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Object Snapping

Snapping is a behavior that affects the placement and size of objects as you move or resize them on the template or data entry form.

When you use snapping, the object (or its dimensions if you are resizing it) is pulled toward a guide or grid, a ruler division mark, or another object. If you drag an object or its sizing handle near one of these elements, the object that you are moving or resizing "snaps" into alignment with that element.

The BarTender snapping effects provide a good way to align one or more objects on your template or data entry form with respect to location and size. This is important from a design perspective, because aligned objects can help unify and organize specific areas of your item. Snapping aligns the objects precisely, whereas trying to align them manually can be time consuming and provide less accurate results.

BarTender provides two methods for snapping: Snap to Object or Ruler and Snap to Grid. Only one of these methods can be used at a time. However, you can configure the settings so that neither method is used, which means that you can move and resize objects without using any snapping behavior. You might want to do this when you are less concerned with precise alignment than you are with exact placement or object size.

You can temporarily suspend snapping at any time. To do this, hold down the Shift key on your keyboard, and then drag or resize your object as needed.

ClosedSnap to Object or Ruler

When you select the Snap to Object or Ruler option, the snapping behavior for the positioning and sizing of objects is based on the position of the division marks of the rulers, on the position of other objects, and on the boundaries and center lines of the templates and data entry forms themselves.

Additionally, when you position objects by snapping to other objects or to the template or the data entry form, the anchors of the objects are often reset. For example, when an object is snapped to the center of the template, the object's anchor is reset to Center (if it was not at Center previously).

When the anchor is reset, the objects that are being snapped to are also affected. For example, if you snap a text object to another text object in a way that aligns their right sides, the horizontal component of the anchor for both objects is reset to the right side (Top Right, Center Right, or Bottom Right, depending on whether the vertical component was previously top, center, or bottom).

Barcode objects do not support the automatic resetting of anchors when snapping is used. To make this feature unavailable for all objects, click to clear the Set anchor when snapping check box on the General tab of the User Preferences dialog.

To select the Snap to Object or Ruler option, use one of the following methods:

ClosedSnap to Grid

When the Snap to Grid option is selected, snapping behavior for the positioning and sizing of objects is based on the intersecting lines of the template or data entry form grid, even when the grid is not visible. By changing your grid settings, you can control the granularity of the snapping behavior (for example, a tighter grid pattern can result in more precise object placement or sizing).

To select the Snap to Grid option, use one of the following methods:

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