That's sometimes the trouble with knowing JMP as well as you do: you know how to configure advanced properties when what you need is right there on the surface! Regarding those controls, my experience is that they'll usually have the expected effect unless there is another setting (more on the platform surface) that is overriding it. In that case, the color of that display box seems to be deferring to the right-click selected color. As an aside, I often find it helpful to use the "Visibility" options to confirm I'm actually modifying the box I think I am--sometimes I find I'm trying to make modifications to the wrong box!