ScreenRuler Pro - User Guide

Version 2.0.0
Author: Dinuka Adasooriya
Affiliation: Department of Oral Biology, Yonsei University College of Dentistry
Contact: dinuka90@yuhs.ac

Overview

ScreenRuler Pro is a professional screen measurement tool with advanced features including system tray support, click-through capability, fraction mode, and draggable interface. Measure anything on your screen with precision while working with applications underneath.

Features

✨ Core Features

• Mode Visibility Toggle: Click any mode icon to show/hide that measurement mode
• Position Preservation: Modes maintain position when switching
• Text Selection & Deletion: Click text to select (gold border), press Delete to remove
• Text Annotation Mode: Add custom text labels on screen with formatting options
• Text Formatting Toolbar: Font size, family, bold, italic, underline, outline
• Independent Text Movement: Drag text objects anywhere on screen
• Click-Through Mode: Work with windows beneath the ruler
• Multiple Units: Pixels, Centimeters, Inches, Millimeters, Micrometers
• Angle Measurement: Real-time angle display
• Customizable Themes: Cyan, Green, Purple, Orange, Black, White
• Adjustable Opacity: From 30% to 100%
• Angle Lock: Lock to horizontal or vertical
• Guide Lines: Optional crosshair guides
• Measurement History: Track your measurements
• Copy to Clipboard: Quick copy measurements
• System Tray: Minimize to tray with icon menu
• Fraction Mode: Divide ruler into equal fractions (2-50)
• Draggable Info Box: Move measurement display anywhere
• Adjustable Thickness: Ruler line thickness (1-20px)
• Smart Cursors: Context-aware mouse cursor changes
• Calibration System: Calibrate ruler against known references
• Toggle Labels: Show/hide ruler fraction labels
• Real-time Preview: See changes instantly in settings
• Polygon Mode: Measure perimeter and area of arbitrary polygons (3-20 sides)
• UTF-8 Support: Full multilanguage text support
• Standard Windows Title Bars: Native Windows chrome with 95% transparency

🎨 Themes

• Cyan (Default): Bright cyan/red colors
• Green: Nature-inspired green/orange
• Purple: Modern purple/yellow
• Orange: Warm orange/cyan
• Black: Dark gray (#0A0A0A) for visibility
• White: Light gray (#F5F5F5) for visibility

📏 Measurement Units

• Pixels (px): Screen pixels
• Millimeters (mm): Based on 96 DPI and calibration factor
• Centimeters (cm): Based on 96 DPI and calibration factor
• Inches (in): Based on 96 DPI and calibration factor
• Micrometers (µm): Based on 96 DPI and calibration factor
• Area/Perimeter: Uses the selected unit with calibration applied

Keyboard Shortcuts

Key	Action
P	Toggle Work/Edit Mode (Click-through)
M	Cycle through measurement modes
Ctrl+T	Toggle Text Annotation Mode
Del/Backspace	Delete selected text (click text first)
H	Show/Hide Help
S	Open Settings Panel
A	About / Credits
C	Copy Measurement to Clipboard
R	Reset Ruler Position
G	Toggle Guide Lines
V	Toggle Ruler Labels
L	Cycle Lock (None → Horizontal → Vertical)
T	Cycle Theme
U	Cycle Unit (px → cm → inch)
F	Toggle Fraction Mode
[	Decrease Fractions
]	Increase Fractions
,	Decrease Ruler Thickness
.	Increase Ruler Thickness
+	Increase Opacity
-	Decrease Opacity
Space	Minimize to Tray
Esc	Exit Application

Mouse Controls

Edit Mode (Press P to activate)

• Left Click + Drag on endpoints: Move ruler endpoints (Crosshair cursor)
• Left Click + Drag on line: Move entire ruler (4-way arrow cursor)
• Left Click + Drag on info box: Reposition measurement display (Hand cursor)
• Right Click: Show context menu

Work Mode (Default - Click-through enabled)

• Mouse clicks pass through to applications below
• Ruler is visible but non-interactive

Smart Cursor Feedback

• Crosshair: Hovering over endpoints (resize mode)
• 4-way Arrow: Hovering over ruler line (move mode)
• Hand: Hovering over info box (drag mode)
• Fleur (Move): Hovering over text objects in text mode

Text Annotation Mode

Overview

Text annotation mode allows you to add custom text labels on your screen with extensive formatting options. Text objects move independently of the ruler and remain on screen until cleared.

