Getting Started Guide

Chapter 7
Getting Started with Draw
Vector Drawing in LibreOfficeCopyrightThis document is Copyright © 2010–2016 by the LibreOffice Documentation Team. Contributors
are listed below. You may distribute it and/or modify it under the terms of either the GNU General
Public License (http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html), version 3 or later, or the Creative Commons
Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), version 4.0 or later.
All trademarks within this guide belong to their legitimate owners.

Contributors
Peter Schofield
Ron Faile Jr.

Jean Hollis Weber
Olivier Hallot

Hazel Russman

Feedback
Please direct any comments or suggestions about this document to the Documentation Team’s
mailing list: documentation@global.libreoffice.org
Note: Everything you send to a mailing list, including your email address and any other personal
information that is written in the message, is publicly archived and cannot be deleted.

Acknowledgments
This chapter is adapted and updated from Chapter 7 of Getting Started with OpenOffice.org 3.3.
The contributors to that chapter are:Agnes Belzunce
Regina HenschelGary Schnabl
Alex Thurgood
Michele Zarri

Chris Bonde
Michel Pinquier
Joe Sellman
Jean Hollis Weber

Daniel Carrera
Iain Roberts
Jim Taylor
Linda Worthington

Publication date and software version
Published 21 July 2016. Based on LibreOffice 5.1.

Note for Mac users
Some keystrokes and menu items are different on a Mac from those used in Windows and Linux.
The table below gives some common substitutions for the instructions in this chapter. For a moredetailed list, see the application Help.
Windows or LinuxMac equivalent

EffectTools > Options menu
selection

LibreOffice > Preferences

Access setup options

Right-click

Control+click or right-click
depending on computer setup

Opens a context menu

Ctrl (Control)⌘ (Command)

Used with other keys

F5

Shift+⌘+F5Open the Navigator

F11

⌘+T

Open the Styles and Formatting window

Documentation for LibreOffice is available at http://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/documentation

Contents
Copyright.............................................................................................................................. 2
Contributors................................................................................................................................. 2
Feedback..................................................................................................................................... 2
Acknowledgments........................................................................................................................ 2
Publication date and software version......................................................................................... 2
Note for Mac users...................................................................................................................... 2

What is Draw?...................................................................................................................... 6
Draw main window...............................................................................................................6
Workspace................................................................................................................................... 6
Pages pane................................................................................................................................. 7
Layers bar.................................................................................................................................... 7
Sidebar........................................................................................................................................ 7
Rulers.......................................................................................................................................... 8
Status bar.................................................................................................................................... 9
Toolbars....................................................................................................................................... 9Standard toolbar..................................................................................................................... 9
Drawing toolbar....................................................................................................................... 9Line and Filling toolbar.......................................................................................................... 10
Text Formatting toolbar......................................................................................................... 10
Options toolbar...................................................................................................................... 10

Working with layers........................................................................................................... 10
Adding a layer............................................................................................................................ 10

Choosing and defining colors.......................................................................................... 11
Drawing basic shapes....................................................................................................... 12
Drawing a straight line............................................................................................................... 12
Drawing an arrow....................................................................................................................... 14
Choosing line endings................................................................................................................ 14
Drawing rectangles or squares.................................................................................................. 14
Drawing circles or ellipses......................................................................................................... 15
Drawing curves or polygons....................................................................................................... 15
Curves.................................................................................................................................. 16
Polygons............................................................................................................................... 16
Polygons 45°......................................................................................................................... 16
Freeform lines....................................................................................................................... 16
Adding text................................................................................................................................. 16

Glue points and connectors............................................................................................. 17
Glue points................................................................................................................................ 17
Connectors................................................................................................................................ 18

Drawing geometric shapes............................................................................................... 19
Basic shapes............................................................................................................................. 19
Symbol shapes.......................................................................................................................... 19
Block arrows.............................................................................................................................. 19
Flowcharts................................................................................................................................. 20
Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw | 3

Callouts...................................................................................................................................... 20
Stars and banners..................................................................................................................... 20

Selecting objects................................................................................................................20
Direct selection.......................................................................................................................... 20
Selection by framing.................................................................................................................. 20
Selecting hidden objects............................................................................................................ 21
Arranging objects....................................................................................................................... 21

Moving and adjusting object size.....................................................................................22
Moving objects........................................................................................................................... 22
Adjusting object size.................................................................................................................. 22

Rotating and slanting an object....................................................................................... 23
Rotating an object...................................................................................................................... 23
Slanting an object...................................................................................................................... 24

Editing objects................................................................................................................... 24
Line and Filling toolbar............................................................................................................... 25
Text Formatting toolbar.............................................................................................................. 25
Sidebar Properties..................................................................................................................... 25
Context menu............................................................................................................................ 26
Formatting lines and borders..................................................................................................... 26
Arrows, arrowheads, and line endings....................................................................................... 27

Formatting area fill.............................................................................................................27
Using styles........................................................................................................................ 28
Positioning objects............................................................................................................ 28
Snap function............................................................................................................................. 28
Snap to grid............................................................................................................................... 28
Displaying the grid................................................................................................................. 29
Configuring the grid............................................................................................................... 29
Help lines................................................................................................................................... 29

Applying special effects.................................................................................................... 30
Flipping objects.......................................................................................................................... 30
Mirror copies.............................................................................................................................. 30
Distorting an object.................................................................................................................... 30
Dynamic transparency gradients................................................................................................ 31
Duplication................................................................................................................................. 31
Cross-fading.............................................................................................................................. 32

Combining multiple objects..............................................................................................32
Grouping.................................................................................................................................... 33
Temporary grouping.............................................................................................................. 33
Permanent grouping.............................................................................................................. 33
Ungrouping........................................................................................................................... 33
Combining objects..................................................................................................................... 33

Arranging, aligning, and distributing objects................................................................. 33
Inserting and editing pictures...........................................................................................34
4| Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Working with 3D objects................................................................................................... 34
Exporting graphics............................................................................................................ 34
Inserting comments in a drawing.....................................................................................34

Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw | 5

What is Draw?
LibreOffice Draw is a vector graphics drawing program, although it can also perform some
operations on raster graphics (pixels). Using Draw, you can quickly create a wide variety ofgraphical images.
Vector graphics store and display an image as an assembly of simple geometric elements such aslines, circles, and polygons, rather than a collection of pixels (points on the screen). Vector
graphics allow for easier storage and scaling of the image.
Draw is fully integrated into the LibreOffice suite, and this simplifies exchanging graphics with allcomponents of the suite. For example, if you create an image in Draw, reusing it in a Writer
document is as simple as copying and pasting the image. You can also work with drawings directlyfrom within Writer or Impress, using a subset of the functions and tools from Draw.
The functionality of LibreOffice Draw is extensive and, even though it was not designed to rival
high-end graphics applications, it possesses more functionality than the drawing tools that are
generally integrated with most office productivity suites.
A few examples of the drawing functions are: layer management, magnetic grid-point system,
dimensions and measurement display, connectors for making organization charts, 3D functions
that enable small three-dimensional drawings to be created (with texture and lighting effects),
drawing and page-style integration, and Bézier curves.
This chapter introduces some features of Draw and does not attempt to cover all of the Drawfeatures. See the Draw Guide and the application help for more information.

Draw main window
The main components of the Draw main window are shown in Figure 1:•

Menu bar•Standard toolbar•

Pages pane•Workspace•

Status bar•

Layers bar•

Drawing toolbar•

SidebarWorkspace
The large area in the center of the window (Workspace) is where you create your drawings andthis drawing area can be surrounded with toolbars and information areas. The number and positionof the visible tools vary with the task in hand and user preferences, therefore your setup may lookdifferent from Figure 1.
In LibreOffice Draw, the maximum size of a drawing is 300 cm by 300 cm.

Pages pane
You can split drawings in Draw over several pages. Multi-page drawings are used mainly forpresentations. The Pages pane gives an overview of the pages that you create in your drawing. If
the Pages pane is not visible, go to View on the Menu bar and select Page Pane. To makechanges to the page order, drag and drop one or more pages.
6 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Figure 1: LibreOffice Draw workspace

Layers bar
A layer is a workspace where you insert your drawings elements and objects. The layers bar islocated on the bottom of the workplace and contains the guides for layer selection and layercommand. For more information on layers see “Working with layers“ on page 10.

Sidebar
The Sidebar has four main sections. To expand a section, click on its icon or click on the small
triangle at the top of the icons and select a section from the drop down list. Only one section at atime can be open. If the Sidebar is not visible, go to View on the Menu bar and select Sidebar
from the context menu.
Properties
Opens sub-sections for object properties that you can change to suit your requirements. The
sub-sections are Insert Shapes, Character, Paragraph, Area, Line and Position and Size.
Styles and Formatting
Here you can edit and apply image styles to objects within your drawing. When you edit astyle, the changes are automatically applied to all of the elements formatted with this imagestyle in your drawing.

Draw main window | 7

GalleryOpens the Drawing gallery where you can insert an object into your drawing either as a copy
or as a link. A copy of an object is independent of the original object. Changes to the original
object have no effect on the copy. A link remains dependent on the original object. Changes
to the original object are also reflected in the link.
Navigator
Opens the Drawing navigator, in which you can quickly move between pages in your drawing
or select an object on the drawing. It is recommended to give pages and objects in yourdrawing meaningful names so that you can easily identify them when using the Navigator.

Rulers
You should see rulers (bars with numbers) on the upper and left-hand sides of the workspace. Ifthey are not visible, you can enable them by selecting View > Ruler in the Menu bar. The rulers
show the size of a selected object on the page using double lines (highlighted in Figure 2). Whenno object is selected, they show the location of the mouse pointer, which helps to position drawing
objects more accurately.
You can also use the rulers to manage object handles and guide lines, making it easier to position
objects.
The page margins in the drawing area are also represented on the rulers. You can change themargins directly on the rulers by dragging them with the mouse. The margin area is indicated by
the grayed out area on the rulers as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Rulers showing size of a selected object
To change the measurement units of the rulers, which can be defined independently, right-click ona ruler and select the measurement unit from the drop down list, as illustrated for the horizontal
ruler in Figure 3.

Figure 3: Ruler units
8 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Status bar
The Status bar is located at the bottom of the workspace in all LibreOffice components. It includes
several Draw-specific fields. For details on the contents and use of these fields, see Chapter 1
Introducing LibreOffice in this guide and in the Draw Guide Chapter 1 Introducing Draw.

Figure 4: Draw status bar

Note
The sizes are given in the current measurement unit. They might not be the same as
the ruler units. The measurement unit on the Status bar is defined in Tools > Options> LibreOffice Draw > General, where you can also change the scale of the page.

Toolbars
To display or hide the various Draw toolbars, go to View > Toolbars on the Menu bar. On themenu that appears, select which toolbars you want to display. For more about working withtoolbars, see Chapter 1 Introducing LibreOffice in this guide.
The tools available in the Draw toolbars are explained in the following sections. The appearance ofthe toolbar icons may vary depending on your operating system and the selection of icon size andstyle in Tools > Options > LibreOffice > View.

Standard toolbar
The Standard toolbar is the same for all LibreOffice components and is not described in detail inthis chapter. By default, it is located just under the Menu bar.

Drawing toolbar
The Drawing toolbar is the most important toolbar in Draw. It contains all the necessary functions
for drawing various geometric and freehand shapes and for organizing them on the page. Bydefault, it is docked vertically on the left side of the Draw window.

Line and Filling toolbar
Use the Line and Filling toolbar to modify the main properties of a drawing object. The icons andpull-down lists vary according to the type of object selected. For example, to change the style of aline, click on the up and down arrows for Line Style and select the required style.
The functions on this toolbar are also provided in the Properties pane of the sidebar when adrawing object is selected. By default, the Line and Filling toolbar is not shown, but you can display
it from the View > Toolbars menu.

Text Formatting toolbar
If the selected object is text, the Sidebar shows relevant formatting choices in the Properties pane.
By default, the Text Formatting toolbar is not shown, but you can display it from the View >Toolbars menu. If you have enabled both the Line and Filling toolbar and the Text Formatting
toolbar, Draw switches between them depending on what object is selected.
Draw main window | 9

Options toolbar
Use the Options toolbar to activate or deactivate various drawing aids. By default, the Options
toolbar is not shown, but you can display it from the View > Toolbars menu.

