User manual DIGITAL BLUE QX3 COMPUTER MICROSOPE - ACTIVITY GUIDE

1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 1 Having fun--letting your imagination soar Digital Blue QX3 Computer Microscope TM TM Welcome to the microscopic world. With your QX3 microscope, you are limited only by your imagination. TM What you can do The QX3TM microscope lets you do many things you can't do with an ordinary microscope: See tiny things on your computer. Take the microscope off its base stand for magnified viewing. Combine and create new things using computer tools. Build a collection of your discoveries and creations. Produce your own movies and slide shows. Watch out, Kids! An adult should set up and install hardware and software. Also, only an adult should replace the light bulbs. Group activities Another great thing about the QX3TM microscope is that you and your friends can play with it together. You can even create slide shows together to amaze your family and friends. Fun Stuff To Do Having fun What you can do .......................... 1 Group activities ............................ 1 Starting out right, and seeing the light Button basics............................... 2 Lighting ........................................ 2 Digital BlueTM QX3TM controls ......... 3 Getting the goods and taking a look Collecting specimens................... 4 Live View ......................................4 Magnifying ................................... 5 Using handheld mode.................. 6 Making movies............................. 7 Making a time lapse movie .......... 8 Hungering for more? Investigating Main and beyond....10 Using paint tools ..........................11 Adding special effects .................13 Making a slide show....................14 Printing stuff ................................16 Here are a few things you can do to get started. A50133-001 Y O U R A C T I V I T Y B O O K 1 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 2 Starting out right, and seeing the light Basic buttons Live view button Go to Live View from Main to view and add samples to your collection. buttons, lights and controls The QX3 software is easy and fun to use. Usually, you just choose an activity from Main and use the tools. Button basics Use the software by clicking on buttons and using tools. You will see different buttons on different screens. Audio Help is always there if you need it. TM Using the right light Use the bottom light to shine up through transparent and very thin samples, like feathers, slices of vegetables, or onion skin. The light in the detachable microscope illuminates objects that are too large or heavy to be placed on the microscope's sample platform. You can also use the microscope on the stand to view small solid objects and living specimens with top lighting. You can put a bug or a slug in the containment dish with lid to look at, take magnified snapshots, or make short movies. Main button Go to Main, which lets you choose fun things to do with your pictures and movies. Lighting The microscope light turns on automatically when you enter Live View, and turns off when you go to Main. OK button Continue your action. This button usually appears with the Cancel button. Getting help You can get help by clicking Audio Help. It is in the upper left-hand corner of the screen. If you pause over buttons, you will hear their names and how to use them. You may want more information than Audio Help provides. If so, press F1 for Online Help. Lighting controls You control the lights in Live View with the Lighting Controls on the screen. Click the top bulb to use top lighting. Click the bottom bulb to shine light up through the sample platform. Moving the slider up makes your sample look brighter. Moving it down makes your sample less bright. Experiment to find what works best with your samples. When you remove the microscope from the base, the top light comes on automatically. Cancel button Cancel your action. This button usually appears when you enter special scenes, like the show editing window and when you quit the software. Adding light Ordinary household light works fine with the QX3TM microscope. You may want to place a high-intensity desk lamp near the microscope to add to top lighting when using medium or high magnification. Quitting the software Quit button Quit the QX3TM software. You need to go to Main to quit. To quit, you should click the Quit button on Main. This way you can click the Cancel button to continue playing if you change your mind about quitting. (The Cancel button is on the right in the picture below.) ng ooki ! sl Ear' u, kid o at y 2 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 3 Y O U R A C T I V I T Y B O O K Digital Blue QX3 Controls TM TM Changing magnification Gemstones at high magnification Choose the magnification by rotating the ring on the microscope until the label for the desired level faces you. You will hear a click when the lens is in place. The levels are approximately 10x, 60x and 200X*. In this activity book, we refer to magnification as low, medium, or high. Think of sizes this way: Low shows an area like the head of a thumbtack. Medium shows a pinhead. High shows an area the size of a pencil tip! Once an adult has set up the QX3TM microscope, you can use the controls to: Capture pictures or movies (in handheld mode). 1 2 Use low magnification and top lighting to look at things you can't see through, like coins, hair or paper. Medium or high magnification may make the image too big. Or you may need extra light. HINT: Change magnification level. 