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Connection points are used to anchor connectors to shapes in your pictures. |
If the Always Show Connection Nodes check box on the User Preferences dialog box is selected, the default connection points and points that you add to shapes are always visible. If this check box is cleared, the connection points are not visible, but can be displayed using one of the following methods:
- Select a connector and move it towards the shape to anchor it to a certain connection point on the shape.
- Or -
- Select the shape and click either the Add Connection Point button or Delete Connection Point button on the CAD Toolbar.
Adding Connection Points
You can add new connection points to a shape or use the default connection points to anchor a connector. For more information about anchoring, refer to Using the Connector Tools.
The following diagrams show you how to add connection points.
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In Figure 1, the red arrow points to the 
Add Connection
Point cursor that appears when you are adding a connection point. The
black arrow in Figure 2 points to the new connection point.
NOTE: The shape you are adding a connection point to must be selected. Reshape handles appear around the shape when it is selected.
Most shapes are provided with default connection points and allow you to add custom connection points. The following table lists the different shapes, the number of default connection points and the number of custom connection points that can be added.
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Object |
Default |
Custom |
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Pipes, Lines, Polylines |
0 |
0 |
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Arcs |
3 |
0 |
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Pies, Chords |
3 |
13 |
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Text, Datalink |
8 |
8 |
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Rectangles, Round Rectangles, Ovals, Polygons |
8 |
8 |
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Line Connector, Right Angle Line Connector, Pipe Connector |
2 |
0 |
NOTE: Pipes, lines, and polylines display connection nodes only at their end points and only when a connector object attempts to connect or is connected to the object. At no other time are connection nodes visible for these objects, regardless of whether the Always Show Connection Nodes check box is selected.
Deleting Connection Points
You can delete connection points that you add to a shape but you cannot delete default connection points. The following diagrams show you how to delete a connection point.
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In Figure 1, the black arrow points to the custom connection point you
added. The red arrow in Figure 2 points to the 
Delete Connection
Point cursor that appears when you move the cursor over a custom connection
point. The gold arrow in Figure 3 points to the 
cursor
that appears when you move the cursor over a default connection point,
to indicate that the connection point cannot be deleted.
NOTE: The shape you are deleting a connection point from must be selected. Reshape handles appear around the shape when it is selected.
