Operation Manual

Lines, Shapes, and Effects 305
Closed shapes
As soon as you draw or select a line, you'll see the line's nodes appear. Nodes
show the end points of each segment in the line. Freehand curves typically have
many nodes; straight or curved line segments have only two. You can make a
shape by drawing a line back to its starting point.
To turn a selected line into a shape:
• Select the line with the Pointer Tool and click the Close Curve
button on the Curve context toolbar.
You can go the other way, too—break open a shape in order to add one or more
line segments.
To break open a shape:
1. Select the node where you want to break the shape.
2. Click the
Break Curve button on the Curve context toolbar.
3. You can now use the Pointer Tool to reshape the line as needed.
Editing shapes
• Use the Weight slider in the Line tab to change the weight (thickness)
or type of the shape's border. For a different line style (dotted, dashed,
etc.), click the middle drop-down list to apply it.
• Use the Color tab or Swatches tab to change the shape's line or fill
color (solid, gradient or bitmap).
• Use the Transparency tab to apply gradient or bitmap transparency.