easyMelts display is tiny on high-resolution screen on Windows

[Paula]

easyMelts is developed by Einari Suikkanen and is not part of alphaMELTS 2, but it is recommended for getting started on alphaMELTS 2 / alphaMELTS for MATLAB/Python. On a Windows laptop with a high-resolution screen, such as the Surface, you may find that the easyMELTS display looks tiny.

Most Windows X server software, including easyMelts, incorrectly reports to Windows that it is able to deal with the high resolution. The problem is not restricted to X. Other software, such as Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, CorelDraw and Dreamweaver have shown similar behavior. A workaround involves adding a text file (the 'manifest') and telling Windows to handle the application scaling for the high resolution screen. The external manifest hack requires admin access. Also, note that you may have to repeat some of the steps after one of the major biannual Windows updates.

The method outlined here borrows from write-ups by scrambler, Luis, and Dan Antonielli. This version uses the command line (cmd.exe) so that you can copy and paste the commands. If you do not have admin access, or are not comfortable with editting the registry, you can use Windows' Ease of Access tools as a workaround; scroll down to the bottom for this alternative.

External Manifest file (requires admin access)

First we need to open cmd.exe as an Administrator. You can find 'Command Prompt' it in the Start Menu, under 'Windows System'. Right-click 'Command Prompt', then 'More', then 'Run as administrator'. Or right-click the Start button, then 'Run', then type 'cmd.exe'; then right-click the Command Prompt icon in the task bar, then right-click 'Command Prompt' and 'Run as administrator'. You may need to select 'Yes' and/or enter your Windows password.

The Command Prompt will open in the C:\Windows\system32 directory. First navigate to a folder in your home space, somewhere to put a backup file that you will be able to find. For example, 'cd C:\Users\your_username\folder_name'. Next right-click where is says 'Administrator: Command Prompt' at the top of the window and choose 'Properties'. Make sure 'Enable Ctrl key shortcuts' is checked. You can now copy (control-C) and paste (control-V) commands from here to the command line.

reg export HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\SideBySide sidebyside.reg /y

... this backs up the relevant Registry key
... in the unlikely event that something does not work just double-click the 'sidebyside.reg' file to restore the previous state

reg add HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\SideBySide /v PreferExternalManifest /t REG_DWORD /d 0x1

... this tells Windows to look in an external file (if available) to see whether a given application can handle the high-resolution screen

Download the manifest.txt file from Dan Antonielli's page. The next instructions assume that your browser saves files in 'Downloads' and that easyMelts is in your Documents folder, but you can adjust accordingly:

cd C:\Users\your_username\Downloads
copy manifest.txt "C:\Users\your-username\Documents\easeyMelts.exe.manifest"

Using Magnifier (does not require admin access)

Open Settings (click either the Start button in the bottom LH corner or the Notification icon bottom RH corner; then click the cog icon). Type 'Magnifier settings' in the search box. Reduce the Zoom level increments to 25%. You can experiment with the Magnification zoom level but something in the range 150 - 200% is likely to work. You probably want to leave the 'Start Magnifier...' boxes unchecked and put the Magnifier mode in 'Full Screen'. Turn the Magnifier on, scroll down and right-click the Magnifier icon and choose 'Pin to taskbar'. Now if you turn off the Magnifier (by clicking the 'X' in the top RH corner of the Magnifier popup), you can easily turn it on again by selecting it from the taskbar; the cog on the Magnifier popup is a shortcut to the Settings page.

Paula