Please note : This help page is not for the latest version of Enterprise Architect. The latest help can be found here.
Changing Element Appearance
If you want to modify the appearance of a specific element on a diagram, you can use a range of facilities available through the element context menu on the diagram.
Access Right-click on element on diagram | Appearance
Element Appearance Options
Option |
Action |
Shortcut |
See also |
|---|---|---|---|
Default Appearance |
Click on this option to override the global default appearance of all elements (which you set on the Standard Colors and Diagram Appearance pages of the Options dialog) with a different default for just the selected element on all diagrams in which it is used. To change the appearance of the selected element on the current diagram only, use the Format toolbar.
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F4 |
Set an Element's Default Appearance
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Apply Image From Clipboard |
Click on this option to paste the image held on the clipboard onto the selected element, as an alternative image. This image is added to the Image Library under an automatically-assigned name. The image can be accessed from and renamed in the Image Manager.
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Select Alternate Image |
Click on this option to change the element's appearance to an alternative image, using the Image Manager. |
Ctrl+Shift+W |
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Hide/Show Name Under Image |
For an element that has an alternative image, click on this option to hide or redisplay the name label under the element.
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Set Font |
Click on this option to change the font type, size, color and effects for the text in the element.
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Shape |
For System Boundary elements; click on this option to change the element outline to a rectangle, rounded rectangle or ellipse shape.
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Diagram Frame Appearance |
For Diagram Frame elements; click on this option to set the appearance of the frame.
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Show Labels |
For embedded elements, or those with an alternate image that show element properties as labels; click on this option to reveal the hidden labels on the element. (The option is not listed if there are no hidden labels.)
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Standard Memo Memo (Style 2) Pin Sticky Paperclip
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For a Note element, click on one of these options to apply the corresponding image to the element. |
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Copy Appearance to Painter |
Click on this option to copy the default element appearance (set using the Default Appearance option, above) to the painter. You then paste the default appearance using the Paste Appearance option on the Diagram toolbar.
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Copy Image to Clipboard |
Click on this option to copy the element image to the clipboard. You can use the Apply Image from Clipboard option (above) to recover and use the image elsewhere.
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Notes
| · | You can also change the appearance (and other aspects) of several selected elements at once |
| · | Context menus vary between element types, and not all menu options shown here are present on all element context menus; for example, the Select Alternate Image option does not display for a Lifeline element |
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