New! Language Translation & Run While Editing Upgrades
Run While Editing:
Upgrades and Control
In the latest edition of ZebraZapps, we’ve enhanced the ability for authors to immediately test projects as they’re being built and edited. As before, ZebraZapps provides the unique and invaluable ability to run projects while you’re editing them (and edit them while you’re running them). For example, you can conveniently trigger button actions and see if they perform as desired without having to switch to run mode.
Now, with this release, added controls determine when objects should and shouldn’t function while you’re in edit mode. Take a quick look at this video to see how the new button to activate and deactivate object OUTS works and how it will make your life as an author even more productive:
Just to recap the video, we explored turning object functioning (via turning their OUTS on and off) in edit mode by using the new button in the upper left hand corner of the window. Additionally, OUTS can be temporarily turned on by holding down the accent key on your keyboard. This provides instant control to run small segments of an interaction while remaining in edit mode.
One final thought on object function in edit mode: Many new ZebraZapps authors ask about the relationship of properties set in Message Centers and how their project’s look when a user first opens an app up. When you change a property value on an object in edit mode, you are adjusting its initial state. You can make this change manually in many ways, such as by typing in a value in a ribbon, moving an object on the screen, or binding properties together and changing the value of one of them.
Initial values also change by triggering a property value “setter” in edit mode. You may only have wanted to test functionality and not change any initial values. This is why we’ve added the new outs: on/off button to the editor and made the default state outs: off.
Quick tip: Should you ever want to make sure you are editing exactly what your users will first see in an app, hit the edit reset button at the top left of the editor.
Translation
This release of ZebraZapps also has a fantastic new feature for translating app text into other languages. The new translation function allows you to export all of the text in any ZebraZapps project to a downloadable text file. If you use a translation house or convert the language yourself, this text file makes new language versions a snap to create.
When the text file is opened in Excel or GoogleSheets, the first column will display all the text in your original app. In column two, paste or type the translated equivalent. Once complete, simply upload this file back into ZebraZapps to create and save a second language version. You can also specify a new font in the text file for the new language if you’d like.
This new file makes it easy to make quick edits to text that's too long or images that need to be quickly replaced with ZebraZapps’ powerful object replacement capability and resource library manager. Happy translating!
