Using the context toolbar

The context toolbar brings commonly used options to hand. If you’re performing an operation on a particular type of object, e.g. a picture, text, frame, curve, etc., it’s really time-saving and less cumbersome to use the Context toolbar as a shortcut instead of navigating through menus. The context toolbar does this well and, as its name suggests, the options or tools shown will be specific to the currently selected object. As an example, only photo-related options show on the Picture context toolbar for any selected picture, i.e.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture 2 Using the context toolbar

Simply deselect the picture and the context toolbar will change to the Page context toolbar by default, or if a different object is selected, to the Context toolbar for that object (e.g., Text context toolbar for a text object).

A whole variety of context toolbars may be displayed. The main ones include the Pages, Picture (see above), Text, Frame, Curve and Warp context toolbars; each provide support for the “in-context” currently selected object.

Pages context toolbar

PagePlus tbr contextpages pagesetup Using the context toolbar

Page Setup
Displays a dialog for modifying the publication dimensions and format.

PagePlus tbr contextpages pagesize Using the context toolbar

Page Size
Set the publication’s page size from the drop-down list.

PagePlus tbr contextpages publicationorientation Using the context toolbar

Publication Orientation
Set the whole publication’s page orientation to be landscape or portrait. Affects all pages.

PagePlus tbr contextpages pageorientation Using the context toolbar

Page Orientation
Set the currently selected page’s orientation, either as landscape or portrait.

PagePlus tbr contextpage pagemanager Using the context toolbar

Page Manager
Click to display the Page Manager or Master Page Manager, which provides multiple options for inserting and deleting pages or master pages, assigning master pages to pages, and navigating to a page.

PagePlus tbr contextpage layoutguides Using the context toolbar

Layout Guides
Displays a dialog that lets you change the page margin, row/column, and bleed guide settings.

PagePlus tbr contextpage setuserdetails Using the context toolbar

Set User Details
Displays a dialog that lets you review and change User Details (such as name, address, etc.) you’ve entered when you first use a design template previously.

PagePlus tbr contextpage options Using the context toolbar

PagePlus Options
Displays a dialog that lets you customize a wide range of PagePlus settings, including layout choices, ease-of-use features, etc.

Picture context toolbar

PagePlus tbr contextpicture photolab Using the context toolbar

PhotoLab
Click to launch a studio environment for applying adjustments and effects individually or in combination. See Applying PhotoLab filters.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture cutoutstudio Using the context toolbar

Image Cutout Studio
Click to launch a Studio environment where objects can be cutout from their background. See the topic Using Image Cutout Studio.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture editinphotoplus Using the context toolbar

Edit in PhotoPlus
For more advanced photo editing, click to launch and edit the selected photo in Serif PhotoPlus (10 or later) with changes applied within PagePlus automatically on PhotoPlus save and exit. Serif PhotoPlus Picture (*.spp) files can also be edited in the same manner.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture replacepicture Using the context toolbar

Replace Picture
Click to open a dialog that lets you select a replacement for the selected picture.
Tip:
You can also choose Picture>Replace Picture… from the Format menu, or right-click the image and choose Replace Picture….

PagePlus tbr contextpicture properties Using the context toolbar

Resource Manager
Click to display the currently selected picture’s attributes (type, size, resolution, and native/placed dimensions) in the Resource Manager.
Tip:
You can also select the picture and choose Picture>Resource Manager… from the Format menu (or via right-click).

PagePlus tbr contextpicture resizepicture Using the context toolbar

Resize Picture
Click to display the Picture Size & Resolution dialog.

  • In the Placed Image section, you can set a specific Width and/or Height, or rescale the image as a percentage of its original size, using your choice of measurement units. Click the PagePlus size ar Using the context toolbar Aspect Ratio button to adjust the two dimensions in proportion, or independently.

  • In the Resolution section, drag the slider to adjust the horizontal and vertical resolution in pixels per inch, or enter specific values. You can also click the PagePlus size web Using the context toolbar Web or PagePlus size pr Using the context toolbar Print buttons to define standard resolution values for these media (96 ppi and 300 ppi, respectively).
    ·
    If Allow resampling remains checked, the image will stay the same size and be resampled to the specific Width and Height you’ve entered. You can select from various resampling methods (Bicubic, Bilinear, Lanczos3, or Nearest).
    ·
    If Allow resampling is unchecked, the upper Placed Image values change also, and the image is resized accordingly on the page.

  • The “Placed Image” refers to an embedded copy of a given image. If the picture is linked and you resize it, this doesn’t actually affect the source file but embeds the image.

