Copyright: Copyright 1995 TommySoftware®


TommySoftware® Tek Illustrator

Important Information

TommySoftware® Tek Illustrator lets you quickly and easily create technical illustrations and drawings that require a high degree of accuracy. To ensure this accuracy, Tek Illustrator has a different approach to creating and modifying lines and objects than artistically oriented graphic applications.

One of the major differences between Tek Illustrator and other graphic applications is that you cannot use the mouse to manipulate objects by dragging and dropping them. This would not give you the precision you need. Another difference involves the way you select objects. When you use an artistically oriented graphic application to illustrate something that does not require precision, you usually first select the objects, choose the command, and then execute the command to modify the objects. With Tek Illustrator, however, you select the command first and then the objects to be modified before the command is executed.

This different approach to creating and modifying objects has several advantages. One is that you can use a single command selection to manipulate several objects after another without having to repeat the command selection sequence. For example, by selecting "Move Objects" you could move several objects or object groups without having to select another command, such as "Select Objects", or the same command repeatedly until you have moved all objects. This can save time when you are making several changes.

Another advantage is that selecting the objects after the command makes it possible for the application to know at any time what command to apply to the selected objects. It can therefore inform you immediately when you cannot perform that command on the object.

If you have ever worked with computer-aided design (CAD) software, you will be familiar with this approach and you will be able to start work immediately. If you have never used a CAD application, this approach will be unfamiliar, but as long as you remember to select the command first and then the objects to be modified, you will soon see how easy it is to work quickly and still produce precise technical illustrations and graphics.

To select an object, click on it with the mouse. You can select multiple objects by keeping the CTRL key pressed while clicking on several objects, or you can select whole object areas by keeping the SHIFT key pressed and entering the corner points of the area. After once selecting a group of objects, you can select the objects again to further modify them by pressing the F11 key.

For further information on selecting objects, see the description of any command that requires an object selection. At any time, you can display the currently active command's description by pressing the F1 key. More information about basic methods of the Tek Illustrator can be found in the electronic tutorial that is part of each full version of the Tek Illustrator.

The TommySoftware®-Team.

North America, Inc.	Germany

130 Barrow Street	Selchower Straße 32

New York, NY 10014	D-12049 Berlin

U. S. A.	Germany

Phone (212) 807 9720	Phone +49 30 621 5931

Fax (212) 807 8149	Fax +49 30 621 4064

CompuServe 100020,3647	CompuServe 100142,3665

America Online "TSNA"

Prodigy "JULE73A"

TommySoftware® Tek Illustrator - Edition 3.11e - Copyright 1995 TommySoftware®