Microsoft Visio 2010 : Modifying a Graphic (part 3) - Changing a Graphic’s Position

3. Changing a Graphic’s Position

The easiest way to move a graphic is simply to drag it to a new location on the page and then drop it. If you want to make sure that a graphic always stays with a specific paragraph, you can lock its built-in anchor into place. Every graphic has an anchor, but to see it, you need to turn on the display of hidden characters.

Moving a Graphic

When dragging a graphic, be sure to click somewhere in the middle of it. Don’t click one of the selection handles, or you’ll wind up changing the image’s size or shape. Here’s the quick way to move and then anchor a graphic:

1.	Click the graphic to select it. Point to the middle of the image, and the mouse pointer becomes a four-headed arrow. This symbol means Word is ready for you to drag an object around.
2.	Slowly drag the graphic to a new spot in the document. It’s a good idea to move slowly, especially if you need to drag the graphic to a different page. Figure 6 shows a picture being dragged. Figure 6. Dragging a picture to a different spot on the page. When you drag a graphic, a semitransparent (ghostly) version of the image moves with the mouse pointer. The graphic itself stays in its original location until you release the mouse button.
3.	Drop the graphic in the desired location. Now you can attach the graphic to the paragraph it is closest to.
4.	On the Home tab, click Show/Hide ¶, if necessary, to view hidden characters. The anchor symbol appears next to the graphic’s nearest paragraph.
5.	Right-click the graphic to open the shortcut menu; then click Size and Position. The Layout dialog box opens with its Position tab visible, as shown in Figure 7. Figure 7. Locking a graphic’s anchor to keep it with the nearest paragraph.
6.	Click the Lock Anchor check box to place a check mark in it.
7.	Click OK. Now, if the paragraph moves, the anchored graphic stays with it.

If dragging a graphic isn’t precise enough, you can use the Layout dialog box’s Position tab to place the image exactly where you want it. The tab lets you set an absolute position (in inches) for the graphic or to align it in relation to another part of the document, such as a column or the page.