When you select the Rectangle or the Ellipse tools, the controls shown on the left appear on the Infobar (the context sensitive area across the top of the screen). What are these controls and how do they work? Let's find out.

The three Creation buttons (a-c) determine how an ellipse or rectangle is drawn. Radius draws from the center outward. Diameter draws from corner to corner. Radius and Diameter permit you to rotate and resize the object as you draw it. Bounds is similar to Diameter except instead of the ability to free rotate an object, you can free resize and position the object as you draw.

There are two ways to round the corners of a rectangle. With the rectangle selected, click the Curved Corners icon (d). You can drag the two inside corner nodes (not the corner node though) to free round the corners, or you can select Curvature from the drop down list and click the two arrow buttons to increase or reduce the roundness.

NOTE: For best results, do not resize the rectangle if you want curved corners.
Rectangles that have been converted to editable shapes (Arrange menu) cannot be curved.

When you select a rectangle or ellipse (with the Rectangle or Ellipse tools), the drop down list changes to reflect edit options
 (e-f). Center refers to the center of the object on the page measuring down from the top left corner of the page. This is useful for centering an object or group of objects precisely. You can individually change the Width and Height of the selected object even if Lock Aspect Ratio is enabled. Key in the amount or use the arrow buttons. Objects can be rotated precisely by entering the rotation amount and pressing Enter.