3 Focus. Capturing pictures and movies in handheld mode In handheld mode, click the Capture button to take a picture. Click and hold the button to capture a movie. If the Time Lapse controls are showing, you can make a timelapse video in handheld mode, but once you release the button on the microscope your time lapse will stop recording. Focusing Adjust the control knob until the image is clear. Focusing may take a little practice. On some computers, there may be a delay between your moving the knob and the image changing on the screen. Try making small adjustments and wait for the screen to catch up. Watch out, Kids! Before you use extra light, check with your parents to make sure you've got a safe light. You don't want to use a lamp with a halogen or other extra-hot bulb that could cause bad burns. Frunobulax, the fly that walks on two legs *These magnification levels are approximate and have been measured using a 15 in. (38 cm.) monitor. Actual magnification will vary according to size of your monitor. buttons, lights and controls -- Digital BlueTM QX3TM controls 3 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 4 Getting the goods and taking a look collecting and viewing Sample jar 3 4 1 Tweezers Containment dish Your Digital Blue QX3 Computer Microscope comes with accessories to get you started. Live View Replacing your accessories If you lose the tweezers or eyedroppers, you can find good plastic replacements at a nearby variety store, toy store, or hobby shop. Your parents can also order replacements from Prime Entertainment by checking in the Parent Quick Start Guide. When the QX3TM software starts you're in Live View. Here you can look at things you've collected and take pictures and movies to save in your collection. Above is a picture of some gemstones at low magnification in Live View. TM Eyedropper 5 2 Sample slide Slide clip 6 Collecting specimens When you're hunting bugs and other stuff you want to look at, you can use the sample jars to hold them and keep them from getting away. You can also use film canisters, small plastic jars with lids, the plastic boxes nails and screws come in, and other small containers you find around the house. For more information about the controls in Live View, press F1 for Online Help. Attaching and using the slide clip Use the slide clip to make sure your specimen stays in place on the microscope stage. Attach the slide clip to the microscope by placing the slide clip on top of the stage and snapping into place. Live View screen View samples on the sample platform or in handheld mode. Adjust lighting. Capture pictures and movies. Start a time-lapse movie. Go to Main. Handling yucky stuff You can use the tweezers included with your microscope to pick up bugs and slugs and worms and muddy junk and other things you don't want to touch with your fingers. What?! You like to pick up slugs and slimy stuff? Eeeu-oooo! Place your specimen slide on the stage and slide it underneath the clip arm to keep it still. 4 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 5 Y O U R A C T I V I T Y B O O K Magnifying Live View buttons Snapshot button Click this button to capture a picture of your sample. Clicking the Capture button on the microscope in handheld mode has the same effect. Record button Click this button to record a movie of your sample. Holding the Capture button on the microscope in handheld mode has the same effect. Trash can button Click this button to remove the last capture, shown in the preview window, from your collection. Time lapse button Click this button to see the time lapse controls. Your package contains sample slide to help you learn to use the controls on the Digital Blue QX3 Computer Microscope. These specimens include bug parts, textile fibers, pollens, spores and plant sections. TM Remember this-- Use top lighting and low magnification when looking at most solid objects. Use medium and high magnification for transparent things with bottom lighting. You also have two sample jars with lids with which to collect live bugs, flowers and other objects. High--hair ye, hair ye! Did you know that various hair colors and textures look different up close? There are lots of hair types: Blond Brown, brunette, or auburn Curly Gray, silver, or white Red Processed or "permed" Straight Low--quit bugging me! At low magnification, you can watch a bug in the contain-ment dish and see how it eats and behaves. And when you're done watching and recording the bug, you can release it back where you found it. TIP: We recommend using low magnification when in handheld mode. Medium--can you spare some change? Here's a coin at medium magnification. Look at common coins with your microscope still on the stand to get a close-up view. Paper money looks very different when you see it with your QX3TM microscope. What else is nearby? How about: Corn silk Jewelry Breakfast cereal That fuzzy stuff hanging from your sock! A housefly's head at medium magnification! See how many Wrapping paper types of hair Ribbons you can get Fabric from your Dust bunnies family and Photographs friends. Newspaper clippings Using high magnification and bottom lighting, look at the hairs with your microscope. You may be surprised by what you see. Can you see the differences among the types of hair? Does dyed hair look different from natural hair? TIP: Don't put your specimens directly on the microscope's sample platform. Use one of the containment dishes. If a sample won't fit in a containment dish, you can always look at it in handheld mode. collecting and viewing -- magnifying 5 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 6 Using handheld mode Remember this-- When using the microscope in handheld mode, don't pull on the cord that connects it to the computer. Putting too much strain on the cord can lead to trouble. Whenever you're done using the microscope in handheld mode, put it back in its