Working with layers
Use layers to create a complex drawing by stacking simpler drawings in each layer. The area of alayer that does not contain an object is transparent. You can add any number of layers in a drawing
document. A layer can be set to visible or hidden, it can be printable or not. Layers are common to
all pages of the drawing.
A Draw document contains three default layers that you cannot delete or rename. Here are thecommon ways of using them:•

Layout: Here you place title, text, and object placeholders on your page.

•

Controls: This layer is always on the top of any other. Here you put buttons and othercontrols of your drawing.

•

Dimension lines: Here you place the dimension lines for your object, if relevant.

For more information on layers, see the Draw Guide Chapter 11 Advanced Draw Techniques.

Adding a layer
To add a layer to your drawing, select Insert > Layer... from the menu bar or right-click any layer
tab in the Layers bar on the bottom of the workspace (Figure 1) and choose Insert Layer... The
Insert Layer dialog opens (Figure 5).
Add a name, title, and description of the layer. Select if you want it printable or not, visible orhidden, or locked to prevent further changes or accidental edits.
A hidden layer still shows in the Layers bar, but its name is in blue. You cannot reorder layers in theLayers bar.

Note
Layers do not determine the stacking order of objects on the page, except for theControls layer which is always in front of other layers. The stacking order of objects isdetermined by the sequence in which you add the objects. You can rearrange thestacking order by Modify > Arrange.

Figure 5: The Insert Layer dialog
10 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Choosing and defining colors
To display the Colors dialog (Figure 6), select View > Toolbars > Color Bar to display the current
color palette. By default, the Color Bar is displayed below the workspace. You can hide or show it
by clicking on its Hide/Show button. Here you can rapidly choose the color of objects in yourdrawing (lines, areas, and 3D effects). The first box corresponds to none (no color).

Figure 6: Color bar
You can access several specialized color palettes in Draw, as well as change individual colors toyour own taste. To do this, use the Area dialog by selecting Format > Area on the Menu bar or
clicking the Area icon on the Sidebar, then selecting the Colors tab (Figure 7).
To load another palette, click on the Load Color List icon. The file selector dialog asks you tochoose one of the standard LibreOffice palettes (files with the file extension *.soc). For example,
web.soc is a color palette that is adapted to creating drawings for placing in web pages. These
colors will display correctly on workstations with screens capable of at least 256 colors.

Figure 7: Area dialog – Colors page

Choosing and defining colors | 11

The color selection box also lets you individually change any color by modifying the numericalvalues in the fields provided to the right of the color palette. You can use the color schemes known
as CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) or RGB (Red, Green, Blue).
Click on the Pick button to open the Pick a Color dialog, where you can set individual colors. See“Color options” in Chapter 2 Setting Up LibreOffice in this guide.
For a more detailed description of color palettes and their options, see the Draw Guide Chapter 11
Advanced Draw Techniques.

Drawing basic shapes
Draw provides a wide range of shapes, located in palettes accessed from the Drawing toolbar.
This section describes only a few of the basic shapes, including text, which are treated as objects
in Draw. See the Draw Guide for a complete description of the shapes available.
Some of the icons on the Drawing toolbar will change according to the shape that has been
selected from the choices available. Icons with tool palettes available are indicated by a small
triangle to the right of the icon.

Note
When you draw a basic shape or select one for editing, the Info field at the left side in
the status bar changes to reflect the present action: for example Line created, Text
frame xxyy selected, and so on.

Drawing a straight line
Click on the Line icon and place the cursor at the point where you want to start the line (Figure 8).
Drag the mouse while keeping the mouse button pressed. Release the mouse button at the point
where you want to end the line. A selection handle appears at each end of the line, showing that
this object is the currently selected object. The selection handle at the starting point of the line isslightly larger than the other selection handle.

Figure 8: Drawing a straight line
Keep the Ctrl key pressed while drawing a line to enable the end of the line to snap to the nearest
grid point.

Note
This is the default behavior of the Ctrl key. However, if the Snap to Grid option on the
View > Grid menu has been selected, the Ctrl key deactivates the snap to grid activity.
Keep the Shift key pressed while you draw a line to restrict the drawing angle of the line to a
multiple of 45 degrees (0, 45, 90, 135, and so on).
12 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Note
This is the default behavior of the Shift key. However, if the option When creating or
moving objects in the Snap position section of Tools > Options > LibreOffice Draw >Grid has been selected, the action of the Shift key is the opposite. Lines willautomatically be drawn at a multiple of 45 degrees unless the Shift key is pressed.
Hold down the Alt key while drawing a line to cause the line to extend outwards symmetrically inboth directions from the start point. This lets you draw lines by starting from the middle of the line.
When a line is drawn, it uses default attributes. To change any of these attributes, select a line byclicking on it, then right-click and select Line from the context menu or go to Format > Line on the
Menu bar to open the Line dialog (Figure 9). Alternatively, click on the Properties icon on the
Sidebar and open the Line sub-section. Line style, line width, and line color can also be changed
using the controls in the Line and Filling toolbar at the top of the workspace.

Figure 9: Line dialog

Drawing an arrow
Arrows are drawn like lines. In fact Draw classifies arrows as a subgroup of lines: lines witharrowheads. The information field on the status bar shows them only as lines. Click on the LineEnds with Arrow icon on the Drawing toolbar or the Insert Shapes sub-section in Sidebar
Properties to draw an arrow. The arrow head is drawn at the end point of the arrow when you
release the mouse button.

Choosing line endings
Several types of line endings (arrows, circles, squares, and others) are available in Draw. Click on
the small triangle to the right of the Lines and Arrows icon on the Drawing toolbar or the Insert
Shapes sub-section in Sidebar Properties to open a tool palette containing tools for drawing lines
and arrows. Alternatively, go to View > Toolbars > Arrows to open the Arrows toolbar as a floating
toolbar (Figure 10). The icon for the tool used most recently will be shown on the Drawing toolbar
to make it easier to use the same tool again.

Drawing basic shapes | 13

After drawing the line, you can change the arrow style by clicking on the Arrowheads icon in theLine and Filling toolbar and select the arrow start and end options.

