A Guide to QuarkXPress 2022

Creating text and picture boxes

There are three ways to create boxes:

• To create a no-content box (a box that can be changed into a picture box or a text box), click and drag with the Rectangle Box tool , the Oval Box tool , or the Starburst tool . You can declare text content by pressing T as you draw a no-content box. You can declare picture content by pressing R as you draw a no-content box.

• To create a rectangular text or picture box, click and drag with the Text Content tool or Picture Content tool .

• To create a Bézier box, use the Bézier pen tool . For more information, see "Creating Bézier boxes."

You can create boxes with the following tools:

To change a no-content box into a text box, press Command+E/Ctrl+E and import a text file.

To change a no-content box into a picture box, press Command+E/Ctrl+E and import a picture file.

You can change the corner type of rectangular boxes to rounded, concave, and beveled corners using the Item > Shape submenu or the Box Corner Style drop-down menu in the Measurements palette. You can add and alter rounded corners by entering values in the Box Corner Radius field in the Home tab of the Measurements palette. Any attributes you apply to one box (borders, colors etc.) can be copied and applied to any other existing box using the Item Form Painter tool on the Tool palette. see "Copying attributes from one box to another."

-Point Reference Grid

A big benefit that QuarkXPress has always had is the ability to specify the positioning of objects precisely by entering coordinates in the measurements palette - allowing objects to be precisely aligned at specific locations. A feature commonly requested by designers is the ability to define the position of page elements using different reference points, e.g. change the reference point to the lower right corner instead of using top left corner as default, when you do this, the coordinates displayed in the measurements palette will adjust to be relative to this point.

When you resize a box using width and height settings on the measurements palette, it always grows to the right and bottom of the page. The new 9-Point Reference Grid option in the measurements palette will allow you to change reference point for all the nine points referred which include a center point: when you then resize the box, it will resize relative to the selected point.

• On the measurements palette, you can select any of 9-reference points as indicated.

• Once you set a Reference Point, all boxes in that particular layout will work with respect to the selected reference point. On creating a new project, the reference point will be reset to the 'Top Left'.

• The box will rotate from the selected Reference Point, not from the center if you rotate it manually or by using a mouse. 

Resizing boxes

You can resize any box by modifying the size of its bounding box. A bounding box is a non-printing, rectangular shape that encloses every box. The box's item handles demarcate the bounding box. The best way to view the bounding box clearly is to use the Item tool to select item handles on a Bézier box.

You can resize active boxes using any of the following methods:

• Select the Item tool or a Content tool and move the mouse pointer over a selected box's item handle to display the Resizing pointer. Click and drag the handle to a new location to reduce or enlarge the box. Press Shift to maintain the box's aspect ratio. Press Option/Alt to resize the box from the center. Press Command/Ctrl to resize the box contents along with the box.

• Enter values in the W and H fields of the Home or Space/Align tabs of the Measurements palette to change the width and height, and then press Return/Enter.

  Use keyboard increments to automatically increase/decrease the value in this field. See "Palettes" for more information.

Auto Grow/Shrink Text Boxes

QuarkXPress lets the box grow or shrink automatically during text input, text import/text copy paste/drag and drop text. This feature adds huge benefit for the designer since they now do not have to keep dealing with the text over matter or keep readjusting box to fit to the text length. User can set text box width, height or both to auto.

A text box can auto-grow up to the page margin (width wise and height wise). Auto (grow/shrink) property is only applicable for rectangular text boxes and will be turned off in case of non-rectangular boxes, boxes having text angle or text skew.

• You can now set Width/Height of box to Auto or Fixed through measurements palette.

Locking box and picture proportions

To lock the selected box's proportions, display the Home tab of the Measurements palette and click the proportion lock control next to the W and H fields. If this control is locked, QuarkXPress maintains the item's aspect ratio during resizing operations.

To lock the proportions of the picture in the selected box, display the Home tab of the Measurements palette and click the proportion lock control next to the X% and Y% fields. If this control is locked, QuarkXPress maintains the picture's aspect ratio during resizing operations.

To use the proportion-locking feature with the Item Find/Change feature, display the Box or Picture tab of the Item Find/Change palette (Edit menu), then check or uncheck Proportions in the Find What or Change To area.

To use the proportion-locking feature with item styles, display the Box or Picture tab of the Edit Item Style dialog box (Edit > Item Styles) and check Proportions.

Reshaping boxes

You can change the shape of a box in three ways:

• You can change the shape entirely by choosing a different option from the Item > Shape submenu.

• You can use the Box Corner Radius field in the Home or Space/Align tab of the Measurements palette. Enter the value manually or place the cursor in the fields and use the up/down arrow keys to automatically increase/decrease the value. Using the Shift/Alt key in conjunction with the up/down arrow keys changes the amount the value is increased/decreased. See the chart in "Palettes."

• You can reshape Bézier boxes by repositioning points, curve handles, and line segments. For more information, see "Understanding Bézier shapes."

Adding borders to boxes

Borders are decorative elements that can be placed around any type of box. To access border controls for active boxes, display the Border tab of the Measurements palette.

Use the controls in these tabs to specify a border style, width, color, and opacity. If the border style contains gaps, you can also specify gap color and opacity.

When using the Border tab of the Measurements palette, you can choose to apply the same border to all sides of the box, or different borders to each side. Check Multiple Borders to apply different borders to all sides of the box. Select the top, bottom, right, or left box frame icons to apply a border to one or more sections of the box at a time. 

Use Line Drawing Order to choose the drawing order for the borders (Vertical/Horizontal on Top).

You can also create your own border styles in the Dashes and Stripes dialog box (Edit menu) and specify border settings in an Item Style. For more about Item Styles, see "Item Styles XTensions software."

