# Drawing and Modifying Panel Objects

Modifying Objects |

Accessing the properties of panel objects provides one method for controlling the appearance and functionality of panel components. The Panel Designer work area includes several handy tools for copying, moving and resizing objects in a panel, which automatically updates associated design properties in the process.

#### Helpful Tip:
The properties of panel objects can be accessed by right clicking on a selected object and choosing Properties from the popup menu.

## Moving/Resizing Components

To move an object using the mouse, click and drag the object to a new location. During this action, the mouse pointer changes to crossed arrows and a tooltip shows the object's changing coordinates.

#### Note:
To display a floating tooltip showing the name and position/size co-ordinates for a selected object, the Show Tooltip option (on the Panel menu) must be set to On.

Release the mouse when the object is positioned in its new location. The status bar at the bottom of the Panel Designer shows the coordinates of the new location (Col, Ln).

To resize an object using the mouse, select the object and then position the mouse pointer on the dotted outline until the pointer changes to a double-headed arrow. Click and drag the mouse to resize the dotted outline. A tooltip shows the object's changing coordinates.

Release the mouse when the object has reached the desired size. The status bar at the bottom of the Panel Designer shows the new dimensions (Wd, Hi).

#### Helpful Tip:
To correct any unwanted changes, use the Undo button.

## Alternate Methods for Moving/Resizing

Besides using the mouse, other methods are available for changing the size and placement of a panel object. Once an object is selected in the Panel Designer, you can change the coordinate values directly in the object's properties window, or use the keyboard and menu options.

The arrow keys can be used to move or resize a selected object:

Shift + Up Arrow | Switches a selected object to moving mode. The four arrow keys can then be used to move the dotted outline for the object to a new location on the panel. This is confirmed by the coordinate values displayed in the tooltip, as well as on the status bar.
Ctrl + Up Arrow | Switches a selected object to resizing mode. The four arrow keys can then be used to change the dimensions of the dotted outline for the object. This is confirmed by the coordinate values displayed in the tooltip, as well as on the status bar.

Different menu bar and hot key options are also available for modifying an object. To access moving mode, select the Edit > Move menu option or use the hot-key combination Alt + E to invoke the Edit menu and then press M for Move. To access resizing mode, select the Edit > Size menu option or use the hot-key combination Alt + E to invoke the Edit menu and then press S for Size.

For a list of the standard edit keys and hot keys, see Edit Keys.

## Duplicating Components

To copy an object, several methods are available:

Method | Description
Panel Designer Menu Bar | From the Edit menu, select the Copy and Paste options.
Right Click Popup Menu | Right click on a selected object in a panel to access the Copy and Paste Object(s) options from the popup menu.
Ctrl + C Ctrl + V | Press Ctrl + C to copy an object. Press Ctrl + V to paste it in the target location.
Ctrl + D | To create a duplicate of a selected panel object with the same dimensions and properties as the original, follow these steps:
1. | Press Ctrl + D to copy the object.
2. | Use the arrow keys to move the copied object to the desired location.
3. | Press Enter to complete the copy process and launch the object's properties window.
The same results can be achieved by using Ctrl + C to copy followed by Ctrl + V to paste the object in the new location.
Ctrl + N | To create a new object with only the same dimensions, but not the same properties, of a selected panel object, follow these steps:
1. | Select the existing panel object with the dimensions you want to copy to the new object.
2. | In the Controls Toolbar, select the tool for the new object you want to create if it is not already highlighted.
3. | Press Ctrl + N to create the new object.
4. | Use the arrow keys to position the new object in the desired location. Press Enter to complete the creation process.
5. | A properties window launches automatically for the new object (based on the highlighted tool in the Controls Toolbar). The width and height dimensions of the new object are copied from the existing panel object selected in step 1.
Example: In the panel, the selected object is a button. In the Controls Toolbar, the highlighted tool is a multi-line. After following the above steps using Ctrl+N, the new object that is created is a multi-line.

For a list of the standard edit keys and hot keys, see Edit Keys.

## Moving/Resizing Multiple Components

Two methods are available for selecting a group of objects for modification:

- Select the Group Items tool in the Controls Toolbar. Use the mouse pointer to draw a selection box around the group of objects. Releasing the mouse button selects all the objects within the selection box.

- Hold down the Shift key and left click on each object in the group to draw a dotted outline around each object. This method allows multiple objects to be selected.

Moving a Group of Objects

Select the group of objects using one of the methods above. Then, position the mouse pointer over one of the selected objects in the group. Click and drag the dotted selection box to the new location. Releasing the mouse button moves all of the objects in the group to the new location.

Resizing a Group of Objects

Select the group of objects using one of the methods above. Then, position the mouse pointer over the dotted outline of a selected object in the group until the pointer changes to a double-headed arrow. Click and drag the dotted selection box to increase/decrease the dimensions. Releasing the mouse button resizes all of the objects in the group.

The Panel Bulk Edit Utility can also be used to modify the height/width of several objects simultaneously.

#### Note:
When moving Fixed Text controls as part of a group of selected objects, set the Grid Alignment option (Edit menu) to Full Line for best results. The reason is that Fixed Text controls can move only one full line at a time; therefore, any other grid alignment setting may produce unexpected results.

## Alignment and Distribution of Multiple Objects

To justify or space a group of objects uniformly, follow these steps:

1. | In the Panel Designer, first select all the objects by using Shift-Click or the Group Items tool in the Controls Toolbar.
2. | Select Edit > Align or Distribute on the menu bar and choose from a list of available options. Alternatively, these options can be accessed by right clicking on the selected panel objects and choosing Align/Distribute from the popup menu:
Align Left Align Centre Align Right | These options are used to align objects vertically.
Align Top Align Middle Align Bottom | These options are used to align objects horizontally.
Distribute Vertically Distribute Horizontally | These options adjust the spacing evenly between selected objects. NOMADS calculates vertical distribution based on the bottom- and top-most objects. Horizontal distribution is based on the left- and right-most objects.

Example:

To give you an example of how the alignment/distribution rules work, if you select three controls to Align Right, then the right alignment (justification) for all three selected controls will be based on the right most control (not the first control selected).