The Tool Palette
The Tool Palette contains twelve tools and four buttons that you
can quickly select while working on a document. To activate any of
the tools or buttons, click on the one you want. Some tools require
one object to be active, such as the Shaper, Edit and Style
buttons, and the Rotate button.
Drag the top of the Tool Palette to move it to a more convenient
screen location. When you want to view the entire window, click the
close box on the tool palette, or select Hide Tool Palette from the
View menu to cause the palette to disappear. To bring back the tool
palette, select Show Tool Palette from the View menu.
The following section briefly describes the function of each tool,
starting with the TypeStyler Online button, located at the top of
the Tool Palette and ending with the Quick View/Styled Preview
buttons at the bottom.
Pointer Tool
The Pointer tool (also known as the
Selection tool) lets you select an individual text or panel object
by clicking on it. Once you select an object, you can move or
resize it, as well as change many of its attributes. Holding down
the Shift key when clicking the Pointer tool allows you to select a
series of objects. After selecting the objects, you can use
commands in the Arrange menu to do things like group, hide, lock or
align the objects. You can select the Pointer tool at any time
while working in the main window by holding down the Command
key.
Direct Selection Tool
The Direct Selection tool lets you
select individual anchor points or segment in a path. Clicking on a
point selects just the point, clicking on a segment selects the
segment. Shift-click on a point or segment to add it to the current
selection. You can also drag a marquee with the direct selection
tool to select all point within the marquee, even if they belong to
different paths. Selected points appear as a small filled square,
deselected points appear as empty squares.
Text Tool
Each separate string of type characters that you create is a
TypeStyler text object, whether it is one character, or one or more
words. You use the Text tool to create
a new text object, and simultaneously determine its beginning size.
The Text tool opens the area within your document that becomes the
new text object. This is called "growing a text box." Hold the
mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of possible
shapes the text object can take.
To grow a text box, click the Text tool at the corner of the area
you want to select, and drag diagonally across the area to grow a
box. When you let go of the mouse button, the Text Entry widow
appears. The default text will be the shape of the text
object.
Body Text Tool
The Body Text tool creates a new body
text object. Click and drag diagonally to grow a text box. Hold the
mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of possible
background panels to flow the text into.
Panel Tools
Panels are backdrop shapes that can enhance the appearance of text
objects. They can be manipulated and styled in the same way that
you can customize TypeStyler text objects. The selected Panel tool
selects the area within a document to be occupied by a new panel.
This is called "growing a panel." Click the text tool at the corner
of the area you want to select, and drag diagonally across the area
to form a box. Alternatively, selecting one of the Panel tools and
clicking your mouse once on your document create a 3 inch square
panel on your document.
Rectangle Tool
The Rectangle tool creates a panel
object. Click and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box. Hold
the mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of
possible panel shapes.
Rounded Rectangle Tool
The Rounded Rectangle tool creates a
panel object. Click and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box.
Hold the mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of
possible panel shapes. From the popup menu clicking on Custom will
open the Round Rectangle Designer.
Oval Tool
The Oval tool creates a round or oval
panel object. Click and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box.
Hold the mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of
possible panel shapes. Hold the Shift key down to constrain the
shape to a perfect circle.
Arc Tool
The Arc tool creates an arc panel
objecrt. Click and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box. Hold
the mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of
possible panel shapes. From the popup menu clicking on Custom will
open the Arc Designer.
Polygon Tool
The Polygon tool creates a polygon
panel object. Click and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box.
Hold the mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of
possible panel shapes. From the popup menu clicking on Custom will
open the Polygon Designer.
Star Tool
The Star tool creates a star panel
object. Click and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box. Hold
the mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of
possible panel shapes. From the popup menu clicking on Custom will
open the Star Designer.
Custom Panel
Tool
The Custom Panel tool creates a custom
panel object using included objects as a starting place. Click and
drag diagonally to grow a panel object box. Hold the mouse button
down while over the tool to show a menu of possible custom panel
shapes.
