Miscellaneous Features

Creating New Frames With the Enter Key

Last updated on 11/19/2010

When creating animations, usually you will use the New Frame button in the Frames Palette to create a new frame:

However there is a faster and more efficient way to do this, and that is to use the Enter key on the keyboard. So long as you don't have any text highlighted (like in the Properties Palette), a new frame will be created when you hit the Enter key.

Animating Quickly With the Enter Key

Stykz also adopted the approach pioneered with Pivot Stickfigure Animator, and that is that you can use the Enter key while you are manipulating a figure and can continue to manipulate it without ever having to let up on the mouse button.

Here's an example of how to do a simple "slide" animation:

    1) Move the figure to the left side of the Stage.
    2) Click and drag the drag node of the figure to the right a bit, but keep the mouse button down.
    3) Hit the Enter key to create a new frame.
    4) Continue dragging the figure to the right a bit more, and continue to keep the mouse button down.
    5) Hit the Enter key again to create another frame.

You can continue to do this until you are done, and then you can release the mouse button.

By the way, you can use this technique for pivoting segments as well, so you can (for example), spin one of the hands of a clock by holding down on the pivot node, dragging it a bit, hit Enter, drag a bit more, hit Enter, etc. until you're done.