Version 2021.3 of the Z1 Designer is now available! The Z1 Designer lets you create your own dashboards for use with the Z1 Dashboard software.
This new versions adds conditional colors, conditional images, a dashboard gallery for sharing your designs, new warning options, expanded keyboard navigation and more!
The new color chooser dialog
Conditional Colors are now supported.
Conditional Images are now supported.
The Dashboard Gallery makes sharing your designs easy.
The Dashboard Gallery Upload Dialog
New warning types available for DRS and car spotters.
The Z1 Designer is a free application and can be downloaded here:
https://z1simwheel.com/dashboard/demo.cfm
Here is the full list of release notes:
* The Dashboard Gallery. This is where you can download any currently available dashboards that have been made using the Z1 Designer. These dashboards will have been created by either Z1 Software or other users. To view the gallery select Gallery->View Gallery. You can filter the results by category, sim, or specific search terms. You can scroll up or down using the mouse wheel or the scroll bar on the right edge of the screen. You can collapse or expand a category by clicking on its line within the dashboard gallery. The gallery loads in 20 dashboards at a time. As you scroll down more will be loaded. The preview pictures will be loaded in the first time you open the gallery, and stored on your PC for faster future display. This gallery will grow over time as we, and other users, add more dashboards to it. Any dashboard downloaded from the gallery can be used in the Z1 Dashboard, and can be modified in the Z1 Designer.
* Uploading your dashboards. You can now upload your dashboards to our Dashboard Gallery. The Dashboard Gallery is how dashboards will be distributed moving forward. If you upload your dashboard to the gallery other users will be able to download and use it. To upload your dashboard, go to the Gallery-Upload My Dashboard menu option. This will display a dialog where you can enter your name (very important because we want to credit the dashboard to you!) You can also specify if it is intended for a specific sim, and the category that best described the dashboard. In addition you can enter keywords to help users find it more easily. Clicking the 'Upload' button will start the upload process. Note that when you upload the dashboard it will first be saved, and have a preview image auto-generated to make sure all files are up-to-date.
* A completely new color dialog has been incorporated. This will allow for easier selection of colors, conditional colors and gradients.
* Conditional Images are now supported. A conditional image can have between 2 and 20 images. Each image should have a unique file name. Any current data channel can be used to determine which image is displayed. For each image you specify the minimum and maximum values of the chosen data channel that will trigger that image to be displayed. Conditional images should be placed in the foreground.
* Conditional Colors are now supported. You can create a conditional color by using the Edit->New Conditional Color menu option. This displays the Conditional Color dialog. You assign your color a name, and a data channel that will determine when the color changes. You can have up to 20 color changes within your conditional color. Use the Colors drop down to specify the desired number of colors. To change any of the colors, just click on its swatch and use the color dialog. There are two text fields for each color. They specify the values between which that color will be displayed. Currently all units are in metric values.
* Conditional colors can be permanently or temporary. If you are only going to use the color on one dashboard then it would make sense to create it as a temporary color. It will be saved with the dashboard, but not with the Designer. However if you are going to use the conditional color on multiple dashboards it would make sense to create it as a permanent color. To do this make sure you click the 'Save for future use' check box in the Conditional Color dialog. The permanent/temporary state of any color can be changed at any time you like.
* Conditional colors are saved with their dashboard as needed. So if you open a dashboard that was created by someone else then any conditional colors that are used by that dashboard will be added to your list of conditional colors as temporary colors. This lets you edit the dashboard.
* The names of conditional colors do not have to be unique. This is because if you open a dashboard that someone else created, that dashboard could have a conditional color with the same name as one you have already created. We do, however, recommend using unique names in your own conditional colors for simplicity.
* You can see a list of all available colors, and edit those colors by going to Edit->Edit Conditional Colors. This will display a dialog with the current list of conditional colors. Double clicking on any of them will let you edit the color.
* A conditional color can be assigned to any element created within your dashboard. Simply click the color swatch of the object. This will display the color chooser. At the bottom left is a drop down of the current conditional colors. To assign the color, just choose its name from the list. The color swatch will display the first color in the range along with a 'C' when a conditional color is selected.
* To remove a conditional color from an element, click on the color swatch and in the color dialog choose any other color.
* You can create a new conditional color from within the Color chooser, by selecting '<Add New>' from the conditional colors drop down. This will display the conditional color dialog. If you create a new color it will be added to the drop down in the color chooser and automatically selected.
* Another way to edit an assigned conditional color is to click on the color swatch to open the color chooser. Then within the color chooser if the 'New' color is a conditional color, double clicking on the 'new' color area will display the conditional color dialog allowing you to edit that conditional color.
* You can delete an existing conditional color by going to Edit->Edit Conditional Colors, right clicking on the desired color and choosing 'Delete'. Note if the conditional color is being used by the currently opened dashboard then you cannot delete it.
* You can create a copy of an existing conditional color by going to Edit->Edit Conditional Colors, right clicking on the desired color and choosing 'Copy'.
* Added new warning types: DRS Active, DRS Available, DRS Next Zone, Car Left, Cars Left, Car Right, Cars Right.
* Improvements to the text fields. You can now highlight parts of the text within them using the shift+left/right arrow keys and delete the highlighted text. Double clicking the text field selects all of the text. Left/Right arrow keys now repeat.
* If you place an object in a layer that could make it not display properly you will get a warning dialog asking if you'd like to move it to the correct layer. For example placing a data channel in the background layer would display this warning, as would placing an image in the foreground layer.
* You can now use the TAB key to move to the next text field or drop down.
* The Home/End keys can now be used to move the cursor in a text field.
* The arrow keys can now be used to navigate a drop down's items. The Enter key can now be used to select the currently highlighted item in a drop down.
* The copy (CTRL-C) option will now copy any currently selected text in a text field. This copied text can then be pasted into another text field using the CTRL-V paste option. Note you can have both text and an object in the 'copied' memory. When you go to paste, if a text field is selected then the copied text (if any) will be pasted there, if no text fields are selected then the last copied object (if any) will be pasted on the Dashboard window.
* Select All (CTRL-A) has been implemented. This will select all the text in the currently active text field.
* Added a new widget: Fuel To Add At Stop.
Download the Z1 Designer today:
https://z1simwheel.com/dashboard/demo.cfm