Figure 10: Arrows toolbar and available tools

Drawing rectangles or squares
Drawing a rectangle is similar to drawing a straight line. Click on the Rectangle icon in the Drawing
toolbar or the Insert Shapes sub-section in Sidebar Properties. As you draw the rectangle with themouse cursor, the rectangle appears with its bottom right corner attached to the cursor.
Squares are rectangles with all sides of equal length. To draw a square, click on the Rectangle
icon and hold down the Shift key whilst you draw a square.

Note
If the option When creating or moving objects has been selected in Tools > Options >LibreOffice Draw > General, the action of the Shift key is reversed. When the
Rectangle tool is selected, a square is drawn. To draw a rectangle, you have to press
the Shift key when drawing. This Shift key reversal also applies when drawing ellipses
and circles.
To draw a rectangle or square from its center rather than the bottom right corner, position yourcursor on the drawing, press the mouse button and then hold down the Alt key while dragging withthe cursor. The rectangle or square uses the start point (where you first clicked the mouse button)
as the center.

Drawing circles or ellipses
To draw an ellipse (also called an oval), click on the Ellipse icon on the Drawing toolbar or theInsert Shapes sub-section in Sidebar Properties. A circle is an ellipse with both axes the samelength. To draw a circle, click on the Ellipse icon and hold down the Shift key whilst you draw acircle.
To draw an ellipse or circle from its center, position your cursor on the drawing, press the mousebutton and then hold down the Alt key while dragging with the cursor. The ellipse or circle uses thestart point (where you first clicked the mouse button) as the center.

14 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with DrawNote
If you first press and hold down the Ctrl key and then click on one of the icons for Line,
Rectangle, Ellipse, or Text, a standard sized object is drawn automatically in the workarea; the size, shape, and color are all standard values. These attributes can bechanged later, if desired. See the Draw Guide for more information.

Drawing curves or polygons
To draw a curve or polygon click the Curve icon on the Drawing toolbar or the Insert Shapes subsection in Sidebar Properties. Click on the triangle to the right of the icon to open the tool palettecontaining tools that are available for drawing curves and polygons (Figure 11). The icon for the
tool used most recently will be shown on the Drawing toolbar to make it easier to use the same tool
again.
Move the mouse cursor over one of the icons to show a tooltip with a description of the function.

Figure 11: Curves (Lines) toolbar and available tools

Note
Hovering the mouse pointer over this icon gives a tooltip of Curve. If you open the
floating toolbar, the title is Lines, as shown in Figure 11.
Hold down the Shift key when drawing lines with the Curve or Polygon tools to restrict
the angles between the lines to 45 or 90 degrees.

CurvesClick and hold the left mouse button to create the starting point of your curve, then, while holding
down the left mouse button, drag from the starting point to draw a line. Release the left mousebutton and continue to drag the cursor to bend the line into a curve. Click to set the end point of thecurve and fix the line on the page. To continue with your line, drag the mouse cursor to draw astraight line. Each mouse click sets a corner point and allows you to continue drawing anotherstraight line from the corner point. A double click ends the drawing of your line.
A filled curve automatically joins the last point to the first point to close off the figure and fills it withthe current standard fill color. A curve without filling will not be closed at the end of the drawing.

Drawing basic shapes | 15

Polygons
Click and draw the first line from the start point with the left mouse button held down. As soon as
you release the mouse button, a line between the first and second points is drawn. Move thecursor to draw the next line. Each mouse click sets a corner point and allows you to draw anotherline. A double-click ends the drawing.
A filled polygon automatically joins the last point to the first point to close off the figure and fills itwith the current standard fill color. A polygon without filling will not be closed at the end of thedrawing.

Polygons 45°
Like ordinary polygons, these are formed from lines, but the angles between lines are restricted to
45 or 90 degrees.

Freeform lines
Using the freeform line tools is similar to drawing with a pencil on paper. Press and hold the left
mouse button and drag the cursor to the line shape you require. It is not necessary to end thedrawing with a double-click, just release the mouse button and the drawing is completed.
If Freeform Line Filled is selected, the end point is joined automatically to the start point and theobject is filled with the appropriate color.

Adding text
To activate the text tool, click on the Text icon for horizontal text or the Vertical Text icon forvertical script. If the Vertical Text icon is not visible, check that Asian has been selected in Tools >Options > Language Settings > Languages. You can display the Text Formatting toolbar (View >Toolbars) or use the Character section in the Properties pane of the Sidebar to select font type,
font size, and other text properties before you start typing.
After activating the Text command, click at the location where you want to position the text. A small
text frame appears, containing only the cursor. This frame can be moved like any other object. A
text frame is also dynamic and grows as you enter text.
The information field in the status bar shows that you are editing text and also provides details
about the current cursor location using paragraph, row, and column numbers (Figure 12).

Figure 12: Text information on the Status Bar
You can insert a line break with the Shift+Enter key combination or start a new paragraph with theEnter key. The insertion of line breaks or new paragraphs does not terminate text editing ordeselect the text frame. When you have finished typing text, click outside the text frame to cancel
adding or editing text.

16 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Text properties can also be changed during text input, with any changes taking effect from thecursor position onwards. To change the properties for all of the text in the text frame, you have tohighlight all text in the text frame.
You can create Graphic styles that you can reuse for other text frames. Select Format > Styles
and Formatting or press F11 to open the Styles and Formatting dialog, or click on the Styles andFormatting icon on the Sidebar. Graphic styles affect all of the text within a text frame. To only
format parts of the text, use direct formatting with the Text Formatting toolbar or the Character andParagraph sub-sections in Sidebar Properties.
Text frames can also have fill colors, shadows, and other attributes, just like any other Draw object.
You can rotate the frame and write the text at any angle. These options are available by rightclicking on the text frame itself.
If you double-click on a graphic object, or press F2 or click on the Text icon when an object isselected, you can add text to the graphic object. This text then becomes part of the graphic object.
A graphic object is not dynamic and does not behave like a text frame. To keep text within theborders of the object, you have to use paragraphs, line breaks, or smaller text size, increase theobject size, or combine all four methods.
For more information about text, see the Draw Guide Chapter 2 Drawing Basic Shapes andChapter 9 Adding and Formatting Text.