Activating Text Mode

1. Click the A/T button in the toolbar, or
2. Press Ctrl+T keyboard shortcut
3. Toolbar expands to show text formatting controls

Adding Text

1. Enter text in the input field (supports UTF-8 multilanguage characters)
2. Click the Add button
3. Text appears at center of screen
4. Drag to desired position

Text Formatting Options

Font Settings:

• Font Size: 8pt - 72pt (default: 12pt)
• Font Family: Arial, Times New Roman, Courier New, Verdana, Tahoma

Text Styles:

• Bold (B button): Make text bold
• Italic (I button): Italicize text
• Underline (U button): Underline text
• Outline: Toggle text outline for better visibility

Text Management:

• Show/Hide (👁 button): Toggle visibility of all text objects
• Clear All (🗑 button): Remove all text annotations
• View Menu: "Screen Text" option for toggling text visibility

Real-time Updates

All formatting changes apply instantly to all existing text objects:

• Change font size → All text resizes
• Change font family → All text updates font
• Toggle bold/italic/underline → All text updates style
• Changes are synchronized across all text annotations

Text Movement

• Click and drag any text object to reposition it
• Cursor changes to fleur (move) when hovering over text
• Each text object moves independently
• Text positions are maintained during ruler resizing

Best Practices

• Use text outline for visibility on complex backgrounds
• Adjust font size for readability at different screen resolutions
• Use Show/Hide to temporarily toggle text visibility
• Text annotations are session-based (not saved between runs)

Settings Panel

Access via S key or right-click menu.

Appearance Tab

• Theme Selection: Choose from 4 color themes
• Opacity Control: Adjust transparency (30%-100%)
• Show Guides: Toggle crosshair guide lines

Measurement Tab

• Unit Selection: Choose px, mm, cm, inches, or µm
• Tick Spacing: Adjust ruler tick marks (10-50px)
• Ruler Thickness: Set line width (1-20px)
• Lock Angle: Lock ruler to horizontal/vertical

Calibration Tab

• Calibration Factor: Adjust measurement accuracy
• Step-by-step Guide: Instructions for calibrating
• Real-time Display: See current measurement while calibrating
• Reset Option: Return to default calibration (1.0)
• Example Calculations: Learn how to calculate calibration factor

Advanced Features

Fraction Mode

Divide the ruler into equal parts for precise proportional measurements:

• Press F to toggle fraction mode
• Use [ and ] to adjust number of divisions (2-50)
• Each division shows its fraction label (e.g., 1/10, 2/10)
• Perfect for design layouts and grid systems

Polygon Mode

Measure arbitrary polygons for both perimeter and area:

• Switch with M (cycle) or Right-click → Measurement Mode → Polygon
• Drag any vertex to reshape; drag near an edge to move the entire polygon
• Tap the small + handle near the last vertex to enter add-vertex mode; click anywhere to add points; press Enter to finish or Esc to cancel
• Info box shows perimeter and area using the selected unit and calibration factor
• Each edge shows its length label (unit-aware)
• Press C to copy perimeter and area to clipboard
• Drag the info box to reposition it

System Tray Integration

• Press Space to minimize to system tray
• Right-click tray icon for quick access:
  • Show Ruler
  • Exit Application
• Application continues running in background

Calibration System

Calibrate the ruler for accurate measurements:

1. Open Settings (press S)
2. Go to Calibration tab
3. Measure a known reference object (e.g., physical 10cm ruler)
4. Note the displayed measurement
5. Calculate calibration factor: Known Value ÷ Displayed Value
6. Enter the factor and click Apply
7. All measurements will now use this calibration

