pictweax

Introduction

This is the documentation for picTweax. This script injects new features directly into the Picmix interface.

This documentation will guide you through installation, usage of each feature, and troubleshooting common issues.

Installation

To use pictweax, you first need a userscript manager browser extension.

1. Install a Userscript Manager

Download Tampermonkey below. The script does not work on Greasemonkey due to its interactive nature with the DOM.

  • Tampermonkey (Available for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, Opera)

2. Install the pictweax Script

Once your userscript manager is installed and enabled, simply click the button below to install pictweax. Your userscript manager will open a new tab asking you to confirm the installation.

This download is temporarily disabled.

3. For Chrome; Enable Developer Mode

In the newer releases of Chrome, Developer Mode needs to be enabled in order for userscripts to function. Read The Tampermonkey FAQ to learn how.

4. Disable PicMix Layers Script

The layer function is included in pictweax, so please disable the old script. pictweax will fail to load with a page alert if both scripts are running. The contrast/brightness/saturation adjustment script has not been included, and may be used in tandem with pictweax (for now).

Usage: Outline

The Outline feature allows you to add a solid-colored border around any stamp or image object on the canvas.

  1. Select an object on the Picmix canvas.
  2. In the tools panel, click "More" to reveal the pictweax options.
  3. Click the "Outline" button.
  4. A new panel will appear with two controls:
    • Outline Size: A slider to control the thickness of the outline, from 0px to 10px.
    • Outline Color: A color picker to select the desired color for your outline.

Adjust the slider and color to see the changes applied live to your selected object.

Usage: Free Scale

By default, Picmix locks the aspect ratio when you resize objects. The "Free Scale" feature unlocks this, allowing you to stretch and skew objects non-uniformly.

  1. Select an object on the canvas.
  2. Click "More" in the tools panel.
  3. Click the "Free Scale" button to toggle the mode on or off.
  4. When active, you can use the side control handles (not just the corner ones) on the selected object to stretch it horizontally or vertically.

Click the "Free Scale" button again to return to the default uniform scaling behavior.

Usage: Alpha Clip

Alpha Clip is an advanced masking feature. It uses the transparency (alpha channel) of one layer to mask the visibility of the layer directly above it. In simple terms, you can "cut out" a shape from one layer using another layer as a template.

  1. Place the layer you want to use as a mask below the layer you want to clip.
  2. Select the top layer (the one you want to clip).
  3. Click "More" in the tools panel, then click the "Clip" button.

The top layer will now only be visible where the bottom layer is not transparent. To undo this, simply select the clipped layer and click the "Clip" button again.

Usage: Blend Modes

Blend modes determine how a layer's colors interact with the colors of the layers beneath it. pictweax adds standard blend modes found in typical image editing softwares.

  1. Select a layer you want to apply a blend mode to.
  2. Click "More" in the tools panel, then click the "Blend" button.
  3. A panel with icons representing all available blend modes will appear. The default is "source-over" (Normal).
  4. Click any icon to apply that blend mode to the selected layer. Common modes include Multiply, Screen, Overlay, and Soft Light.

Usage: Quick Save & Autosave

Never lose your work again. The Quick Save feature provides persistent storage slots for your Picmix projects directly in your browser.

Quick Save

  1. Click "More" in the tools panel, then click "Quick Save".
  2. A dialog will open showing available save slots (3 by default).
  3. Click "Save Here" on an empty slot or "Save" on an existing one to overwrite it. A thumbnail and timestamp will be stored.
  4. To load a project, click "Load" on the desired slot. Warning: This will overwrite your current canvas.
  5. You can also Import/Export individual slots as .json files to share or back them up.

Autosave

Autosave automatically saves your project to a special slot at a defined interval. You can enable it and configure its settings in the Extension Settings menu.

  • If enabled, an "Autosave" slot will appear at the top of the Quick Save dialog.
  • You can load from this slot just like any other.
  • The option to "Load Autosave on Page Load" can be enabled in settings for maximum convenience.

Usage: Capture Mode

The Capture feature allows you to export your animated Picmix creation as a high-quality GIF, WEBM video, or a sequence of PNG images.

