Template Creator

Overview

A good program for creating comic books is Comic Book Creator.
However, it is difficult for users to create their own templates. This program is meant to solve that.

It is a graphical template editor that generates the XML template files that CBC uses.

Screenshots

Download

You can download the program as a ZIP file here. (Current version is 1.2.4)
Just extract its contents*, and double-click on the Template-Creator.jar file to run it.

(If you have trouble with the .JAR file, then try to run the "Run Template Creator.bat" file. It might just work, and in any case it will give you some extra information about your Java environment, and perhaps let you see what error message is causing the problem.)

Instructions for use are available within the program.

*To extract the contents of templater.zip under Windows XP, right-click the file and choose "Extract All..." You'll be prompted to choose a destination folder. Once it's done, run the program from that folder.

Some people have had problems with the ZIP file, so I've also put up a self-extracting .EXE file that you can download here. Double click on it to extract the "Template Creator" folder.

You'll need Java v1.4 or higher to run the program.
You can download Java by going to www.java.com or by clicking on the logo to the left.

Author

Jesse Pavel
jpavel@alum.mit.edu

Please write me if you like the program, find bugs, have suggestions, or just any comments.

ChangeLog

1.2.4 - Live display of panel size and position.
1.2.3 - Keyboard shortcuts and panel nudging.
            Save BMP Preview chooses correct name automatically.
1.2.2 - Direct save to BMP preview.
1.2.1 - Random cleanups and splash-screen.
1.2 - Manipulate the colors and borders of page and panels.
        Alignment features in Copy Attributes panel.
       Minor bug fixes.
1.1 - Added Copy & Paste of Panel Attributes.
1.0 - Initial release.

Thanks

Claude Girolet created the program icon.

Discussion/Reviews

You can read user reviews and discussions at the Comic Book Creator Forum.

If you like this program, please do mention it on your blog, if you have one, or the page where you host your comic books.

FAQ/Troubleshooting

Q: I set changed the height & width, or X, Y, W, & H in the New Page... dialog, but the template opens up the same size in Comic Book Creator.

A: This Template Creator is just a way to edit the template files that CBC uses, and so it is constrained by the features supported by the existing format. Currently, CBC pays no attention to the Height and Width fields, nor the X, Y, W, and H, of a template, instead just assuming 8.5" x 11" paper. Nonetheless, they're in my program in case the CBC does start using them one day.

Q: When I double-click Template-Creator.jar, the program doesn't run; instead, I see two folders, "com" and "META-INF".

A: This happens when you're using a computer without Java, or with a very old version of Java. Go to www.java.com and download the latest version.