The Canvas represents the item that you are building and behaves in the same way as a basic graphics editor program. What the Canvas shows will ultimately appear exactly the same on your tablet or touch screen devices, albeit resized to fix the available screen area. You can add Parts to the Canvas by clicking buttons on the Graphics Toolbar or by dragging and dropping Components, Modules and Device Panels from the Items Panel.
You can click on Parts in the Canvas to select them. When a Part is selected, a selection rectangle adorner will appear around it. You can also hold down the Shift or Ctrl keys to select multiple Parts. You can also click and drag across the rectangle to form a selection area which will select all Parts within it.
When multiple Parts are selected they can be grouped together to form a single Part, purely for convenience.
You can click and drag Parts around the Canvas and when resizable indicators appear (orange circles in all four corners or the selection adorner) around the selected Part, you can click and drag the selection rectangle to resize the Part when the cursor changes to a resize indication cursor. Parts can also be moved by the arrow keys.
You can right click on a Part to obtain quick access to the Edit Menu.
When a Part is not selected, the "Canvas or Part Config Panel" will show configuration options for the current Mode which may make changes to the Canvas, such as its size.
Snap To Grid
The Canvas has a grid system across it, made up of small rectangles whose size is defined in the Grid X and Grid Y fields which are visible in the "Canvas or Part Config Panel" when a Part is not selected.
When Snap To Grid is enabled in the View Menu, Parts will be added so they align to the nearest grid rectangle. This is useful to help alignment of Parts.
The grid visibility can be changed in the View Menu and selecting Grid Visible.
The grid can be reset back to defaults in the View Menu by selecting Reset Grid Settings.
The Grid X and Grid Y fields can be synced so the aspect ratio is maintained when the values changed. Turn this feature on or off by clicking the icon next to the Grid X and Grid Y fields.
Undo / Redo
The Canvas tracks all the changes made to it and any Parts added to it. You can access the Undo Redo features by right clicking on the Canvas or from the Edit Menu.
Cut, Copy & Paste
Parts can be cut, copied and pasted onto the Canvas. Items from other Windows programs cannot be copied onto the Canvas and Parts cannot be pasted into other Windows programs.
Zooming
The Canvas can be zoomed in or out using the mouse wheel or by clicking and dragging the Zoom Slider at the bottom of the Canvas window area.
Transparent Background
When the background colour of the Canvas is transparent (has no colour), a grey and white checkbox pattern will appear across the Canvas. You can turn this effect on or off in the View Menu by selecting Show Transparent Background Pattern.