Contact Support

Using the Variation Stack

Colorway allows you to create and store multiple variations in your project. Variations are the different layout versions that you can create using different asset variants and palettes. They basically serve as bookmarks for your project: when you save a variation, you save the active state of every variant and palette on your sheet. You can save different variations for each sheet in your project.

This video presents the Variation Tree, also called the Variation Stack or Variation Engine.

In the video:

• The Variation Stack is in the left, docked menu.

• Use Ctrl/Cmd + 2 to display it.

• Create, remove, and hide variations.

• Select whether to display variations using small or big thumbnails.

• Rename variations.

• Update variations as per what displays in the workspace by pressing the Update button.

Saving Variations

Before saving a variation, set up a layout you like, using the images, Colorway assets, text, and palettes you need. The variations you create are shown in a list in the Variation Stack in the left-side panel.

 

To save a variation, do the following:

1.

Select the sheet you want to work with.

2.

Open the Variation Stack.

Note:  If you already have stored variations in your project, you can see a list with their thumbnails here.

3.

Click the Add button at the bottom of the panel to add the active sheet layout as a variation.

Colorway saves the variation and names it Variation # by default. You can now see its thumbnail in the Variations List.

You can rename a variation by double-clicking its name. The field becomes editable and you can enter a new name.

The Visibility button below the variation's thumbnail allows you to hide or display the variation on a contact sheet. For more information on using contact sheets, see Contact Sheets.

If you then make changes to your items in the sheet, the changes will not be automatically applied to the selected variation. To apply the changes to a variation, click the button on the right of the variation name in the Variation Stack.

To remove a variation, select the variation in the stack and click the on the bottom right of the stack.

You can also adjust the layout of the stack by switching between small and large thumbnails view using the layout icons at the bottom left:

After saving a variation, you can return to the sheet and start creating a new layout.

When you have saved multiple variations, you can quickly switch between them by double-clicking on their thumbnails in the Variation Stack. The assets and palettes associated with the variation become active on your sheet.

Note:  When you delete a palette that is used by a saved variation, and then activate the variation on your sheet, Colorway still displays the colors, but warns you that the associated original palette is no longer available. In this case, Colorway uses a backup palette.