cradle. Always use the microscope so that you've got a clear view of your computer monitor--so you can see what you're pointing at. You can use the Digital Blue QX3 Computer Microscope as a handheld TM Telling your left from your right In a regular microscope, images are reversed. The QX3TM microscope uses the software to flip the image so that when you move a slide on the sample platform to the right, the image on your monitor will also move to the right. To have this software feature work correctly in handheld mode, remember these three things: Hold the microscope with the magnification number facing you. Moving the microscope to the right is the same as moving a slide on the sample platform to the left. Moving the microscope toward you is the same as moving a slide on the sample platform away from you. magnifying glass. Some of the things you can look at are your nose, toes, and teeth. Your feet. The hair on your arm. The moon on your fingernail. The scab on your knee. Your bellybutton. Your fingerprints or your ear. Or, a flower. Use low magnification in handheld mode. If your hand shakes too much at medium and high magnification, the sample won't stay in focus, and there may not be enough light to get a good picture. If you ever get confused, you can click the Help button to hear Audio Help. A computer component board Knowing your limits The main things to remember when using your microscope in handheld mode are: Know exactly how long the cable is. If you can reach it, you can capture it with the microscope. Lighting automatically shifts to the top in handheld mode, but you can still adjust the brightness. Use low magnification unless you have plenty of light and can hold the microscope steady. Begin with the microscope within an inch or two of what you are looking at. Focus is controlled by moving the microscope closer to or farther away from the specimen. Do this slowly with small movements. Can you tell what this is? It shows the fins of a Siamese fighting fish using the microscope in handheld mode through the side of a plastic bag. ig at b s Wh toe y hair ave! h you 6 collecting and viewing -- using handheld mode 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 7 Y O U R A C T I V I T Y B O O K Making movies Want to look at stuff that moves? You've come to the right page. Choosing your specimens Your Digital Blue QX3TM Computer Microscope came with two containment dishes. What can you put in them? Well, if you've got an aquarium, how about fish food? Live fish food. You can view and take movies of tubifex worms and brine shrimp, which are live fish foods. And, how about some of that green stuff growing on the glass? It's called algae and is a simple plant. Even if you don't have fish to feed, you can grow brine shrimp just for fun. Or you can buy some at the pet store. Once you've got some living brine shrimp, use your eyedropper to suck up a few of the tiny shrimp and put them into a containment dish to watch and record them. Use low magnification with bottom light. Brine shrimp computer. Bring the sample to the microscope after it's ready. This prevents accidents that could damage the microscope or your computer. Beady eyed brine These brine shrimp were captured on low magnification with bottom light. Those black dots are their beady little eyes! Choosing the magnification The size of your specimen is important. To get the most fun out of your QX3TM microscope remember this simple guide: At low magnification, you're seeing an area about the size of a thumbtack or a pencil eraser. At medium magnification, you're looking at the head of a pin. At high magnification, you're viewing an area the size of a pencil tip. It takes a lot of patience and a little good luck to capture a good image of something that's moving around. The higher the magnification, the more light you need to see clearly and the more careful you'll have to be when focusing and moving your specimen. This big old fly eye was captured at medium magnification with top light with brightness set all the way to the top. Recording indicator When you're capturing a movie, the bar in the Recording indicator fills up to show progress, and a counter under the Record button shows how long you have been recording. You can stop recording by clicking the Stop button. Recording will stop automatically when the status bar is full or there is no more available disk space. Watch out, Kids! Be extra careful when handling samples that can spill on electrical components. Water and electricity don't mix. Unless you're careful, you might hurt yourself or others and damage your microscope or computer. Movie playback controls Once you've captured a movie, the Recording indicator changes into Playback controls. You preview your movie in the small window by clicking the arrow on the left side of the control. You can move through your movie one frame at a time by clicking the forward or backward arrows on the right side. To see your movie in a bigger window, go to Main and use the Playback controls. TIP: It's important to prepare your sample in another room, away from the collecting and viewing -- making movies 7 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:19 PM Page 8 Making a time-lapse movie Handheld mode With the Digital Blue QX3 TM Computer Microscope, you can even make a time lapse in handheld mode! However, the time lapse will continue only while you hold the Capture button on the microscope. When you release the button, your time lapse will end, just as if you clicked the Stop Record button on the screen. You set up a time lapse in Live View. When you click the Time Lapse button, a panel opens on the bottom right side of the screen. Time lapse controls The slider controls the rate at which snapshots are taken during time-lapse experiments. As you move the slider from left to right, you can see the rate change in the display under the slider. You can set it from one picture every second to one picture every hour. Once you've set your time lapse, you click on the Record button to start it. This puts a Minimize button in the upper right corner of the screen. A display under the Record button shows the total time since you started the time lapse. The Settings control display now functions as a countdown timer to show you the length of time between snapshots. The display below the countdown tracks the total number of snapshots taken. 