Glue points and connectors
Glue points
All Draw objects have glue points, which are not normally displayed. Glue points become visible
when the Connectors icon is selected on the Drawing toolbar or the Insert Shapes sub-section in
Sidebar Properties. Most objects have four glue points (Figure 13). You can add more glue points
and customize glue points, using the Glue Points toolbar (Figure 14). Go to View > Toolbars >Glue Points on to open the toolbar.

Figure 13: Glue points
Glue points are not the same as the selection handles of an object. The handles are for moving orchanging the shape of an object. Glue points are used to fix or glue a connector to an object sothat when the object moves, the connector stays fixed to the object. For a more detailed
description on the use of glue points, see the Draw Guide Chapter 3 Working with Objects andObject Points and Chapter 8 Connections, Flowcharts and Organization Charts.

Glue points and connectors | 17

Figure 14: Glue Points toolbar and available tools

Connectors
Connectors are lines or arrows whose ends automatically snap to a glue point of an object.
Connectors are especially useful in drawing organization charts, flow diagrams, and mind-maps.
When objects are moved or reordered, the connectors remain attached to a glue point. Figure 15
shows an example of two objects and a connector.
Draw offers a range of different connectors and connector functions. On the Drawing toolbar or theInsert Shapes sub-section in Sidebar Properties, click on the triangle next to the Connector icon
to open the Connectors toolbar (Figure 16). For a more detailed description of the use ofconnectors, see the Draw Guide Chapter 8 Connections, Flowcharts and Organization Charts.

Figure 15: A connector between two objects

Figure 16: Connectors toolbar

18 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Drawing geometric shapes
The icons for drawing geometric shapes are located on the Drawing toolbar. The geometric shapes
are explained in the following sections. Clicking on the triangle to the right of the icon on the
Drawing toolbar opens a floating toolbar giving access to the tools for that shape.

Tip
The use of these tools for geometric shapes is similar to the tool used for drawing
rectangles or squares. For more information, see page 14 and the Draw Guide Chapter
2 Drawing Basic Shapes.

Note
The icons for geometric shapes displayed on the Drawing toolbar will change shapeaccording to the last tool selected and used to draw an object.

Basic shapes
Click on the triangle to the right of the Basic Shapes icon
to open the Basic Shapes toolbar.
This toolbar also includes a rectangle tool identical to the one on the Drawing toolbar.

Figure 17: Basic Shapes toolbar

Symbol shapes
Click on the triangle to the right of the Symbol Shapes icon
toolbar.

to open the Symbol Shapes

Figure 18: Symbol Shapes toolbar

Block arrows
Click on the triangle to the right of the Block Arrows icon

to open the Block Arrows toolbar.

Figure 19: Block Arrows toolbar

Drawing geometric shapes | 19

Flowcharts
Click on the triangle to the right of the Flowcharts icon
to open the Flowchart toolbar forsymbols used in drawing flowcharts. The creation of flowcharts, organization charts, and similar
planning tools is further described in the Draw Guide Chapter 8 Connections, Flowcharts andOrganization Charts.

Figure 20: Flowcharts toolbar

Callouts
Click on the triangle to the right of the Callouts icon

to open the Callouts toolbar.

Figure 21: Callouts toolbar

Stars and banners
Click on the triangle to the right of the Stars icon

to open the Stars and Banners toolbar.

Figure 22: Stars and Banners toolbar

Note
You can add text to all of these geometric shapes. For more information, see the Draw
Guide Chapter 2 Drawing Basic Shapes and Chapter 11 Advanced Draw Techniques.

Selecting objects
Direct selection
The easiest way to select an object is to click directly on it. For objects that are not filled, click on
the object outline to select it. One click selects; a second click deselects. To select or deselectmore than one object, hold the shift button down while clicking.

Selection by framing
You can also select several objects at once by dragging the mouse cursor around the objects. This
cursor dragging draws a rectangle around the objects and only objects that lie entirely within therectangle will be selected.
20 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

To select multiple objects by framing, the Select iconon the Drawing toolbar must be active.

Note
When dragging the mouse cursor to select multiple objects, the selection rectangle
being drawn is also known as a marquee.

Selecting hidden objects
Even if objects are located behind others and not visible, they can still be selected. Hold down the
Alt key and click on the object at the front of where the hidden object is located, then click again to
select the hidden object. If there are several hidden objects, keep holding down the Alt key andclicking until you reach the object you want. To cycle through the objects in reverse order, holddown the Alt+Shift keys and click.
When you click on the selected object, its outline will appear briefly through the objects covering it.

Note
Using the Alt key method works on computers using a Windows or Mac operating
systems. On a computer using a Linux operating system the Tab key method,
described below, has to be used.
To select an object that is covered by another object using the keyboard, use the Tab key to cycle
through the objects, stopping at the object you want to select. To cycle through the objects inreverse order, press Shift+Tab. This is a very quick way to reach an object, but it may not bepractical if there a large number of objects in a drawing.

Arranging objects
In a complex drawing, several objects may be stacked on top of one another. To rearrange thestacking order by moving an object forward or backward, select an object, click Modify > Arrange
on the Menu bar and select Bring Forward or Send Backward. Alternatively, right-click the object,select Arrange from the context menu, then Bring Forward or Send Backward.
The arrange options are also available by clicking on the small triangle to the right of the Arrange
icon
on the Line and Filling toolbar. This opens the Position toolbar giving access to thevarious arrangement options (Figure 23).

Figure 23: Position toolbar and available tools

Selecting objects | 21

Moving and adjusting object size
When moving an object or changing its size, check the left-hand area of the status bar at thebottom of the Draw window (Figure 24). The area on the left of the Status bar, from left to right,
shows what object is selected, its position on the drawing in X/Y coordinates and dimensions of theobject. The units of measurement are those selected in Tools > Options > LibreOffice Draw >General.
For more information on moving and adjusting object size, see the Draw Guide Chapter 3 Working
with Objects and Object Points.

Figure 24: Left end of status bar when moving or adjusting an object

Moving objects
To move an object (or a group of objects), select it and then click within the object borders and holddown the left mouse button while dragging the mouse. During movement, a ghost image of theobject appears to help with repositioning (Figure 25). To locate the object at its new location,
release the mouse button.

