Q:  Hi there.
 
 Can anybody tell me this:
 
 Usually, when you make a shape, it consists of vertexes which can be
 made into smooth, corner, bezier or bezier corner. Fair enough.
 BUT...! If I make a helix, and turn it into bezier corners, moving the
 handles have no effect.
 Why is that?

(6/4/98) a

A: It is NOT obvious, but here is why:

The sub-object level properties of shapes are set to default values when you create
a certain kind of shape. In case of the Helix, the Segment settings between two
vertices are "Line", the Vertex settings are "Corner". When you set the vertices
to Bezier, this does not change the type of the segments. Since a straight line
cannot have any bezier handles, they are marked as X when you are in vertex level -
you can move them around, but they don't affect the segment.
(This means that a Helix relies on many vertices connected with straight lines -
it isn't a bezier curve at all!)
To do what you desire, go to Segment level, select all segments in the Helix
(or just some), and set their type to "Curve". Then go to vertex level, set any
vertex to "Bezier", and play around...

In case of a Rectangle, the vertices are set to "Bezier Corner" by default,
and the segments are (Surprize!) "Curve". This lets you edit a rectangular shape
to a curved line (with corners) very quickly. If you would go to Segment level and change all
segments to "Line", the corner handles will turn to X and you will not be able
to edit curves anymore.