Shaping Tools

Sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. It is very frustrating and I'd like to know why they sometimes don't work.

Example:

I have a rectangle with a smaller rectangle over it, I want to punch a hole in the bottom rectangle with the top one. I select both, click on "Trim" and it doesn't knock it out. If you look at it in wireframe, you can see the shape I wanted to punch out, but that bottom rectangle is still solid. "Back minus Front" doesn't work either. 

I use a rectangle as the example, but things I'm trying to punch out are text converted to curves, imported logos, etc.

Sometimes, very few, the Trim works. Is there a certain reason why it doesn't work most of the time? Something to do with the curve of the shape(s) that I'm trying to punch out?

 

  • Not sure why you are having that issue -- I don't have version X5 -- but try using the 'simplify' option as well.  I tried it on my version X4 and both methods got the same results.

    • SImplify does the same as Trim, doesn't punch the shape out. Here is some picture examples.

       

      A simple Number logo:

      Here is how the logo is separated:

      Here it is after applying a Trim:

      See what I mean? Where the orange 15 should have punched a hole through the black 15 it is still filled in solid black. It should have made a window in the shape of that orange 15 in the black 15.

  • It works fine for me in version X5.

    Out of curiosity, do you have all the patches applied?

    • Hello Jessie; I'm like Graewerld I'm Using X4 and it works fine for me, do you think it may be time for the old F8 Trick?


      My Thoughts George

      • It seems like you are running into the winding rule issue. This occurs
        when the paths are running in opposite directions. I see it when
        copying/pasting from Illustrator or importing other designer's artwork.
        One path will be running clockwise and the other will be running
        counter-clockwise. Search winding rule in these forums and you should
        find a previous thread explaining this issue and how to fix it in detail
        along with a quick macro to deal with it rather than manually.

        Steve
        www.brutefish.com
        • Steve is right, almost.

          Select the object where you expect a hole, with the Shape tool. Select any node on the curve you expect to be a hole (or the other one, it doesn't matter actually) and then click the Reverse Direction button in Property Bar. This is probably the easiest way to do it, without a macro.

          The thing Steve was wrong about was that the curves must run in opposite directions to create a hole (unless Even-odd fill rule is used, but that's another story). :-)

          • Thanks, this fixed it. The paths were going the same direction. That is a rather annoying quirk, as I don't understand why it should matter which direction the paths are going to apply shaping like Trims. 

            Frustrating.

            Thank you all for your help! This relieves me of a big headache as I have to utilize Trim a lot.

            • Well JessieK; I learned something new, Is this a grate place or what.

              Thanks Guys George

              • Thanks for clarifying Ronny.

                Steve
                www.brutefish.com
                • JessieK said:
                  I don't understand why it should matter which direction the paths are going

                  Here's from another thread regarding the same problem:

                  "This is a complicated issue without right or wrong, called the winding rule. Or actually there are two different rules, Even-odd and Non-zero.
                  Depending on which rule is assigned to an object, an overlapping area may create a hole or a filled area. The early versions of Draw always used the Even-odd rule, but there were cases when this wasn't the best choice.
                  Let me quote Hendrik Wagenaar: "say you convert a script font to curves and the tail of a character overlaps another character. You wouldn't expect a hole to appear where the characters overlap, right? This is what the winding rule is for. Say you combine that text with another object, you still don't want that hole to appear. CorelDRAW isn't able to guess when your text is no longer meant to be text, and this is where it causes problems for some users."

                  I think you've noticed that in most cases you get what you want (i.e. a hole) but if the winding rule happens to be Non-zero (could be an imported object or a former text object for example), and the subcurves are running in the wrong direction, there may be a filled area where you expect a hole."