Figure 25: Moving an object

Adjusting object size
To change the size of a selected object (or a group of selected objects), move the mouse cursor toone of the selection handles. The mouse cursor will change shape to indicate the direction of
movement for that selection handle. As you change the size of the object, a ghosted outline of theobject appears (Figure 26). When you have reached the desired size of the object, release themouse button.
The results depend on which selection handle you use. To resize an object along one axis, use aside handle. To resize along both axes, use a corner handle.

Figure 26: Adjusting object size
22 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with DrawNote
If you press the Shift key while resizing an object, the change in size will be carried out
symmetrically with respect to the two axes so that the aspect ratio of the object remains
the same. This Shift key behavior works on all selection handles.
This is the default behavior of the Shift key. However, if When creating or moving
objects has been selected in Tools > Options > LibreOffice Draw > Grid, the actionof the Shift key is reversed and the aspect ratio will be preserved unless the Shift key ispressed.

Rotating and slanting an object
For more information on rotating and slanting an object, see the Draw Guide Chapter 3 Working
with Objects and Object Points.

Rotating an object
To rotate an object (or a group of objects), select the object, then go to rotation mode using one of
the following methods:•

Click on the Rotate icon•

Go to View > Toolbars > Mode and select the Rotate iconon the Line and Filling toolbar.
.

The selection handles will change shape and color (Figure 27). Also a rotation point will appear in
the center of the object. As you move the mouse cursor over the handles, the cursor changes
shape. The corner handles are for rotating an object and the top, bottom and side handles are toslant an object.

Figure 27: Rotating an object
Move the mouse cursor to one of the corner handles and it normally changes to an arc with anarrow at each end. Click and hold the mouse button, then start to move the cursor to rotate theobject. A ghost image of the object being rotated appears and the current angle of rotation isshown in the status bar.

Note
Rotation works differently for 3D objects because rotation occurs around global axes
and not around a single axis. See the Draw Guide Chapter 7 Working with 3D Objects
for more information.

Rotating and slanting an object | 23

The rotation point is normally located at the center of an object. To change the position of therotation point, click on the object with the mouse cursor and drag the object until the rotation point
is at the desired position. This rotation point can even be outside of the object.

Note
If you press the Shift key while rotating an object, rotation will be restricted to 15° ofmovement.
This is the default behavior of the Shift key. However, if When creating or moving
objects has been selected in Tools > Options > LibreOffice Draw > Grid, the actionof the Shift key is reversed and rotation will be restricted to 15° of movement unless the
Shift key is pressed.

Slanting an object
To slant an object, use the handles located at the midpoints on the top, bottom and sides of a
selected object. The mouse cursor changes when it hovers over one of these midpoint handles.
The axis used for slanting an object is the object edge directly opposite the midpoint handle being
used to slant the object. This axis stays fixed in location while the other sides of the object move in
relation to it as you drag the mouse cursor.
Click and hold the mouse button, then move the cursor to shear the object. A ghost image of theobject being slanted appears (Figure 28) and the current angle of slant is shown in the status bar.

Note
If you press the Shift key while slanting an object, slanting will be restricted to 15° ofmovement. This is the default behavior of the Shift key. However, if When creating or
moving objects has been selected in Tools > Options > LibreOffice Draw > Grid, theaction of the Shift key is reversed and slanting will be restricted to 15° of movement
unless the Shift key is pressed.

Figure 28: Slanting an object

Editing objects
To edit an object or change attributes such as color or border width, the Line and Filling toolbar, theText Formatting toolbar, the Sidebar Properties section, or a context menu can be used. Moreinformation on editing objects and changing attributes can be found in the Draw Guide Chapter 4
Changing Object Attributes.
24 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Line and Filling toolbar
By default, the Line and Filling toolbar is not shown in Draw. To display it, go to View > Toolbars> Line and Filling on the Menu bar to open the toolbar (Figure 29) at the top of the workspace.
The most common object attributes can be edited using this toolbar. You can also open the Linedialog by clicking on the Line icon
access to more formatting options.

and the Area dialog by clicking on the Area icon

forFigure 29: Line and Filling toolbar and its available tools

Text Formatting toolbar
You can open the Text Formatting toolbar by selecting View > Toolbars > Text Formatting on the
Menu bar. The tools on this toolbar will not become active until text has been selected.

Figure 30: Text Formatting toolbar and its available tools

Sidebar Properties
When you select an object in your drawing, the sub-sections in Sidebar Properties become active(Figure 31). You can change the properties or options of an object without having to open a dialog
or use any of the available tools on the various toolbars provided by Draw. To expand a subsection, click on the plus (+) sign or arrow next to the sub-section title.

Editing objects | 25

Figure 31: Sub-sections in Sidebar Properties

Context menu
When an object is selected and you right-click on the object, a context menu (Figure 32) opens thatapplies to the selected object. You can change object attributes without having to open a dialog.
Menu entries with a small arrow on the right-hand side contain a submenu.

Figure 32: Example of a context menu

Formatting lines and borders
In LibreOffice the term line indicates both a freestanding segment (line), outer edge of a shape(border), or an arrow. In most cases the properties of the line you can modify are its style (solid,
dashed, invisible, and so on), its width, and its color.
Select the line you need to format and then use the controls on the Line and Filling toolbar tochange the most common options (highlighted in Figure 33).

26 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Figure 33: Common line properties (style, color, width)
If you need to fine tune the appearance of a line, choose Format > Line from the Menu bar, orright-click on the line and select Line from the context menu, or select the Line iconfrom theLine and Filling toolbar. All of these methods open the Line dialog (Figure 10 on page 14), where
you can set line properties. This dialog consists of three pages: Line, Line Styles, and Arrow
Styles. Alternatively, use the Line sub-section in Sidebar Properties to change the appearance of aline.

Arrows, arrowheads, and line endings
Arrows, arrowheads, and other line endings are usually referred to as arrows and can be treatedthe same as lines when editing and changing attributes. Select a line and click on the Arrow Styleiconfrom the Line and Filling toolbar to open the Arrowheads menu (Figure 34).

Figure 34: Arrowheads menu
Several types of arrowheads are available. Each end of a line can have a different arrowhead or noarrowhead). Arrowheads are only applicable to lines and they have no effect on the border of an
object.

