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Panel Properties

You can set panel properties in the Properties pane.

CategoryDescriptionAvailable for
N/A
Name

Specifies the actor name. This name appears in the Collaboration or Assembly tree and is the default tooltip text.

Tooltip

Specifies the tooltip text that appears when you hover over the actor. The default is the actor name, but you can select a different property or meta-property, or type a text string. To type text, which itself can contain properties, select String and use the Tooltip string property.

Note: By default, labels attached to an actor display the actor's tooltip text. To change this behavior, modify the label's Text property.
Tooltip string

(Available when Tooltip is String.) Specifies the tooltip text. Type your text, optionally with property keywords. For geometry actors, click to display the Text pane, where you can type multiple lines of text and more easily embed properties.

See Text pane for details on property keywords and the Text pane.

Color

Specifies the actor color.

Opacity

Specifies the opacity, from 0 (transparent) to 255 (solid).

Background

Places the panel behind all 2D and 3D actors in the scene. To keep the panel on top, clear this property. Use the Depth property to control the order of multiple 2D panels.

Depth

Specifies the depth of the panel (if several panels are superposed).

Freeze

Prevents selection of the actor in the viewport. You can select the actor in the Collaboration pane. You can change property values, but you cannot move the actor by dragging it. Frozen actors are not attracted to magnetic lines. Choose one of the following:

No Freeze The actor is not frozen.
Freeze The actor is frozen in Composer Player and Composer.
Freeze only in player The actor is frozen in Composer Player only (and Composer when Design Mode is off).
Clipping for Technical Illustration
Eliminates the panel from vector output when all four panel borders are outside the paper space. To include the panel, such as a large background image or title block, clear this option.
Billboard

Specifies the actor orientation:

  • None - Keeps the creation position.
  • XYZ - Remains parallel to the world frame.
  • XYZ Screen - Remains parallel to the world frame with the size relative to the screen.
  • Up - Keeps the vertical axis.
Scale

Resizes the vector image.

Shape

Specifies the background shape, which does not affect the vector image itself.

RectangleUses a rectangular corresponding to the bounding box.
Circumscribed circleUses a circle that fully encloses the bounding box.
Inscribed circleUses a circle that is fully enclosed by the bounding box. Use the Scale property to resize the image as necessary.
Background
Show

Displays a background.

Color

Specifies the background color.

Opacity

Specifies the opacity, from 0 (transparent) to 255 (solid).

Gradient

Specifies the gradient effect.

Border
Show

Displays the border.

Width

Specifies the border line width, in millimeters.

Opacity

Specifies the border opacity (between 0 and 255).

Color

Specifies the border color.

Type

Specifies the border type.



Attach
Type

Specifies the attachment line style. You can position the attach line by dragging the anchor at either endpoint.

None(no line to the attach point)
Model
Vertex
Gradient tooltip
Tooltip style
Line
User(three anchors)
Simple
Arc tooltip
Basic
Width

(Available when Attach Type is Line, Vertex, Model, Simple, User, or Arc tooltip.) Specifies the width of the attach line, in millimeters.

Color

(Available when Attach Type is Line, Vertex, Model, Simple, or User.) Specifies the attach color.

Curvature

(Available for Arc tooltip only.) Specifies the arc shape. For 2D panels only, you can change the curvature by dragging the curvature anchor in the viewport.

Attach border
Show

Displays an attach border. Not available for all attach types.





Without attach borderWith attach border (pink)
Note: For annotations, Border settings override Attach border settings.
Color

Specifies the attach border color.

Opacity

Specifies the border opacity, between 0 (transparent) and 255 (solid).

Type

Specifies the border line type.



Width

Specifies the attach border width, in millimeters.

Placement
Auto fit

Resizes the panel automatically to fit its text. Disable this property to resize manually. In this case, the text is wrapped automatically. The wrap width matches the size of the 2D panel.

Disabled: One anchor at each corner Enabled: No anchors
Left

Specifies the distance, in millimeters, from the left edge of the paper space.

Top

Specifies the distance, in millimeters, from the top edge of the paper space.

Width

Specifies the panel width, in millimeters.

Height

Specifies the panel height, in millimeters.

Keep aspect ratio

Retains the height-to-width ratio when resizing the panel.

