Learn to Animate

Projects can be stored anywhere on the local computer or connected networks/drives. It is helpful to keep projects together in a single location for easy access and organization. In your computer's file browser (Finder on macOS), create a projects folder in the Documents directory - ie. Documents/Animations

The Sandbox is the default project when you open Tahoma for the first time. It is intended for experimentation, not for serious work. Since the Sandbox is stored within the Tahoma app itself, it can be accessed by other users of Tahoma on the computer. At the same time, that makes the Sandbox harder to backup then other projects.

New projects can be created when Tahoma opens, with the startup window, or at any time through the menu (File &rrar; Project Management → New Project).

DO NOT leave the Sandbox as the active project for class assignments - it is not private and takes more steps to backup.

1. Choose "New Project" in either the startup window or the menu (File → Project Management → New Project)
2. Select the project location
3. Give your project a name
4. Press "Ok"
5. If using the startup window, give your first scene for the project a descriptive name and select "Create Scene"
6. If the project was created through the menu, save the default untitled scene to give it a descriptive name (CMD+S | CTRL+S or File → Save All)

The last active project is opened by default whenever Tahoma is opened. In a studio setting, animators might spend multiple years on a single project. In that setting, it saves time having that project open by default.

1. Using the Startup Window:
   1. Click on "..." next to "Choose Project", and select a different project folder
   2. Select the scene you would like to load for this project or use the window to make a new scene
2. Using the File menu:
   1. File → Project Management → Switch Project
   2. Choose a different project in the File Browser
3. Using the File Browser:
   1. In Tahoma, select the Browser Room
   2. On the left of the File Browser, find the project folder you want to open and click on the empty circle to the side of the name to turn it red

Loading a scene from a different project will change the active project.

This assumes that you have installed Tahoma on your home computer. It is free and available for both macOS and Windows at Tahoma2d.org. After installing Tahoma at home, make sure your preferences are the same as what you have at school. Revisit the "Workspace" page under the "Customize" tab for recommended preferences.

1. Download your most recent, zipped, active project folder from Google Drive or your thumb drive
2. On macOS:
   1. In Finder, open your downloads folder and drag the file from Downloads folder (or your thumb drive) and drop it in a folder for your home animations folder (Documents/Animations)
   2. Double-click on the .zip file and the folder should uncompress/open
3. On Windows:
   1. In Windows Explorer (the file manager not the browser), go to the downloads folder
   2. Select the .zip file and drag it into a folder for your home animations folder (C://Documents/Animations)
   3. Right-click on the .zip file → Extract All
4. In Tahoma, use the startup pop-up to select your project and load the desired scene

New scenes can be created when Tahoma opens, with the startup window, or at any time through the menu (File → New Scene or CMD+N | CTRL+N). New scenes will always be created in the active project.

Using the default untitled scenes can prevent auto-save from working, so unless you are just experimenting, always set a descriptive file name.

1. In either the Startup window, or when saving an untitled scene for the first time (File → Save All or CMD+S | CTRL+S)in the "Save Scene" window, choose a descriptive scene name
2. Use the default size/resolution settings unless you have specific size requirements
3. Leave "Frame Rate" set to the standard 24fps
4. Select "Create Scene"

1. The Startup Window - choose a recent scene from the sidebar or choose "Open Another Scene" to select a scene from the browser
2. The program menu: "File → Load Scene" to choose a scene from the browser or "File → Open Recent Scene File" to choose a recent scene
3. The shortcut CMD-L | CTRL+L

Loading a scene from a different project will change the active project.