Formatting area fill
The term area fill refers to the inside of an object, which can be a uniform color, gradient, hatchingpattern, or bitmap (Figure 35). An area fill can be made partly or wholly transparent. In most cases,
you will choose one of the standard fill options, which are all available from the Line and Filling
toolbar, or the Area sub-section in Sidebar Properties. You can also define your own area fills. For
more information on formatting area fill, see the Draw Guide Chapter 4 Changing Object Attributes.

Formatting area fill | 27

Figure 35: Different types of area fill

Using styles
Suppose that you want to apply the same area fill, line thickness, and border to a set of objects.
This repetitive process can be greatly simplified by the use of styles. Styles allow you to define aformat (a style) and then apply that format to multiple objects. For more information on styles, see
Chapter 3 Using Styles and Templates in this guide, the Writer Guide Chapter 6 Introduction to
Styles, and the Draw Guide Chapter 4 Changing Object Attributes.

Positioning objects
Snap function
In Draw, objects can be accurately and consistently positioned using the snap function. Grid points,
snap points and lines, object frames, individual points on objects, or page edges can all be usedwith the snap function.
Snap function is easier to work with at the highest zoom values that are practical for your display.
Two different snap functions can be used at the same time; for example snapping to a guide line
and to the page edge. It is recommended, however, to activate only the functions that you reallyneed.
For more detailed information about the snap function, see the Draw Guide Chapter 3 Working
with Objects and Object Points and Chapter 11 Advanced Draw Techniques.

Snap to gridUse Snap to grid to position an object to a grid point. Go to View > Grid > Snap to Grid on the
Menu bar or click on the Snap to Grid icon on the Options toolbar to turn on or off the snap to gridfunction. If the Options toolbar is not visible, go to View > Toolbars > Options on the Menu bar.

Figure 36: Positioning with snap to grid
28 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

Displaying the grid
To display the grid in Draw or to switch off the grid, go to View > Grid > Display Grid on the Menu
bar or click on the Display Grid icon on the Options toolbar.

Configuring the grid
The resolution, snap and snap position of the grid points can be configured. Go to Tools >Options > LibreOffice Draw > Grid on the Menu bar to open the options dialog for the grid.

Figure 37: Configuring the grid•

Vertical and horizontal spacing of the dots in the grid. You can also change the unit ofmeasurement used in the general Draw options by going to Tools > Options > LibreOffice
Draw > General.

•

The resolution is the size of the squares or rectangles in the grid. If the resolution is 1 cm
horizontal and 2 cm vertical, the grid consists of rectangles 2 cm high and 1 cm wide.

•

Subdivisions are additional points that appear along the sides of each rectangle or squarein the grid. Objects can snap to subdivisions as well as to the corners of the grid.

•

The pixel size of the snap area defines how close you need to bring an object to a snap
point or line before it will snap to it.

•

The default color of the grid is light gray. To change the color of the grid points, go to Tools> Options > LibreOffice > Appearance on the Menu bar.

Help lines
Draw has help lines to easily allow you to position an object using the rulers at the top and left sideof the workspace. To turn on or off the help lines, go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice Draw >View on the Menu bar and select Snap Lines when moving option or go to the Options toolbar
and click on the Helplines While Moving icon.

Positioning objects | 29

Applying special effects
With Draw, you can apply many special effects to objects and groups of objects. This section is an
introduction to some of these effects. For more information on special effects, see the Draw Guide
Chapter 4 Changing Object Attributes.
To access the tools used for special effects, go to View > Toolbars > Mode (Figure 38). Rotate
and Flip can also be accessed by going to Modify on the Menu bar or by right-clicking on theobject and using the context menu.

Figure 38: Mode toolbar and its available tools

Flipping objects
The quickest and easiest method to flip an object horizontally or vertically is as follows:
1) Click on a graphic object and the selection handles will show.
2) Right-click and select Flip > Vertically or Horizontally, or go to Modify > Flip > Verticallyor Horizontally on the Menu bar and the selected object will be flipped to face the otherdirection.
However, the Flip tool on the Mode or Drawing toolbar can be used to give you greater control
over the flipping process. Using the Flip tool allows you to change the position and angle that theobject flips over and this is described in the Draw Guide Chapter 4 Changing Object Attributes.

Mirror copies
At the moment no mirror command exists in Draw. However, mirroring an object can be emulated
by using the Flip tool, as described in the Draw Guide Chapter 4 Changing Object Attributes.

Distorting an object
Three tools on the Mode toolbar let you drag the corners and edges of an object to distort theimage.
Distort tool distorts an object in perspective.
Set to Circle (slant) creates a pseudo three-dimensional effect.
Set in Circle (perspective) creates a pseudo three-dimensional effect.

30 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

In all three cases you are initially asked if you want to transform the object to a curve. This is anecessary first step, so click Yes. Then you can move the object handles to produce the desired
effect. See the Draw Guide Chapter 4 Changing Object Attributes for more information on how to
distort an object.

Dynamic transparency gradients
You can control transparency gradients in the same manner as color gradients. Both types ofgradient can be used together. With a transparency gradient, the direction and degree of object fillcolor changes from opaque to transparent. In a regular gradient, the fill changes from one color toanother, but the degree of transparency remains the same.
The Transparency and Gradient tools on the Mode toolbar dynamically control transparency andcolor gradients. See the Draw Guide Chapter 4 Changing Object Attributes for more information on
how to create transparencies and gradients in an object.

Duplication
Duplication makes copies of an object while applying a set of changes such as color or rotation to
the duplicates that are created.
1)

Click on an object or group of objects and go to Edit > Duplicate on the Menu bar or use
the keyboard shortcut Shift+F3 to open the Duplicate dialog (Figure 39).

Figure 39: Duplicate dialog
2)

Select the required options chosen from the options
available. For example, when the options in the dialog
are applied to a rectangle, they produce the result shownin Figure 40.

Figure 40: Duplication result
Applying special effects | 31

Cross-fading
Cross-fading transforms one object shape to another object shape and only works when two
objects are selected.
1)

Select two differently shaped objects.

2)

Go to Edit > Cross-fading on the Menu bar to open the Cross-fading dialog (Figure 41).

3)

Select Increments to determine the number of shapes between the two objects.

4)

Select Cross-fading attributes to apply a gradual change of line and fill properties
between the two objects.

5)

Select Same orientation to apply a smooth transition between the two objects.

