Using grid

The grid helps to align graphical schema items. It consists of horizontal and vertical lines that can be used to set exact item positions and sizes. You can change grid spacing, turn the "align to grid" feature on and off, and show or hide a grid.

When you create a new schema, the default grid spacing (both vertical and horizontal) is 20 pixels and the grid is displayed in Draw Lines mode.  

When you drag items, they are always aligned to the top left corner. If the item size is not a multiple of the grid spacing, the item is not resized. 

You can specify grid settings in the Edit category of the graphical schema properties. If the Grid Enabled option is turned on, the grid is displayed as dots marking the crosspoints (you can use the checkerboard display mode for the grid) or as lines (depending on the Draw Grid Mode option). 

If the Grid Enabled option is turned on, all the items are automatically aligned with the grid. The item size is determined automatically based on the grid spacing.  

When you resize items, the border that you move is always aligned with the grid, even if the opposite border is not aligned.  

To change horizontal or vertical grid spacing, set the Grid Horizontal Step or Grid Vertical Step property to an integer value between 1 and 99. The horizontal and vertical values may differ.  

When selecting grid spacing, consider the following: with small grid spacing, items are harder to align, and it takes more steps. However, a large spacing tends to leave large gaps between items, which increases the size of the schema. We recommend setting a grid spacing of 20 (both vertically and horizontally) because it successfully combines a reasonable spacing between items and sufficient precision in sizing.

Next page: Managing groups of selected items

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