Applying colors to boxes

To apply a background color to active boxes, do one of the following: 

• Display the Colors palette (Window > Colors), click the Background Color button , and then use the controls in the palette.

• Use the controls in the Home tab of the Measurements palette.

The controls available are as follows:

• Box or Background Color: Lets you specify the background color for the box.

• Shade: Lets you specify the tint of the background color (0% = white, 100% = full color).

• Opacity: Lets you control the transparency of the box background (0% = fully transparent, 100% = fully opaque).

You can also specify box color in an Item Style. For more about Item Styles, see "Item Styles XTensions software".

Applying gradients to boxes

A gradient is a gradual transition from one color to another.

To apply a gradient to the background of active boxes, see Creating gradients".

Specifying number of columns in text boxes

To specify the number of columns in a text box,

Use the Cols field and the Gutter field in the Home tab and the Text tab of the Measurements palette to specify how many columns the text box should have and how wide their gutters should be.

Merging and splitting boxes

Options in the Merge or Split Paths submenu (Item menu) let you create complex Bézier boxes from existing boxes. For example, if a rectangular box overlaps an oval box, you can select the submenu and choose an option that will create a single box with the same content. If you merge two picture boxes, one picture will display in the combined box. If you merge two text boxes, the text from one of the boxes will be deleted.

 QuarkXPress has new tools on measurements palette, whose icons graphically depict the merge or split behavior, making them more intuitive for designers to easily access and create complex shapes with the combination of two or more shapes.

•  Intersection: Keeps only the overlapping areas of the selected items. The color of the back-most item is applied to the new single item.

•  Union: Combines all the selected items into one box, keeping both the overlapping and non-overlapping areas. The color of the back-most item is applied to the new single item.

•  Difference: Removes the overlapped areas from the back item and deletes the front-most item from the selected items.

•  Reverse Difference: Removes the overlapped areas from the front item and deletes the back-most item from the selected items.

•  Exclusive Or: Leaves all the shapes intact but cuts out overlapping areas. It creates two bezier points at each location where any two lines originally intersected. It is used to create a 'see-through' effect with overlapping items.

• Combine command is similar to the Exclusive Or command, but if you look at the points surrounding the cut-out area, you will notice that no points were added where two lines intersect.

•  Join End Points: Two endpoints (one on each path) need to be placed on the top (or within 6 points) of each other. Merges the two points into one corner point.

• Outside Paths command works with a merged box that contains several, non-overlapping shapes. Outside Paths keeps all the outside path information and divides non-overlapping outside paths into separate boxes.

•  Split All Paths: Separates the items from each other until every box within a complex box has been split. If you use this command on a shape that has a hole in it, the hole becomes solid.

Adding text and pictures to boxes

To add text to a box, choose the Text Content tool , double-click the box, and then either start typing, paste text copied from elsewhere, or choose File > Import.

To place a picture in a box, select the box with the Picture Content tool and then either paste a picture copied from elsewhere or choose File > Import.

Changing box type

To convert a selected box to a different type, choose Picture, Text, or None from the Content submenu (Item menu). However, you can also change a text box to a picture box by choosing File > Import and selecting a picture. You can change a picture box to a text box by choosing File > Import and selecting a text file.

To convert a selected text box to a text path, choose a line shape from the Item > Shape submenu.

When you select a Box tool, you can use the following modifier keys to create text or picture boxes:

• Press T as you draw to create a text box.

• Press R as you draw to create a picture box.

Creating a box from a clipping path

If a picture box has an associated clipping path (embedded or automatically created), you can create a new box that has the shape of that clipping path by selecting the picture box and choosing Item > New Box From Clipping.

Copying attributes from one box to another

To copy all of the attributes applied to a box and apply them to a different box:

1. Select the Item Format Painter tool on the Tool palette.

2. Select the box whose attributes you want to copy to "fill" the eyedropper .

   To add other attributes to the Item Format Painter tool, hold down the Shift key as you select the box. The following dialog displays:

   Make any changes you want to the box attributes and click OK. The new attributes are added to the Item Form Painter tool, but are not applied to the selected box.

3. Select any other box to apply the copied attributes.

   To uncheck Apply check box for all panes in the Item Font Painter tool, hold down the Shift+ Opt/Alt as you select the box.

   To uncheck all options in any pane in the Item Font Painter tool, Opt/Alt click on the Apply check box.

   To check all options in any pane in the Item Font Painter tool, Shift+ Opt/Alt click on the Apply check box.

The Item Format Painter works across all layouts in the same project, allowing you to copy attributes from one item to another on the same layout, or to an item on a different layout.

Super Step and Repeat

You can use Super Step and Repeat to transform items as you duplicate them by scaling, rotating, and skewing the items.

ShapeMaker

With ShapeMaker, you can create a wide variety of intricate shapes. You can create new shapes from scratch, or apply new shapes to existing boxes.

To display the ShapeMaker dialog box, choose Utilities > ShapeMaker.

The ShapeMaker dialog box provides tabs that let you create various types of shapes. All of the tabs have the following controls:

• Item: Lets you choose whether you want to create a text box, picture box, no-content box, text path, or rule path.

• Width and Height: Lets you specify the width and height of the box or path. If you have an item or items selected when you choose Utilities > ShapeMaker, these values are filled in automatically to match the selected item or items.

• Columns and Gutters: When Text Box is selected from the Item menu, you can use these fields to specify how many columns the text box should have and how wide their gutters should be.

• Lines and Spacing: When Text Path is selected from the Item menu, you can use these fields to specify how many lines to create and how far apart they are. (If a box is selected and Lines is set to zero, the application will create as many paths as are necessary to fill the area described by that box.)

