This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Modifying Shapes: Natural Drawing Tools
You can edit all the strokes and fills you create in Flash after you’ve drawn them. You can edit deselected merge-shapes and drawing-objects in Flash’s natural-drawing style, using the selection tool to change the path that defines the shape; or you can work directly with the path’s anchor points and Bézier curves by using the subselection tool, and the various Bézier tools. (See “Modifying Shapes: Bézier Tools” in this chapter.) You can modify primitive-shapes by dragging their control points with the selection tool, or you can change their properties in the Property inspector.
Note: For the following tasks, make sure the item you want to modify is deselected. These techniques all deal with modifying strokes, but the same techniques work for modifying fills by reshaping their paths. (See “About Fill Paths” in this chapter.)
About Curve and Corner Points
Flash’s selection and subselection tools let you modify an element’s curves and lines. With the subselection tool, you can move the curve and corner points that define the element’s path and rearrange the curves’ Bézier handles. When you drag a selection rectangle to enclose a merge-shape path with the subselection tool, Flash displays any curve points’ Bézier handles. (Corner points have no handles.)
When you choose the selection tool, Flash hides all that technical stuff. You simply drag a line to reshape it. Still, the selection tool has its own hidden version of curve and corner points, which are evident in the icons that accompany the tool as it interacts with an unselected line or curve 
.
The icons appearing with the selection pointer indicate what is located beneath the pointer.
For the selection tool, corner points appear at the end of an unselected segment or at the point where two segments join to form a sharp angle. All of the other in-between points—even those in the middle of a completely flat line segment—are curve points. When you drag a curve point with the selection tool, you pull out a range of points in a tiny arc. When you drag a corner point with the selection tool, you pull out a sharp point.
To activate the end of a segment with the selection tool
- Position the selection tool’s pointer over the end point of a deselected line segment.
The corner-point icon
appears. - Click the end point. The end of the segment becomes active.
- Drag the end point to a new location
.
Drag away from the existing curve or line segment to lengthen it (top). Reposition the end point to change the direction of the line (middle) or curve segment (bottom).As you drag, the end of the line changes to a small circle, showing that the line is active for modifications. Flash previews the modified segment as you drag.
- Release the mouse button. Flash redraws the line segment.
To reshape a curve with the selection tool
- Position the selection tool’s pointer over the middle of an unselected curve segment.
The curve-point icon
appears. - Drag the curve to reshape it
. Flash previews the curve you’re drawing.
Click the middle of a curve (1) to activate the curve segment for editing (2). Drag to reshape the curve (3). When you release the mouse button, Flash redraws the curve (4). - Release the mouse button. Flash redraws the curve.
To turn a straight-line segment into a curve segment with the selection tool
- Position the selection tool’s pointer over the middle of an unselected line segment. The curve-point icon appears.
- Drag the line to reshape it
. Flash previews the curve that you’re drawing.
Although this line doesn’t look curved (top), Flash treats all its middle points as curve points. Drag one of those points to create a line that looks like a curve (bottom). - Release the mouse button. Flash redraws the line, giving it the curve you defined.
To create a new corner point with the selection tool
- Position the selection tool’s pointer over the middle of an unselected line or curve segment. The curve-point icon appears.
- Option-click (OS X) or Alt-click or Ctrl-click (Win) the line. After a brief pause, the arc changes to the corner-point icon , and a circle appears where the pointer intersects the line. You’re now activating a corner point.
- Drag to modify the line or curve segment and add a new corner point
.
Option-click (OS X) or Alt-click or Ctrl-click (Win) to create a new corner point for editing your line. Dragging a corner point from a straight-line segment creates a sharp V (top). Dragging a corner point from a curve creates a V with curving sides that comes to a sharp point (bottom).