Selecting, Grouping, and Aligning Objects

In Canvas X Draw, you need to select objects in order to edit them. If you want to edit several objects at once, you can group the objects first. You might also want to align two or more objects, or distribute them so the spacing between them is the same.

Selecting Objects

When you select an object, you distinguish it from other, unselected objects, so that when you choose a command or apply a color, Canvas X Draw knows to apply it to the selected object. In most cases, you select objects first, then apply a command or attribute. If you can’t apply an attribute, or a command is not available, check to be sure you have correctly selected an object first.

Canvas X Draw provides several tools and commands for you to select objects. Use the most convenient method for each situation. The Selection tools are the primary object-selection tools. You can also use the Select All and Find commands from the Edit menu to select objects.

In some cases, you can select parts of objects; e.g., you can select an anchor point within a vector object, a word within a text object, and an image area within a paint object. Selection techniques for various types of objects are described in the drawing, text editing, and image editing sections of the manual.

Selecting Objects with Selection Tools

To Select One Object:

1. Click a selection tool in the Toolbox.
2. Click an object.

To Select Multiple Objects:

Do one of the following:

• Hold down Shift, and click each object you want to select.
• With the Selection tool, drag a selection box around objects to select them. Canvas X Draw selects all objects inside the selection box.

To Select All Objects on a Single Layer:

Choose Edit | Select All to select every object in a single-layer document.

Grouping and Ungrouping Objects

Use the Group command to unite objects that you want to keep together as one unit. You can group individual objects as well as already-grouped objects. When you no longer want to keep a group together, separate the original objects with the Ungroup command.

When you apply a command to a group object, the effect in most cases is the same as if you applied the command to each object in the group individually.

To Group Objects:

1. Select the objects that you want to group.
2. Do one of the following:
   • Choose Object | Group.

   • In the Properties bar, click the Group button.

     Canvas X Draw replaces the bounding boxes of the individual objects with a single bounding box.

After you group objects, you can select individual objects in the group with the Direct Group Selection tool.

To Ungroup Objects:

1. Select one or more grouped objects that you want to separate.
2. Do one of the following:
   • Choose Object | Ungroup.

   • In the Properties bar, click the Ungroup button.

     Canvas X Draw separates the group and leaves the individual objects selected. If any of these objects are group objects, you can ungroup them by choosing Object | Ungroup again.

Aligning and Distributing Objects

In Canvas X Draw you can quickly and easily align or distribute selected objects from the Align menu, the Properties bar, or the Align palette.

To Open the Align Palette:

Choose Window | Palettes | Align...

To Align or Distribute Objects:

1. Select two or more objects.
2. Do one of the following:
   • Choose Object | Align, and select an alignment option.
   • In the Properties bar, select an alignment option, or Distribute Inside Vertically or Distribute Inside Horizontally option.
   • In the Align palette, select an alignment or distribution option, then click Apply.

You can apply alignment and distribution options to vector objects, grouped objects, paint objects, and text objects. You can align and distribute objects in separate or combined operations. As the reference point for alignment and distribution, you can choose points on the objects or the document.

• Aligning objects: When aligning objects, Canvas X Draw lines up key points on the objects in relation to the key object. Choose left, right, top, bottom, or center alignment.
• Distributing objects: When distributing objects, Canvas X Draw spreads them out over a specified area and equalizes the space between the key points. Choose inside, top, center, bottom, and outside as methods for distribution; e.g., if you choose left edges for distribution, the left-most point in each object is an equal distance from the leftmost point in each of its neighbors.