• Alter Current Box: If a box is selected when you choose Utilities > ShapeMaker, the application updates the shape of that box instead of creating a new item.

The controls in the tabs are described in the topics below.

ShapeMaker Waves tab

The Waves tab of the ShapeMaker dialog box (Utilities > ShapeMaker) lets you create boxes with wavy sides. To use this tab, describe the waves you want to use in the Wave 1 and Wave 2 areas, then assign them to the four sides of the box using the controls in the top part of the tab.

Specify the settings for the wave:

• Top, Left, Bottom, and Right: These controls let you configure the four sides of the box. You can choose Wave 1, Wave 2, or Flat.

• Keep waves parallel: Keeps the waves on either side of the box parallel with one another.

• The controls in the Wave 1 and Wave 2 areas let you choose which type of wave to use, the frequency of the wave, the phase (starting point) of the wave, and the amplitude (depth) of the wave.

Once you have defined the attributes, you can click the Add Preset button to save this shape.

To revert to the default shape, click the Reset button, .

To delete a predefined shape, hold down the Alt/Option key while selecting it from the list.

ShapeMaker Polygons tab

The Polygons tab of the ShapeMaker dialog box (Utilities > ShapeMaker) lets you create polygonal boxes.

Specify the settings for the polygon:

• Type: Choose what type of polygon go create from the drop-down menu. The controls immediately under this drop-down menu change depending on what type of polygon is selected.

  • Regular polygons: Lets you specify how many sides the polygon has.

  • Stars: In addition to specifying how many sides the polygon has, you can specify the radius of the space inside the spikes and superimpose a secondary star at a different size.

  • Polygrams: Similar to Stars, but instead of specifying a radius, you can control the way the sides line up with each other with the Point Skip field.

  • Spirograms: Similar to Polygrams, but creates only an outline.

  • Random polygons: Lets you create polygons with randomized sides

  • Golden rectangle: Lets you create a polygon with the golden ratio (approximately 1:1.618).

  • Double square: Lets you create a polygon in the shape of two adjacent squares.

• Edges: Lets you control whether the edges of the box are flat or curved. If you choose an option other than Flat, you can indicate the curvature of the sides with the Curvature controls. If you choose one of the Swirl options, you can indicate the direction of the swirl with the Orientation controls.

• Randomize Points: Lets you control the degree of randomness in the shape, from 0 (none) to 100 (maximum).

• New Random: Applies some randomness to the shape.

Once you have defined the attributes, you can click the Add Preset button to save this shape.

To revert to the default shape, click the Reset button, .

To delete a predefined shape, hold down the Alt/Option key while selecting it from the list.

ShapeMaker Spirals tab

The Spirals tab of the ShapeMaker dialog box (Utilities > ShapeMaker) lets you create spiral shapes.

Specify the settings for the spiral:

• Type: Choose what type of spiral too create from the drop-down menu.

  • Archimedes: an evenly spaced circular spiral.

  • Golden Spiral: a spiral built with the golden ratio.

  • Custom: this makes the Winds field available, so you can control how many times the spiral goes around.

• Rate: Lets you control how quickly the width of the spiral increases.

• Segments: Lets you control how circular the spiral is allowing you to specify the number of segments per wind.

• Smoothness: Lets you control how smooth the spiral is. You can get a harder-edged shape by lowering the Segments value and decreasing the Smoothness value.

• Clockwise and Counterclockwise: Lets you control the direction of the spiral.

Once you have defined the attributes, you can click the Add Preset button to save this shape.

To revert to the default shape, click the Reset button, .

To delete a predefined shape, hold down the Alt/Option key while selecting it from the list.

ShapeMaker Rectangles tab

The Rectangles tab of the ShapeMaker dialog box (Utilities > ShapeMaker) lets you create rectangular boxes with customized corners.

Specify the settings for the rectangle:

• Check Same for all to configure all four corners of the shape with a single set of controls. To separately configure each corner of the box uncheck Same for all.

• Use the drop-down menus to specify a corner type (Normal, Rounded, Beveled, Concave, Pointed, or Inset) and a diameter (for options that involve a diameter).

• Curvature: Controls how curved the corners are if you select an option that includes curvature.

• Balance: For some options, lets you control whether the corners lean toward the sides of the box or toward the top.

• Radial: For some options, lets you control whether the corners of the box are aligned with the center of the box or not.

Once you have defined the attributes, you can click the Add Preset button to save this shape.

To revert to the default shape, click the Reset button, .

To delete a predefined shape, hold down the Alt/Option key while selecting it from the list.

Creating lines

To create a line, first select the Line tool from the Tools palette and move the Crosshair pointer to any position on the page. Click and drag to draw the line.

You can also create orthogonal lines using the Orthogonal Line tool .

Any attributes you apply to one line (size, shape, appearance etc.) can be copied and applied to any other existing line using the Item Form Painter tool on the Tool palette. see "Copying attributes from one line to another."

Line modes for orthogonal lines

There are four line modes: Endpoints, Left Point, Midpoint, and Right Point. Depending on the mode you choose in the Measurements palette (Home or Space/Align tabs), line length and position will be described differently.

• Endpoints mode: The X1 field indicates the horizontal position of the first end-point; the Y1 field indicates the vertical position of the first end-point. The X2 field indicates the horizontal position of the last end-point; the Y2 field indicates the vertical position of the last end-point.

• Left Point mode: The X1 field indicates the horizontal position of the leftmost end-point; the Y1 field indicates the vertical position of the leftmost end-point.

• Midpoint mode: The XC field indicates the horizontal position of the midpoint of the line; the YC field indicates the vertical position of the midpoint of the line.