GlyphTool
The Glyph tool creates a panel object
out of any of the glyphs included with your installed fonts. Click
and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box. Hold the mouse
button down while over the tool to show a menu of some possible
panel shapes. From the popup menu clicking on Choose Glyph... will
open the Glyph Drawing tool.
Line Tool
The Line tool draws a straight line
path between two points. Holding down the shift key as you drag the
line tool constrains the drawn lines to 0-, 45-, and 90-degree
angles. Lines can be styled similarly to Text and Panel objects.
Lines can also be shaped using the bottom Shaper line of the Shaper
tool. Points can also be added, subtracted, etc. using the Pen
tools.
Path Creation Tool (Pen Tool)
The Path Creation tool lets you create
precise curved and straight line paths. A path is a series of two
or more connected anchor points. Paths can be either open or
closed. With the Pen tool selected, a mouse click will set an
anchor point. Clicking and dragging the Pen tool will set an anchor
point and add direction lines.
Add Anchor Point
Tool
The Add Anchor Point tool lets you add
an additional anchor point to an existing path. To add an
additional anchor point, click on the path with the Add Anchor
Point tool where you would like the new point to appear. Adding a
new anchor point on a curve segment will add direction lines,
leaving the curve unchanged. Adding an anchor point on a straight
line segment will create a corner anchor point.
Remove Anchor Point Tool
The Remove Anchor Point tool lets you
remove anchor points to change the shape of the path or remove
anchor points to reduce the complexity of an existing path.
Selecting the remove anchor point tool and clicking on a point
removes the anchor point without creating a break in the path. A
new segment is drawn between the two points on either side of the
removed anchor point.
Convert Anchor Point Tool
The Convert Anchor Point tool will
change a curve anchor point to a corner anchor point and a corner
anchor point to a curve anchor point. To add direction lines to an
anchor point, click and drag on the point with the Convert Anchor
Point tool. To remove direction lines, click on the point with the
Convert Anchor Point tool.
Scissors Tool
The Scissors tool is used to split or
break a path at either an anchor point or in the middle of a
segment. Use the Selection tool and click on the object to display
it's anchor points. Choose the Scissors tool and click on the
object's path. Clicking on closed path will result in a single open
path and clicking on an open path will split it into two
paths.
Place Tool
The Place tool creats an image-filled
panel object. The imported image is stretched to fit the object's
shape. Click and drag diagonally to grow a panel object box. Hold
the mouse button down while over the tool to show a menu of
possible panel shapes.
Shaper Tool
The Shaper tool is used to alter the
original shapes of both type and panels. First select the object to
be reshaped, then click the Shaper tool. Green "Shaper lines" now
enclose the object. (Shaper lines can be straight, circular, or
Bezier curves. See "Customizing Type‚"
for more details about the Shaper tool.) With the Shaper tool you
can click on any part of the line, or the handles at the ends of
the lines to reshape the selection. You can also use commands in
the Shape menu to modify how objects are shaped by this tool.
Shapes can be further refined using selections from the Shape
Options and Shape Controls from within the Distortion menu.
Crop Image Tool
The Crop Image fill tool crops, resizes
and positions image fills.
Rotate Tool
The Rotate tool is used to rotate
TypeStyler objects. First select the object to be rotated, then
click the Rotate tool. The cursor becomes a crosshair. Click on the
point within the object that you want to be the center of the
rotation, and the cursor becomes an arrowhead. You can rotate the
object in any direction by dragging the arrowhead.
Hand Tool
The Hand tool lets you move a document
around within the window, for easy access to all portions of the
document. Depressing the space bar turns the pointer (or any tool)
into the Hand tool; the original tool is restored when the space
bar is released. The Hand tool can be used instead of the scroll
bars to reposition documents on the screen; when you use it, you'll
see the scroll bars moving as well.
Magnify Tool
The Magnify tool lets you change the
view of the document from 25% of the printing size to 400%. When
you click the Magnify tool, the cursor changes to a small
magnifying glass encircling a plus sign, indicating magnification.
Clicking the mouse repeatedly steps up the magnification, to the
maximum 400%. Pressing the Option key while using the Magnify tool
changes the plus sign to a minus sign, and reduces the size of the
document view with each click, down to 25%. |
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