Feature Request: Draw rectangles by edges

[Dewlally]

I've started using Designer for designing pop-up book layouts in place of the CAD app I used to use that is now prohibitively expensive. One feature that would be really useful is the ability to draw a rectangle by drawing one edge with the first two clicks, then having the third and final click define the rectangle's second dimension. This would be particularly useful for drawing rectangles on an angle.

The attached video shows how this works in my old CAD app.

 

 

[MikeTO]

That's rather cool

[debraspicher]

Yes I think this would be a nice addition especially for package designer people. They are adding things in like measurements which would make sense for those applications. Certainly logos as well. Maybe for creating hairlines for cutouts, stickers?

[Dewlally]

I use this function a lot for adding the glue tabs to the edges of the pop-up pieces. Adding them in Designer with the current rectangle tool is proving relatively time consuming.
In case it's of use to anyone else The fastest workaround I've found is to control click-drag with the rectangle tool to create a square that's the length of the rectangle I want, with a centre line that sits on the edge of the other object I want the rectangle to join to. Then I drag the side of the square that's parallel to the edge of the other object so that the side snaps onto the edge. Then I select the centre point of the side I've just moved in the anchor point selector of the transform panel and add the desired width of the rectangle I want into the the smaller of the Width or Height values in the transform panel.

[GarryP]

In Designer you can achieve this sort of thing using a combination of:

•  the Point Transform Tool and the Move Tool, or;
•  the Rectangle Tool, the Point Transform Tool and the Move Tool.

See attached video for two examples.

Note: I have used the Right-button modifier for some actions on Windows, on macOS this modifier will be different – just look at the Status Bar for more information.

Note: You will need to have one or more of the Snapping options switched on but I don’t know which one(s).

[Dewlally]

5 hours ago, GarryP said:

In Designer you can achieve this sort of thing using a combination of:

•  the Point Transform Tool and the Move Tool, or;
•  the Rectangle Tool, the Point Transform Tool and the Move Tool.

See attached video for two examples.

Note: I have used the Right-button modifier for some actions on Windows, on macOS this modifier will be different – just look at the Status Bar for more information.

Note: You will need to have one or more of the Snapping options switched on but I don’t know which one(s).

 

Thanks, but this is no quicker than the workaround method I described above. The feature request is for a tool option that allows me to draw a rectangle in three simple clicks, without the need to resize or reposition it afterwards.