  • You can also right-click the image and choose Properties>Size and Resolution….

PagePlus tbr contextpicture recolourpicture Using the context toolbar

Re-color picture
Select to replace color information in the image with shades of a single hue, and/or adjust its overall lightness. Select a hue by clicking a sample in the color gallery. To restore the original coloration, click the
PagePlus tab swatches none Using the context toolbar button. To alter image lightness, select a shade or tint in the Shade/Tint drop-down menu or select a percentage value in the list. (Select original to reset lightness values.)The swatch at the lower left shows the combined effect of the Hue and Shade/Tint adjustments

PagePlus tbr contextpicture transparentcolour Using the context toolbar

Transparent Color
Choose the tool, then left-click on the image and drag to magnify pixels under the cursor. Release the mouse button to mark the specific color under the cursor as transparent. Note: Before clicking, you can press Esc to cancel the tool.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture redeye Using the context toolbar

Red Eye
Click to enable the Red Eye Tool. Use the cross-hair cursor to drag a marquee around the eye and then release. See the topic Red eye adjustment.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture decreasecontrast Using the context toolbar PagePlus tbr contextpicture increasecontrast Using the context toolbar 

Decrease/Increase Contrast
Click to narrow or expand the tonal range by one increment at a time. See also Auto Contrast, Brightness and Contrast or Shadows and highlights as adjustment filters to fine-tune picture contrast.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture decreasebrightness Using the context toolbar PagePlus tbr contextpicture increasebrightness Using the context toolbar 

Decrease/Increase Brightness
Click to make the image darker or lighter by one increment at a time.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture autolevel Using the context toolbar

Auto Level
Auto Level assigns a new “top” and “bottom” to the tonal range, making the darkest image pixel black and the lightest one white, and spreading out the in-between pixels over a wide tonal range.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture autocontrast Using the context toolbar

Auto Contrast
The Auto Contrast feature adjusts image contrast, i.e. the spread between lightest and darkest values across the full tonal range. This can be used to fix poorly scanned/developed photos.

PagePlus tbr contextpicture frameproperties Using the context toolbar

Frame Properties
Click to display a dialog showing picture positioning and alignment options for the selected picture frame.
Tip:
You can also choose Picture>Frame Properties… from the Format menu, or right-click the picture frame and choose Properties>Frame Properties….

PagePlus tbr contextpicture positionimage Using the context toolbar

Position Image
When enabled, the picture can be panned, rotated, and resized within its picture frame. Click again to lock the picture’s position in the frame.

Frame context toolbar

PagePlus tbr contexttext sort Using the context toolbar

Sort
Sorts the currently selected list alphabetically and numerically.

PagePlus tbr contexttext writeplus Using the context toolbar

WritePlus
Click to launch the current story or artistic text in WritePlus.

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe previousframe Using the context toolbar

Previous Frame
Jumps to the previous frame in a linked frame sequence.

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe nextframe Using the context toolbar

Next Frame
Jumps to the next frame in a linked frame sequence.

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe fittextflyout Using the context toolbar

Displays a Text Sizing flyout for controlling how frame text scales through the text frame.

 

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe autofit Using the context toolbar Fit Text
Click to scale the story’s text size so it fits exactly into the available frame(s); further text added to the frame will cause text overflow. (See the topic Fitting text to frames.)
Tip:
You can also press Ctrl+Alt+X.

 

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe enlargestorytext Using the context toolbar Enlarge Text
Click to increase the story’s text size one increment.

 

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe shrinkstorytext Using the context toolbar Shrink Text
Click to reduce the story’s text size one increment.

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe autofitflyout Using the context toolbar

The Autofit Options flyout offers three autofit modes which continuously act upon a selected frame’s story text.

 

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe noautofit Using the context toolbar No Autofit
This is the normal mode of operation where, if selected, text won’t automatically scale throughout the selected text frame, possibly leaving partly empty frames at the end of the frame sequence.

 

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe shrinktextonoverflow Using the context toolbar Shrink Text on Overflow
If selected, extra text added to a selected frame will shrink all frame text to avoid text overflow.

 

 PagePlus tbr contexttextframe bestfit Using the context toolbar Autofit
If selected, the frame will always scale text automatically by adjusting text size (compare to Fit Text which fits text once, with any additional text causing text overflow).

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe framesetup Using the context toolbar

Frame Setup…
Click to display a dialog for editing the current frame margins and columns.

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe framescolumns Using the context toolbar

Columns
Sets the number of columns (e.g., 2) for the text frame.

