CorelDraw 10 : Complex Shapes - Polygons and Stars

A polygon is a multisided closed figure. The simplest form of polygon is a triangle: a three-sided object. CorelDraw 10 enables you to create polygons with as many as 500 sides. A star is just a special instance of a polygon. Once you've a drawn polygon, you can easily change it into a star and vice versa.

To create a polygon:

1.	Select the Polygon Tool from the Object flyout in the toolbox or press. The pointer changes to a cross-hair with a tiny polygon attached to it.
2.	On the property bar, click the Polygon icon and specify the desired number of sides in the Number of Points On Polygon text box (Figure 1). Figure 1. Before or after drawing a polygon or star, you can set or change its options on the property bar.
3.	To create the polygon, click and drag diagonally. When you release the mouse button, nodes appear around the object's perimeter and the object is selected (Figure 2). Figure 2. This is a selected polygon with seven sides.

To create a star:

1.	Select the Polygon Tool from the Object flyout in the toolbox or press. The pointer changes to a cross-hair with a tiny polygon attached to it.
2.	On the property bar, click the Star icon and specify the number of sides in the Number of Points On Polygon text box (Figure 1).
3.	To create the star, click and drag diagonally. When you release the mouse button, nodes appear around the object's perimeter and the object is selected (Figure 3). Figure 3. This is a selected star with seven points.

Polygon as Star

Using the Polygon Tool, you can create another type of star called polygon as star. Unlike the star you just created, a polygon as star is an outline that is easily filled with a color, texture, or pattern.

To create a polygon as star:

Modifying a polygon or star

After drawing a polygon or star, you can alter it in any of the following ways:

• Change a selected polygon into a star or a star into a polygon by clicking the Star or Polygon icon on the property bar.

• Change the number of sides by choosing or entering a different number in the text box on the property bar.

• Rotate the object by typing a number in the Angle of Rotation text box on the property bar. You can also rotate an object by clicking its center and then dragging one of the rotation arrows (Figure 6).

  Figure 6. Click and drag any rotation arrow to rotate the object.

  

• Alter the sharpness (Figure 7) of any star with seven or more points by moving the Sharpness slider on the property bar.

  Figure 7. From left to right, these three images show the sharpness settings (1–3) for a 10-sided star. The more sides a star has, the more sharpness settings there are.

  

• Change the a polygon or star's line thickness, outline color, or fill.

• Change the object's size by clicking and dragging a handle.