Working with Objects on Canvas

This section explains how to perform basic tasks such as adding new objects, moving them around, resizing them, etc. Most of the tasks described in this section can be done both with the mouse or by using various menus or dialog boxes.

Inserting objects

There are two ways to add an object to the canvas: use the object icons on the toolbar or use the Object Template Panel. If you click an object icon on the menu, it will bring up the Object Properties dialog box. There, you can set the object properties, click OK, and the object will appear on the canvas. If you use the Object Template Panel, you can just click and drag the template onto the canvas. Its properties will already be set. For more information on the Object Template Panel, see Using the Object Template Panel.

If you add an extremely large number of objects to a project, your computer will run out of memory. Thus, the number of objects that you can add is limited, and if you attempt to add any more, you will be presented with a warning dialog box.

The objects icons on the toolbar

The icons in order from left to right:

1. Background
   
2. Text
   
3. TextBox
   
4. Image
   
5. Drawing
   
6. Media
   
7. Flash
   
8. WebBox
   
9. Animation

The Object Template Panel

To insert an object with the toolbar

1. Click one of the object icons on the toolbar.
2. Set the properties in the Object Properties dialog box and click OK.

To insert an object with the Object Template Panel

1. Click on one of the tabs for the type of object that you want.
2. Select the template that you want, then click and drag it onto the canvas.

Selecting objects

Selecting objects is done by clicking them with the mouse. Objects must be selected in order to move them, resize them, or alter their properties. There are several ways to select objects and each has different effects.

Moving the mouse cursor over the object

Solid lines will appear around the object. If you look at the status bar located below the canvas, you can see information about the object such as location, size, object number, group number and name.

Clicking the object with the left mouse button

Dotted lines appear around the object. Now you can resize the object by moving the white anchor points. For more information, see Resizing objects.

Double-clicking the object with the left mouse button

The Object Properties window appears where you can edit various aspects of the object. If you close the Object Properties window, the object will be unselected as if you had never clicked it.

Selecting and de-selecting multiple objects

More than one object can be selected at once. When multiple objects are selected at the same time, they can be all be moved and altered at once. There are several ways to specify which objects you want to be selected or deselected. The easiest way involves clicking and dragging i.e. holding the mouse button down while moving the mouse. When you drag the mouse across the canvas, it creates a blue rectangle. The selection action will be applied to the objects inside that blue rectangle. So, when selecting multiple objects, try to surround them with the blue rectangle. The various methods are as follows:

1. Drag the mouse cursor over an area - any unselected objects will be selected and selected objects will be de-selected.
2. Drag the mouse cursor over an area while holding down the Alt key - any selected objects will be de-selected while objects that were not dragged over will remain at their current status.
3. Click on an object while holding down the Ctrl key - the clicked object will be selected or de-selected.

Object Select Mode

To make it so that only a certain type of object can be selected and others cannot, go to the Object menu, point to Select Mode and select a type of object. From then on, only that type of object can be selected when you click it or drag the mouse over it. This gives you more accuracy when selecting objects on a crowded canvas. To make it so that you can select all objects again, go back to the Object menu, point to Select Mode, and click All types.

Moving objects

Objects can be moved around the canvas by selecting them and then clicking and dragging them or using the arrow keys on the keyboard. If multiple objects are selected, they will all be moved at once when they are dragged. The objects will all retain the same distance and position relative to one another.

In addition to moving objects manually, you can also alter the position of objects by using the alignment functions in the Move menu.

Resizing objects

Objects can be resized by clicking them and dragging the anchor points that appear or by opening the Object Properties dialog box and entering the desired dimensions.

When you click an object on the canvas, a rectangle made of red dotted lines will appear. There are 8 white points along this rectangle called anchor points. By clicking and dragging these points, you can resize the object. To make the object larger, click and drag the anchor point away from the object's center point. To make it smaller, click and drag the anchor point in towards the center point.

If you want to change both the height and width at once, click and drag one of the 4 anchor points at the corners of the rectangle. The height and width will change in proportion, and the object will keep the same relative dimensions. If you want to change just the height or just the width, click one of the four anchor points in the middle of the rectangles lines. The object will then be stretched, and its relative dimensions will change.

When images, media, and some flash movies are made larger, they become pixelated. That is, the individual pixels that make up the object become larger, and the whole image looks more blocky and low quality. Other types of objects do not have this problem.

Copying & pasting objects

Identical copies of a single object can be made by using the Cut, Copy and Paste commands that are located in the Edit menu and also can be found in the context menu that appears when you right-click an object. When you cut or copy an object, it is stored in memory in a place called the clipboard. Then, when you use the Paste command, the object that is stored in the clipboard is placed on the canvas.

The Cut command removes an object from the canvas and places it in the clipboard. The Copy command does not remove the object, but places a copy of it in the clipboard. Objects are saved on the clipboard until you put a new object on the clipboard or close the Flying Popcorn program. In other words, only one object can be placed on the clipboard at a time.

The Paste command can be used several times for a single object, creating multiple copies. The Paste command can also be used in different pages, so you can paste an object anywhere.

The instructions below detail how to copy and paste objects. You can cut and paste objects in the same manner. The Cut command is similar to the Delete command, but the Delete command deletes the object entirely and does not place a copy of it on the clipboard.