Details About Creating and Editing Objects

After you create the drawing object, you can make changes to the object at any time. This section explains more details about the Create drawing object and Edit drawing object window. You will use the Create drawing object window only when you are creating a drawing object for the first time. The Edit drawing object window is available after you have created and saved a drawing object.

Modifying the labels area

You can enter a label for the drawing object. The label is a reference for you when the object is visible on screen. For example, you can have a label for the alert that may have an affect on that geographical area. In the Alignment box, you can adjust the alignment of the text to either be left or right aligned. To change the color of the text, click the color box and choose from the palette. Keep in mind that the text will appear on the map. You may want to ensure that the text contrasts enough to appear on the map.

Modifying the coordinates

You can manually change the coordinates of the object. When you draw the object, you are generally placing the object on a geographical location on the map. To be more specific about where you place the object, you can change the coordinates in the Coordinates area. In the Center area, adjust the Y and X coordinates to indicate where you want the center of the object to appear on the map. And also adjust how large the object will be in the Offset area. For example, if you decide that the object needs to either decrease or increase in size on the map, enter values in the Miles Y and Miles X box.

Modifying the zoom levels area

The Zoom levels area gives you the ability to show more or less of something. The Zoom levels area contains slider levers which you will use to adjust for the object. The option you can adjust include the object, point, and the label. The City and World labels at the top of the slider are similar to other slider levels in Flight Explorer. For the purposes of the drawing objects, when the lever is to the left, that item will not appear on the map. When the lever is to the right, that item will appear. For example, you could adjust the lever to the left for Object and to the right for Label. After you close the Edit drawing objects window and the Manage Drawing objects window, you will notice that the label appears on the map while the object does not. The object does not appear because you moved the lever all the way to the left.

Another example about adjusting the zoom levels is when you enter a label for the object. Though a label (text you entered) is in the Labels box, if you move the lever to the left in the Zoom levels area, the label will not appear on the map. Keep in mind, this only affects the specific drawing object you are editing and not all objects.

Using Motion

You can adjust the object to move while on the map. This can be useful if a particular flight within the object.

In the Motion area in the Edit Drawing Object window, select Enable object motion.
The modify one or all of the following:

To	Then
adjust the bearing	enter a value you want for the bearing of the object.
adjust the speed of the motion	enter a value in the box. The speed is in knots.
indicate the lifetime of the object	enter a value for the time in minutes you want the object to live.

Using motion while creating an object

You can add motion and direction when you create the drawing object.

1. In either ribbon or toolbar mode, click the Set Motion, Direction button .
   The button becomes active.
2. Use any of the drawing tools to draw an object on the map.
3. Click to finish drawing the object.
   Notice that a line appears on the map.
4. Move your cursor in the direction you want the object to move. The line follows the movement of the mouse until you click to indicate that you are finished.
5. Click to finish.
   The Create Drawing Object window appears. Notice in the Motion area; Bearing, Speed, and, Lifetime now have values based on where you placed the on the map.
   

Using the Plane Context Menu

You can also draw an object directly from a plane on the map. Follow the steps below to draw the object.

1. Right-click an aircraft.
   The shortcut menu appears.
2. Click Create Drawing Object Here to open the Create Drawing Object window.
   The name of the drawing object appears in the Object name box and the Text box in the label area.
3. Modify any settings you want to change.
   1. In the Offset area, click the RLOS button for the data to automatically appear. The RLOS button (Radio line of sight) creates a static VHF radio range from the aircraft's current position.