2 hours Condensation clouds the top cover. 4 hours Droplets start to form, but we could still see the critters in the background. 6 hours Large droplets make a pretty and interesting pattern on the screen. Pond scum-- the movie We made an overnight time lapse of less than a teaspoon of water from a garden pond. We had expected to get a movie of the little critters zipping around, but we got an even more interesting surprise! Here is what our movie looked like when we began. 8 hours The water drops continue to grow larger and the midges cavort! 10 hours A sparkling waterworld takes shape with shadowy blobs behind it. 12 hours Eventually the screen looks like giant glistening blisters! 8 collecting and viewing -- making a time-lapse movie 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:20 PM Page 9 Y O U R A C T I V I T Y B O O K Doing it yourself We've shown you what happened when we made Pond Scum-- The Movie. Now it's your turn! Follow these steps to make The Return of Pond Scum. Adjust the brightness until the image is as clear and bright as possible. How to do it right When you're making movies of things in water, prevent condensation by leaving the lid off the containment dish. This way you can actually see the critters moving around. li ca ghts ac mera . tio . n. To make the time-lapse movie, click the Time Lapse button. While you're outside playing, look for standing water with little creatures swimming and twitching in it. Set the timer to take one snapshot every 30 seconds. Then click Record. Other good subjects Mix some yeast, sugar and water and put a few drops in the containment dish. A slug or snail. Keep the lid on! A piece of moldy bread. A spoiled strawberry or other piece of rotten fruit. A sprouting seed. A worm. Put some in your sample jar or other small container. Let it run overnight. Before going to your computer, put some of the water in a containment dish. To end the time lapse, click the Stop button. TIP: Record a short movie in regular time to see the difference between this and Time Lapse mode. Carefully place the uncovered containment dish on the sample platform. Now you're ready to watch your movie Preview your movie in the small preview window by clicking the Play button. Or return to Main to watch it in the larger viewing area. You can also take the movie to Special Effects and modify it. Making the best of your time If you do a time-lapse movie that will record while you're not at the computer, make sure nobody shuts off the computer during recording. Use the Paint tools to make a warning sign. Print your warning sign and hang it on your monitor. Set the magnification to low. Select bottom lighting. Focus on the smallest critter you can see. me e so to Tak ots sh snap are to . p e com e laps tim your collecting and viewing -- making a time-lapse movie 9 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:20 PM Page 10 Hungering for more? investigating Main and beyond Import pictures. Export pictures and movies. Delete pictures and movies from your collection. Quit the software. Quit button When you click the Quit button, you'll get a chance to change your mind. You can't quit from within Live View. You need to go to Main to quit. Main buttons Paint button Goes to Paint where you can modify your pictures with cool tools. Special Effects button Takes you to a screen where you can give special effects to pictures and movies. For more information about the controls in Main, press F1 for Online Help. Collection window Look through the pictures and movies in your collection, nine at a time, by using the forward and back arrows. Movies have filmstrip borders. Taking a look at Main Now that you've gathered your specimens and captured pictures and movies, let's explore Main to find out what else you can do with things you've found in the microscopic world. From Main you choose the software features you want to use. You will see the buttons for Paint, Special Effects, Show, and Print. From Main you can: View the pictures and movies in your collection. Go to the Paint screen. Go to the Special Effects screen. Go to the Show screen. Go to the Print screen. Return to Live View. Show button Opens one of the software's most popular features where you can assemble slide shows with music! Print button Print your pictures on a single page, on four pages to make a poster, or on stickers. Collection button View your collection and choose a picture or movie to look at or use in one of the main activity screens. Trash Can button Delete pictures and movies you no longer want. You can change your mind by clicking the Cancel button. TIP: From Main you can import still images from photo CDs and clip art collections. You can also export images and movies for use with other programs on your computer. For more information about importing and exporting, press F1 for Online Help. Once you have chosen something to work on, click OK to return to Main. You'll see your selection in the viewing area. From Main you can: Go to Paint, Special Effects, Show or Print with your picture. Go to Special Effects or Show with your