The JavaSketchpad Quick Reference   part of the jsp.awk pages

4.4.6 Auto-start formats

Auto-start formats are only applicable to action button objects. (It's an error to specify an auto format to any object other than a button.) The presence of the "auto" format tells JavaSketchpad that the formatted button should be automatically pressed when the applet starts. This allows you to create applets that automatically present an animation to the user, rather than require manual interaction.

In the current release of JavaSketchpad, at most 5 buttons can specify the auto format. Usually, you'll only want at most one (an animation or movement). It's not generally a good idea to apply "auto" formats to Show or Hide action buttons, as the user may not be looking at the applet when these single actions take place (immediately after the applet is displayed).

See also:

4.4 {optionalFormats}

{optionalFormats} provide information about the style and color of an object. They are optional in the sense that if you provide no {optionalFormats}, or if you provide only partial formats, JavaSketchpad will use default values for objects' unspecified styles and colors.

{optionalFormats}, if present, are comma-separated values inside square brackets. An example {optionalFormat} is

[thick, red]

The following formats are currently supported, though not all formats make sense for all {objectNames}.

Extracted from the JavaSketchpad Construction Grammar.