Cartoon a Circle or Ellipse

Want to make your LayOut document a footling more well-rounded? Perchance a circle or ellipse can help.

LayOut has both a Circle tool () and Ellipse tool (), which you lot observe on the default toolbar's Circles menu or on the menu bar by choosing Tools > Circles and so selecting your desired tool.

You lot tin can depict a circumvolve or ellipse visually with the mouse or precisely past typing coordinates and values in the Measurements box. As yous describe a circle or ellipse, here are a few handy tips to keep in heed:

  • You can switch between the two methods (cartoon visually or precisely) equally needed. For example, you might use the mouse to place a circumvolve'south center point but utilize the Measurements box to set an exact radius or bore.
  • If you make a mistake, press the Esc key to start over.
  • Absolute coordinates are relative to the drawing area's upper-left corner. For case, to enter an absolute coordinate that'south 4 inches along the X axis and 4.5 inches downwardly the Y axis, type [four",4.five"].

For details virtually drawing circles and ellipses, as well equally tips on these tools' special features, check out the following sections.

Drawing a circumvolve

To draw a circle, follow these steps:

  1. Select the Circle tool ().
  2. Click to place the circumvolve'due south middle point. Or type absolute coordinates in the Measurements box and press Enter (Microsoft Windows) or Render (Mac Os X).
  3. To ascertain the circumvolve's radius, move the cursor away from the center point and click to prepare the circumvolve'due south size. Or blazon a radius or diameter value in a unit of measure. For example, for a 5-inch radius, type five". For a five-inch diameter, blazon 5" d. (If you lot don't specify a unit of measurement of measure, LayOut uses the default units, which you tin set by selecting File > Document Setup and and so opening the Units pane.) Then press Enter or Return.

Tip: Need one or more copies of a circle? Immediately after drawing a circle, double-click in the drawing area to create a copy. Y'all tin keep double-clicking to add as many copies as you need.

Drawing an ellipse

To depict an ellipse, here are the steps to follow:

  1. Select the Ellipse tool ().
  2. To identify the ellipse's starting bespeak, click in the drawing expanse. Or place the starting point at a precise location by typing absolute coordinates in the Measurements box.
  3. To define the shape of the ellipse, movement the cursor away from the starting bespeak. You also take the following options:
    • To constrain the ellipse to a circle, hold down the Shift key.
    • To depict the ellipse from the center (instead of the upper left), agree down the Ctrl key (Microsoft Windows) or Selection primal (Mac Os X).
    • To size the ellipse precisely, blazon accented coordinates for the terminate point or type width and superlative dimensions. The location of your mouse affects the dimensions' direction. For example, to draw an ellipse that expands to the lower-left and that's 4 inches wide and iii inches loftier, type 4,3 and printing Enter or Render. The following effigy shows the ellipse before typing the dimensions (left) and afterwards (right).
  4. If you lot entered precise dimensions, you're done. If you're using the mouse, click to end the ellipse.
When you enter precise dimensions to size an ellipse in LayOut, the placement of the cursor affects the dimensions' direction

Tip: Immediately after you lot create an ellipse, double-click in the drawing area to create an verbal copy. You can continue double-clicking to make as many copies as you need.