Step 2 - Create and modify content

In this step you learn how to use the Project window to create content and the Properties window to modify the content in your Kanzi Studio project.

Create content in the Project window

You create the structure of your Kanzi application in the Project window. The Project window contains two top-level items:

• The Screen contains the scene graph of your application. When you start your Kanzi application on a device Kanzi loads into the device memory all nodes in the scene graph. The scene graph is constructed from nodes that display content (for example, Image node) and implement logic (for example, Button 2D node). The same scene graph supports 2D and 3D nodes and provides the means to connect them.
  When you work on your project in Kanzi Studio you can see the content of the scene graph in the Preview window.
  
• The Prefabs contains the prefabricated templates in your project. Create a prefab for every item in your application that appears more than once, when you want to logically separate a part of your application, or add content to the scene graph when your application is already running. Prefabs are not part of the scene graph, and do not use device memory, until you add them to the scene graph. New projects do not contain any prefabs.
  

You can find the Project window on the left side of the Kanzi Studio interface.

To create content in the Project window:

1. In the Project window press Alt and right-click the RootPage node and select Text Block 2D.
   
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   When you hold down the Alt key and right-click an item, you access the create menu which shows the types of items you can create in the selected context.

   Use the Text Block nodes to show a small amount of text in your application.
   
2. Name the node and click OK.
   After you create a node in the scene graph you can see that node in the Preview window which is next to the Properties window.
   
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   When you want to rename a node, select it in the Project window, press the F2 key, and enter a new name.

3. In the Project window press Alt and right-click the RootPage node and select Image.
   Use the Image node to show a bitmap image.
   
4. In the Project window select the Viewport 2D node and press the Delete key.
   
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   Keep in the scene graph only the nodes that you need to show at a particular state of your application. This way you make sure that your application does not use more resources than is necessary.

Move nodes in the scene graph

The relationship between the nodes in the scene graph is very important and defines how several Kanzi core technologies work. Rendering order, layout, property and resource inheritance, and input and message propagation all depend on the relationship between parent and child nodes in the scene graph.

For example, the position of nodes in the scene graph defines how Kanzi renders the content of your application. Kanzi uses the painter's algorithm to render content: it renders the last node in the scene graph on top of all the other nodes in the scene graph.

In the previous section you first created in the RootPage node a Text Block 2D node and then an Image node. Because the Image node is in the scene graph after the Text Block 2D node, and both nodes are positioned in the top-left corner of the RootPage node, the Image node covers the Text Block 2D node.

To move nodes in the scene graph:

• In the Project window drag a node and drop it to its new position in the scene graph.
• In the Project window select a node, hold down the Ctrl key, and use the ↑ (Up Arrow) and ↓ (Down Arrow) keys to move the node up and down in the scene graph.

For example, select the Image node and move it above the Text Block 2D node.

Modify content in the Properties window

Properties define the characteristics of content in your Kanzi application. You can add, remove, and modify properties in the Properties window.

You can find the Properties window on the right side of the Project window.

To modify content in the Properties window:

1. In the Project window select the Image node and press the Ctrl H keys to hide a node in the Preview window.
   An orange icon drawn on top of the node icon indicates that a node is hidden.
   
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   Hide a node when you want to see in the Preview window only the content you want to focus on. To show a hidden node, select it in the Project window and press the Ctrl H keys again.

2. In the Project window select the Text Block 2D node.
   
3. In the Properties window:
   1. Click next to the Horizontal Alignment property to add that property to the node you selected in the previous step.
      Use the Horizontal Alignment property to align a node horizontally in relation to its parent node.
      
   2. Set the Horizontal Alignment property to Center.
      This way you place the Text Block 2D node to the center of the RootPage node, which is the parent node of the Text Block 2D node.
      
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      When you need a brief explanation on what a property does, in the Properties window move your mouse pointer over the name of that property.

      
4. In the Properties window add and set these properties:
   • Vertical Alignment to Center
   • Font Size to 30
   • Text to Hello Kanzi!
     Use the Text property to set the text you want the Text Block node to show.
   

This is what the Preview window shows when you complete this step.

See also

To learn more about the scene graph and Kanzi nodes, see Presentation.

To learn more about prefabs, see Using prefabs.

To learn more about properties, see Property system.

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