• Right Point mode: The X2 field indicates the horizontal position of the rightmost end-point; the Y2 field indicates the vertical position of the rightmost end-point.

Resizing lines

You can resize active straight lines using any of the following methods:

• Select the Item tool and move the Arrow pointer over an item handle to display the Resizing pointer. Click and drag the handle to a new location to reduce or extend the length of the line.

• Choose either Left Point, Midpoint, or Right Point from the Line Mode drop-down menu in the Home or Space/Align tab of the Measurements palette to display the L (Length) field. To precisely change the length of a line, enter a value in the L field, then press Return/Enter.

You can resize any Bézier line by modifying the size of its bounding box. To do so, make sure Item > Edit > Shape is unchecked, and then resize the line as if it were a box.

Reshaping lines

You can change the shape of a line in the following ways:

• You can change the shape entirely by choosing a different option from the Item > Shape submenu.

• You can reshape Bézier lines by repositioning points, curve handles, and line segments. For more information, see "Understanding Bézier shapes."

Controlling line appearance

To control the appearance of active lines, use the controls in the following places:

• Home tab of the Measurements palette

• Colors palette (Window menu) — for line color only

In addition to color, shade, and opacity, you can control the following characteristics for lines:

• Line style: This option lets you control the general appearance of a line. Several line styles are included by default, and you can add new ones with the Dashes & Stripes dialog box (Edit menu).

• Width: You can specify the width of lines in any measurement system. You can also specify a Hairline width; the printed width of a hairline rule is .125 pt on a PostScript imagesetter, with a wider value on some laser printers.

• Arrowheads: You can apply arrowheads to lines using the Arrowheads drop-down menu.

You can also specify line appearance in an Item Style. For more about Item Styles, see "Item Styles XTensions software."

Joining lines

You can merge two lines into one by selecting the Item tool , selecting the lines, and choosing Item > Merge > Join Endpoints. The Join Endpoints command is available when the endpoints of lines or text paths are within six points of each other.

Joining, extending and closing open paths

You can click an endpoint of an existing shape and it selects that point and goes into regular draw mode, so the next click adds a new point and a segment to the selected line. You can add as many segments as you need.

Double-click and endpoint to finish the line as an open path.

Click an opposite endpoint to close the path (just like during the original draw operation).

While drawing, if you click the endpoint of another open path then the path being drawn and the path just clicked become joined. Using these techniques together, you can begin to extend one path, and end up joining it with another.

Copying attributes from one line to another

To copy all of the attributes applied to a line to a different line:

1. Select the Item Format Painter tool on the Tool palette.

2. Select the line whose attributes you want to copy to "fill" the eyedropper .

   To add other attributes to the tool, hold down the Shift key as you select the line. The following dialog displays:

   

   Make any changes you want to the line attributes and click OK. The new attributes are added to the Item Form Painter tool, but are not applied to the selected line.

3. Select any other line to apply the copied attributes.

   To uncheck Apply check box for all panes in the Item Font Painter tool, hold down the Shift+ Opt/Alt as you select the line.

   To uncheck all options in any pane in the Item Font Painter tool, Opt/Alt click on the Apply check box.

   To check all options in any pane in the Item Font Painter tool, Shift+ Opt/Alt click on the Apply check box.

The Item Format Painter works across all layouts in the same project, allowing you to copy attributes from one item to another on the same layout, or to an item on a different layout.

Selecting items

To manipulate items, you must first select them. Once selected, most kinds of items display outlines and handles for reshaping.

To select an item, first select the Item tool , the Text Content tool , or the Picture Content tool and move the Arrow pointer over an item. Click once to select a single item or Shift+click individual items to select more than one item at a time. You can also select multiple items by selecting the Item tool and drawing around an area that contains the items.

If you double-click an empty picture box with the Picture Content tool selected, the Import dialog box displays. If the picture box contains a picture, the Picture Content tool is selected and the Edit Original dialog box displays .

To deselect an active item, click outside it. When the Item tool is selected, you can press Tab to deselect any active items.

Moving items

You can move items by: 

• Entering values in the X and Y fields on the Home tab in the Measurements palette.

  Use keyboard increments to automatically increase/decrease the value in this field. See "Palettes" for more information.

• Manually moving items using the Item tool . If you hold down the mouse before moving a box or text path, you can see the contents as you move the item. You can also "nudge" items by selecting the Item tool and pressing an arrow key on your keyboard.

Cutting, copying, and pasting items

When the Item tool is selected, the Cut, Copy, and Paste commands (Edit menu) are available for active boxes, lines, and text paths. Choose Edit > Paste (Command+V/Ctrl+V) to place a copy of the items contained on the Clipboard in the center of the project window.

When the Item tool is selected, you can remove items with the Delete command. Deleted items are not copied to the Clipboard.

Controlling the stacking order of items

When two or more items overlap, each is either positioned in front of or behind the other item. The term "stacking order" refers to the front-to-back relationship of the various items on a page. Each item you create occupies its own level in the stacking order. Every new item you create becomes the front item.

The Item menu includes commands that let you control item stacking order.

• Choose Item > Send to Back to move an item to the back of the page or layer.

• Choose Item > Bring to Front to move an item to the front of the page or layer.

• To move an item one level backward in the page or layer choose Item > Send Backward.

• To move an item one level forward in the page or layer choose Item > Bring Forward.

Grouping items

You can combine multiple items on a page or spread into a single group. Grouping items is useful when you want to select or move several items simultaneously. You can move, cut, copy, duplicate, and perform a number of other functions on a group. For example, you can group all the items that compose a publication masthead; once grouped, you can modify or move the entire group as you would a single box, line, or text path.

After you create a group, you can still edit, resize, and reposition individual items while maintaining the group relationship. You can also place a copy of a group into an open QuarkXPress library for use in other documents.

