Adds a rectangle around the page when you double-click the Rectangle tool icon.

[GRAFKOM]

In all Affinity programs: (Windows) 
1. Double click on the Rectangle Tool icon to create a rectangle around the page or selected Artboard.
2. Double click on the Rectangle Tool icon + SHIFT creates a rectangle around (if created) the page margin or the margin of the selected Artboard.
3. Double click on the Rectangle Tool icon  + CTRL creates a rectangle around (if created) the page bleed or selected Artboard bleed.

During my design work, I very often need a rectangle around the created page, so double clicking on the rectangle icon will create a rectangle the fastest, regardless of the size of the page.
Of course I will pay for it. Everyone will benefit from it. what cost?

[Old Bruce]

I would go a further step and add Alt + Double Click adds a rectangle around the Selected (in the Layers Panel) item(s)

And another further step to be able to use any or the Shapes. Obviously a Star or Elipse for example would be sized to fit inside the page.

[GRAFKOM]

I do not know what you're talking about. In CorelDraw it works, I use it every day at work. You double click on the rectangle icon and a new rectangle is created the size of any page. Easy.

[GarryP]

GRAFKOM: Can you explain why this functionality would be useful?

I only ask as you said that you “very often need a rectangle around the created page” but you don’t say why and I’ve never needed that so I don’t understand the potential benefit(s).

Also, what do you mean by “around”, and how would the formatting of the rectangle be chosen?

[GRAFKOM]

6 minutes ago, N.P.M. said:

You want rectangles have the size of margin/page/artboards or selected object(s)?

Yes exactly. I want the created rectangles to be the size of the margin/page/artboards or selected objects when I double click on the rectangle icon. I'm translating via Google Translate, that's probably why there are some misunderstandings.

[GRAFKOM]

5 hours ago, GarryP said:

GRAFKOM: Can you explain why this functionality would be useful?

I only ask as you said that you “very often need a rectangle around the created page” but you don’t say why and I’ve never needed that so I don’t understand the potential benefit(s).

Also, what do you mean by “around”, and how would the formatting of the rectangle be chosen?

I use Publisher software in the advertising industry on a daily basis.
Every day we design business cards, leaflets, signboards, I prepare projects for cutting on a CNC plotter, laser plotter and foil cutting plotter.

When designing business cards or leaflets, I often need to draw a rectangle the size of a business card, e.g. 90x50mm, in order to, for example, obtain a background. Of course, I will draw such a rectangle by dragging it on the screen and adjusting the rectangle to the size of the previously determined page, because it will snap to the edges of the page, or I will enter the size of this rectangle in the Transform panel.

For business card or flyer printing in a print shop, I also need to get a bleed rectangle, so I have to draw that too.

If I am preparing a project of stickers for printing on foil with an Ecosolvent plotter with a contour cut - I have to prepare this contour. It is often the case that the shape of objects to be printed is a rectangle.
For example, I insert a 15x20cm picture on the page.
I have a selected image.
I double click on the rectangle icon + ALT and a new rectangle of 15x20cm is created, I use this rectangle as the cutting line of this image on the plotter for cutting foil.

To cut shapes in plywood with a laser plotter, you also often need to prepare an area marked with a rectangle with shapes inside.
So simply selecting a few objects and double-clicking on the rectangle icon + ALT will create a new rectangle for me the size of these selected elements - I wouldn't even need to know the size of these elements.

So this functionality is very useful for working with Affinity.
This functionality works great in CorelDRAW.

I will write again:
1. Double-click the Rectangle tool icon to create a new rectangle the size of the page or selected artboard.
2. Double-click the Rectangle tool icon + SHIFT creates a new rectangle the size of (if created) the page margin or the margin of the selected artboard.
3. Double click the Rectangle tool icon + CTRL creates a new rectangle the size (if created) of the bleed or bleed of the selected artboard.
4. Double-click the Rectangle tool icon + ALT to create a new rectangle the size of the selected object(s) on the page or on the artboard.

Thank you

[GarryP]

Thanks for the explanation.

I don’t understand most of it, because I don’t have to do this sort of thing, but at least other people reading it will have a better idea of your requirements.

As an alternative to ‘overriding’ the Rectangle Tool for this very specific purpose, would you, instead, consider having more options in the export functionalities which would create the rectangles automatically for you?

For example, a checkbox – e.g. “Create Page/Artboard cut-out guides” (probably worded better than that) – which, when checked, would tell the software to automatically and temporarily, and only for the export, create a rectangle which has the same extents as the page/artboard upon export (and similar options for the other cases)?

This way you can have the options set in some export Presets and never need to manually create the rectangles yourself.

[loukash]

-1 to this idea.