Text context toolbar

PagePlus tbr contexttext styles Using the context toolbar

Styles
Displays the named style of text at the cursor position: either a character style (if one is applied locally) or the paragraph style. To apply a named style, click in the text, then select the style name in the drop-down list. To define a style based on the selected text’s properties, type a style name into the box and press Enter. (See the topic Using text styles.)

PagePlus tbr contexttext font Using the context toolbar

Font
Displays the font of text at the cursor position. To change the font of selected text, click a new font name in the drop-down list. (See the topic Setting text properties.)

PagePlus tbr contexttext pointsize Using the context toolbar

Point Size
Displays the point size of text at the cursor position. To change the size of selected text, click a new point size in the drop-down list, or type in a value and press Enter.

PagePlus tbr contexttext bold Using the context toolbar PagePlus tbr contexttext italic Using the context toolbar

Bold and Italic
Click buttons to apply bold and/or italic font styles to the applied text at the cursor position.

PagePlus tbr contexttext otherattributesflyout Using the context toolbar

Other Attributes flyout
Click the down arrow to display a selection of additional attributes (underline, various caps, subscript/superscript, ligatures and fractions) that can be applied. Multiple attributes can be enabled at the same time by clicking.

PagePlus tbr contexttext opentypeflyout Using the context toolbar

OpenType flyout
Click the down arrow to display a selection of OpenType font features that can be applied to the currently selected OpenType font. Multiple attributes can be enabled at the same time.

PagePlus tbr contexttext alignstyleall Using the context toolbar

Alignment buttons
The “down” button indicates the paragraph alignment of text at the cursor position (Left, Centerd, Right, or Justified). To change the alignment of selected text, click a different button.

PagePlus tbr contexttext bulletedlist Using the context toolbar

Bulleted List
Applies a simple bulleted list style to your text. (See the topic Creating a bulleted or numbered list.)

PagePlus tbr contexttext numberedlist Using the context toolbar

Numbered List
Applies a simple numbered list style to your text. (See the topic Creating a bulleted or numbered list.)

PagePlus tbr contexttext decreaselevel Using the context toolbar

Decrease Level
Moves current paragraph down one level.

PagePlus tbr contexttext increaselevel Using the context toolbar

Increase Level
Moves current paragraph up one level.

PagePlus tbr contexttext writeplus Using the context toolbar

WritePlus
Click to launch the current story or artistic text in WritePlus.

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe enlargestorytext Using the context toolbar

Enlarge Story Text
Click to increase artistic text size one increment. Double-click for a bigger increase.

PagePlus tbr contexttextframe shrinkstorytext Using the context toolbar

Shrink Story Text
Click to reduce the artistic text size one increment. Double-click for a greater reduction.

PagePlus tbr attributes editfill Using the context toolbar

Edit Fill
Click to display a dialog combining various fill properties, including shading and colors for solid and gradient fills. Bitmap fills can also be applied from various categories.

PagePlus tbr attributes lineborder Using the context toolbar

Line/Border
Click to display a dialog to control various line properties around the text.

PagePlus tbr attributes edittransparency Using the context toolbar

Edit Tansparency
Click to display a dialog which lets you apply/edit solid, gradient (Linear, Ellipse, or Conical) or bitmap transparencies (natural textures).

PagePlus tbr contexttext pathtext Using the context toolbar

Path Text flyout
Click to display a flyout of preset path shapes dialog which lets you create text on a path from your selected artistic text.

Curve context toolbar

PagePlus tbr contextcurve addnode Using the context toolbar 

Add Node
Adds a new node halfway along a line segment. Select the leading node of the segment (the node nearer the start of the line), then click this button. You can also double-click a line segment with the Pointer Tool to add a node at that point.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve deletenode Using the context toolbar 

Delete Node
Click to delete the selected node(s). The node will be deleted, along with any associated attractor nodes, and the line or shape will jump to its new shape. You can also press the Delete key.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve closecurve Using the context toolbar 

Close Curve
Turns a curved line into a closed shape. Select the line, then click this button to connect the line’s two end nodes.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve breakcurve Using the context toolbar 

Break Curve
Breaks open a curve (creating two lines) or a closed shape (creating a curved line). Select the node where you want the break to occur, then click this button.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve straightsegment Using the context toolbar 

Straighten Line
Turns a curved line segment into a straight line segment. Select the leading node of the segment (the node nearer the start of the line), then click this button. To make a straight segment curved, use the Sharp, Smooth, Symmetric, or Smart Corner buttons.

PagePlus  Using the context toolbar t/uploads/sub/pageplus/en/source/graphics/tbr_contextcurve_sharp.png" style="width:22px;height:22px" width="22" height="22" border="0" class="hcp6"> 

Sharp Corner
Click to change a selected node so the segments on either side are completely independent, and the corner can be pointed.

