Array Polar
The ArrayPolar command makes copies of the selected objects round a center point, spread evenly over a full turn or part of one. The original is the first item; every other item is a copy, rotated about the center — or only moved round it, if you turn Rotate off.
Drawing a polar array
- Select the objects, then type
arraypolar in the terminal or click the Array Polar toolbar button. Started with nothing selected, it asks you to select them first — press Enter or Space to confirm.
- Click the center the copies go round, or type
X,Y and press Enter for an exact coordinate.
- Review the array. All the copies preview live, and the terminal shows
Change [Items=6] [Angle=60°] [Fill=360°] [Rotate=true] — press an option’s letter to change it.
- Press Enter or Space to create the copies. The originals stay where they are and the selection is cleared.
Options
| Option | Key | Effect |
|---|
| Items | I | How many items there are, the original included — a whole number from 2 to 1024. Starts at 6. |
| Angle | A | Degrees from one item to the next, counter-clockwise; a negative angle runs clockwise. Up to 180°. |
| Fill | F | Degrees from the first item to the last. 360 (the default) is a full turn; a smaller number spreads the items over part of one. Negative runs clockwise. Up to 360°. |
| Rotate | R | On (the default): each copy turns as it goes round. Off: each copy is moved to its place and faces the way the original does. It flips on the spot — there is no number to type. |
- Angle and Fill are two ways of stating the same thing, so changing one restates the other. Over a full turn the last item stops one step short of the first; over part of a turn it lands exactly at the fill angle.
- To change a number, press its option’s letter. The prompt is pre-filled with the current value — type to replace it, then press Enter or Space; confirming it unchanged leaves the array as it was.
- Items takes whole numbers only; Angle and Fill take decimals, and a leading
- for clockwise. An angle or fill of 0 is refused, and so is an angle over 180° or a fill over 360° — the terminal says why.
- An Angle too small to fit every item drops the ones with no room, and the terminal reports the new count.
- Works on every entity type: each copy is the original rotated about the center, or moved, exactly as Rotate and Move would do it.
Keyboard reference
| Key | Action |
|---|
Enter / Space | Confirm the selection, the array, or a typed number |
I A F R | Change Items, Angle or Fill by typing a number; flip Rotate |
0–9, ., - | Type the number (. and - only for Angle and Fill, with - first) |
Backspace | Delete the last typed character |
Escape | Cancel |