Mapdiva, LLC | Mac OS X Software

To open the Tools Palette, click the Tools icon on the toolbar, or choose Window > Tools from the main menu.

Selection Tools
Select, zoom, pan and navigate with the Selection tools.

Graphics Tools
Use the robust graphics tools to draw unlimited shapes, lines and smooth Bezier curves. Cut, or split, paths with the Cut Path tool using a cutting gesture. Insert text boxes or add curved text along paths. Fine-tune your drawing objects by adding or deleting points on paths. Use the Clip Art Stamp tool to place clip art from the Styles & Clip Art palette. Use the Style Dropper to pick up and place styles among objects.

Preview
The Preview displays the style or clip art that is active for use with the graphics tools.

Note that drawing tools work with both fill and line styles. For example, the Irregular Polygon can create filled areas when applying fill styles and linear objects when applying line styles.

Draw using Artboard’s simple, direct drawing tools paired with existing Library styles or with styles that you create.

Remember the Basics: Drawing Tool + Style = Draw

To draw with existing styles, choose a drawing tool, then choose a stroke or fill style from the Styles & Clip Art palette and start drawing. To change styles, click onto a different style in the Styles & Clip Art palette and continue drawing. See "The Styles & Clip Art Palette" for more information about drawing with Artboard’s extensive built-in styles.

To draw with styles you create, choose a drawing tool, edit the style, and start drawing. To reset to the default style, click the "Reset" button in the Format Bar, edit the style, and continue drawing. See "The Format Bar" for more information about creating simple styles.

Artboard goes way beyond simple fill and stroke. See "Using the Style Inspector" for detailed information about creating expert stacked styles.

Choose the Rectangle [r] or Oval [o] tool, choose a line or fill style as desired, and click onto the drawing canvas to begin drawing the shape. Hold the cursor and drag to continue, releasing the cursor to end the shape.

• To make perfect circles and squares, hold the SHIFT-key when drawing to maintain the aspect ratio
• Double-click the object to quick-convert the shape to an editable path

HINT: Drawing handles can be set to large or small in Preferences… > Options in the main menu. The tooltip feedback window when dragging objects can be turned on or off in Preferences… > Editing.

Choose the Irregular Polygon tool to draw any irregularly shaped object. Begin by choosing a line or fill style from the Styles & Clip Art palette as desired, or click "New" or "Clone" in the Format Bar to create a new style.

• To draw an open path, click onto the drawing canvas to add the first point; continue clicking to add additional points connected by straight line segments; double-click to end the path or press the ESC-key to end the path
• To draw a closed-loop path, click onto the drawing canvas to add the first point; continue clicking to add additional points connected by straight line segments; click onto the first drawn point to automatically end drawing the path; the coincident points will act as a single point
• To open a closed-loop path, hold the CMND-key and drag the last point away from the first point

HINT: If you prefer to have paths formally closed (with a straight line segment between first and last points), you can enable this behavior in the Preferences… > Editing in the main menu; to open formally closed paths, right-click and choose "Open" from the contextual menu or Edit > Paths (+Option-key) > Open from the main menu
HINT: If you prefer coincident first and last placed points to not act as a single point, you can disable this behavior in the Preferences

Arcs, wedges, stars, regular polygons and round rectangles are directly adjustable with special object handles. Drag handles to make adjustments on these special objects.

• Handles on Arcs directly control the object’s rotation, radius, and arc angle.
• Handles on Wedges directly control the object’s rotation, radius, and arc angle.
• Handles on Regular Polygons/Stars directly control the object’s rotation, radius, radial ratio, tip, and valley settings. Use the Geometry pane to change the number of sides (from 3 to 16). Additionally, to instantly create perfect triangles, hexagons, octagons and more, uncheck the "Star" setting in the Geometry pane and adjust the number of sides.
• Handles on Round Rectangles directly control the object’s rotation and corner radius.

Double-click with the Select tool to convert any of these special objects to a regular shape or path for further editing.

• To reposition objects, select and drag using the Select [s] tool, or use the Geometry panel to adjust the location x/y position
• To resize (scale) shapes, drag any of the object handles with the Select [s] tool, or use the Geometry panel to adjust size
• To draw from center, hold the Alt/Option-key when drawing

No more digging through menus to find the rotate command. Keep your attention where it should be – on your drawing canvas.