Example:

• You measure a 10cm object
• Ruler shows 9.5cm
• Calibration factor = 10 ÷ 9.5 = 1.053
• Enter 1.053 and apply

Real-time Settings Preview

Changes in the settings window are applied immediately:

• Theme changes: See new colors instantly
• Opacity: Adjust transparency in real-time
• Guides: Toggle on/off to see effect
• Tick spacing: Preview spacing changes
• Thickness: See line width adjustments
• Labels: Show/hide fraction labels instantly

Configuration

Settings are automatically saved to ruler_config.json in the application directory.

Saved Settings Include

• Theme preference
• Opacity levels
• Unit selection
• Tick spacing
• Ruler thickness
• Guide line visibility
• Angle lock preference
• Fraction mode state
• Fraction count
• Info box position

Usage Examples

Measuring UI Elements

1. Launch ProRuler.exe
2. Press P to enter Edit Mode
3. Drag endpoints to measure desired element
4. Press C to copy measurement
5. Press P to return to Work Mode

Measuring at Specific Angle

1. Press L to lock to horizontal or vertical
2. Position ruler at desired location
3. Measurement maintains locked angle

Checking Pixel Spacing

1. Press U to cycle to pixel unit
2. Position ruler between elements
3. Read exact pixel distance in info box

Building Executable

To create a standalone .exe file:

1. Open PowerShell in the Ruler folder
2. Run: .\build_executable.ps1
3. Wait for build to complete
4. Find ProRuler.exe in the dist folder

The executable can run on any Windows PC without Python installed.

System Requirements

• OS: Windows 7 or later
• Python: 3.7+ (only for building, not for running .exe)
• Screen: Any resolution

Tips & Tricks

1. Quick Measurements: Keep in Work Mode, press P briefly to adjust, press P again to lock
2. Precise Positioning: Use guide lines (G key) for alignment
3. Color Contrast: Switch themes (T key) for better visibility on different backgrounds
4. Persistent Settings: Your preferences are saved automatically
5. Copy-Paste: Use C key to quickly copy measurements to any application

Troubleshooting

Ruler not visible

• Press Space to restore if minimized
• Check opacity setting (press + to increase)
• Try different theme for better contrast

Can't interact with ruler

• Press P to exit Work Mode
• Ruler must be in Edit Mode to move

Clicks not passing through

• Press P to enable Work Mode
• Check for "🌐 WORK" in info box

Technical Details

• DPI Assumption: 96 DPI (standard Windows)
• Config File: ruler_config.json (JSON format)
• Windows API: Uses WS_EX_TRANSPARENT for click-through
• Framework: Tkinter (built into Python)

Version

ScreenRuler Pro v2.0.0

Author: Dinuka Adasooriya
Affiliation: Department of Oral Biology, Yonsei University College of Dentistry
Email: dinuka90@yuhs.ac

Version 2.0.0 Features

• System tray minimize support
• Fraction mode with adjustable divisions
• Draggable info box
• Adjustable ruler thickness
• Smart cursor feedback
• Calibration system for accurate measurements
• Toggle show/hide ruler labels
• Real-time preview in settings
• About/Credits dialog
• Professional GUI
• Multiple themes
• Unit conversion
• Settings panel
• Standalone executable support

System Requirements

• OS: Windows 7 or later
• RAM: Minimal (< 50 MB)
• Display: Any resolution
• Dependencies: None (standalone .exe)

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© 2025 Dinuka Adasooriya
Department of Oral Biology
Yonsei University College of Dentistry
Contact: dinuka90@yuhs.ac

License

• Type: GNU General Public License v3.0 (GPL-3.0)
• Summary: You may run, study, share, and modify this software. Derivative works must also be licensed under GPL-3.0.
• Full Text: See the LICENSE file in this repository or open the About tab and click "View Full License".