Working with Windows


Why is real estate such a good investment? Because land is the only thing they're not making more of. The same holds true for screen real estate, or the amount of space you have available on your computer monitor. While you can increase your screen real estate by using multiple monitors, if you're like most of us, you have only a single screen at your disposal, and this screen is capable of displaying only a limited number of windows at any one time. Juggling editing windows is a fact of life in Logic, so let's explore a few basic window-management techniques.

Making Windows Active

The active window is the window that's ready to receive input from the mouse or keyboardit's the one you are going to interact with.

NOTE

The active window is not necessarily the top window. Logic uses floating windows to keep important windows on the surface at all times. The Transport window is an example of a floating window, as is a plug-in window.


1.

First choose Windows > Event List, then choose Windows > Score (Cmd-3).

The Event List opens on top of the Arrange window, and then the Score Editor opens on top of the Event List. Your screen currently shows three windows, with the Score Editor being the active window.

2.

Click anywhere in the Arrange window.

The Arrange window is brought to the surface and made active. But more important, the Arrange window is now hiding the Event List and Score Editor. Without moving the Arrange window out of the way, you can't click the Event List or Score Editor to make them active. Here's a trick to help you solve this problem:

3.

Click and hold the Windows menu.

Near the bottom of the Windows menu is a list of Logic's currently open windows. This is the windows list. Look closely at this windows list and you'll see a check mark next to the Arrange window, indicating that the Arrange window is active.

Of course, you don't need the windows list to show you which window is activeyou can just look at the screen to see that. The windows list's primary function is to help you quickly locate windows, such as the Score Editor, that are buried under other windows on your screen.

4.

From the list of open windows, select the option with Score at the end.

The Score Editor jumps to your screen's surface and becomes the active window.

5.

Use the trick you've just learned to make the Event List the active window.

6.

Close the Event List, but leave the Score Editor open for the next exercise.

Using Floating Windows

Floating windows always remain above other windows. In previous exercises you might have noticed that the Transport window is always visible. That's because it's a floating window, and as such it cannot be hidden behind other windows (however, a floating window can be covered by another floating window). Other examples of floating windows include Logic's software instruments and plug-in windows.

You can distinguish a floating window from a normal window by looking at its title bar. Normal windows have a thicker title bar with rounded corners, while floating windows have a thinner title bar with square corners. Incidentally, floating windows are not unique to Logic. For example, Adobe Photoshop's palettes are floating windows, and Microsoft Word's toolbars are also floating windowsin fact, any window that can't be hidden under other windows is a floating window, regardless of the software program.

NOTE

Another interesting fact about floating windows is that switching to a different application causes them to disappear, while the normal document windows remain visible.


While Logic is not unique in its use of floating windows, it does have one special feature not found in most other programs: Logic lets you, the user, turn any window into a floating window. Any window at all! For example, if you're making important edits in the Matrix Editor and you want to ensure that the window doesn't get lost behind others, hold down the Option key while you open the window.

Let's practice making floating windows and moving them around.

1.

Press Option and choose Windows > Event List.

The Event List opens as a floating window. Note how the Event List's title bar is now thinner than normal, with square corners.

2.

Click the Score Editor to make it the active window.

The Score Editor becomes the active window, but it does not jump above the floating Event List.

3.

Close the Score Editor.

4.

In the Arrange window, select the Inst 2 MIDI Region.

5.

Now, hold down Option and choose Windows > Matrix Edit.

The Matrix Editor opens as a floating window.

6.

Click the floating Event List, and drag it over the floating Matrix Editor.

Aha! The floating Event List can be moved over the floating Matrix Editor, showing that floating windows can be moved above other floating windows.

Before moving on, let's set up the screen so that it's prepared for the next exercise.

7.

Close the floating Event List, but leave the floating Matrix Editor open.



    Apple Pro Training Series Logic Pro 7 and Logic Express 7
    Apple Pro Training Series: Logic Pro 7 and Logic Express 7
    ISBN: 032125614X
    EAN: 2147483647
    Year: 2005
    Pages: 197
    Authors: Martin Sitter

    flylib.com © 2008-2017.
    If you may any questions please contact us: flylib@qtcs.net