  1. Click "More" in the tools panel, then click "Capture".
  2. A detailed dialog will appear with a preview and settings.
  3. Configure your export:
    • FPS: Frames per second. Higher values mean smoother animation but larger files.
    • Duration: Length of the animation in seconds.
    • Speed: Playback speed of animated stamps.
    • Size: Output resolution as a percentage of the canvas size.
    • Format: Choose between GIF, WEBM, or PNG Sequence (TAR).
  4. The preview will update as you change settings.
  5. When ready, click the "Export" button to generate and download your file.

Usage: Layer Manager

The Layer Manager provides a dedicated panel to view, select, and organize all objects on your canvas.

You can change the style of the layer manager in the Extension Settings.

  • Floating: A movable window that sits on top of the interface.
  • Side Panel: Integrates the layer list into the right-hand tool panel.
  • Bottom Panel: A horizontal filmstrip-style view at the bottom of the editor.

Within the panel, you can:

  • Click a layer to select it on the canvas.
  • See a thumbnail preview of each layer.
  • Use the arrow buttons to re-order layers (bring forward/send backward).
  • Use the 'x' button to delete a layer.
  • Use the scissors button to apply an Alpha Clip.

Usage: Filters

pictweax adds several new filter categories, accessible by clicking "More" -> "Filters".

Blur & Pixelate

Apply a blur or pixelation effect to any object.

  1. Select an object and navigate to the Filters panel.
  2. Click "Blur".
  3. Use the Amount slider to control the intensity.
  4. Toggle the switch between Blur (a smooth gaussian-like blur) and Pixelate.

Duotone

This filter remaps the colors of an object to a gradient between two chosen colors.

  1. Select an object and click "Duotone" in the Filters panel.
  2. Enable the effect with the toggle switch.
  3. Use the color pickers to choose colors for the Highlights and Shadows of the object.

CM Filters (Color Matrix) & Custom Filters

This powerful feature applies complex color transformations using a color matrix. pictweax comes with several presets.

  1. Select an object and click "CM Filters" in the Filters panel.
  2. Click on any of the preset icons to apply the filter.

To add your own custom CM Filter:

  1. Create a plain text file (e.g., my-filter.json or my-filter.txt) or download this template file.
  2. Inside the file, write a JSON array of 20 numbers representing the 4x5 color matrix. For example:
    [1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0] (This is the identity matrix, which does nothing).
  3. In the CM Filters panel, click the "+" icon to upload your file.
  4. Your custom filter will be added to the list, named after its filename.

Usage: Favoriting Stamps

Quickly access your most-used stamps by marking them as favorites.

  • When browsing stamps in the Picmix library, you will now see a star icon (☆) at the top-right of each stamp preview.
  • Click the star to add a stamp to your favorites. It will become filled (★).
  • Click it again to remove it.
  • You can view all your favorited stamps by going to the "Favorites" category in the stamp browser.

Usage: Settings

You can customize pictweax's behavior by clicking "Extension Settings" in the top header bar of the Picmix maker.

The settings dialog is tabbed and allows you to:

  • Features: Enable or disable individual pictweax modules (e.g., hide the Capture button if you don't use it).
  • Save/Load: Configure autosave settings and clear all quick save data.
  • Layers: Choose the display style for the Layer Manager.
  • Performance: Toggle WebGL acceleration and configure GIF export workers.
  • Capture: Set default quality and transparency options for GIF exports.
  • Data: Import, export, or delete all extension data (settings and saves).

FAQ / Troubleshooting

The script isn't showing up or working.
Ensure your userscript manager (e.g., Tampermonkey) is installed and enabled. Make sure you are on the correct Picmix maker URL (picmix.com/maker/app). Check for conflicts with other Picmix userscripts.
Filters (like Outline or Blur) are not appearing correctly.
This can sometimes be a graphics driver issue. Go to Extension Settings > Performance and try toggling the "Use WebGL Acceleration" option. You will need to reload the page for the change to take effect.

Changelog

1.0
Released
1.1
fixed Firefox CSS compatibility error with flipbox animations