Using Rulers and Guides

Using Rulers and Guides

Using Rulers

Rulers are shown across the top and along the left edge of the Main Window when a document is opened. They help you measure and position objects.

The rulers are marked in the units of measure set in the Ruler Units dialog box from the Options menu. You have the choice of inches, centimeters, picas, and points. One inch equals 2.54 centimeters, 6 picas, or 72 points. (Points are displayed in hundreds of points on the rulers.) Click the unit of measure you want to use, then click OK. You can hide rulers at any time you are in the Main window by choosing Hide Rulers in the View menu.

As you move the cursor about in the Main window, the horizontal and vertical movement is automatically tracked by crosshairs on the rulers.

When you use the magnifying glass or the View menu's zoom options, the rulers will change to reflect the proportions of the new view, whether you are magnifying of reducing the view of your document.
Setting the Zero Point

You can make any horizontal or vertical point on a document the zero point, so that the rulers measure distances from that point instead of the default zero point setting. In the upper left corner, at the junction of the rulers is the zero point marker, (crossed dotted lines enclosed in a box). By moving this marker, you can reset the zero point.

To reset the zero point:

1. Click in the zero point marker and drag it to the position in the Main window that you wish to make the new zero point of the rulers. Intersecting gray lines extend from the rulers' crosshairs. The cursor will not be visible until you release the mouse button.

2. The spot where you release the mouse button is the new zero point.

The numbers change in the rulers.

Using Guides

Guides are extensions of the rulers. They are nonprinting, dotted lines that help you align objects. When guides are turned on, a horizontal guide can be dragged down from the horizontal ruler, and a vertical guide can be dragged out from the vertical ruler. Rulers must be visible in order to set the guides, but once the guides are in position, the rulers no longer have to be displayed. The maximum number of guides that you can have in the main window is 36 horizontally or vertically.

To set the guides:

1. Choose Show Rulers from the View menu if the rulers are hidden.

2. Choose Guides from the View menu (if it isn't already checked).

3. Using the Pointer tool, click anywhere within a ruler and drag a guide outward, onto the document. Drag the guide into position, then release the mouse button.

4. To reposition a guide, click on it and drag it to a new place with the Pointer tool.

5. When the guides are set to your satisfaction, you can lock them so that they won't be moved by mistake. Choose Lock Guides from the View menu. When you want to move them again, choose Unlock Guides from the View menu.

6. To delete a guide, first select Unlock Guides, if they are locked, then drag the guide off the page with the pointer tool.

Snap to Guides

Check "Snap to guides" in the View menu to automatically align objects with guides. When "Snap to guides" is active, an object placed within three pixels of the guide will be snapped into alignment on the guide. This is especially useful for aligning baselines and keeping objects symmetrical when shaping them with the Shaper tool.

The handles and ends of the Shaper tool and Bezier curves align precisely with guides when you select "Snap to guides." The Bezier curves and the Shaper tool lines may appear to be a few pixels above or below the guides; however, if the handles are aligned, the object is aligned. Select "Snap to guides" again to deselect this alignment.

Using the Zero Point Marker and Guides to Determine Text Point Size

If you've resized or distorted text objects, the zero point marker provides a way to measure the point size of type:

1. Set the rulers to points.

2. Set the zero point to the lower left corner of a text object, or to the part of the object (if it's distorted) that you want to measure.

3. Drag a guide to the top of the next object.

The measurement on the rulers will be the point size of the character, or part of a character that you're measuring
Nudge

You can use the arrow cursor keys to move selected objects a single pixel at a time. This comes in handy for fine-tuning the position of objects on a page. Nudge can also be used in the Style Workshop on shadows.

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