picture or movie. IMPORTANT: Because the Collection window opens over the top of Main, you have to click in this window for Audio Help if you need it. 10 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:20 PM Page 11 Y O U R A C T I V I T Y B O O K Using paint tools What can you do in Paint? Paint lets you change pictures in your collection using fun tools. On Main, click the Paint button. This brings you to the Paint screen. Scissors Select portions of your picture to work on. Paint Brush Control transparency, color, shape and size of Brush Tip. What are palettes, options and other controls? Scissors Palette Select parts of your picture with the rectangle or free-form Lasso. When you've made your selection, other tools work only inside that area. To work somewhere else, make a new selection. To work on the whole picture, click the De-select button. You can: Combine and create. Add words to your stuff. Color your collection. Stamp fun images. Distort and terrify. Have fun! Paint Bucket Fill areas with colors and patterns. You can control whether the fill is solid or see-through. Eyedropper Grab a color from anywhere on your picture or the Color Palette to make it your current color. Brush Tips Click a Brush Tip shape to use it with your chosen color and pattern. Click on the up and down arrows to see more shapes and sizes. These tips can also be used with two of the erasers. Text Choose the size and style BEFORE you type your text. Then click the OK button and move your text around your picture. You can learn more about these tools and their options by using Audio Help or pressing F1 for Online Help. Eraser Color Palette Click anywhere on one of the color bars. Your selection is shown in the Tool Preview. You can only choose a color or a pattern, not both. Choose colors from this palette with the Eyedropper too. What is a selection? A selection is the portion of a picture you are working with. If you don't use the Selection tool to pick an area of the picture, the entire picture is selected. The Eraser has four options: Erase to Original, Erase Area To Original, Erase to White and Erase Area to White. Use Audio Help to hear more about them. TIP: When you use the Text tool, you can modify your words using the Paint Brush, Stamp tool, or Eraser tools. Stamp Choose from stamp sets on the Stamp Palette. Click once on your picture to place a single random stamp from the chosen set. Click and hold while moving the mouse to spray the stamps everywhere. Patterns Click a pattern to use it. Click on the up and down arrows to see more patterns. Use the Transparency control to give your patterns unusual effects. What are paint tools? Use Paint tools to change your picture. Click on a tool and its options appear on the right side of the screen. investigating Main and beyond -- using paint tools 11 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:20 PM Page 12 TIP: Use the QX3 Tool Preview This box appears when you choose any tool, except Scissors or Eraser. It shows the current Color, Pattern, or Stamp set and how solid each is. The clearer the checkerboard shows, the more seethrough your tool will be. TM Put your friend's head on a ladybug To begin, you need your friend's head. From Main, click the Collection button and find a picture of your friend. If you don't have her picture use handheld mode to capture a photograph. Use low magnification. Now that her head is in the large viewing area in Main, click the Paint button. Use Scissors with the freeform Lasso to select your friend's face. Click the Copy button and the face will appear in the current selection window. software Import feature to add photos to your collection. See Online Help for details. Transparency Control Use this slider to adjust how solid or see-through your tool will be. You can also use this control with Text and one of the Eraser options. Stamp Palette Click the up and down arrows to see all the stamps you can use. Use the Transparency slider with stamps to change how see-through they are. You can even fill your words with stamps. Picture Controls The Flip, Rotate, and Scale controls work on your current selection. Click Flip to turn your selection left to right. Move the green knob around the circle to rotate your selection. Slide the green knob on the Scale tool to make your selection bigger or smaller. If you don't have a special area selected, these tools work on your whole picture. Go to Main and click the Collection button. ld dhe an se H de to U Mo eat n get s from ure . capt gazines ma Scroll until you find a ladybug or other bug you like. Select it and click the OK button. Go to Paint. Click the Paste button and use the mouse to move the face just where you want it! 12 investigating Main and beyond -- using paint tools 1318 Activity Guide Final 03/12/2002 04:20 PM Page 13 Y O U R A C T I V I T Y B O O K Adding special effects ct a r Sele om you d e fr ctur ction an pi e coll out the cts! try t effe en iffer d You can add cool special effects to pictures and movies. On Main, click Special Effects. This takes you to a screen where you can give special effects to pictures and movies. ...but it looks even more interesting when you apply the Fly's Eye special effect. And here's the same effect applied Special Effects progress bar It takes time to apply a special effect to a movie. When the first frame is done, a Progress Bar and Cancel button appear. If you don't want to wait, you can cancel running the effect. once again to the same picture. Other special effects There are six other effects, including Distort, Atomic Glow, and Kaleidoscope. An eighth button randomly applies two of the effects to your picture or movie. You can hear what each special effect does by using Audio Help.