Creating a flyer in CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 using the Table Tool

Working with the Table Tool

The most common way to create a layout is to use guidelines to help you align all the elemenin the document. But when you need to change the layout, e.g. to add an extra row of pictures, you have to do the layout all over again.

You will save much time and effort by using the new table feature in CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 to lay out your documents. That way, you can just add, remove or edit rows, columns or cells without having to start the layout all over again.

Start by making a sketch of the flyer, either on paper, or as here using the Smart Drawing Tool in CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4.

With the sketch in place, it is easy to count the number of columns and rows you need for the layout.

* You can create a table in two ways in CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4:

* Select the Table Tool in the Tool box, and drag with the tool on the page to create the table.

* Or select the Table menu Create new table. You can type the number of

columns and rows, as well as the overall size of the table into the dialog box

that opens.

Create a table with the settings as shown above

Select the Table Tool in the tool-box and change the size of the cells in the table by dragging the lines of the cells to fit the layout. You can drag the lines, when the cursor changes to a double arrow.

You can also merge the cells together. Select the cells by dragging across them with the mouse. Then right-click and select Merge Cells in the popup menu. Selected cells are shown with a hatch pattern.

Now you are ready to fill the cells with pictures and text:

Some of the cells are merged to fit pictures and text

* You can write text in the different cells by selecting the Text Tool.

* To import pictures you need to deselect the Table Tool first, e.g. by clicking on the

Pick Tool. Import the first picture by selecting File Import and finding the

appropriate picture on your computer.

* Insert the picture on the page, and drag it to the target cell while pressing the

right mouse button.

* Select Place inside Cell in the popup menu. You can move the picture into the

right position, scale it etc.

*Continue in the same way with the rest of the pictures.

Formatting the text using Live Text Preview:

Another new feature in CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4 is the ability to preview changes to the text before you make them. This feature is called Live Text Preview.

Select the text with the Text Tool, and then scroll the Font List drop-down menu to find the most appropriate font. You will be able to instantly preview the change in the text you selected. In the image below we are previewing the font Impact.

Finally we need to remove the lines in the table.

* Select the table with the Pick Tool

* Set the border to All in the Property Bar, and then select none in the Border Width field

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Working with layers in CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X4

Now you can work with layers on individual pages in CorelDRAW X4, as well as Master layers and Guide layers. If certain pages (such as the cover page) have their own specific content, it often makes sense to use separate layers for this.

In the picture above you can see two pages with their own layers. You can also see the Master Page layer.

Everything you put on the Desktop part of the Master Page will be shown on all pages. Using the Guides and Grids of the Master Page will reveal guides and grids on all pages

You can also use guides and layers on individual pages, so these will only apply to the page you have selected. In this example, each page contains layers with text in different languages as well as a "background" and "pictures" layer.

To create a new layer, click the New layer button at the bottom of the Object Manager Docker.

As soon as you have clicked this button, you can rename the layer.

To the left of the layer name you can lock the layer (click on the pencil icon), hide the layer (click on the eye icon) and make it printable or non-printable (click on the printer icon).

By making a layer non-printable, you can create a layer for comments to other people involved in the process of creating the document. The layers will be visible but not printable.

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