• To rotate objects move their purple rotation handle with the Select [s] key
• To constrain rotation angle to 15-degree increments, hold the SHIFT-ket while rotating objects
• To reposition the object pivot point move the center blue crosshair target with the Select [s] tool and rotate
• To rotate several objects around a common point, group them then set the center target for the group and rotate

In addition to being resized and repositioned directly in the drawing canvas, objects can be precisely adjusted using numeric input in the Geometry panel. The lower left panel under the Layers list is reserved for the Geometry panel.

• To edit numeric input, highlight or double-click the existing number and type in the new number
• To lock or unlock the object’s aspect ratio when changing object width and height, click the lock icon
• The numeric input menu is context sensitive to the current selected object and the object type is displayed

When you are finished using it, click back onto your drawing canvas to remove the focus from the Geometry panel.

Units of measurement reflect the settings in File > Drawing Size & Units. Additional special object settings, such as star tips and valleys will be editable when available. To hide the Geometry panel, click the Geometry panel icon in the bottom of the window.

Drawing objects can be quickly converted between shape mode, in which the object has a bounding box, and edit mode, in which the shape is comprised of a path and its points.

• To quickly convert between modes, double-click a shape or path object
• Alternatively, choose Graphic > Convert To in the main menu or right-click contextual menu for expanded convert-to options
• Additionally, text objects can be converted to shape and shape groups from this menu

Arcs, wedges, regular polygons/stars, and round rectangles are converted to regular shape objects in this process; double-click again to convert to path.

To draw a Bezier path:

• To place a point with a curve, click-and-drag out it’s curve handles then release
• To place a point with it’s curve handles retracted (for example, a corner), click once and release
• To remove the last placed point while you draw a path, use the Delete-key to step backwards each placed point
• To end a path, use the ESC-key or double-click to end the path
• To draw a closed-loop path, click onto the first drawn point to automatically end drawing the path; the coincident points will act as a single point
• To open a closed-loop path, hold the CMND-key and drag the last point away from the first point

Bezier curves offer some of the greatest control and flexibility when drawing. However, it may be the least familiar tool to some users. A hands-on exercise is available in File > New From Template > Exercises & Demos to help you quickly master Bezier curves.

Bezier curves and freehand lines contain curve handles at points along the path. When Bezier curves are placed, their curve handles are symmetrical in length and direction. Using the Bezier Curve tool, click-hold and drag the cursor to place the starting point and begin spreading the curve handles. release the cursor to place the curve handles. Click again and repeat to continue. Clicking to place a point (without hold-and-drag) while drawing a Bezier curve will place a point with curve handles retracted, allowing corners and curves within the same path. If you can’t see the curve handles where a point was placed, CMND-click on the point and drag the handles away from the center point. Press the Delete key while drawing a Bezier curve to remove the last placed point.

Alternatively, open Edit > Paths from the main menu to access expanded path commands.

HINT: If you prefer to have paths formally closed (with a straight line segment between first and last points), you can enable this behavior in the Preferences… > Editing in the main menu; to open formally closed paths, right-click and choose "Open" from the contextual menu or Edit > Paths (+Option-key) > Open from the main menu
HINT: If you prefer coincident first and last placed points to not act as a single point, you can disable this behavior in the Preferences

Curves are easily adjusted after placement by dragging the curve handles, shown in blue. When adjusting curve handles, the length of the left and right ends of the handle are adjusted independently. Modifier keys provide control over curve handle adjustments.

SHORTCUTS AND MODIFIER KEYS:

To modify a path after it has been drawn, use the Select [s] tool and select the path, then:


• To move a point along a path, select and move it with the cursor or nudge it with the keyboard arrow keys (nudge will move in increments based on your drawing units and graph paper settings)
• To drag a handle away from its point, or to adjust curve handles independently of each other, including length and direction, hold the CMND-(Apple) key while adjusting the curve handles
• To keep the length of the curve handles symmetrical to each other when making adjustments, hold the ALT/OPTION-key while adjusting the curve handles
• To temporarily toggle snapping to grid or guides while adjusting curve handles, hold the CTRL-key after clicking on the handle
• To constrain curve handles’ angle to 15-degree increments, hold the SHIFT-key while adjusting a curve handle
• To "Nudge" one or more points or curve handles, select the points and move with the keyboard arrow-keys
• To join two paths, make sure their end points are close and select both paths, then use the CMND-J keyboard shortcut (or choose Edit > Paths > Join from the main menu)
• To open a closed path, hold the CMND-(Apple) key and drag the end point away from the start point; alternatively, right-click the path and choose "Open Path" from the contextual menu; or use the Cut Path tool
• Don’t forget, you can also use the Add Point To Path [+], Remove Point From Paths [-], and Cut Path [u] tools

