You can open ABI chromatogram (“Trace”) files directly in MacVector and analyze them like any other sequence. You can also use them in the Align To Reference and Assembler interfaces, where the actual trace data will be displayed, or in any other function that accepts external sequence files.
Sometimes you just want to print out, or create an image of, the trace data so that you have a permanent record of the chromatogram – perhaps because it has an important base change or a mixed residue. The easiest way to do this is to simply choose File | Print, then click on the PDF button in the print dialog and choose Save As PDF... MacVector will output the entire chromatogram, taking the current height and scaling of the Editor tab as its guide. To have more control over this, click on the Fit To toolbar button and select the number of “rows” you would like to see on a page. Or choose Fit On Single Page to get the entire chromatogram printed on one page. Note that in versions of MacVector prior to 13.5, the button was located in the bottom left of the Editor window, but the options are identical. If you would prefer the file in a different format, open it in Preview.app and use File | Export to save in e.g. tiff or jpg formats.
