Style shapes and connectors
Everything visual lives in the format panel on the right, and every setting there is really editing one string. Once you know that, styling a hundred shapes consistently becomes trivial.
Copy the style from a shape you have already got right, rather than setting each property again.
#What this is for
Making a diagram match a house style.
Applying one shape's styling to many others.
Fine control that the panel does not expose.
#How it works
Action | How |
|---|---|
Fill and stroke | The Style tab of the format panel, with the shape selected. |
Copy a style | Right-click, Edit Style to copy the string; or Copy Style and Paste Style between shapes. |
Edit the raw style | Ctrl+E opens the style string for the selection. |
Text style | The Text tab: font, size, alignment, and spacing. |
Line style | Dashed, dotted, width, and arrowheads at each end. |
Default style | Right-click, Edit Style on a shape, then set as default for new shapes. |
#A few things that catch people out
Ctrl+E is the power user's route: paste a style string onto twenty shapes and they all match exactly.
Copy Style and Paste Style is faster than the panel for making two shapes consistent.
Colour alone should never be the only signal. Some readers cannot distinguish it.
#Related
The canvas rewards ten minutes of learning.