• To expand hidden curve handles, right-click a point and choose "Expand Handles" from the contextual menu (or hold the CMND-key and drag the handle away from its point)
• To collapse one or more curve handles, right-click a curve handle or point and choose "Collapse Handles"  from the contextual menu
• To collapse or expand all curve handles, right-click on the path and choose "Select all Handles" and then choose the collapse or expand all option from the contextual menu
• To open a closed-loop path, hold the CMND-key and drag the last point away from the first point

HINT: To open a formally closed path (a straight line segment connects the first and last point), hold the CMND-(Apple) key and drag the end point away from the start point; alternatively, right-click the path and choose "Open Path" from the contextual menu; or use the Cut Path tool. If you prefer not to have paths automatically close, you can disable this behavior in the Preferences… > Editing in the main menu.

Drawing with the Freehand Line tool is much like drawing with a pen. Choose the tool, place the first point and move the cursor begin drawing, picking up the cursor to release the path and end the path. Points and curve handles are added automatically as the line is drawn, enabling later adjustment as desired. Freehand line curve handles may be asymmetrical in length as the line is drawn.

To make the smoothest paths with the Freehand Path, make sure the Graphic > Snap To… settings are all disabled (unchecked). If a path drawn with the Freehand Line tool appears choppy or ‘stair stepped’, it is likely that snapping to Graph Paper, Guides, or Other Objects is on. Uncheck Graphic > Snap To settings in the main menu to disable snapping and continue drawing. Relative smoothness settings for the Freehand Line tool are available in the Preferences… > Editing.

Ending the path at your first drawn point automatically ends the path and forms a closed-loop path. To open a closed-loop path, hold the CMND-(Apple) key and drag the end point away from the start point.

• To add points on a path, (with a path selected so existing points are shown) choose the Add Point To Path [+] tool and click onto the path where the point is to be added
• To remove points on a path, (with a path selected so existing points are shown) choose the Remove Point From Path [-] tool and click on the point(s) that is to be removed

As needed, double-click a shape to convert it to edit mode to show points.

Use the Style Dropper to quickly pick up a style from an existing object and apply it to other objects, as well as pick up a style from an existing object and continue drawing. Click onto a first object to pick up the style; clicking onto subsequent objects applies the style. The style dropper cursor shows whether dropper is “full" (will drop) or “empty" (will pick up). To pick up a different style while the Style Dropper tool is active, press the OPTION/Alt key while clicking an object with the Style Dropper. The dropper can pick up styles from inside a group of objects.

To copy a style from one object in your drawing to multiple other objects, Select [s] the object and click the Copy Style icon in the toolbar, then Select [s] one or more other objects and click the Paste Style icon in the toolbar.

HINT: To quickly pick-up another object’s style while using a graphic drawing tool, hold the CMND-key to activate the Style Dropper without switching tools.

• To cut a path into two sections, use the Cut Path [u] tool and click onto the path at the location of the cut, or use a cutting motion with the tool
• To join two paths into one path, move the endpoints together then choose the Edit > Paths > Join (CMND-J keyboard shortcut) from the main menu

Three "snap" settings control object location and enable perfect alignment. Go to Graphic > Snap To > Graph Paper, Guides, or Other Objects to enable these snap settings. Snap to graph paper creates an invisible set of evenly spaced invisible hot spots which make the objects subtly move in even increments. Snap to guides creates hot spots along layout guide lines, which the object handles will snap to when active.

HINT: To enable intelligent use of snap settings when graph paper is turned-on or -off, enable "Snap to graph paper when graph paper is visible" in the Preferences… > Editing in the main menu.

HINT: To avoid the Freehand Path tool producing choppy or "stair stepped" lines, make sure Snap To settings are turned off.

When drawing any object, it may be desirable to constrain it in various ways to keep lines perpendicular or at set angles to the page. Holding the SHIFT-key while drawing constrains the line angle to 15-degree increments while drawing, constrains rectangles to squares, and ovals to circles. When resizing an object or object group, holding the SHIFT-key constrains its aspect ratio.

Holding the OPTION key while resizing a shape or group of shapes holds the center point in place.

By default, tools are "sticky" – the tool will remain active until you choose a different tool (active tool will appear highlighted orange).

Depending on the task at hand, having the tools revert immediately back to the Select [s] tool after each use may be preferred. Double-click on any tool to release them from the sticky state (active tool will appear blue or graphite depending on your system ‘appearance’ setting). In the non-sticky state, click a tool to "turn it on" and use it once. Afterward, you’ll revert back to the direct Select [s] tool.

To make non-sticky tools sticky again, double-click on any tool.