Symbol Management

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You may be used to importing files, such as logos, when you need them. That's worked for years, but it takes a couple steps — first you have to save (just in case the computer picks this time to crash on you); then you go to the File menu and select Import or Open, or you click a button in your Main toolbar. Then you have the fun of trying to remember where you've filed the document you need. If you decided to open the document instead of importing it, you have to select everything and copy it. Finally, you place the graphic on your page.

Clicking a symbol in the Library and dragging it to the document is much quicker.

A distinct advantage to working with a symbol is that you can make global changes in a document quickly by editing the symbol. In that way, you can change every instance of an outdated logo in one edit. If a company phone number changes and you have the phone number as part of a symbol, change the number in the symbol, and all the instances of the number are corrected.

It's all in a name

When an element is in the Library, it's called a symbol. Drag the symbol onto the page and it becomes an instance. Choose Modify ® Symbol ® Remove Instance, and the element is a grouped object. Once you've used Remove Instance on a symbol, it will not be affected by any changes you make to the symbol from which it came. The original symbol will not be affected by this command. Ungroup the object and you are back to the original element — providing you haven't changed the symbol.

Getting symbolic

Making a symbol is really pretty simple, and you have a couple ways to accomplish the task. To do it by the book, select whatever it is you want to symbolize, and go to the Modify ® Symbol menu. Choose to make the symbol by copying or converting the object. As previously mentioned, if you choose to use Copy to Symbol, the original remains editable on the page. This is good if you might want to make slight modifications — such as in the beginning stages of a project — or if you know you want different variations of this object to use as other symbols. Conversely, if you know you're not going to be changing the object in the foreseeable future, choose Convert to Symbol. That leaves the object in place on the page, and there's no original to move or throw away.

Either method places a thumbnail image of the new symbol in the Library. It is also listed with a generic name: Graphic-01, Graphic-02, and so on — even if the graphic is a block of text. Double-click the generic name to retype a new name for the symbol.

You can also create a symbol by dragging the object into the Library list window. This alternative uses the Convert to Symbol method to make the symbol. Or, you can select the object and click the plus sign in the lower-left corner of the Library panel to convert the object into a symbol.

Symbols are stored in the Library in alphanumeric order, so sometimes I add leading numbers to the symbol's name to push it up or down the list. You can store symbols in groups of your own choosing. Groups are also sorted alphanumerically within the Library, but you have the option of opening or collapsing groups to conserve room in the Library. I use groups for particular companies, and subgroups within those for text and graphic symbols. I also have groups of "boilerplate" items used in various standard drawings, such as bolt heads, threaded rods, electronic schematic symbols, and so on.

One of the greatest attributes of a symbol — or a style or master page, for that matter — is that it can be exported. Symbols and master pages end up in the Symbols folder in the FreeHand ® English folder, and styles appear in the Styles folder inside the English folder. After exporting a symbol, you can import that same symbol into a new FreeHand document for use.

Using a symbol

Now that you've got a Library full of useful symbols (see Figure 8-1), how do you use them? Just click through the symbol name list in the Library. Each time you select a symbol, its thumbnail appears in the preview window. When you find the one you want, drag the thumbnail or the symbol name onto your document. When you release the mouse, the symbol is selected, and you can start modifying its location and size, as needed.


Figure 8-1: This library is filled with electronic schematic symbols.

Editing symbols

Double-click a symbol name or its thumbnail, or click the Library Options pop-up menu triangle in the top-right corner of the panel and select Edit from the menu to open a new window with the symbol in it. You are free to do any modification, including deleting the object and replacing it with something else. When your modifications are complete, just close the window — there's no Save or OK button to worry about in this process. You return to the document window, and all instances of the symbol have the changes you just made to the original. If you used Remove Instance on any symbols, those objects are affected.

Remember that if you decide to edit a symbol, the changes occur only in that particular document. For instance, consider that you created a symbol, and dragged an instance of it onto another document. In the original document, you double-click the symbol to enter the Edit Symbol window, and you make changes to the symbol. Auto-update is selected by default, and will cause the symbol to be updated as soon as you close the Edit Symbol window. But, the symbol in the second document will remain in its original unedited state. If you choose to edit a symbol from its location in the English ® Symbols folder, the changes are reflected in any future instances, but do not affect existing instances. Any instances remain in place in their original state.



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Macromedia Studio MX Bible
Macromedia Studio MX Bible
ISBN: 0764525239
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 491

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