8

Editable Spline (Vertex) 295
• Cl ose d—When on, connects the first and last
vertices in the new spline to create a closed
spline. When Closed is off, Connect always
creates an open spline.
•
Bind Last—Causes the last vertex created in a
refinement operation to be bound to the center
of the selected seg ment. See
Bound Ver tex
(page 3–1013)
.
End Point Auto-Welding group
Automatic Welding—When Automatic Welding is
turned on, an end point vertex that is placed or
moved within the threshold distance of another
endpointofthesamesplineisautomatically
welded. This feature is available at the object and
all sub-object levels.
Threshold—The threshold distance spinner is a
proximity setting that controls how close vertices
can be to one another before they are automatically
welded. Default=6.0.
Weld—Converts two end vertices, or two adjacent
vertices within the same spline, into a single vertex.
Move either two end vertices or two adjacent
vertices near each other, select both vert ices, and
then click Weld. If the vertices are within the unit
distance set by the Weld Threshold spinner (to the
right of the button), they’re converted into a single
vertex.Youcanweldaselectionsetofvertices,as
long as each pair of vertices is within the threshold.
Co nnect—Connects any two end vert ices, resulting
in a linear segment, regardless of the tangent
values of the end vert ices. Click the C onnect
button, point the mouse over an end vertex until
the cursor changes to a cross, and then drag from
one end vertex to another end vertex.
Insert—Inserts one or more vertices, creating
additional segments. Click anywhere in a segment
to insert a vertex and attach the mouse to the
spline. Then optionally move t he mouse and
click to place the new vertex. Continue moving
the mouse and clicking to add vertices. A single
click inserts a corner vertex, while a drag creates a
Bezier (smooth) vertex.
Right-click to complete the operation and release
the mouse. At this point, you’re still in Insert
mode, and can beg in inser ting vertices in a
different segment. Otherwise, right-click again or
click Insert to exit Insert mode.
Mak e First—Specifies which vertex in the selected
shape is the first vertex. The first vertex of a spline
is indicated as a vertex with a small box around
it. Select one vertex on each spline within the
currently edited shape that you want to change a nd
click the Make First button.
On open splines, the first vertex must be the
endpoint that is not already the first vertex. On
closed splines, it can be any point that isn’t already
the first vertex. Click the Make First button, and
the first vertices w ill be set.
The first vertex on a spline has special significance.
Thefollowingtabledefineshowthefirstvertexis
used.