#13: Macro - "Mover" - Eskimo's Macros and More - Blogs

Sun, Jul 21 2019

What is Mover?

Mover is a macro that can move selected objects by specified horizontal and/or vertical distances. It can optionally duplicate selected objects and move the duplicates.

Those are operations that can be done using standard tools in CorelDRAW, but Mover has some features that can save you time, keystrokes, and mouse clicks in some workflows.

See Mover in use:

Screenshot:

Using the macro.

Use of the macro involves selecting one or more objects, then clicking one of the eight buttons. In addition to triggering the move operation, the choice of button determines the direction of the move. The letters on the buttons are abbreviations for the direction - UL for "Up and Left", U for "Up", R for "Right, etc.

If Duplicate is checked, then the selected objects are duplicated, and the duplicates are moved.

If Select Duplicate is checked, then the duplicates are selected after the move operation is carried out. If it is not checked, then the original selection is retained.

Using the Comboboxes.

The boxes for numeric entry are comboboxes. The drop-down list for a combobox can contain values stored for convenient access. If a combobox is not locked, then when a value in that
combobox is used by the macro, that value is added to the top of the list. If an existing value is used from the list, then that value is moved to the top of the list. Values can also be manually added to the list.

Ctrl+clicking on a combobox sets that combobox to its default value.

Right-clicking on a combobox brings up a menu of options for managing it.

These options may include:

Setting the combobox to its default value.
Defining the default value for the combobox.
Adding a value to the list.
Deleting a value from the list.
Sorting the list.
Clearing the list.
Locking or unlocking the list. When locked, new values are not added, and the order of values within the list is not changed when an existing value from the list is used.
Enabling or disabling Auto-select for the combobox. When Auto-select is enabled, then the text in the box is automatically selected when the box is entered.
Setting whether trailing zeros are shown.
Changing the number of decimal places used for values in the combobox.
Specifying the units.

Units of Distance.

For a combobox that represent a distance, values are applied by the macro in whatever units (inches, millimeters, etc.) are shown beside the combobox. Those units can be specified by the user through the right-click context menu.

If “Follow Horizontal Ruler Units” is chosen, then the units for the combobox are the same units that are in use in the document for the horizontal ruler. If those units are changed in the document, then the macro automatically changes the units in the combobox to match.

Although this documentation makes references to “the list” for the combobox, there is not necessarily only one list. The combobox maintains a separate list for any unit that is used in it. When units for the combobox are changed, then the list associated with those units is loaded. The number of decimal places, and also whether a list is locked or not, are things that are handled independently for each list.

A Video Describing and Demonstrating the Special Features of My ComboBoxes:

Mover subs in the Macro Manager.

Start_Mover launches Mover if it is not already open.
Toggle_Mover launches Mover if it is not already open, and closes it if it is already open. Assign this sub to a command button or shortcut key to have a one-click or one-keystroke way to call/dismiss the macro.
Remove_Mover_Registry_Entries removes all Registry entries that have been created by Mover. The next time that the macro is used, these entries will be created again, so this sub can be used to get a “fresh start” with default values and settings.
Mover normally remembers the position of the form on the screen. If the computer display configuration has been changed in such a way that the remembered position is “off the screen”, then Reset_Mover_StartUpPosition can be used to reset the position to “Center Owner”.

Compatibility.

Mover was put together in a CorelDRAW X7 environment, and should work in versions X7-2020.

OK, where's the macro?

JQ_Mover_Current.zip (most recently updated 2021-07-17).

That includes the .GMS file and a simple icon that can be used on a CorelDRAW Toolbar.

Please note that, starting with the version released on 2020-05-07, this macro uses a different scheme for storing combobox value lists and some preferences in the Registry. If you have been using an older version of this macro, those "old" value lists and preferences will not be there when you use the newer version. If you want to "clean out" those old entries that are not used by the newer version of the macro, the best way to do so is to run the Remove_Mover_Registry_Entries sub, which will set the macro back to its default values.