Customizing Dashes

Customizing Dashes

Customizing Dashes

Dashes are composed of alternating solid and blank segments. Using the Dash manager, you can customize the length of up to 13 segments to create new, complex dash sequences.

Dash stroke

You can design dashes interactively using the edit window. To precisely set the length of each dash segment, you can also specify an exact length. The ruler in the Dash manager displays inches; however, you can enter dash lengths in any unit of measurement available.

Dashes in the Presets palette always appear as 1-point wide, black and white segments. However, when you apply these dashes to an object’s pen, the black segments adopt the color and size of the pen, and the white segments become transparent.

To Create a Dash:

  1. Click on the Dash tab of the Attributes palette.
  2. Use the dash manager controls to define the new dash.
  3. Click the Add Preset button to add the new dash to the Presets palette.

Creating Custom Dashes

Use these options to create a custom dash for your stroke.

Dash/Gap controls

Enter the size of the dashes and gaps in points.

Proportional

Tells Canvas X Draw to scale the length of the segments to match the pen width of the object. The length of segments in the Dash manager are based on a 1-point line. Therefore, if the pen width is 6 points and Proportional is selected, Canvas X Draw multiplies the lengths by six. When the Proportional checkbox is enabled, a 'P' will appear next to the dashes on the Dash tab of the Presets palette.

Preview box

Displays a sample of the dash.

Magnification

Use the Magnification controls to zoom in and out. To zoom out, click the left button. To zoom in, click the right button. Select the Magnification checkbox to enable the Magnification area.

Edit box

Select a segment, indicated by a double-arrow.

Edit the segment by dragging the double-arrow.

The dash/gap length is indicated in the Length box.

Length

Enter a precise length for the selected segment in points.

Segment

Shows the selected segment’s number (its order in the sequence) and its color. “Black” indicates it will use the pen ink. “White” means the segment will be transparent (a gap).

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