(see also: Text Overview)
Most of the properties set in DesignCentral can also be set directly by clicking and dragging Control Points on the text.
When you select a text object and click the Character or Paragraph tab of DesignCentral, the text displays a number of Control Points in and around it. Each of these points has a special purpose and will change the appearance of the text when moved. You can also Double Click Twice on a text object to bring up these handles.
You can also use the arrow keys on your keyboard to make incremental adjustments.
These features work on the standard Text, Block Text, Arc Text, Path Text, Vertical Text, and Vertical Text tools. The Arc Text tool has additional control points, as detailed at the bottom.
Move Line
- Drag this point to move text up and down. This will not adjust all lines of text in the block, only the selected line.
- Hold Shift and drag to move text left and right.
- Hold CTRL and drag to move just the selected line of text
Move Character
- Drag this point to adjust the spacing between the selected character and the previous one. All characters to the right of the selected character are also repositioned.
- Hold Ctrl and drag to move only the selected character, leaving the remaining text in place.
- Hold Shift and drag to move the selected character at right angles to the text flow, leaving the remaining text in place.
Rotate Character
- Drag this point to rotate an individual character.
- Hold Shift and drag to rotate the character in preset increments.
- Hold Ctrl and drag to restore the character to its initial position.
Tracking
- Drag this point to adjust the tracking of text. Tracking is adjusted equally between all characters and words.
- Hold Ctrl and drag to change tracking only between words.
Line Spacing
- Drag this point to produce equal spacing between lines.
Block Text
- Drag this point to adjust the size of Block text
Arc Text
These handles only appear when you have the Arc tab selected in DesignCentral
Center
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Drag this point to adjust the position of the center of the circle and to change the circle's radius.
- Note: Don't worry about the size of the circle itself. The circle is simply showing the Arc and will never be produced.
Inner Radius
- Drag this point to change the radius of the circle while keeping the center and top positions unchanged. This causes distortion of the text.
- Hold Ctrl and drag to avoid distorting the text. This causes resizing of the text.
Outer Radius
- Drag this point to change the radius of the circle while keeping the center and bottom positions unchanged. This causes distortion of the text.
- Hold Ctrl and drag to avoid distorting the text. This causes resizing of the text.
Rotate
- Drag this point to change the position of the arc text on the circle.
- Hold Shift and drag to constrain the arc text's position.
Sweep Angle
- Drag these points to change the sweep angle of the arc text on the circle. This will distort each character and the spacing between them, stretching them in the direction of the handle you selected.
- Hold Ctrl and drag to move both sides of the text equally from the center point.
- Hold Shift and drag to constrain the sweep angle.