How do I install an Overlays Pack inside Magic Touch 2?

An Overlays Pack in its basic form is simply a zip file containing a folder with the overlays files and a pack configuration file that tells our plugins how to display them in the interface and how to use them in Photoshop.

Adding a pack inside the Magic Touch 2 plugin should be quite straightforward, the only thing that can give you problems is the fact that the folder that you have to select is not directly the folder in which the overlays are placed, but the folder containing that folder.

It’s easier to explain it with a practical example:

1. Let’s say you downloaded the CMP_MagicLeaks_OverlaysPack.zip file from the provided link inside the download folder on your hard disk.

2. Double click on the file to unzip it and you get a folder called Magic Leaks Overlays inside the download folder, which contains all the overlays files and the config file.

3. Create a folder called All Overlays on your desktop.

4. Move the Magic Leaks Overlays folder inside the All Overlays folder.

5. To add the pack inside the plugin, open the Effects module inside Magic Touch 2, find the Overlays Packs section and click on the ADD FOLDER button.

6. Select the All Overlays folder (NOT the Magic Leaks Overlays one) and click on Open.

7. The Magic Leaks overlays should now be loaded inside Magic Touch 2 and ready to be used!

The actual name of the All Overlays folder (the containing folder) and the location on your hard drive can of course be changed to whatever you want, but the principle is the same.

This could sound a bit counter-intuitive at first, why not add the folder itself, you could say? ?

The reason is quite simple, really: the Magic Leaks Pack of the example which is included in the Magic AI Bundle is the first overlay pack that has been specifically created to be used this way, but more are coming, including the updates for the ones that are included inside our original Overlays Packs (whose updated versions can of course be downloaded by all those who have already purchased them, either individually or as part of a bundle.).

The new uxp framework on which Magic Touch 2 is based (as all the newer plugins, such as Magic Color) is for all intents and purposes a sandbox, and this means that explicit permission must be allowed to each "external" folder that you want to use within a plugin.

The permission that is asked when selecting a folder is of the "permanent" type, but this does not guarantee that there is no need to renew it from time to time.

This makes it so that, in case this is necessary or in case you want, for example, to move the folder containing the various packs to another location on your hard drive, there is a need for a new request.

If you had to add all the packs individually this would potentially result in a large waste of time.

This way instead, with a single authorization it is possible to add ALL the packs contained in a folder at once, without the need to manually select them one by one.

This also has the auxiliary benefit of being able to "activate" and "deactivate" the packs within the section without having to physically remove/add them from the plugin over and over.

Since the system searches for packs that are in folders placed directly inside the container folder, in case you want to momentarily deactivate a pack, for example to save space in the plugin interface, you will simply have to move its folder elsewhere (even an additional folder inside the container folder will suffice) and press on the REFRESH button inside the section to see it disappear from the panel.

When you then want to reactivate it, simply put it back to its previous location and, again, REFRESH.

As usual, if you have any problem with any part of this process, please open a ticket here and our support team will help you sort it out!