Selecting objects

Getting Started with OpenOffice.org 3

Chapter 7. Getting Started with Draw

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• The Draw workspace
• Positioning objects
• The basic drawing shapes
• Drawing geometric shapes
• Selection modes
• Selecting objects
• Moving and dynamically adjusting an object’s size
• Editing objects
• Special effects
• Combining multiple objects
• Pictures and 3D objects

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Direct selection

To select an object, the easiest way is to click directly on it. For objects that are not filled, click directly on the object's outline to select it.

Selection by framing

You can select several objects by using the mouse to drag a large rectangle around the objects, as shown. For this to work, the Select File:SelectionIcon.png icon on the Drawing toolbar must be active. Only objects that lie entirely within the rectangle are selected.

Selecting hidden objects

Even if objects are located behind others and not visible, they can still be selected. To select an object that is covered by another object, hold down the Alt key and click the object. To select an object that is covered by several objects, hold down the Alt key and click through the objects until you reach the required underlying object. To cycle through the objects in reverse order, hold down the Alt+Shift keys when you click. To help in making accurate selections, you can check the number and type of the selected objects, shown at the left of the status bar.

There may be some variation in the use of the Alt key on different operating systems. In general the Alt key on a Windows computer functions as described above, but on a Linux system it usually does not. If the Alt key on your system does not operate as described above, use the Tab key method described below.

To select an object that is covered by another object using the keyboard, press Tab to cycle through the objects, stopping at the object you wish to select. To cycle through the objects in reverse order, press Shift+Tab. This may not be practical if you have a large number of objects in your drawing.

When you click on the selected object, its outline will appear briefly through the objects on top of the selected object.

In the illustration below, the square located beneath the circle was selected in this way (the circle was made transparent in order to see the square).

Arranging objects

In a complex drawing, you may have objects stacked up, one on top of the other, with the result that a particular object is hidden by one or more other objects above it. You can rearrange the stacking order of objects (move an object to the front or to the back of the stack) by selecting the object, clicking Modify > Arrange and selecting the appropriate Bring Forward or Send Backward option, or by right-clicking the object and selecting Arrange from the context menu, then selecting from the list of Bring Forward or Send Backward options.

On the Drawing toolbar, the Arrange tear-off menu on the File:PositionIcon.png button contains the above options. A keyboard shortcut is Shift+Ctrl++ to bring an object to the top, and Shift+Ctrl+− to send an object to the bottom.

Draw also provides tools for aligning multiple objects; details are given in the Draw Guide.

Selecting several objects

To select or deselect several objects one by one, press the Shift key and click on the various objects to be selected or deselected. One click on an object selects it; a second click deselects it.