Manipulating graphics

After you draw a picture with the drawing tools and apply colors to your picture, you might want to move an object in your picture to a new place in the animation frame or remove part of a picture that doesn’t look right.

The selection tool allows you to select a portion of your picture so you can work with just that piece. To see how this works, experiment with moving or removing part of the picture you just colored:

1. Open the set you saved in the last procedure if it isn’t currently open.
2. Click the selection tool in the toolbox.
3. Move the pointer to the left and slightly above the ellipse in the animation frame. The pointer changes to a cross.
4. Drag the cross diagonally down to the lower right of the ellipse. The selection tool draws a box around the ellipse.
   
   
   
   
5. Release the mouse button and move the pointer inside the selection box. The pointer changes to a hand.
6. Click and hold the mouse button down to drag the selected ellipse to a new location. The ellipse moves wherever you move the pointer.
7. Release the mouse button to put the ellipse in a new place. The selection box remains around the ellipse. This allows you to change your mind and move it again. If you select a different tool, the selection box disappears.

In the same way that you use the selection tool to move an object, you can use it to delete an object. To delete an object, try this:

1. Select the selection tool and draw a box around a shape in the animation frame.
2. Press the delete key on your keyboard. The shape you selected disappears.

Sometimes when creating a picture, you might want to remove a part of a shape. The eraser tool lets you erase part of your picture in the same way an eraser lets you erase something from a blackboard.

To experiment with erasing, try erasing half of the two- colored ellipse:

1. Click the eraser tool in the toolbox.
2. Move the pointer into the animation frame. The pointer changes to an eraser.
3. Hold the mouse button down and move the eraser over the left half of the ellipse. The eraser tool erases part of the ellipse by replacing it with background color.
   
   

You might even want to remove a special form from you picture. Use the lasso selection tool in this case.

1. Select the lasso selection tool from the toolbox by clicking it once.
2. Move the pointer into the animation window.
3. The pointer changes to a lasso.
4. Hold the mouse button down while you move (drag) the lasso.
5. A line appears conforming to the movement of the lasso. Outline the shape you want to remove. It is important that your line ends where you have started with it.
6. Release the mouse button.
7. Press the delete key on your keyboard. Of course you can also move or copy your lasso selection.

When you use the selection tool to remove an object or part of an object from a picture, you remove a rectangular chunk. By using the eraser tool or the lasso selection tool, you have greater flexibility in the part you take out of a picture.