6)

Click on OK and the result is a new group of objects with the first object selected as thestart object and the second object selected as the end object. For example, when theoptions in the dialog are applied to a rectangle and a triangle, the cross fade produces theresult shown in Figure 42.

Figure 41: Cross-fading dialog

Figure 42: Cross-fading result

Combining multiple objects
Using Draw, you can group or combine objects together allowing you to treat multiple objects as
one unit, or to merge objects to form a new shape. For more information, see the Draw Guide
Chapter 5 Combining Multiple Objects.
Grouping of objects is similar to putting objects into a container. You can move the objects as agroup and apply global changes to the objects within the group. A group can always be undone
and the objects that make up the group can always be manipulated separately. The objects withina group also retain their own individual properties.
Combining objects is a permanent merging of objects that creates a new object. The original
objects are no longer available as individual entities and cannot be edited as individual objects.
Any editing of a combined object affects all the objects that were used when combination was
carried out.

32 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

GroupingTemporary grouping
A temporary grouping is when several objects are selected using the Select icon on the Drawing
toolbar or using the mouse to drag a rectangle around the objects (also known as a marquee). Anychanges to object parameters you carry out are applied to all of the objects within the temporarygroup. For example, you can rotate a temporary group of objects in its entirety.
To cancel a temporary grouping of objects simply click outside of the selection handles displayedaround the objects.

Permanent grouping
A permanent grouping of objects can be created after you have selected your objects. Go to
Modify > Group on the Menu bar, or right-click on the selection and select Group from the context
menu, or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+G. When you deselect your selection the objects
remain grouped together.
When objects are permanently grouped, any editing operations carried out on that group are
applied to all members of the group. If you click on one member of the group, the whole group isselected.
You can edit an individual member of a group without ungrouping or breaking the group. Select thegroup and go to Modify > Enter Group, or right-click and select Enter Group from the context
menu, or use the keyboard shortcut F3, or double-click on the group.
When you have finished editing an individual member of a group, go to Modify > Exit Group, orright-click and select Exit Group from the context menu, or use the keyboard shortcut Shift+F3.

Ungrouping
To ungroup or break apart a group of objects, select the group then go to Modify > Ungroup on
the Menu bar, or right-click and select Ungroup from the context menu or use the keyboard
shortcut Ctrl+Alt+Shift+G.

Combining objects
Combining objects is a permanent merging of objects that creates a new object. The original
objects are no longer available as individual entities and cannot be edited as individual objects.
Any editing of a combined object affects all the objects that were used when combination was
carried out.
Select several objects, then go to Modify > Combine on the Menu bar, or right-click on the objects
and select Combine from the context menu, or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+K.
After you have selected your objects, the Merge, Subtract, and Intersect functions also become
available so that you can create a new object from your selected objects. See the Draw Guide
Chapter 5 Combining Multiple Objects for more information on these functions.

Arranging, aligning, and distributing objects
In Draw you can arrange, align, and distribute selected objects in relation to each other:•

Arrange the position of an object by moving it either forward or backward in relation to theorder of objects.

•

Align objects with respect to each other using Left, Centered, or Right for horizontalalignment and Top, Center, or Bottom for vertical alignment.

•

Distribute objects so that the space between each of the objects is the same.
Arranging, aligning, and distributing objects | 33

See the Draw Guide Chapter 5 Combining Multiple Objects for more information on arranging andaligning objects in relation to each other.

Inserting and editing pictures
Draw contains a number of functions for editing pictures or raster graphics (bitmaps); for example,
photos and scanned images. This includes the import and export of graphics, and conversion fromone graphic format to another.
Draw includes a large range of graphic filters so that it can read and display several graphic fileformats. It also includes several tools for working with raster graphics, but does not have the samefunctionality as specialized graphic programs like Gimp or Adobe Photoshop. See the Draw Guide
Chapter 6 Editing Pictures for more information.
You can add pictures from several sources:•

Directly from a scanner (Insert > Picture > Scan)•

Images created by another program, including photographs from a digital camera (Insert >Picture > From File)•The Draw Gallery; see Chapter 11 Graphics, the Gallery, and Fontwork in this guide formore information.

Working with 3D objects
Although Draw does not match the functionality of the leading drawing or picture editing programs,
it is capable of producing and editing very good 3D drawings.
Draw offers two types of 3D objects: 3D bodies and 3D shapes. Depending on which type you
choose, there are different methods of editing of a 3D object (rotation, illumination, perspective,
and so on) with 3D shapes being simpler to set up and edit than 3D bodies. However, 3D bodies
currently allow for more customization.
See the Draw Guide Chapter 7 Working with 3D Objects for more information.

Exporting graphics
Draw saves graphics and images in the open source format *.odg. To save a graphic or the entire
file in another format, use File > Export and select a format from the list displayed. The graphic
formats that Draw can export and save to are listed in Appendix B Open Source, Open Standards,
OpenDocument in this guide.
You can also export Draw files to HTML, XHTML, PDF, or Flash. PDF export for modules ofLibreOffice is described in Chapter 10 Printing, Exporting, and E-mailing of this guide.
HTML export uses a conversion wizard that creates as many web pages as there are pages in yourDraw document. You can optionally choose to display pages in frames with a navigator and set anindex page. For more information, see Chapter 12 Creating Web Pages in this guide.

Inserting comments in a drawing
You can insert comments into your drawing in a similar process to the one used in Writer and Calc.
1)

Go to Insert > Comment on the menu bar. A small box containing your initials appears in
the upper left-hand corner of your drawing with a larger text box beside it (Figure 43). Draw
automatically adds your name and the date at the bottom of this text box.

34 | Chapter 7 Getting Started with Draw

2)

Type or paste your comment into the text box. You can apply basic formatting to parts of thetext by selecting it, right-clicking, and choosing from the context menu. From this menu, you
can also delete the current comment, all the comments from the same author, or all thecomments in the document.

3)

You can move the small comment markers to anywhere you wish on the drawing. Typically
you might place it on or near an object you refer to in the comment.

4)

To show or hide the comment markers, go to View > Comments on the Menu bar.

Figure 43: Inserting comments
You can go to Tools > Options > User Data to enter the name you want to appear in the Author
field of the comment.
If more than one person edits the document, each author is automatically allocated a different
background color.

Inserting comments in a drawing | 35