Rectangle Tool
Click the Rectangle Tool to add rectangle annotations to documents:
Figure 1. Comment Tab, Rectangle Tool
When the Rectangle Tool is enabled, click and drag the pointer to define rectangle annotations:
Figure 2. Rectangle Tool Examples
Click to select rectangle annotations, as detailed in the lower annotation in the image above. Selected annotations can be edited as follows:
•Click and drag the control points to resize rectangles.
•Click and drag to reposition rectangles. The circle at the center can also be used for this purpose.
•Click and drag the green control point at the top to rotate rectangles. Hold down Shift to rotate at increments of fifteen degrees.
•Use the arrow keys to reposition rectangles. Hold down Shift to move at an increased increment.
•Use the editing aids detailed here to assist in the precise placement of rectangles.
•Right-click rectangles for further options. See here for an explanation of these options.
•Hold down Ctrl to create rectangles from their center.
•Hold down Alt to constrain rectangle proportions.
•Press Ctrl+' to open the Properties pane for selected annotations and view/edit properties:
Figure 3. Rectangle Tool, Rectangle Properties Pane
•Subject is the name of the rectangle annotation, as referenced in the Comments pane.
•Author is the name of the user that created the rectangle annotation.
•Name is the unique name of the rectangle annotation, as referenced within the application.
•Created is the date and time at which the rectangle annotation was created.
•Modified is the date and time at which the rectangle annotation was last modified.
•Read Only is the read only status of the rectangle annotation. If this property is enabled then users cannot interact with the annotation.
•Printable is the print status of the rectangle annotation. If this property is enabled then the annotation is printed with the document. If this property is not enabled then the annotation is not printed.
•Locked is the locked status of the rectangle annotation. If this property is enabled then the annotation cannot be deleted and its properties (including its position and size) cannot be modified by users.
•Layer specifies the optional content layer to which the rectangle annotation belongs. Further information about layers is available here.
•Fill Color determines the color of the line ending style used at the start of the rectangle annotation. The line ending property is detailed below.
•Stroke Color determines the color of the rectangle annotation.
•Border Style determines the style of the annotation.
•Border Width determines the width of the annotation.
•Opacity determines the level of transparency in the rectangle annotation.
•Blend Mode determines how rectangle annotations blend with overlapping content. These options are explained here.
•Rotation determines the degrees of rotation of the rectangle annotation.
Note that when the Rectangle Tool is enabled, the Format tab is available and can be used to customize the default properties of rectangle annotations:
Figure 4. Format Tab, Rectangle Tool
•Click options in the Shape Style group to select alternative default rectangle annotation styles.
•Click Keep Selected to keep the Rectangle Tool enabled and add multiple rectangle annotations to the document. If this option is not enabled then PDF-XChange Editor will revert to the designated default tool immediately after creating one rectangle annotation.
•Click Exclusive Mode to enable exclusive mode, which simplifies the process of using the Rectangle Tool. When Exclusive Mode is enabled, the pointer ignores all interactive elements of documents other than base content. This makes it possible to create rectangle annotations on areas that overlap with other content without the risk of accidentally selecting undesired items. When Exclusive Mode is disabled, the pointer recognizes and interacts with all underlying elements in the usual manner.
•Click Properties to open the Properties pane and view/edit Rectangle Tool properties, as detailed above.
•When rectangle annotations are selected, the Style Tools dropdown menu is available in the Format tab. It contains the following options:
•Click Copy Comment Style to copy the style properties of rectangle annotations.
•Click Apply Copied Comment Style to apply a copied rectangle annotation style to selected annotations.
•Click Apply Copied Comment Appearance to apply a copied rectangle annotation style to selected annotations.
•Click Make Current Properties Default to set the properties of the rectangle annotation as the default properties for subsequent annotations.
•Click Apply Default Properties to apply the default rectangle annotation properties to selected rectangle annotations.
•When rectangle annotations are selected, the Pop-up group is available in the Format tab and can be used to interact with the pop-up note of the annotation:
•Click Open to open the pop-up note.
•Click Hide to hide the pop-up note.
•Click Reset Location to reset the location of the pop-up note.
•When rectangle annotations are selected, the Arrange tab is also available and can be used to manipulate comments as detailed here.
Note that the Comment Styles Palette can be used to edit and save customized rectangle annotation styles for subsequent use, and the Commenting preferences can be used to view/edit preferences for all comments.