Adobe InDesign CS5 - Manual (Page 350)

344 USING INDESIGN
Drawing
Last updated 11/16/2011
• Hold down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) and press arrow keys to change the spacing between the
frames.
3 Release the mouse button.
If you want to use the arrow keys to change the number of sides or star inset while using the Polygon tool, press the
Spacebar while holding down the mouse button.
Draw a placeholder shape
A placeholder shape is an ellipse, rectangle, or polygon that appears in the document window with an X, indicating
that it should be replaced by text or an image later.
1 In the toolbox, select the Ellipse Frame tool , the Rectangle Frame tool , or the Polygon Frame tool .
2 Drag in the document window to create the path or frame. Hold down Shift to constrain the width and height of
the frame.
You can change the crop amount, reference point, and other fitting options for a placeholder frame by choosing
Object > Fitting > Frame Fitting Options.
Specify polygon settings
1 If you want the polygon settings to apply to existing shapes, select the polygons.
2 Double-click the Polygon tool , specify the following settings, and click OK:
• For Number of Sides, type a value for the number of sides you want for the polygon.
• For Star Inset, type a percentage value to specify the length of a star’s spikes. The tips of the spikes touch the outer
edge of the polygon’s bounding box, and the percentage determines the depth of the depression between each spike.
Higher percentages create longer, thinner spikes.
Change the shape of a path automatically
You can convert any path into a predefined shape. For example, you can convert a rectangle to a triangle. The stroke
settings for the original path remain the same for the new path. If the new path is a polygon, its shape is based on the
options in the Polygon Settings dialog box. If the new path has a corner effect, its radius size is based on the size setting
in the Corner Options dialog box.
1 Select the path.
2 Do any of the following:
• Choose Object > Convert Shape > [new shape].
• In the Pathfinder panel (Window > Object & Layout > Pathfinder), click a shape button in the Convert Shape area.
Drawing with the Pencil tool
Draw with the Pencil tool
The Pencil tool works primarily the same way in Adobe Illustrator and InDesign. It lets you draw open and closed
paths as if you were drawing with a pencil on paper. It is most useful for fast sketching or creating a hand-drawn look.
Once you draw a path, you can immediately change it if needed.