diff --git a/CoreUI/Bundles/org.mitk.gui.qt.common/src/QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor.cpp b/CoreUI/Bundles/org.mitk.gui.qt.common/src/QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor.cpp
index 98d272c916..4a1fa3f810 100644
--- a/CoreUI/Bundles/org.mitk.gui.qt.common/src/QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor.cpp
+++ b/CoreUI/Bundles/org.mitk.gui.qt.common/src/QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor.cpp
@@ -1,254 +1,272 @@
 /*=========================================================================
 
 Program:   Medical Imaging & Interaction Toolkit
 Language:  C++
 Date:      $Date$
 Version:   $Revision$
 
 Copyright (c) German Cancer Research Center, Division of Medical and
 Biological Informatics. All rights reserved.
 See MITKCopyright.txt or http://www.mitk.org/copyright.html for details.
 
 This software is distributed WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even
 the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
 PURPOSE.  See the above copyright notices for more information.
 
 =========================================================================*/
 
 #include "QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor.h"
 
 #include <berryUIException.h>
 #include <berryIWorkbenchPage.h>
 #include <berryIPreferencesService.h>
 
 #include <QWidget>
 
 #include <mitkColorProperty.h>
 #include <mitkGlobalInteraction.h>
 
 #include <mitkDataStorageEditorInput.h>
 #include <mitkIDataStorageService.h>
 
 #include "mitkNodePredicateNot.h"
 #include "mitkNodePredicateProperty.h"
 
 const std::string QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::EDITOR_ID = "org.mitk.editors.stdmultiwidget";
 
 QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor()
  : m_StdMultiWidget(0)
 {
 
 }
 
 QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor(const QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor& other)
 {
   Q_UNUSED(other)
   throw std::runtime_error("Copy constructor not implemented");
 }
 
 QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::~QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor()
 {
   // we need to wrap the RemovePartListener call inside a
   // register/unregister block to prevent infinite recursion
   // due to the destruction of temporary smartpointer to this
   this->Register();
   this->GetSite()->GetPage()->RemovePartListener(berry::IPartListener::Pointer(this));
   this->UnRegister(false);
 }
 
 QmitkStdMultiWidget* QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::GetStdMultiWidget()
 {
   return m_StdMultiWidget;
 }
 
 void QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::Init(berry::IEditorSite::Pointer site, berry::IEditorInput::Pointer input)
 {
   if (input.Cast<mitk::DataStorageEditorInput>().IsNull())
      throw berry::PartInitException("Invalid Input: Must be IFileEditorInput");
 
   this->SetSite(site);
   this->SetInput(input);
 }
 
 void QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::CreateQtPartControl(QWidget* parent)
 {
   if (m_StdMultiWidget == 0)
   {
     m_DndFrameWidget = new QmitkDnDFrameWidget(parent);
     QVBoxLayout* layout = new QVBoxLayout(parent);
     layout->addWidget(m_DndFrameWidget);
     layout->setContentsMargins(0,0,0,0); 
 
     m_StdMultiWidget = new QmitkStdMultiWidget(m_DndFrameWidget);
     QVBoxLayout* layout2 = new QVBoxLayout(m_DndFrameWidget);
     layout2->addWidget(m_StdMultiWidget);
     layout2->setContentsMargins(0,0,0,0); 
 
     mitk::DataStorage::Pointer ds = this->GetEditorInput().Cast<mitk::DataStorageEditorInput>()
       ->GetDataStorageReference()->GetDataStorage();
 
     // Tell the multiWidget which (part of) the tree to render
     m_StdMultiWidget->SetDataStorage(ds);
 
     // Initialize views as transversal, sagittal, coronar to all data objects in DataStorage
     // (from top-left to bottom)
     mitk::TimeSlicedGeometry::Pointer geo = ds->ComputeBoundingGeometry3D(ds->GetAll());
     mitk::RenderingManager::GetInstance()->InitializeViews(geo);
 
     // Initialize bottom-right view as 3D view
     m_StdMultiWidget->GetRenderWindow4()->GetRenderer()->SetMapperID(
       mitk::BaseRenderer::Standard3D );
 
     // Enable standard handler for levelwindow-slider
     m_StdMultiWidget->EnableStandardLevelWindow();
 
     // Add the displayed views to the tree to see their positions
     // in 2D and 3D
     m_StdMultiWidget->AddDisplayPlaneSubTree();
 
     m_StdMultiWidget->EnableNavigationControllerEventListening();
 
     mitk::GlobalInteraction::GetInstance()->AddListener(
         m_StdMultiWidget->GetMoveAndZoomInteractor()
       );
     this->GetSite()->GetPage()->AddPartListener(berry::IPartListener::Pointer(this));
 
     // enable change of logo
     berry::IPreferencesService::Pointer prefService
       = berry::Platform::GetServiceRegistry()
       .GetServiceById<berry::IPreferencesService>(berry::IPreferencesService::ID);
 
     berry::IPreferences::Pointer logoPref = prefService->GetSystemPreferences()->Node("DepartmentLogo");
     std::string departmentLogoLocation = logoPref->Get("DepartmentLogo","");
 
