How to Create and Customize Trapezoid Shapes in eXPerience 8

This guide will walk you through the process of adding, customizing, and editing trapezoid and parallelogram shapes in your design projects.

Part 1: Creating a Trapezoid Shape

Step 1: Select the Trapezoid Tool All ready-made shapes are located in the Shapes section of the toolbar. The icon displayed will be the last shape tool that was used.

• To find the Trapezoid tool, place your mouse cursor over the Shapes section to reveal all available shapes.
• Click on the Trapezoid shape icon to select it.

Step 2: Set Initial Properties (Optional) Once the Trapezoid tool is active, you can see and adjust its options (like slant percentage) in the properties panel before you add it to the canvas.

Step 3: Draw the Shape

• Click and hold the left mouse button on the design canvas.
• Drag the cursor to define the position and size of your trapezoid.
• Release the mouse button to finalize the shape.

Tip: After you create a trapezoid, the tool remains active, allowing you to immediately draw more trapezoids. When you are finished, right-click anywhere on the canvas or click the Rectangle Selection tool to deactivate the shape tool.

Part 2: Customizing an Existing Shape

When you select a trapezoid shape you have already created, you can still edit its properties from the options panel.

• Adjust Slant Percentage: As you increase the percentage value, the angle of the trapezoid’s slanted sides increases.
• Switch to Parallelogram: You can toggle the shape to a Parallelogram. When this mode is active, the slant property adjusts the interior angle of the parallelogram.

Part 3: Advanced Editing with Special Nodes

For more direct, on-canvas editing, you can use the Node Editor. When you select a trapezoid and enter node editing mode, you will see it has several special nodes for quick adjustments.

• Slant Node: This diamond-shaped node allows you to click and drag to visually adjust the slant percentage.
• Size/Proportion Node: This corner node allows you to change the overall size and proportions of the shape’s bounding box, just as you did when first creating it.
• Shape Switch Node: This node allows you to quickly switch the shape between a Trapezoid and a Parallelogram.
• Position Node: The node at the center of the shape can be used to click and drag the entire shape to a new position.

Part 4: Converting to Curves for Manual Editing

The special nodes are excellent for quick, parametric adjustments. However, if you need to manually edit the outline of the shape (e.g., curve a line or move a single corner point), you must first convert it into a standard vector object.

• Select the trapezoid shape.
• From the top menu or a right-click context menu, choose the Convert to Curves option.

Important Note: Once a shape has been converted to curves, the special editing nodes described in Part 3 will no longer be available. The shape will now have standard nodes at each corner that can be manipulated individually for full creative control. This action cannot be undone by simply re-selecting the shape tool.