Paste Canvas Layer

{{l|Category:Layers]] {{l|Image:Pastecanvas_icon.png|64px]]

The Paste Canvas layer is a special layer that can hold other layers. It is generated via the {{l|Encapsulate]] command accessed via the context menu in the {{l|Layers Panel]] or through the {{l|Layer Menu]] in the {{l|Canvas Menu Caret]]. As well as grouping a set of layers it can also translate them, scale them, and even modify the time for the layers it contains.

Paste Canvas layers can also be created through the {{l|New Layer Menu]], using New Layer > Other > Paste Canvas.

A Paste Canvas layer has the following parameters:

• {{l|Z Depth]]
• {{l|Amount Parameter|Amount]]
• {{l|Blend Method]]
• {{l|Origin Parameter|Origin]]
• {{l|Canvas]]: This is "Inline Canvas" by default if the Paste Canvas layer was created by encapsulating other layers, or "Pasted Canvas" if it was created from the {{l|New Layer Menu]]. This parameter lets you select another canvas.
• {{l|Zoom Parameter|Zoom]]
• {{l|Time Offset Parameter|Time Offset]]
• {{l|Children Lock]]
• {{l|Focus Point]] (since SVN r2290)

Canvas Parameter

{{l|Image:canvas_pointer_icon.png|64px]]

The canvas parameter presents a drop-down menu of the exported canvases, plus an extra entry called "Other...". Selecting "Other..." presents the user with a text entry box asking for the name of the canvas to use. The name typed should have the following format (where [ ] indicates an optional part, ( ) is for grouping, and * means "0 or more times"):

   {{l|filename]#][:]id(:id)*

In its simplest form, this is just an id, ie. the exported name of one of the child canvases of the current canvas.

Other possibilities are:

• if a '#' is present, the part before the '#' is interpreted as the filename of an external .sif file to use.
• if the '#' is the first character of the string (ie. the filename is blank) then the '#' is ignored, and the current canvas is used instead
• if a ':' appears before the first id, it means to start at the root canvas of the current canvas
• each subsequent :id steps down into the specified child

Examples:

• /usr/share/doc/synfig/examples/business_card.sifz#:IndividualCard -- gives the absolute path to a .sifz file, and says to use the canvas that was exported from its root canvas as "IndividualCard"
• ../../examples/business_card.sifz#:IndividualCard -- the same, but with a relative path to the .sifz file
• #:sy:head:eyes:left -- look in the current composition, and starting from the root, navigate down through the canvas tree. Find a child canvas of the root canvas called 'sy', look in 'sy' for a child canvas called 'head', and so on.
• :sy:head:eyes:left -- exactly as above. an empty filename is the same as not using the '#' at all
• eyes:left -- without a ':' before the first id, this starts at the current canvas (presumably the PasteCanvas in question is in the "head" subcanvas of the "sy" subcanvas of the root)