PagePlus nodes1 Using the context toolbar

 

PagePlus tbr contextcurve smooth Using the context toolbar 

Smooth Corner
Click to change a selected node so the slope of the segments on either side is the same, but the depth of the two joined segments can be different.

PagePlus nodes2 Using the context toolbar

 

PagePlus tbr contextcurve bezier Using the context toolbar 

Symmetric Corner
Click to change a selected node so the segments on either side have equal slopes and equal depth.
Note:
Normally, Bézier segments you draw with the Pen Tool end in a symmetric corner. You can press C while drawing such a segment to define a “cusp” or sharp corner instead.

 

PagePlus nodes3 Using the context toolbar

PagePlus tbr contextcurve smartsegment Using the context toolbar 

Smart Corner
Click to change a selected node to automatically determine slope and depth for a rounded, best-fitting curve.
Note:
If you attempt to adjust a smart corner’s handles, it reverts to a symmetric corner. You can always reset the node to smart-but to maintain smart nodes, be careful what you click on!

 

PagePlus nodes5 Using the context toolbar

PagePlus tbr contextcurve straightenalllines Using the context toolbar

Straighten All Lines
Changes all segments in the selected object to straight lines.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve fitcurves Using the context toolbar 

Fit Curves
Optimizes the editability of the selected shape by changing most segments to curved lines and eliminating extra nodes.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve reversecurves Using the context toolbar

Reverse Curves
Click to switch the ordering of nodes, so that the start of the curve becomes its end (without changing the shape of the curve). This is particularly useful with text on a path. For example, if you had text running around the inside of a circular line (or donut converted to curves), clicking Reverse Curves would flip the text to the outside of the curve.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve linestyles Using the context toolbar

Line Styles
Accesses the Line and Border dialog to change line styles and other line properties.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve linewidth Using the context toolbar

Line Width
Enter a point value (then press Enter) to change the weight (thickness) of the selected line.

PagePlus tab line startstyle Using the context toolbar

Line start
Displays the style of the start point of the selected line. To change, click a different example in the drop-down list.

PagePlus tab line type Using the context toolbar

Line Style
Displays the style of the selected line (solid, calligraphic, dotted, dashed, double). To change the style, click a different example in the drop-down list.

PagePlus tab line endstyle Using the context toolbar

Line end
Displays the style of the end point of the selected line. To change, click a different example in the drop-down list.

 

End Scale
Enter a percentage scaling allowing line ends to be scaled differently to the current line width.

Mesh Warp context toolbar

PagePlus  Using the context toolbar oads/sub/pageplus/en/source/graphics/tbr_contextmesh_disablewarp.png" style="width:24px;height:24px" width="24" height="24" border="0">

Disable Warp
Click to disable the warp effect on a selected object. This can be used to temporarily switch off the mesh warp—you can click the Warp Tool again to enable the effect again.

 

Preset Warps
Click the down arrow to replace your currently applied mesh warp with a preset hosted on the flyout menu.

PagePlus tbr contextcurve addnode Using the context toolbar PagePlus tbr contextcurve deletenode Using the context toolbar PagePlus tbr contextcurve sharp Using the context toolbar PagePlus tbr contextcurve smooth Using the context toolbar PagePlus tbr contextcurve bezier Using the context toolbar

See Curve context toolbar.

PagePlus tbr contextmesh hideshowmesh Using the context toolbar

Hide/Show Mesh
Click to hide the mesh for a better preview of the object. Click again to reveal the mesh for editing.

PagePlus tbr contextmesh hideshowgrid Using the context toolbar

Hide/Show Grid
Click to hide/show the mesh grid, used to aid the alignment of nodes and segments. Click again to reveal the mesh for editing.

PagePlus tbr contextmesh resetmesh Using the context toolbar

Reset Mesh
Click to reset the mesh to full-frame and rectangular. Alternatively, use Undo to remove all warping and reset the mesh to its original state.

PagePlus tbr contextmesh warpfills Using the context toolbar

Warp Fills
Click to extend the warp effect to the object’s fill.

PagePlus tbr contextmesh converttocurves Using the context toolbar

Convert to Curves
Click to convert the envelope to curves.

PagePlus tbr contextmesh createobjectstyle Using the context toolbar

Create Object Style
Click to save a custom envelope as an object style. From the dialog, check the style attributes you want to retain, and name the style to be saved in the chosen Styles tab’s category (use Browse… button to choose category).

 

Using the context toolbar