Items can be grouped when two or more items (lines, boxes, text paths, or other groups) are active. To select multiple items with the Item tool , either Shift+click each item or draw a marquee around the items you want to group. Choose Item > Group (Command+G/Ctrl+G) to place multiple selected items into a single group.

You can group groups, and multiple-select a group (or groups) along with individual boxes, lines, and text paths to create a larger group.

With the Item tool selected, you can move, cut, copy, paste, duplicate, rotate, and color a group. With the Text Content tool or Picture Content tool selected, you can manipulate individual items as you would any ungrouped item.

To move an item within a group, press Command/Ctrl and select the item with the Item tool , the Text Content tool , or the Picture Content tool .

Choose Item > Ungroup (Command+U/Ctrl+U) to ungroup a single group, or Item > Ungroup All to ungroup every group in a group that contains other groups.

Duplicating items

QuarkXPress lets you make single or multiple copies of boxes, lines, and text paths.

Create a single copy of a selected item using the Duplicate command (Item menu). You can also press Option/Alt while dragging an item or group to create a duplicate.

The Super Step and Repeat feature is useful for laying out design elements that contain a number of evenly spaced copies of an item. Create multiple copies of an item and specify the distance between them using the Super Step and Repeat command (Item menu).

Spacing and aligning items

You can control the position of multiple selected items relative to one another using the Item > Space/Align submenu or the Space/Align tab of the Measurements palette.

You can choose from among eight spacing and six alignment options in the Measurements palette, and you can specify alignment relative to selected items, the page, or (for Print layouts with facing pages) the spread. The Item > Space/Align submenu includes the "Item relative" and "Page relative" modes described below. The Measurements palette also includes a third mode called "Spread relative."

The space/align modes are as follows:

• Item relative mode positions items relative to the uppermost active item, which does not move. The uppermost item is determined by the location of the item's top edges. If two or more items have the same top edges, then items are spaced from the leftmost item.

• Page relative mode positions items relative to the page edges (left, right, top, or bottom).

• Spread relative mode is available for active Print layouts that include facing pages. Assume that you have opened a layout with a spread and then selected an item on a left page and another item on the right page. If you then click the Spread relative mode icon in the Measurements palette and choose Space horizontal centers , the selected items position themselves on the far-left and far-right sides of the spread.

Rotating items

To rotate active items, do one of the following:

• Select the Item tool and move the mouse over a corner handle. When the Rotation pointer displays, click to establish a rotation point; then drag in a circular motion to rotate the item. The Arrowhead pointer and the item's position will display as you drag. If you press the Shift key when rotating, movements are constrained to 45-degree angles.

• Enter a value in the field on the Measurements palette (Home and Space/Align tabs) and press Return/Enter.

  Use keyboard increments to automatically increase/decrease the value in this field. See "Palettes" for more information.

To rotate a straight line, choose either Left Point, Midpoint, or Right Point from the Mode drop-down menu (Measurements palette) to display the Angle field.

Skewing items

To skew active items within bounding boxes, enter a value in the Box Skew field on the Home tab of the Measurement palette.

Positive values slant items to the right; negative values slant them to the left.

Locking and unlocking items

Locking lets you protect items and content from accidental changes. You can do the following:

• To prevent an item's size and position from being changed (and to prevent the item from being deleted), check Item > Lock > Position.

• To prevent an item's contents from being edited, check Item > Lock > Story or Item > Lock > Picture.

To unlock selected items, uncheck the appropriate option in the Item > Lock submenu.

Anchoring items and groups in text

You can anchor an item or group so that it flows as a character within text.

To anchor an item or group within text, use the Item tool to select the item or group you want to anchor and choose Edit > Copy (Command+C/Ctrl+C) or Edit > Cut (Command+X/Ctrl+X).

Then, with the Text Content tool selected, place the text insertion point at the point in text where you want to anchor the item or group and choose Edit > Paste (Command+V/Ctrl+V).

QuarkXPress also provides support for nested anchors (i.e an anchored item can contain a further anchored item to the nth level).

Understanding callouts

A callout is a floating box that always displays on the same page or spread as the content it pertains to. Each callout is anchored to a particular spot in a text story called a callout anchor. A callout anchor flows along with text like a character. When a callout anchor moves to a new page or spread, the callout moves with it. When guides are displayed, a line links each callout anchor with its associated callout (if any).

A callout anchor with its associated callout

A callout's position in a layout is based on two things:

• The location of its callout anchor. A callout is always on the same page or spread as its callout anchor.

• The callout anchor's settings. You can position a callout relative to the spread, the page, the box or cell that contains the callout anchor, the paragraph that contains the callout anchor, or the callout anchor itself.

For example, you can configure a callout so that its horizontal location is always against the outside margin, but its vertical location is always aligned with the paragraph that contains its callout anchor. The settings for such a configuration look like this:

You can control the positioning of a callout by configuring its callout anchor directly, or by applying a callout style to the callout anchor. A callout style is a named package of callout settings that displays in a palette. Callout styles are useful in documents where you use different callout settings over and over; rather than recreating those settings each time, you can simply select the callout anchor and click the appropriate callout style in the Callout Styles palette.

A callout anchor can be selected or unselected. When a callout anchor is selected, it has a red outline and its callout style (if any) is selected in the Callout Styles palette.

When guides are turned off, you can see only the selected callout anchor.

Creating a callout

To create a callout:

1. Select the Text Content tool and place the text cursor at the point in the text where you want the callout anchor to be.

2. Choose Item > Callout Anchor > Insert Callout Anchor. A callout anchor is inserted and automatically selected.

   

3. Select the item or group that you want to make into a callout.

4. Choose Item > Callout Anchor > Associate with Callout Anchor. The item or group becomes a callout, and a line displays between the callout and the callout anchor.

