Sprite Object: Text

The Sprite object can generate text, using a variety of algorithms to generate simple text very quickly.

For the 'Groups Affected' tab and the buttons at the bottom of the interface, please see the 'Common interface elements' page.

Parameters

Text Height

The height of the text in scene units.

Text Depth

The depth of the text along the Z-axis in scene units (this corresponds to the Z-component of the 'Movement' setting in an Extrude object).

Font

Use this setting to choose the font for the generated text.

Align

Enables you to left-align, right-align, or centre the text.

Text Rounding

Checking this switch applies a bevel to the generated text. The size of the bevel can be set in the 'Size' field.

Size

Sets the size of the bevel on a text sprite, expressed as a percentage of the text height. Generally, the size should be 5% or lower for best results.

Plane

The plane on which the text is generated (the default is the XY plane).

Mirror Across

With the default settings the generated text is readable when viewed along the positive Z-axis. Depending on the 'Plane' setting and the camera angle, the text may be inverted when you look at it. If so, you can change its orientation with this drop-down. It enables you to reorient the text along any axis or combination of axes. You will probably have to find the correct one for your purposes by trial and error.

Center Axis

If you look at a Text spline in Cinema, and drop this in an Extrude object which you then make editable, the axis of the polygon object which results is located at the bottom and front of the object instead of in its centre. This is often perfectly acceptable, but not if you want to emit a trail from the text - in that case you probably want the axis to be centred on the text. If this switch is checked the axis is centred on the text, if unchecked it is left at the default setting.

Text Mode

This drop-down menu has five options:

Alphabet

Only letters are displayed. These are selected from the standard alphabet; the letters selected depend on the 'Alphabet mode' setting.

Numbers

Only numbers are displayed. The numbers generated depend on the 'Numeric mode' setting.

Alphabet and Numbers

Letters are displayed followed by numbers, so you can generate strings such as A1, B2, etc. if you need to.

User Text

The text generated is taken from the 'Text' field.

User Text and Numbers

The text generated is taken from the 'Text' field and is then followed by a number, determined from the 'Numeric mode' setting.

User Text (Phrases)

The text consists of a string of words or phrases separated by a character selected from the 'Separator' menu. The text displayed will be one of the words or phrases from the text. They will be shown in order if 'Sequential Output' is checked.

Alphabet Mode

This setting is only available if 'Text mode' is set to 'Alphabet' or 'Alphabet and numbers'. It has two options:

• Random: single letters are selected randomly from A to Z.
• Sequential: single letters are generated starting with 'A', then 'B', 'C, etc. up to 'Z'. After that 'A' is generated again, and so on.

Case

This setting is only available if 'Text mode' is set to 'Alphabet' or 'Alphabet and numbers'. It has three options:

• All Upper: only upper-case letters are generated.
• All Lower: only lower-case letters are generated.
• Mixed Upper and Lower: a random mixture of upper- and lower-case numbers is generated.

Numeric Mode

This setting is only available if 'Text mode' is set to 'Numbers', 'Alphabet and numbers' or 'User text and numbers'. It has two options:

Random

Numbers are generated randomly between the values in 'Lower Limit' and 'Upper Limit' inclusively.

Sequential

Numbers are generated starting with the value in 'Lower Limit' then incrementing by 1 each time until 'Upper Limit' is reached, at which point it reverts to the lower limit value again.

Lower Limit

This setting is only available if 'Text mode' is set to 'Numbers', 'Alphabet and numbers' or 'User text and numbers'. It shows the smallest number which will be generated.

Upper Limit

This setting is only available if 'Text mode' is set to 'Numbers', 'Alphabet and Numbers' or 'User text and numbers'. It shows the largest number which will be generated.

If you set this to a sufficiently large number you can ensure that in 'Sequential' mode the numbers are never repeated, i.e. they are unique.

Text

This setting is only available if 'Text Mode' is set to 'User Text' or 'User Text and Numbers'. The text in this field will be generated. No changes are made to the case of the text.

Sequential Output

This setting is only available if 'Text Mode' is set to 'User Text' or 'User Text and Numbers'. Normally, in these modes each particle will carry the full string of characters from the 'Text' field. By checking this switch, the Sprite object will generate one character from the string in the 'Text' field, in sequence. When the end of the string is reached, the sequence will start again from the beginning.

If 'Text Mode' is set to 'User Text and Numbers' each character from the string in the 'Text' field will have a number appended to it. The number will either be chosen at random or in sequence, depending on the chosen option in 'Numeric Mode'.

If 'Text Mode' is set to 'User Text (Phrases)' and this switch is checked, each phrase will be chosen in sequence. Otherwise the phrase is chosen at random.

Separator

Only used if 'Text Mode' is set to 'User Text (Phrases)'. It defines the character used to separate the individual phrases. The choices are:

• Semi-colon
• Pipe (|)
• Comma
• Slash (/)
• Space