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CrystalMaker® 8.0 for Leopard and Tiger
Multi-Structure Visualization Comes of Age
  Overview     Features  

7 January 2008. CrystalMaker Software Ltd is delighted to announce the immediate availability of CrystalMaker 8.0 for Mac OS X: our biggest upgrade ever with over 100 new features. The new program is also designed to leverage the major new functionality of Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" and 10.5 "Leopard", with support for Cover Flow, Quick Look, file previews, Spotlight, and other enhancements.

9 May 2008: CrystalMaker 8.1 builds on the new features in version 8.0, adding a live rotation link with SingleCrystal, more file formats, powerful workflow features and much more...
Leopard screenshot showing the new window layout in CrystalMaker 8.0

The CrystalMaker 8 program interface, shown running on Mac OS X 10.5 "Leopard". Note the new window toolbar and integrated sidebar in the main, Graphics window. At the bottom of the screen is the enhanced Overview window, which provides single-click access to window views, undo states, File favourites (shown) and an output Log.
CrystalMaker icon Streamlined Interface
CrystalMaker 8 features a streamlined user interface, designed to boost productivity. The default window count has been reduced from five, down to three windows, thanks to a new Sidebar in the Graphics window (which can show both a Site Browser and a Notes pane) and an enhanced Overview window.

An (optional) window toolbar can now be displayed. This is designed to allow handy shortcuts to commonly-used features, such as showing or hiding the window notes, sidebar or grid, setting view direction and range, and synchronizing windows/views. As such, it complements the existing Tools palette (though, if you wish, you can customize it to replicate much of the functionality of the Tools palette).

Overview Power
The Overview Window has been completely redesigned, with a new Log pane (replacing the old Output window). Custom window views, favourite files and undo states are represented by thumbnails in three other panes. Thumbnails can be resized using a slider control, rearranged (Views and Files) and renamed (Views).

You can use the Files pane to keep track of your favourite files: just drag-and-drop any file or folder into the pane; any text or CrystalMaker binary files will be loaded and thumbnails shown. You can display animated slideshows using the contents of the Files pane or the Views pane. You have the option of a full-screen "kiosk" mode in which all interface elements are hidden: great for presentations!

Native Tiger & Leopard Support
CrystalMaker 8.0 for Mac is designed to run natively on the latest versions of Mac OS X, 10.4 "Tiger" and 10.5 "Leopard". Windows, sheets and data browsers have been updated to take advantage of new operating system capabilities. This application is provided as a universal binary, delivering native performance on both PowerPC and Intel processors.

Leopard screenshot showing CrystalMaker files in Cover Flow mode
CrystalMaker binary files viewed in the Finder's "Cover Flow" mode.

You can now browse high-resolution previews of your CrystalMaker crystal or molecule files in "Cover Flow" mode, or enjoy icon previews in other Finder modes. You can also use Quick Look to view the contents of your files, directly from the Finder.

Spotlight
Find files by chemical composition, density, cell parameters, volume, spacegroup, crystal system or notes. You can customize your Finder-based search criteria to include multiple requests, such as all files containing "Ca" and "O" within a preset density range.
The results of a Spotlight search. Multiple criteria have been used to isolate dense cubic phases containing calcium and oxygen. Spotlight search results
Multi-Structure Animation
Effortlessly browse through huge numbers of structures saved in multi-structure CIF or PDB files, compare adjacent "frames" with a press of the arrow key, and save an animation with a single menu command. This is a great way to analyse structural changes and phase transitions!

Synchronize Views. Use the new Synchronize command to synchronize all of your Window's views. This way you can set your model type, bonding, colours and plot range for one structure, and have your changes automatically applied to all other structures.

Instant Movie Generation. Rename and rearrange the subviews, then use the Overview Window's Actions menu to automatically save the views as an animation, in QuickTime movie format.

Analysing structural changes associated with a phase transition in a silicate mineral. Here, a series of view "snapshots" can be used to create an animation or movie. Analysing a structural phase transition using window views
Model Options
CrystalMaker 8 includes a huge number of improvements to model generation and display. Some of the key changes include:

Label Overlap Correction. Atom labels can now be automatically positioned so as to minimize the chance of overlap. This is a new option (checkbox) in the Labels pane of the Model Options window (which also gives the option of static label positions). Label positioning is further enhanced by using font metrics to better vertically- adjust the label.