   

5. Configure the callout anchor. There are two ways to configure a callout anchor:

   • To apply a callout style to the callout anchor, display the Callout Styles palette (Window menu) and click the name of the callout style, or choose Item > Callout Anchor > Callout Styles > [Callout Style Name]. For more information, see "Working with callout styles."

   • To edit the settings of the callout anchor directly, choose Item > Callout Anchor > Edit Callout Settings. If a callout style has been applied to the callout anchor, any changes you make will override the callout style's settings.

For information on how to configure a callout anchor or callout style, see "Configuring a callout anchor."

Configuring a callout anchor

To configure a callout anchor:

1. Select the callout anchor and choose Item > Callout Anchor > Edit Callout Settings. The Edit Callout Settings dialog box displays.

2. To control how the callout aligns horizontally, use the controls in the Align callout horizontally relative to area. (The Offset field lets you adjust the horizontal positioning of the callout from where it would otherwise be.)

   If you choose Spread from the Align callout horizontally relative to drop-down menu and specify a horizontal offset, that offset is inverted on left-facing pages. This allows you, for example, to configure a callout to always be .25" inside of the inside margin; on a right-facing page, such an offset moves the callout to the right, but on a left-facing page the offset must move the callout to the left.

3. To control how the callout aligns vertically, use the controls in the Align callout vertically relative to area. (The Offset field lets you adjust the vertical positioning of the callout from where it would otherwise be.)

4. To allow the callout to be manually repositioned, check Allow manual positioning of callout. If you subsequently move the callout, the values in the Offset fields will be automatically updated to reflect the new position of the callout.

   To prevent the callout from being manually repositioned, leave this box unchecked.

5. To prevent the callout from extending beyond the page margins, check Keep within margins.

6. Click OK.

Working with callout styles

Callout styles make it easy for you to apply often-used settings to callout anchors. To create, edit, duplicate, or delete callout styles, use the Callout Styles dialog box (Edit > Callout Styles). You can also use this dialog box to append callout styles from other projects.

Callouts and runaround

If a callout with runaround causes its callout anchor to move, this can lead to an error state. For example, if a callout's runaround pushes its callout anchor to the next page, the callout moves to the next page — which allows the callout anchor to return to the previous page, which causes the callout to return to the previous page, and so on.

When QuarkXPress detects this kind of situation, the following things happen:

1. The callout switches to the settings defined in the Default callout style. An icon displays next to the callout style's name in the Callout Styles palette when the callout anchor is selected.

2. If the error condition still occurs, QuarkXPress applies the No Style settings to the callout and it is positioned at its last valid location.

3. If the application cannot find a valid location, it turns runaround off for the callout. When QuarkXPress turns off a callout's runaround this way, it also places this visual indicator on the callout:

To turn runaround back on for such a callout, use the drop-down menu in the Runaround tab of the Measurements palette.

Drawing a table

To draw a table and specify its properties, do the following:

1. Select the Table tool from the Tool palette, drag to draw a rectangle that is roughly the size of the final table, and then release the mouse button. The Table Properties dialog box displays.

   

2. Specify the number of horizontal rows in the Body Rows field, and specify the number of vertical columns in the Columns field.

3. Specify the number of header rows in the Header Rows field, and specify the number of footer rows in the Footer Rows field.

4. If you want to create text cells that expand as you add text, use the controls in the Auto Fit area.

5. If you want to link text cells so imported text flows through the specified cells — similar to linked text boxes — check Link Cells. If you check Link Cells, you can choose the order in which to link the text cells from the Link Order drop-down menu.

   If you do not link cells in this manner, you can link them later using the Linking tool or the Link Text Cells command (Table menu). In addition, even if you don't link the text cells, you can still use Tab to jump from cell to cell while entering or editing data.

6. If you intend to import data from Excel, check Link to External Data. For more information, see "Importing Excel tables."

7. If you want the table to remain the same size if you add or delete rows, check Maintain Geometry.

8. Click OK.

Converting text to tables

The success of converting text to a table depends on the text preparation itself. It's important that paragraphs, tabs, spaces, or commas (the characters QuarkXPress can convert) are used consistently in a text block, because these characters are used in the table conversion to define rows and columns. It's common for users to use multiple tab characters in a word processor to align columns of data — rather than setting appropriate tab stops. If the text block you are converting has such multiple tab characters, the text block probably has an inconsistent number of tabs between columns of data. You will need to make the tab characters consistent before you convert the text to a table.

To convert text to a table:

1. Using the Text Content tool , select all the text you want to convert to a table.

2. Choose Table > Convert Text to Table to display the Convert Text to Table dialog box. Based on the selected text, QuarkXPress guesses what to Separate Rows With, what to Separate Columns With, and how many Rows and Columns are necessary for the worst-case scenarios in the selected text.

   

3. If you want to create text cells that expand as you add text, use the controls in the Auto Fit area.

4. If you want the information in the table to flow differently — for example, if the values are currently in descending order but would have more impact in ascending order — you can change the flow. Choose an option from the Cell Fill Order drop-down menu (the default is Left to Right, Top Down).

5. Click OK. A new table is created, offset from the original text box.

New Table Model with Table Styles

Formatting tables in QuarkXPress has been time-taking and required repetitive efforts for each table you inserted in a document. The table grid formatting options were limited to rows and columns with no option for cell level border and shading. The latest version of QuarkXPress provides a new table model, offering brand-new table features with an intuitive new user interface for formatting tables and creating table styles.

