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"Paste Special..."

You can use the Paste Special command to choose in what form the content of the Clipboard will be inserted into your ConceptDraw document (picture, text, etc.).

You can perform the Paste Special command from the Edit menu or use the keyboard:

Also you can use the hotkey Ctrl + Alt + V

"Paste in Place"

If there is a ConceptDraw shape on the Clipboard, the Paste in Place command lets you paste the content of the Clipboard into the same relative position on a page as that from where the original shape was copied or cut.

You can call the Paste in Place command from the Edit menu or use the keyboard:

Also you can use the hotkey Ctrl + Shift + V

This operation is particularly useful when you need to copy or move a shape into another document (or onto another page) so that it's placed in the same position on the page as the original shape.

Note: For pasting objects from other applications, this command works just the same way as the Paste command.

Duplicating

To duplicate the selected shape(s), select Duplicate from the Edit menu or use the hotkey Ctrl + D.

The first copy will appear slightly below and to the right from the original shape.

The Duplicate operation allows to create multiple copies and position them with the desired offset. This is convenient for drawing for instance, a fence - when the distance between each next and previous element is always equal. To create multiple copies with the same offset, perform the duplicate operation once, and move the first copy to the needed position. Each subsequent copy will appear at the same relative distance, as the first copy to the original shape. This way you can quickly and accurately create drawings with many repeating elements.

Another option is to duplicate shapes by using the mouse. You may find it more convenient, as it lets you create a copy and move it to a desired location at the same time. Hold down the Ctrl (in Windows) or Option (in Mac OS) key and drag a copy out of the selected shape to the place where you want to position it.

Note 1: To copy the shapes to another document, use the Copy/Paste operations.

Note 2: Alternatively, you can duplicate shapes by using the Stamp Tool. If there is no shape selected in the library, this tool will clone the selected shape(s) in the document.

Moving

You can use the keyboard or the mouse for moving shapes.

Moving Shapes with the Keyboard

Only selected shapes can be moved with the keyboard.

Moving shapes by pixels helps you position the shapes more precisely. Press an Arrow key to move the selection by one screen pixel with each keystroke. Use a higher Zoom level for more precise positioning.

If you hold down Shift when moving the selection by Arrow keys, the shape(s) will be moved by bigger steps.

Note: Make sure there are no handles selected on the shape before you start moving it with the keyboard, otherwise you'll move the handles instead of the shape itself.

Moving shapes with the Mouse

You can drag a shape with the mouse when the pointer turns into a black arrow over this shape.

To move several shapes at a time, select them (holding down the Shift key) and start dragging when the pointer turns into a black arrow over one of the selected shapes.

The ways of moving a shape may vary depending on the tool mode which is currently on.

1. When the Select , Rotate , Rectangle or Ellipse tool is active, you can move a shape by dragging either its body or the alignment box.
2. With such tools as Line , Sector , Arc , Spline or Connectors , you can move a shape by dragging its alignment box (so the shape(s) should be selected).

When moving a shape with the mouse, you only see its contour. In case you'd like to see the whole shape, stop the mouse and wait for a moment - it will appear in full detail.

To constrain the movement of a shape to strictly vertical or horizontal, hold down the Shift key while you drag the shape, or use the Shift + Arrow keys.

Note: You can protect a shape from being moved horizontally or vertically. In the Protection dialog check X Position to prohibit the horizontal movement, and Y Position for the vertical movement. By checking both of these options you lock the shape against repositioning.

The way shapes behave when moved is also determined by whether the Snap mode is on or off. If the Snapping is on, the shape you are moving jumps to the nearest snap locations (usually the grid nodes), instead of following the mouse directly. This functionality lets you easily align shapes by the grid lines and guides.

Sometimes you may need to position a shape right in the center of the page. To do this, select the shape and use the Center Page command from the Shape / Move To... menu. With the Center Vertically and Center Horizontally commands you can center the vertical or horizontal position of the shape(s) respectively.

Rotating Shapes

You can rotate a shape by dragging its rotation handles. These are the round handles (usually green or blue) in the corners of the shape's alignment box.

To switch to the Rotation mode, you can use the Rotate tool , or choose Rotate in the Tools menu.

When you select a shape in the Rotation mode, it shows the rotation handles, and you can drag them to rotate the shape.

When you drag a rotation handle, the shape turns around its rotation center. By dragging the handle farther out from the shape, you decrease the step of rotation from 30 degree to 0.1 degree, and thus increase the accuracy. The current angle (in degrees) is displayed in the Status bar.

The rotation center is also a handle, it looks like a plus sign in a green circle. You can reposition it by dragging it with the mouse.

If several shapes are selected, you may rotate each of them separately, by dragging a rotation handle of a shape.

If you start dragging with Ctrl held down, all the selected shapes will rotate simultaneously around their common rotation center.

Note: You can switch between the Select and Rotate modes by clicking on the alignment box of the shape.

You can also use the keyboard to rotate the selected shape(s):

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