{"id":481,"date":"2026-08-15T00:00:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T00:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/?post_type=knowledgebase&p=481"},"modified":"2026-08-15T01:38:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T01:38:35","slug":"scratch-area-snapping-guides","status":"publish","type":"knowledgebase","link":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/db\/page-management\/scratch-area-snapping-guides\/","title":{"rendered":"Scratch Area & Snapping Guides"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Scratch Area & Snapping Guides<\/span><\/h2>\n

To help you position elements with pixel-perfect accuracy, Open Publisher features a robust snapping system, dynamic guides, and an off-canvas storage area.<\/p>\n

The Scratch Area<\/span><\/h3>\n

\"The<\/h3>\n

Objects that you drag partially or completely off the page canvas enter the Scratch Area – an invisible staging zone surrounding the page. These elements are preserved in the document but do not appear in printed or exported output.<\/p>\n

To manage scratch area visibility, go to the View<\/strong> ribbon tab and click the Scratch Area<\/strong> toggle button. When toggled off, all off-page elements are instantly hidden from view (but not deleted), allowing you to focus cleanly on your page layout.<\/p>\n

Rulers & Custom Origin\"Rulers<\/span><\/h3>\n

Pixel rulers run along the top and left edges of the canvas, giving you a precise spatial reference while you work.<\/p>\n

To show or hide rulers:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  • \n

    Go to View > Show > Rulers<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    Or, right-click in the workspace background and select Show\/Hide Rulers<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    By default, the ruler’s 0,0 origin sits at the top-left corner of the canvas. You can redefine this origin to any point on the page:\"Rulers<\/p>\n

      \n
    • \n

      Drag the grey intersection box (where the horizontal and vertical rulers meet, at the very top-left corner).<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

    • \n

      As you drag, dashed guide lines follow your cursor across the page to help you visually pinpoint the target coordinates.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

    • \n

      Release to set the new zero point. All ruler ticks and labels immediately recalculate from the new origin.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

    • \n

      Double-click the intersection box at any time to instantly reset the rulers back to their default position.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Your custom origin is saved into the .opub<\/span> file, so it persists across sessions.<\/p>\n

      Snapping Systems<\/span><\/h3>\n

      Open Publisher provides three independent snapping systems that can be toggled individually:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
      Snap Mode<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/td>\nWhat it does<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Snap to Grid<\/span><\/td>\nElements snap to an invisible pixel grid as you drag.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Snap to Guides<\/span><\/td>\nElements snap to the margin guide lines.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
      Snap to Objects<\/span><\/td>\nElements snap to the edges and centres of other elements on the page.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

      To manage snapping:\"To<\/strong><\/p>\n

        \n
      • \n

        Use the Snap To dropdown in the View tab, the Text Box Tools ribbon, or the Picture Tools ribbon.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

      • \n

        Or right-click the canvas and select the snapping options from the context menu.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Hold Ctrl<\/span> while dragging to temporarily bypass grid snapping without toggling the setting off – the most efficient way to place something between grid positions.<\/p>\n

        Snap tolerance:<\/strong> The magnetic pull distance for Snap to Guides and Snap to Objects is set to 8 pixels, providing a subtle and predictable snap feel that matches professional desktop publishing software.<\/p>\n

        Smart Grid Prompt:<\/strong> If you turn off “Snap to Grid” while the visual grid overlay is currently visible, a dialog intelligently asks if you also want to hide the visual grid to clear up your workspace.<\/p>\n

        Smart Guides (Alignment Lines)<\/span><\/h3>\n

        \"SmartWhen you drag any element on the canvas, Smart Guides appear as semi-transparent teal lines that indicate when the element is aligned with the edges or centres of other elements on the page.<\/p>\n

          \n
        • \n

          Smart guides use a smooth fade-in and fade-out transition rather than abruptly flashing on\/off. This preserves high responsiveness while eliminating visual flicker.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

        • \n

          The guide colour is a soft, semi-transparent teal – visible enough to be useful but not too heavy.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          Smart guides work alongside (not instead of) the snapping system. Snapping “pulls” the element to the alignment point; smart guides show you where that alignment point is.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          Scratch Area & Snapping Guides To help you position elements with pixel-perfect accuracy, Open Publisher features a robust snapping system, dynamic guides, and an off-canvas storage area. The Scratch Area Objects that you drag partially or completely off the page canvas enter the Scratch Area – an invisible staging zone surrounding the page. These elements […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":504,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","knowledgebase_cat":[9],"class_list":["post-481","knowledgebase","type-knowledgebase","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","knowledgebase_cat-page-management"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledgebase\/481","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledgebase"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/knowledgebase"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=481"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledgebase\/481\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":508,"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledgebase\/481\/revisions\/508"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/504"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=481"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"knowledgebase_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/acr.floydcraft.co.uk\/openpublisher\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/knowledgebase_cat?post=481"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}