In Table Styles, you can now capture newly introduced styling rules for table, row, column and cell level formatting along with text styling rules. (in previous versions, table styles support was limited to Inline tables linked to Excel tables only). With the new table model, you can now apply Table Styles to any table created in QuarkXPress directly or imported from Excel source.

QuarkXPress provides table formatting presets (predefined table styles) for various formatting options as a starting point to create custom table styles. 

The table styles palette (Window->Table Styles) allows you to apply a table style to the currently selected table, to create a new table style, to apply a preset table style, or to edit an existing table style.

Table styles can also be edited, created or deleted using the "Edit Table Styles" dialog (Edit->Table Styles).

The user interface for creating or editing a table style is divided into sections allowing you to specify table properties, row properties, column properties and cell properties.

Selecting an option in the column on the left-hand side of this dialog will allow you to specify the properties that are specific to the selected context. For contexts where there are multiple possible options: such as columns and rows - where you can select, for example, header row, all odd rows, all even rows, or footer row, and specify different properties for each - a list is displayed at the top of the dialog, allowing you to choose a more specific context. 

For each selected context (table, row, column, etc.), you can set the border and fill properties, text properties (for text cells in that context) and picture properties (for picture cells within that context).

The new Measurements Palette UI offers much finer control over formatting Tables at the cell level.

Easy access to table formatting features directly from the measurements palette

• Measurements palette offer local formatting on Home tab

  • Contextual to selection — cell, rows, columns or combination for formatting a selection

  • Set border and fill for selected cells

• Dedicated control in the measurements palette to set Grid / Frame properties. Dedicated Table and Cell Tabs in the measurements palette, even when you are working on the cell’s content. 

Added Features

• Simplified Table Properties (Table Creation) dialog with new options to add Table Header/Footer

• Support for cell level grid formatting

• Consolidation of Inline and Design (legacy) tables

• Access to a wider range of table properties through the measurements palette 

• Support for Table Header and Footer (previously, selecting header rows was supported only when the table breaks across the pages). Now header and footer rows can be defined for stand-alone tables as well, without applying Table Break properties.

• Table Styles to support -

  • Easy to use, flexible and comprehensive formatting rules

  • An intuitive user interface to set table and column/row/cell level bordering

  • Set the percentage of column width that an anchored table will occupy

  • Line drawing order for table borders

  • The new set of formatting rules when compared with legacy table styles

  • Rules specific to Column, Row and Cell level formatting

• Table Style Presets

  • Presets for table border and shading styles

  • Duplicate presets to create your own table styles

• Support for Text and Picture formatting in cells

• Support for Multiple Insets for text in addition to Paragraph Styles

• Picture formatting to support new fitting rules in addition to other picture content transforms, scaling, etc.

• Import Excel tables using new Tables Styles (not supported before for legacy table model). For information, see Importing Excel tables

Importing Excel tables

Table data often originates in a spreadsheet program such as Excel, and you can import table data just as you import pictures. Although the technique is slightly different, the results are the same: The table in QuarkXPress is linked to the Excel file for tracking and updating.

If you import a table from Excel using the Link to External Table option in the Table Properties dialog box, table usage will be tracked just as picture usage is tracked. This ensures that you're notified if the source table changes, and that you have the latest table data when you output the layout, whether you print, collect for output, or save as a PDF. To check the status of a table, choose Utilities > Usage, and then click the Tables tab.

You can also import a table from Excel using the Create Table from External Source under the Table menu.

Although you can update tables just as you can update pictures, you'll need to keep the following points in mind:

• If you check Include Formats in the Table Link dialog box when you first import an Excel table, the table's Excel formatting is preserved (as much as possible) in QuarkXPress. If you later update the table, any local formatting you have applied in QuarkXPress is removed and replaced with the formatting from the Excel file.

• If you do not check Include Formats in the Table Link dialog box when you first import an Excel table, the table's Excel formatting is discarded. If you later update the table, QuarkXPress attempts to preserve any local formatting you have applied to the table in QuarkXPress.

To import an Excel table and maintain the link in QuarkXPress:

1. Using the Tables tool, drag to draw a table of approximately the dimensions you need. The Table Properties dialog box displays when you release the mouse button.

2. Check Link to External Data.

3. Click OK to display the Table Link dialog box.

   

4. You can Browse to the location of the source document, select the worksheet containing the table you wish to import, and select the range of cells to import. 

5. If the file includes multiple worksheets, choose the one you want to import from the Sheet drop-down menu. If you want to import only a portion of the data, you can specify a cell range in the Range field or choose a named range from the drop-down menu.

6. You can select to include the text and table formatting already included in the source document ("Options > Include Formats"), and the column widths / row heights ("Options > Include Geometry"). You can also choose whether to hide or show any rows or columns that are hidden in the source Worksheet.

7. You can specify how many rows of the table should be considered header rows ("Header Rows"), whether the box will expand to fit the table (default) or whether the table will be resized to fit the box ("Fit to Box"), and which table style to apply.

8. You can choose to import a Table along with its style from MS Excel. Simply select the "Table Style" drop down to be "Inherit" and import.

9. You can also choose to apply either a preset Table style or a custom created Table style from the "Table Style" drop down on the imported Excel data.

10. Click OK.

Importing Excel charts

If you have charts or pictures created using Insert > Chart or Insert > Picture in Excel that you want to use in a QuarkXPress layout, you can import those charts or pictures the same way you import other pictures. To do this, use the Insert Chart tab of the Import Picture dialog box (File menu). Charts and pictures imported from Excel are tracked by the Pictures tab of the Usage dialog box (Utilities menu) just like other pictures.

Adding text and pictures to tables

When working with tables, think of a table cell as a text box or a picture box. Each box contains content — text that may or may not be linked to the next cell, an individual picture, or nothing (maybe just a gradient). Therefore, you can add content to tables much as you add content to boxes — by typing text, importing text, or importing pictures.

