an email notification that explains everything.  The administrators will have all the information when they contact you.

SpideyMod
Community Support Moderator @Experts Exchange
SpidyMod
Well I looked through my email and couldn't find anything.
The last email I received was back in February when my payment was due. I've already checked that and found my credit card receipt, so I guess its something else. Please have them re-send their original email.

Thanks
SpideyMod,

I feel a little guilty here... I don't think I really deserve any points here, and certainly not 200 -- to be perfectly honest, I've been grasping at straws since I first started chiming in in this question. I don't know what caused you to force-accept it, and I know you can't re-open it, but I'd feel a lot better if you gave Mach1pro his points back.

If it turns out I've done him some good, outside of being completely surprised, then I'm sure he'll take care of me.

Thanks,

ep
ericpete,
I appreciate your honesty; the sign of a true professional.  I have refunded all of Mach1pro's points on this question.  My apologies for any inconveniences to all.

SpideyMod
Community Support Moderator @Experts Exchange