Display Colors

Form:  Set Display Colors

Click the Options menu > Graphics  Colors > Display command to access the Set Display Colors form. Use the form to set the display colors for the various items in the model. The following bullet items describe the areas on this form.

• Click to Change Color area. Left click on any of the color boxes to change the display color for the associated item. The items are assumed to be self explanatory with the clarifications displayed when you click here.

  • Links: Color of the link element symbol. When a link property is assigned to a frame object, the entire frame object is not shown in this color. Only the link element symbol attached to the frame object is in this color.

  • Springs: Color of the spring symbol. This item also controls the color of restraints (supports).

  • Walls: Wall-type shell objects. The color applies to the object edges and fill color.

  • Floors: Floor-type shell objects. The color applies to the object edges and fill color.

  • Openings: Shell objects that are designated as openings. The color applies to the object edges and crossing lines. Note that openings are never filled, even when the Object Fill box is checked in the Set View Options form.

  • Text: Color of all of the text, including grid line IDs. It also controls the color of dimension lines. In addition, it controls the color of dots used to show point objects when in a "Shrink Object" mode, end releases and nonlinear hinges. It also controls the color of the thickened line showing end offsets along the length of a frame member.

  • Grid Lines: Default color of grid lines and grid line bubbles. It can be overwritten on a grid line by grid line basis using the Grid System Data form. This item also controls the color of reference planes and reference lines.

  • Background: Background color. This item indirectly controls the color of null-type line objects, null-type area objects, and diaphragm extent lines because they are displayed in the opposite color from the background color.

  • Steel Design, Composite Design, and Concrete Design: Frame objects that have their design procedure designated as steel frame, composite beam, and concrete frame, respectively. This color selection works when the View menu > Set Display Options > View by Colors of:  Frame Design Type command is used.

• Set Transparency options. Use the options in this area to control how transparent or opaque the display of the various objects in the model will be. Transparency values may range from 0 to 1.

1. • A value of 0 makes the object type completely opaque.

   • A value of 1 makes the object type completely transparent.

   • With the exception of Floors and Walls, the default value is 0.5, which typically is appropriate.

Setting the value to 0 (opaque) may be helpful to eliminate from view items behind objects of interest.

• For Device Type options. Indicate if the colors are for screen display, output to a non-color printer or output to a color printer. Note different display colors can be specified for each device type. Note that a drop-down list can be used to quickly change the background color for the Screen display. When the background color is changed, all of the colors used for the structural elements also change.

• Darkness drop-down list. Control the variation of color (intensity of shading) when extruded shapes are displayed. The darkness value can range from 0 to 1.

• • A darkness value of 0 means no variation of color and the extruded shape will not really be distinguishable.

  • A darkness value of 1 gives the maximum variation of color.

  • The default value is 0.5. This value works well in most instances.

• Reset Defaults button. This button resets the colors to the built-in ETABS default colors. The Reset Defaults button not only resets the colors for the currently chosen device type, it resets the colors for all three device types, regardless of which one is currently chosen.

• Color Printer (Graphics) check box. When this check box is unchecked and the color printer option has been selected, the output will not print in color.

See also:

Output Colors