Editing table text

Two important things to know about editing text within tables are how to navigate between cells and how to select text for formatting. As always when working with text, you must first select the Text Content tool .

Navigating through a table works as follows:

• Click in a cell in which you want to enter or import text.

• Press Tab to move to the next cell.

• Press Shift+Tab to go back to the previous cell.

• Press the arrow keys to move through the text in a cell, and to move from cell to cell.

Selecting text in rows and columns works as follows:

• To select all the text in a row, click outside the right or left edge of the table.

• To select all the text in a column, click outside the top or bottom edge of the table.

• To select all the text over several rows or columns, drag along an edge of the table.

• To select text in non-adjacent rows or columns, Shift+click the specific rows or columns.

• To select text in various rows and columns, use the options in the Select submenu of the Table menu. Options include Cell, Row, Odd Rows, Even Rows, Column, Odd Columns, Even Columns, All Cells, Header Rows, Footer Rows, and Body Rows. The Select commands in the Table menu are helpful for applying different formatting to alternating rows or columns.

Linking table cells

When cells are linked, text that is typed, imported, or pasted into a cell fills the first text cell in the linked story, and then flows into each subsequent linked cell. As with text in linked boxes, the Next Column character (enter on the numeric keypad) is helpful for controlling text flow in linked cells. In addition to linking table cells to each other, you can link cells to and from text boxes and text paths.

• To link all the cells in a table, check Link Cells in the Table Properties dialog box when you create the table.

• To link selected cells in a table, choose Table > Link Text Cells. All but the first cell in the selection must be empty.

• To manually link table cells, use the Linking tool . As with linking text boxes, click to select the starting cell and then click the next cell you want to add. To redirect existing links, Shift+click with the Linking tool.

• To unlink table cells, use the Unlinking tool to click the blunt end of the arrow between linked cells.

• To link table cells to text boxes or text paths, use the Linking tool .

Inserting and deleting rows and columns

You can insert rows and columns anywhere within a table. Simply click in a cell that is immediately above or below where you want to add a row. Or, click in a cell to the right or left of where you want to add a column. Then, choose Table > Insert > Row or Table > Insert > Column.

To select rows or columns to delete, drag the arrow pointer over a table edge and then Shift+click the arrow pointer, or use the commands in the Select submenu of the Table menu (such as Odd Rows). Then, choose Table > Delete > Row or Table > Delete > Column.

Combining cells

To combine cells, Shift+click a rectangular selection of cells with the Text Content tool . Choose Table > Combine Cells. To revert combined cells to match the surrounding table, select the combined cells and then choose Table > Split Cells.

Manually resizing tables, rows, and columns

As with other items in QuarkXPress, you can drag to resize rows, columns, and tables. To resize a row or column, click a gridline to display the resize pointer. Drag the pointer up or down to resize a row and left or right to resize a column. To resize an entire table, press one of the following keyboard commands while you drag a resize handle.

Converting tables back to text

If you need to export the current data from a table — for example, to save the data as a Word file — you can convert the information to text. To do so, select the table and then choose Table > Convert Table > To Text.

Working with tables and groups

For flexibility, you can group tables to other items using the Group command (Item menu). In addition, you can disassemble a table by converting its cells to a series of grouped text boxes, picture boxes, or both. This method lets you separate elements of a table and use those elements elsewhere in a layout. To do this, select a table and choose Table > Convert Table > To Group. To work with the individual boxes, choose Item > Ungroup.

Continuing tables in other locations

Because tables do not always fit on one page or spread — or within the space allotted in a design — tables can be automatically continued to other locations anywhere in a layout.

There are two ways to continue tables:

• Anchoring the table in a text box. This is the preferred way to break a table in most situations, because it is easiest to use.

• Breaking the table manually. This method is necessary when you break a table horizontally (for example, if you want to put the first five columns of a table on one page and the remaining three columns on a different page).

When tables are continued, you may still need a legend to explain what's in the table. You can add a legend in the form of automatically created and synchronized header and footer rows, and you can create special "continued" table headers for portions of a table after the first.

Adding header and footer rows to tables

You can specify that header and footer rows repeat automatically in continued instances of tables. Even better, header and footer rows are automatically synchronized, so any changes in the text are reflected throughout all instances of a continued table.

To add header and footer rows to a table:

1. Set up the table to break. For more information, see "Breaking a table manually" and "Anchoring tables in text."

2. There are two ways to create header and footer rows:

   • To create an automatic header, select the first one or more rows of the table and choose Table > Repeat As Header. To create an automatic footer, select the last one or more rows of the table and choose Table > Repeat As Footer.

   • Choose Table > Table Break. The Table Break Options dialog box displays. To set the number of header and footer rows, enter values in the Header Rows and Footer Rows fields, respectively.

   

   To create a secondary header that displays in portions of a table after the first, check Continued Header. For example, if the header on the first portion of the table is "List of Contributors", the continued header might be "List of Contributors (continued)." Click First Header Row to limit the continued header to the first header row, or All Header Rows to create continued headers from all header rows.

   When you're finished, click OK.

3. To set a continued header or footer's contents, go to a portion of the table after the first and change the header contents there.

   You can define Header Rows and Footer Rows either at the time of table creation in the Table Properties dialog or in the Table tab of measurement palette.

You can uncheck Repeat as Header or Repeat as Footer in the Table menu any time to remove the header or footer rows from continued tables.

Once you add automatic header rows and footer rows, the remaining table rows are considered "body rows." Options in the Select submenu of the Table menu let you select all the Header Rows, Footer Rows, and Body Rows in any instance of a continued table for formatting.