Event
Pulse

Specifies the rate at which the actor flashes, indicating an event is defined:

  • None - No flashing.
  • 200 ms - Flashes every 200 milliseconds.
  • 400 ms - Flashes every 400 milliseconds.
  • 800 ms - Flashes every 800 milliseconds.

Notes:
  • Composer pulses all actors in the scene at the same rate using the most recently set value.
  • In animations, defining a pulse key pauses the animation until the user clicks the actor. Use the Event > Link property to define the action when clicking the actor. If Link is not defined, the actor flashes only when Design Mode (status bar) is cleared.

Pulse Color

(Available when Pulse is not None.) Specifies the flashing color.

Link

Defines the action performed when a user clicks an actor or hotspot in the viewport or in vector image output (see the Technical Illustration - Hotspots tab).

To create an event link:

  1. Click in the Link field and then click .
  2. In the Select a Link dialog box, select a link type in the URL field, specify an appropriate target for that type, and then click OK.

    See Select a Link.

  3. To test the event in the viewport, disable Design Mode (status bar) and then click the actor or hotspot.
Pack linked resource

(Available when the Link property specifies a file:// URL.) Includes the linked file as part of the Composer document. To omit the file, clear this property and ensure that recipients of the document have the linked file in the same absolute path.

Texture
Map path

Specifies the file path of the texture image.

Image fill mode

Specifies how the texture is applied to the panel:

  • No Deformation - Retains the image aspect (width-to-height) ratio, adapting the panel size as needed.
  • Strech - Adapts the image aspect ratio to fit the panel.
  • Repeat - Retains the image size and repeats it multiple times on the panel.
Transparency

Makes the texture image transparent so actors below it are visible.

Ratio height/width

Stretches the image, changing its aspect ratio.

Scale

Specifies the displayed image size.

Text
Alignment

Specifies the text alignment: Left, Center, or Right.

Color

Specifies the text color.

Font

Specifies the font family, style, and size of actor text. The default font family is your machine's default font or Arial depending on Use default GUI font for text (Application Preferences - Viewport). The default size is specified by Font size ([Default] Document Properties - Paper Space).

Notes:
  • Font (size) and Size properties are linked.
  • When a font is not available in a vector image format, it is replaced by a default font. If the vector output is not acceptable, use a different font in Composer.
Size

Specifies the text size, in points. The default size is specified by Font size (in [Default] Document Properties - Paper Space).

Notes:
  • Font (size) and Size properties are linked.
  • Because Size is stored as pixels in Composer files, changing your screen resolution (DPI) changes rendered text sizes.

Text string

Specifies the text. To type multiple lines of text or to embed properties, click to display the Text pane. See Text pane.

Size
Width

Specifies the panel width, in millimeters.

Height

Specifies the panel height, in millimeters.

Shape
Shape

Specifies the image shape, occluding the image when it does not fit.

NoneUses the rectangular bounding box.
AutoDetects the shape automatically by making the dominant image color (typically the background color) transparent.
UserUses the Mask path image to define the shape. The darker the color in the mask image, the more the texture image is erased. White in the mask has no effect on the texture image, whereas black completely hides the texture image. This example used the following mask:
EllipseUses an ellipse.
RhombusUses a rhombus.
Mask path

(Available when Shape is User.) Specifies an image file that is overlayed on the panel.

Border
Color

Specifies the shape border color.

Opacity

Specifies the shape border opacity.

Show

Displays the shape border. Borders are not shown when Shape is User or Auto.

Type

Specifies the line type for the shape border.

Width

Specifies the line width, in millimeters, for the shape border.

Shadow
Show

Displays a shadow under the 2D panel, giving the actor a 3D effect.





Disabled Enabled

Preset

Lets you choose predefined combinations of shadow properties:



Bottom right


Halo


Bottom


Bump


User (Selected automatically when you modify a preset)

Distance

Specifies shadow offset, in millimeters, relative to the panel center.





3 mm 15 mm

Orientation

Specifies shadow position, in degrees (º), relative to the right side of the panel.







45º135º

Opacity

Specifies shadow opacity, from 0 (transparent) to 255 (opaque).





50 255

Blur

Specifies shadow sharpness, from 0 (no blur) to 20 (high blur).





0 20



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