CrystalMaker image of an organic molecule, with labels automatically positioned so as to avoid overlap. Organic molecule showing automatic label positioning

Another new Atom Label option is to have labels automatically rescaled as a structure is zoomed. This can be useful when you need to start with an extended structure (e.g., a molecular crystal) and then cut away much of the structure to reveal a sub unit. The atom label size automatically adjusts as the scale changes, so that labels remain correctly proportioned relative to atom spheres.

Labels-to-Textboxes Command. As an alternative to relying on automatic label positioning, you can opt to convert selected atom labels into textboxes. These can then be edited and moved freely - ideal for final output.

Thermal Ellipsoid Override. One of our most frequent requests was the possibility of turning off thermal ellipsoid display for specific sites in a structure, and to plot those sites (generally H atoms) as small spheres.

The Atoms pane of the Model Options window now includes thermal ellipsoid checkboxes in its scrolling list. Turning off a checkbox causes that site to be plotted as a sphere. The sphere radius can be customized using the new Thermal Ellipsoids Sphere Radius text edit field.

Customize Ball-and-Stick Sizes. We have opened up the program to allow control over the relative radii of ball-and-stick spheres (compared to space-filling spheres), and the minimum radius used to plot ball-and-stick spheres. Thesesettings can be edited via new text fields in the Atoms pane of the Model Options window.

File Import/Export
CrystalMaker 8 now supports import of structural data from GSAS experiment (".exp") files, and the loading of PDB files as crystals (rather than as molecules). Text files now load much faster thanks to an improved status display. This is particularly evident for multi-structure PDB and CIF files. Those files are also loaded in a more convenient manner, with the individual structures displayed as separate Views in the same window: allowing easy browsing and animation.

Supercells
Multiple unit cells can be merged into a single unit cell, thanks to the new Transform > Supercell command. This is especially useful when attempting to generate input for computer simulation studies: you can generate a new, much larger unit cell, simply by specifying how many old cells to use along each of the x, y and z axes.

A 2×2×2 supercell in the oxide mineral spinel, showing a dopant (green atom). This modified crystal structure can be used to simulate superlattice reflexions in powder or single-crystal diffraction patterns. Supercell with dopant in the spinel structure

A related, Discard Symmetry command lets you transform your existing spacegroup to P 1 symmetry; the asymmetric unit is extended to include the full cell contents).This may be useful when preparing input for computational studies.

Other Changes
CrystalMaker 8 contains numerous new features and "under the hood" improvements.
  • Edit Thermal Ellipsoid Data
    Isotropic and/or anisotropic displacement parameters can now be edited using a completely-revised Edit Crystal window. Users can customize the data display, with the option of basic (coordinates-only) through to advanced (all data) view settings.

  • Molecule-to-Crystal Command
    Convert aperiodic molecular data into periodic, crystallographic data. Ideal for working with computer simulations where tiling is required, or for simulating diffraction patterns from molecular data.

  • New Spacegroups
    Unconventional monoclinic spacegroups are now recognized, and supported, by the Edit Crystal window. These include 29 new spacegroups with their unique axes parallel to a, as well as spacegroups with unique axes parallel to b and c. A large number of "hidden" orthorhombic spacegroups have been added: these include settings not listed in the International Tables for Crystallography, with different origin settings.

  • Full-Screen Working
    Focus on your work with the new Full Screen mode. Your structure is automatically zoomed to fill the screen and extraneous clutter hidden. Automatic menu bar and dock hiding is enabled, and you can summon up the appropriate palette windows to access the full range of tools, as needed. To cancel Full Screen mode, simply click the escape key.

  • Cycle Through Windows
    A new Window menu command lets you cycle forwards or backwards through multiple windows. This isparticularly effective in full-screen mode.

  • Fast View Selection
    The Set View Direction sheet now includes new buttons for immediate access to common view directions (holding down the Option key brings up four more).

This program has been designed to support the latest system features on the Mac platform, and we strongly recommend that existing Mac users take advantage of our low-cost upgrade schemes, in order to benefit.

File Compatibility: CrystalMaker 8 binary files are fully-compatible with CrystalMaker 2 for Windows, as well as the current versions of CrystalDiffract and SingleCrystal. The files can also be read by the previous version of CrystalMaker (i.e., version 7 for Mac and version 1 for Windows).


Further Information:
  • For a general introduction to CrystalMaker please see the CrystalMaker product description.
  • Download a demonstration version of CrystalMaker for Mac.
  • For pricing and ordering information (news sales and upgrades), please refer to our Standard and Education pricing guides.
  • For sales information, including licensing options and online sales, please refer to our the sales page. To qualify for upgrade pricing, you will need to have registered your existing program with us.

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