MX

Current attributes (styles)
An 'attribute' is some characteristic of an object which you can modify in Web Designer MX Premium.
For example a shape's attributes include its color, its outline width and its outline color.
As mentioned above you can change the attributes of an object after you've drawn it, by selecting it and
then changing its fill color, line width, or any of its other attributes. But Web Designer MX Premium also
keeps track of the 'current' attributes, which are the attributes that get applied to newly drawn objects as
they are created.
Setting current attributes manually
If, for example, you want the next rectangle you draw to be red, make sure you have nothing selected
(press "Esc" or click an empty part of the page) and then click red on the color line. You've now set the
current fill color attribute to red. Now when you draw a new shape, it will be filled red. You can set other
current attributes the same way ? by first making sure nothing is selected before changing the attribute's
value.
Setting current attributes automatically
By default, Web Designer MX Premium automatically updates the current attributes for you, to match
the object you last drew, or last selected. So for example if you draw a rectangle and then make it green,
the next shape you draw will also be green. If you have a blue rectangle in your design and you wish to
draw another one just like it, first select the blue rectangle (this makes its attributes current) and then the
next shape you draw will also be blue. So by simply clicking an object, you set the current attributes to
match that object.
This allows you to use existing objects as a 'palette' of available styles. Click an object to select it, then
draw new objects in that style.
You can turn off this behavior in the General tab of the "Utilities" > "Options" dialog. Select the Ask
before setting current attribute
checkbox. Now Web Designer Premium will ask you before changing the current attributes to those
recently used.
Attribute groups
Many designs consist of a combination of closed filled shapes and open shapes (lines where the start and
end points are not coincident). Normally it wouldn't be desirable to have the attributes of an open shape
used for a closed shape, nor vice-versa. Therefore the attributes for open and closed shapes are kept
separate ? these are known as attribute groups. Setting the values of one group does not affect the other
group. So for example, selecting a filled rectangle with no outline will not change the current line width to
zero for open shapes.
For the same reasons, text attributes make up a third attribute group. The text attribute group is only set
when you select text objects, or when you set the attributes manually while in the text tool.
Exempt attributes
Some attributes do not get set as current automatically even when 'Give new objects most recent
attributes' is on. This is because some attributes can cause problems if they become current.
For example if you applied a 10 pixel feather to a large object (to blur the edges) and then drew a new
10 pixel sized shape, that new shape would be invisible if the feather attribute was copied to it, due to the
amount of feathering!
Other attributes can adversely affect the way designs export, or significantly increase the time taken to
render the design and so should not be applied unnecessarily.
Examples of attributes which are copied automatically:

Fill colors, fill styles, line width, line color, line style, line join style, line endcap style, arrow
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