Path to curve

[Thomahawk]

How do I convert a (thick) path into a curve, so that I can further edit the outlines? 

[GarryP]

Can you give a few more details about what you start with and what you want to end up with please?
(Paths, curves and outlines may mean different things to different people so more information makes it easier to advise.)

[CLC]

Hi @Thomahawk, I guess you want to expand the stroke?
Layer > Expand Stroke.

[Thomahawk]

[Thomahawk]

Yes, CLC, exactly what I wanted. THANKS! Great releave.

Strange that this is not working logically. Like with any shape, if there would be the same convert tool available, one could solve this intuitively. 

[Thomahawk]

It's also not helpful that "expand stroke" is not there in the context menu, when right-clicking on the path. Who goes looking for that in the "layer" menu...

[R C-R]

4 hours ago, Thomahawk said:

Who goes looking for that in the "layer" menu...

<me, raising hand> 

More seriously, it is no secret that the "Expand Stroke" feature (to put it as kindly as I can) needs work to be ½ as useful as it should be, so maybe they do not think as yet it deserves a place in the already crowded context toolbar.

[Joachim_L]

4 hours ago, Thomahawk said:

It's also not helpful that "expand stroke" is not there in the context menu, when right-clicking on the path. Who goes looking for that in the "layer" menu...

Assign a keyboard shortcut to it, when you need this function more often.

[Thomahawk]

18 hours ago, Joachim_L said:

Assign a keyboard shortcut to it, when you need this function more often.

One can do that in such a case of course. But it's not about that. It's about intuitivity, easy of use – means to have functions there, where one would expect to find it, without having to consult a manual or help.

[R C-R]

1 hour ago, Thomahawk said:

It's about intuitivity, easy of use – means to have functions there, where one would expect to find it, without having to consult a manual or help.

But consider how many features & functions there are in apps like the Affinity ones. There is no practical way to include more than a fraction of them in the toolbars & have them still fit on any supported screen size. As it is, depending on the screen size & workspace window size, it can be necessary to include something like the ⨠ button to access the ones that won't fit, so as more items are added more would not be visible anyway.

Besides, not everybody has the same ideas about how different things should be accessed in the UI, & what seems intuitive about that to different people is at least in part dependent on what they have learned about accessing the same or equivalent things in other apps they have used. That varies considerably among different apps -- for example compare the differences in the UI's of Inkscape, Photoshop, Photoshop Essentials, Pixelmator Pro, the Affinity apps, the much beloved Freehand, & so on.

In short, every app has a learning curve. Manuals, help topics, video tutorials, third party teaching aids, support forums, & plain old curiosity-driven experimentation all make it easier to climb that curve.

[Move Along People]

-

[R C-R]

27 minutes ago, haakoo said:

On the other hand the convert to curves button is large and can be a rectangular button and an expandstroke button could fit alongside of it.

Where do you see a Convert to Curves button when the object is already a path or pretty much anything other than a quick shape or an Image layer?

But regardless of that, what about the other items in the same section of the Layer menu like Rasterize, Rasterize to Mask, or Convert to Text Frame? I'm sure some users think one or more of them should be included in the toolbar.

For that matter, I am sure some users think at least some of the items on the context toolbar should be customizable & placeable on the main toolbar, or that dividing the UI into studio panels or personas is confusing & non-intuitive.

[Move Along People]

-.
 

[Thomahawk]

On 12/4/2019 at 12:04 PM, R C-R said:

But consider how many features & functions there are in apps like the Affinity ones. There is no practical way to include more than a fraction of them in the toolbars & have them still fit on any supported screen size. As it is, depending on the screen size & workspace window size, it can be necessary to include something like the ⨠ button to access the ones that won't fit, so as more items are added more would not be visible anyway.

FreeHand managed to do this perfectly. Truth is, Affinitys approach of a GUI is way behind that in every aspect.

It's not about putting icons and shortcuts for every possible function everywhere. It is about logic and easy of use. But for that, one needs a understanding of working with vector paths, its essentials and basics, and THEN creates a logical interface, where those basic tools can be found where they are needed.

Convert a path line into shape to be found within the layer menu???? Come on!

[Thomahawk]

See? I had this to use this again now and could not remember the solution, had to come here again. This is one of the most basic functions and one can not do without looking it up. Not good.

[jmwellborn]

On 12/31/2019 at 7:05 AM, Thomahawk said:

See? I had this to use this again now and could not remember the solution, had to come here again. This is one of the most basic functions and one can not do without looking it up. Not good.

Very mild suggestion.  Make a screenshot of the solution @CLC provided above, print it out, and keep it in a “How TO...” file.  After a few referrals, it will surely become second nature to you.   Happy New Year!