kd7kmp Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 I am new to Paint.Net and have a question. I made up some simple line drawings for a project at school. After saving them I needed to make some changes to individual parts of them, but I couldn't select anything. Example: I draw up a box consisting of four lines. Each line is drawn in as a separate element. After saving and exiting the program I need to lengthen one of the lines. I open the pic back up, but I can't grab the one line that I want to change. The entire pic is now being treated as one element. (I hope I am explaining this correctly) Is there a way to make it so Paint.Net treats the box as four separate lines (elements) that can each be changed independent of each other? Thanks. Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Ryan Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 No, Paint.NET is not a vector image editor. You cannot edit portions of anything after you make them permanent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myrddin Posted February 2, 2008 Share Posted February 2, 2008 You could, alternatively, have each line/element on its own layer then save the project as a .pdn file (this is the default option when presented with more than one layer). This will enable you to come back later to edit the layer/element much easier, although, Mike.Ryan52 is correct, editing lines as lines is a vectorism; something Paint.NET cannot handle*. You can then also re-save the project in a regular file format (.png, .jpg, etc.) to take with you to school or work. This part is essential as only Paint.NET can read .pdn files, therefore saving as a common file type will enable you to transfer the file between workplaces without any compatibility issues. Though, only .pdn can handle layers. You will then have two copies of the same work: one to edit with, and one to take with you elsewhere. Does this help further? EDIT: *Paint.NET rasterises elements once they have been finalised, this then makes it part of the image. Simply, vectors are based on mathematical formulae, rather than pixels, to create its features and these are fully editable. Paint.NET lacks this vector support. Quote How to Save Your Images under Different File Types My dA Gallery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kd7kmp Posted February 3, 2008 Author Share Posted February 3, 2008 Thanks for the quick replies. You all are great. Kevin P.S. Do any of you know of a decent (free) vector image editor? It sure would make the upcoming few semesters a bunch easier... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myrddin Posted February 3, 2008 Share Posted February 3, 2008 Inkscape is the way to go! Quote How to Save Your Images under Different File Types My dA Gallery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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