     //# Preferences
 
     berry::IBerryPreferences::Pointer prefs
         = (prefService->GetSystemPreferences()->Node(EDITOR_ID))
           .Cast<berry::IBerryPreferences>();
     assert( prefs );
 
     prefs->OnChanged.AddListener( berry::MessageDelegate1<QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor
       , const berry::IBerryPreferences*>( this
         , &QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::OnPreferencesChanged ) );
 
     bool constrainedZooming = prefs->GetBool("Use constrained zooming and padding", false);
 
     mitk::RenderingManager::GetInstance()->SetConstrainedPaddingZooming(constrainedZooming);
 
     mitk::RenderingManager::GetInstance()->RequestUpdateAll();
 
     m_StdMultiWidget->SetDepartmentLogoPath(departmentLogoLocation.c_str());
     m_StdMultiWidget->DisableDepartmentLogo();
     m_StdMultiWidget->EnableDepartmentLogo();
 
     this->OnPreferencesChanged(prefs.GetPointer());
   }
 }
 
 void QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::OnPreferencesChanged(const berry::IBerryPreferences* prefs)
 {
   // preferences for gradient background
   float color = 255.0;
   QString firstColorName = QString::fromStdString (prefs->GetByteArray("first background color", ""));
   QColor firstColor(firstColorName);
   mitk::Color upper;
-  upper[0] = firstColor.red() / color;
-  upper [1] = firstColor.green() / color;
-  upper[2] = firstColor.blue() / color;
+  if (firstColorName=="") // default values
+  {
+    upper[0] = 0.1;
+    upper[1] = 0.1;
+    upper[2] = 0.1;
+  }
+  else
+  {
+    upper[0] = firstColor.red() / color;
+    upper[1] = firstColor.green() / color;
+    upper[2] = firstColor.blue() / color;
+  }
 
   QString secondColorName = QString::fromStdString (prefs->GetByteArray("second background color", ""));
   QColor secondColor(secondColorName);
   mitk::Color lower;
-  lower[0] = secondColor.red() / color;
-  lower[1] = secondColor.green() / color;
-  lower[2] = secondColor.blue() / color;
+  if (secondColorName=="") // default values
+  {
+    lower[0] = 0.5;
+    lower[1] = 0.5;
+    lower[2] = 0.5;
+  }
+  else
+  {
+    lower[0] = secondColor.red() / color;
+    lower[1] = secondColor.green() / color;
+    lower[2] = secondColor.blue() / color;
+  }
   m_StdMultiWidget->SetGradientBackgroundColors(upper, lower);
   m_StdMultiWidget->EnableGradientBackground();
 
   // Set preferences respecting zooming and padding
   bool constrainedZooming = prefs->GetBool("Use constrained zooming and padding", false);
 
   mitk::RenderingManager::GetInstance()->SetConstrainedPaddingZooming(constrainedZooming);
 
   mitk::NodePredicateNot::Pointer pred
     = mitk::NodePredicateNot::New(mitk::NodePredicateProperty::New("includeInBoundingBox"
     , mitk::BoolProperty::New(false)));
 
   mitk::DataStorage::SetOfObjects::ConstPointer rs = this->GetDataStorage()->GetSubset(pred);
   // calculate bounding geometry of these nodes
 
   mitk::TimeSlicedGeometry::Pointer bounds = this->GetDataStorage()->ComputeBoundingGeometry3D(rs, "visible");
 
 
   // initialize the views to the bounding geometry
   mitk::RenderingManager::GetInstance()->InitializeViews(bounds);
 
   mitk::RenderingManager::GetInstance()->RequestUpdateAll();
 
 }
 
 
 mitk::DataStorage::Pointer QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::GetDataStorage() const
 {
   mitk::IDataStorageService::Pointer service =
     berry::Platform::GetServiceRegistry().GetServiceById<mitk::IDataStorageService>(mitk::IDataStorageService::ID);
 
   if (service.IsNotNull())
   {
     return service->GetDefaultDataStorage()->GetDataStorage();
   }
 
   return 0;
 }
 
 
 berry::IPartListener::Events::Types QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::GetPartEventTypes() const
 {
   return Events::CLOSED | Events::HIDDEN | Events::VISIBLE;
 }
 
 void QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::PartClosed( berry::IWorkbenchPartReference::Pointer partRef )
 {
   if (partRef->GetId() == QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::EDITOR_ID)
   {
     QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::Pointer stdMultiWidgetEditor = partRef->GetPart(false).Cast<QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor>();
 
     if (m_StdMultiWidget == stdMultiWidgetEditor->GetStdMultiWidget())
     {
       m_StdMultiWidget->RemovePlanesFromDataStorage();
     }
   }
 }
 
 void QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::PartVisible( berry::IWorkbenchPartReference::Pointer partRef )
 {
   if (partRef->GetId() == QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::EDITOR_ID)
   {
     QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::Pointer stdMultiWidgetEditor = partRef->GetPart(false).Cast<QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor>();
 
     if (m_StdMultiWidget == stdMultiWidgetEditor->GetStdMultiWidget())
     {
       m_StdMultiWidget->AddPlanesToDataStorage();
     }
   }
 }
 
 void QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::PartHidden( berry::IWorkbenchPartReference::Pointer partRef )
 {
   if (partRef->GetId() == QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::EDITOR_ID)
   {
     QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::Pointer stdMultiWidgetEditor = partRef->GetPart(false).Cast<QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor>();
 
     if (m_StdMultiWidget == stdMultiWidgetEditor->GetStdMultiWidget())
     {
       m_StdMultiWidget->RemovePlanesFromDataStorage();
     }
   }
 }
 
 void QmitkStdMultiWidgetEditor::SetFocus()
 {
   if (m_StdMultiWidget != 0)
     m_StdMultiWidget->setFocus();
 }