by Sandy McCauley | May 11, 2008 | Anchor Nub
I heard from a KNK Studio user today who wanted to know how to get rid of some weird icon in the middle of her selected object. I immediately knew the solution as this has come up before.
Note the first diagram above shows the weird icon which will appear in the middle of your selected object instead of the small square. The reason this appears is due to clicking on the anchor nub up on the Smart Bar (see the second diagram). Normally, you will have one of the 9 little squares selected and whichever one you pick then provides the x, y location for that same corresponding square in your selected object. Note that as you click on different squares in that little diagram at the top, your x and y values will change.
Now, suppose you want to move your object to some location on the Sign Blank and you actually want some specific spot ON your object to be located at some x,y position. That’s where the anchor nub comes in. You can move your anchor to any location on your object (an example is shown in the third diagram), then type in the x, y values up on the Smart Bar, and your object will be moved so that the anchor is at that location.
Why would we, as paper crafters ever need that? I’m not really sure! lol Maybe one of you will come up with an application! I’m sure, since this software was derived from a CAD program, then this feature has a usefulness in that industry! But for now… just know that if you see that “weird icon” show up, it’s as simple as clicking on a different spot in your little diagram on the Smart Bar to eliminate it. 🙂
by Sandy McCauley | May 10, 2008 | Axis Swap, Comparisons, File Import
One of the most confusing issues for new users of KNK Studio is what to do about the Axis Swap setting under Cut>Plotting Defaults. And to add to the confusion, that setting works differently in regular KNK Studio versus KNK Studio GE.
For users of regular KNK Studio, you control Portrait vs Landscape cutting by having that parameter checked or unchecked. In my video on “Understanding the Sign Blank”, which was created over 6 months before GE was released, I instruct the user to make sure Axis Swap is checked in order to have a Portrait orientation when cutting. If a Landscape orientation is needed, then UN-check that box.
However, GE was devised to work like RoboMaster and Wishblade Advance. You control the Portrait vs Landscape orientation from within Layout>Blank Size. Simply check whichever one you want. And under Cut>Plotting Defaults, leave Axis Swap UN-checked ALL the time.
Another recommendation involves opening .knk files from other users. Because the owners of KNK cutters have larger cutters, it’s not unusual to open up 12″ x 12″ layouts and some of the settings from that user’s KNK Studio will be sent with this file. To avoid having so much to verify or having to troubleshoot why your file won’t cut as it should, use File>Import versus File>Open when loading these files. You will retain YOUR Sign Blank settings! And, to keep the same image sizes, just left click once when you see the “L” cursor appear, rather than dragging your mouse to create a box. For some projects, it’s often important to keep the exact dimensions that the designer used.
by Sandy McCauley | May 8, 2008 | Aspect Ratio, Decimal, Fractions, Smart Bar
For those who find fractions a pain in the head, note that in KNK Studio the little window boxes up on the Smart Bar are “calculator integrated”. Thus, if you want to change your 4 x 6 rectangle to 4 1/8″ x 6 1/8″ and you can’t remember the decimal equivalent for 1/8″, not to worry! Just click on the lock to unlock the aspect ratio. Then click on the 6 to turn it blue and then type in 6 + 1/8 and then hit the enter key. Bingo, a value of 6.125 will appear! Then do the same for the 4″: change to 4+1/8, press the enter key and 4.125 will appear. This will work for other mathematical signs such as “x” for multiplying and “-” for subtraction.
One more thing… if you test this out and your results get rounded to, say, 6.13 x 4.13, again, not to worry! Go to Options>Klic-N-Kut Setup>Display Units. You can change the number of decimal points used throughout KNK Studio to 3 (or more, if you like). 🙂