In "other" design applications (AI, FH), double clicking a tool icon usually opens a dialog where the user can adjust defaults or input specific parameters for object creation or modifiation. I, for one, would always expect this kind behavior, and frankly, I'm surprised that even after almost a decade, this concept still remains unused in Affinity.

I definitely wouldn't want any automatic creation of predefined "niche" objects which I would never need. Using the appropriate snapping options is fast enough.

(No offense @GRAFKOM, nothing personal… )

[GRAFKOM]

Anyone who works in CorelDraw knows what I mean.
This program has been doing this for over 30 years, I haven't come up with anything new here.
It's just a very useful option in my daily work.
In the video, I showed in a very simplified way how it works in CorelDraw.
- Double clicking on the rectangle icon creates a new page size rectangle.
- Double clicking on the rectangle icon _ SHIFT creates a new rectangle the size of the selected element or, for example, a photo or around the selected elements.
The point is that this rectangle is used in my work for further processing or for laser cutting or cutting on advertising foil.
As I know that in Affinity the drawn rectangle will snap to objects, but you have to draw it precisely, while using my proposal it is done with one click.
For me, this is a very, very big time saver and precision.

And one more thing, I repeat this, I use Affinity programs for my daily work. Thanks to these programs, especially Publisher, I earn money. I even want to pay to make these changes, just let Serif provide the account number for depositing money.

[MikeTO]

I think Affinity first needs some UX improvements to the tool interactions. You can open the fly-out menu for a stacked tool by:

• long pressing - works great
• right clicking - works great
• single-clicking the fly-out triangle icon - the target area is invisible so it's easy to miss and nothing will happen. This is a problem.
• double clicking the tool - but if you double click the target area for the fly-out triangle it will be interpreted as 2 single clicks and the fly-out menu will open and immediately close. This is a problem.

I think it would be better if Affinity adopted the Photoshop model of opening the fly-out menu only by long pressing or right clicking. This simpler approach avoids the UX issues and would free up double clicking for other purposes. It would solve the problem Affinity has with double clicking the Zoom tool - double clicking an unstacked Zoom tool sets magnification to 100% but doing the same to a stacked Zoom tool will open and close the fly-out menu, making it appear that nothing is happening. This frustrates users.

25 minutes ago, loukash said:

In "other" design applications (AI, FH), double clicking a tool icon usually opens a dialog where the user can adjust defaults or input specific parameters for object creation or modifiation. I, for one, would always expect this kind behavior, and frankly, I'm surprised that even after almost a decade, this concept still remains unused in Affinity.

The parameters for tools are accessible from the Context Bar when the tool is selected so I think Serif was right in deciding it wasn't necessary to create additional dialogs for tool parameters.

Back to the original question of whether double clicking a shape tool should create a shape of the size of the entire page. I would never use this and it seems useful only for Rectangle but I can't think of anything more useful to do with double clicking the Rectangle tool so why not.

[loukash]

8 minutes ago, GRAFKOM said:

Anyone who works in CorelDraw knows what I mean.

And anyone who has worked with Illustrator or Freehand for the past 30+ years knows what I mean.  

14 minutes ago, GRAFKOM said:

As I know that in Affinity the drawn rectangle will snap to objects, but you have to draw it precisely

Increase the Screen Tolerance in the Snapping options, then you can draw less precisely. I use "16".

11 minutes ago, GRAFKOM said:

For me, this is a very, very big time saver and precision.

And for me, it would be a major annoyance having to delete all those unwanted objects all the time when I (accidentally) doubleclick a tool.

13 minutes ago, GRAFKOM said:

I use Affinity programs for my daily work. Thanks to these programs, especially Publisher, I earn money.

So do I. Welcome to the club.

[loukash]

17 minutes ago, MikeTO said:

• single-clicking the fly-out triangle icon - the target area is invisible so it's easy to miss and nothing will happen. This is a problem.
• double clicking the tool - but if you double click the target area for the fly-out triangle it will be interpreted as 2 single clicks and the fly-out menu will open and immediately close. This is a problem.

Yeah, that's annoying. One of the reasons I've actually eliminated all fly-out tools and have them all upfront instead.

18 minutes ago, MikeTO said:

The parameters for tools are accessible from the Context Bar when the tool is selected

Fair enough, ther no immediate need for additional parameters on doubleclick.

[Seneca]

20 minutes ago, MikeTO said:

I think it would be better if Affinity adopted the Photoshop model of opening the fly-out menu only by long pressing or right clicking.

Please don't do that. This is what annoys me most when working with Adobe products.

I love the quick reaction when clicking on the fly-out menu in Affinity. 🙂

[Seneca]

24 minutes ago, GRAFKOM said:

For me, this is a very, very big time saver and precision.

This is a perfect example of how scripting can be employed to automate very particular use-cases within Affinity products.