Creating and manipulating objects

Anything you add to the page in Publisher is an object, whether it is text, a table, or a picture.  All objects can be moved, resized, and rotated.  You can even layer objects over one another or overlap them, then adjust which object appears to be on top.  Publisher makes page layout simple and straightforward.

Creating and moving objects

The object toolbar can be found on the left side of the screen:

• To create an object, click its button on the object toolbar.  Then click on the page to place the object.  You can also click and drag when creating an object to size it.

• For example, click the [Text Box] button.  Now, move the cursor over to the blank page.  Click and drag to create a text box.  As soon as you release the mouse button, a cursor will appear in the box.  The text formatting toolbar will also be active, allowing you to format the font and paragraph, just as you can do in Word.

• To move any object, move the mouse over the edge of the object until it changes.  Then click and drag the object to its new location.

Grouping objects

You can group objects to connect them and make them behave as if they were one object.  Grouped objects can be moved simultaneously while maintaining their positions relative to one another.  They can also be resized or re-colored together.

To group object, select the multiple objects.  You can do this by either clicking and dragging to surround the entire group of objects, or by holding down [Ctrl] while you select each object individually.  You can also deselect a single object in a group by holding down [Ctrl] and clicking on it.

After you select the group of objects, a [Group Objects] button will appear below them.  Click it, or click Arrange > Group to group the objects together.  Now clicking on any one of the objects will select all of them as if they were one single object.

To get rid of an object grouping, select the group and click the [Ungroup Objects] button, or click Arrange > Ungroup.

Resizing and rotating

• To resize an object, first click on it to select it.  Then move the mouse over any of the white circles at the edge of the object.  Click and drag to stretch or shrink the object.  The corners will resize both the length and width of the object, while the circle on each side will only move that side.

• To maintain the proportions of an object while resizing it, hold down the [Shift] key while resizing it.

• Clicking and dragging the green circle will allow you to rotate the object.  Holding down [Ctrl] lets you rotate around the bottom point instead of the center of the object.  Holding down [Shift] lets you rotate in 15-degree increments.

• Certain shapes also have yellow diamonds, which you can click on to manipulate the size and shape of the object.

• If you make a mistake, click Edit > Undo. . . or hold down [Ctrl] + Z to undo your last action.

Layering objects

• To change the order of your objects in the vertical plane—changing which object “covers” another—either right-click on the object and select Order from the menu, or select it and click Arrange > Order.  More recent versions of Publisher may also have an [Order] button on the formatting toolbar (see picture). 
• Bring to Front makes the selected object visible over all the other objects in the way.  Send to Back places it ‘behind’ every other object.  Use Bring Forward and Send Backward to move the object forward or back one place at a time.