Page 118 - Xara Web Designer Premium

118 Object Handling

Groups and layers

There’s more about layers in Layers (on page 447).

If all the objects to be grouped are in one layer, the group is created in that layer. The
group is at the level of the highest member of the group, i.e. the group does not
automatically become the front object.
If the objects are in more than one layer, then the group is created in the layer containing
the object nearest the front.
Changing colors in a group

Most groups use more than just a single color and sometimes it’s useful to change those
colors (for example to change the colors of a button, which consists of a group of
objects). You could do this of course by ungrouping, or using SELECT INSIDE, to change
the color of each object individually, then regrouping. But a much quicker way is to just
select the group and click a color. If the group contains multiple colors, a dialog appears
to let you choose which one to replace with the color you clicked on. Or bring up the
COLOR EDITOR and its list of colors includes the same list of colors that are used in the
group. Select the color you want to edit.

Soft Groups

Ordinary Groups as described in Grouping and un-grouping objects (on page 117) sit on
a single layer, they cannot span layers. SOFT GROUPS are an alternative way of linking
objects together where the objects can be across several different layers.

Selecting one member of a Soft Group also selects all other members of the same Soft
Group – even members that are on invisible or locked layers. This means when you
delete, move, rotate or otherwise transform one member of a Soft Group, all the other
members are similarly modified.

The status line indicates when a Soft Group is selected.

Soft Groups are useful for keeping closely related objects together. For example the
MOUSEOFF and MOUSEOVER states of a web button are Soft Grouped together, so that if
one state is moved or transformed, so is the other state.
Creating Soft Groups

To create a Soft Group, select all the objects that are to be included in it and then choose
“ARRANGE" > "APPLY SOFT GROUP" (or press “Ctrl + Alt + G”). Note that if the Soft Group is
to include members on invisible or locked layers, you’ll need to make those layers
temporarily visible and editable using the PAGE & LAYER GALLERY in order to select the
objects and Soft Group them.

An object cannot be a member of more than one Soft Group and Soft Groups cannot be
nested (soft groups as members of soft groups).