Apple DVD Studio Pro 4 - Manual (Page 253)

Because advanced overlays can have up to four colors, you’re more likely to use them to
create the normal button states (in addition to the selected and activated states) than
you would be with a simple overlay. The following sections describe strategies you can
use for each button state.
Normal State
Normal settings determine what a button looks like when not selected or activated. They
apply to the entire overlay graphic, not just the areas identified by the button active areas.
• If the normal state of the button is part of the background (the overlay does not provide
button graphics): You generally set the opacity for each of the overlay colors to 0,
making them invisible (and making the highlight colors mapped to them unimportant).
• If the normal state of the button is not part of the background (the overlay provides the
button graphics): You need to assign a color and opacity for each overlay color for the
normal state.
Selected State
To avoid viewer confusion, it is important to clearly show that a button has been selected.
The way you do this depends on whether the normal state of the button is part of the
background.
• If the normal state of the button is part of the background: The overlay typically provides
a highlight by adding something to the existing button, such as an outline or a small
graphic (for example, a checkmark, logo, or some text).
• If the normal state of the button is not part of the background: You can change the colors
and transparency of the overlay colors used for the normal state button. For example,
you could have one of the overlay colors be transparent in the normal state and appear
as an additional graphic in the selected state.
Activated State
The activated state, like the selected state, must appear clearly to the user. However, the
activated state generally appears for only a short time—the amount of time it takes the
DVD to process the button’s action.
The following is an example of an advanced overlay, showing only one button and using
the grayscale mode.
Play Movie OK!
Light gray
checkmark
Dark gray
name
Black
“OK!”
White
background
253 Chapter 13 Creating Menus Using the Standard Method