Michael
05-10-2008, 10:35 PM
Graphics Features
Center of Rotation
When you rotate an object, the wand will rotate around the small circle at the start of the wand.
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_RotationCenter.jpg
This circle is called the Center of Rotation. You can also click and drag this circle to control where you are rotating. So if we take this picture of a hummer and drag the center of rotation to the top left corner:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_ShiftRotation.jpg
Then the rotation will no longer be around the center. This can also be used when you make objects bigger and smaller.
You can also use the same point to control how objects get bigger and smaller. Consider the following problem. You have some text with an photo underneath and you need to make the image bigger:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_Scale.jpg
The problem is as you make it bigger by dragging the middle circle on the wand it gets bigger from the center and is in the wrong place.
If we move the rotation center to the top left corner we get a much better result:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_ShiftScale.jpg
Effects
Effects can make you page stand out more. To get apply effects to objects, select the object then: Tools > Edit Object and try different Effects. For example drop shadow can make your objects jump out of the page:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5B_Drop.jpg
Also blur can soften the look of graphics, images and text. In the following example the yellow circle showing the price is softened:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5B_Blur.jpg
Transparency
Sometimes when you have objects overtop of each other, making one of them transparent can add alot to your web page. To set transparency, just select the object then go to Tools > Color. On the Color Menu, click and drag your mouse on the black to white strip right under where it says "Transparency".
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5C_Clear.jpg
Copying Colors
CirclePad can copy colors from one object to another. In the following example we want to get the yellow color over to the "That Tomatoes save lives" circle. So we select the top circle and open the Change Colors menu with Tools > Color. Then we click on "Copy Colors". This will copy the color onto the star icon. Then we select our bottom circle and click the star to copy the color.
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5D_CopyColors.jpg
Locking Objects
A common problem once your pages get more complex is to have trouble selecting stuff. In the example below, there is a blurry round rectangle underneath the text to make it look sharper. But it's hard to change the rectangle because the text is in the way every time we select it.
To solve the problem, select the text and lock it (Found in Tools > Edit Objects).
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5E_Locking.jpg
After you have finished your editing you can bring it back with Unlock All.
Alignment
Another powerful tool in CirclePad is the grid tool. You can use the grid to line up your graphics. Get the grid under Page Setup:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5E_Grid.jpg
Center of Rotation
When you rotate an object, the wand will rotate around the small circle at the start of the wand.
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_RotationCenter.jpg
This circle is called the Center of Rotation. You can also click and drag this circle to control where you are rotating. So if we take this picture of a hummer and drag the center of rotation to the top left corner:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_ShiftRotation.jpg
Then the rotation will no longer be around the center. This can also be used when you make objects bigger and smaller.
You can also use the same point to control how objects get bigger and smaller. Consider the following problem. You have some text with an photo underneath and you need to make the image bigger:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_Scale.jpg
The problem is as you make it bigger by dragging the middle circle on the wand it gets bigger from the center and is in the wrong place.
If we move the rotation center to the top left corner we get a much better result:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5A_ShiftScale.jpg
Effects
Effects can make you page stand out more. To get apply effects to objects, select the object then: Tools > Edit Object and try different Effects. For example drop shadow can make your objects jump out of the page:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5B_Drop.jpg
Also blur can soften the look of graphics, images and text. In the following example the yellow circle showing the price is softened:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5B_Blur.jpg
Transparency
Sometimes when you have objects overtop of each other, making one of them transparent can add alot to your web page. To set transparency, just select the object then go to Tools > Color. On the Color Menu, click and drag your mouse on the black to white strip right under where it says "Transparency".
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5C_Clear.jpg
Copying Colors
CirclePad can copy colors from one object to another. In the following example we want to get the yellow color over to the "That Tomatoes save lives" circle. So we select the top circle and open the Change Colors menu with Tools > Color. Then we click on "Copy Colors". This will copy the color onto the star icon. Then we select our bottom circle and click the star to copy the color.
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5D_CopyColors.jpg
Locking Objects
A common problem once your pages get more complex is to have trouble selecting stuff. In the example below, there is a blurry round rectangle underneath the text to make it look sharper. But it's hard to change the rectangle because the text is in the way every time we select it.
To solve the problem, select the text and lock it (Found in Tools > Edit Objects).
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5E_Locking.jpg
After you have finished your editing you can bring it back with Unlock All.
Alignment
Another powerful tool in CirclePad is the grid tool. You can use the grid to line up your graphics. Get the grid under Page Setup:
http://www.circlepad.com/cpGraphics/help/5E_Grid.jpg