Pen, Bézier & Node Editing

Pen

A quick polyline tool: every click adds a straight point.

• Left-click — start a line, or add the next point.
• Right-click — finish the line. Switching tools also finishes it.

Bézier (D)

The classic anchor-point pen:

1. Click to place a corner point.
2. Click and drag to place a smooth point with handles; the handles stay symmetric.
3. Hold Alt while dragging to move each handle independently.
4. Move near the first point — it highlights; click to close the shape.
5. Enter or Escape finishes an open path.

The result is an editable path: fill, stroke (including gradients), stroke width and open/closed are all in the inspector.

Editing nodes

A path is made of points (anchors) joined by segments. Each point can have up to two handles that bend the segments on either side of it.

Kinds of point

	Corner point — no handles. The segments meet at an angle.	Bézier: a plain click.
	Smooth point — two handles in a straight line. The curve passes through the point without a kink.	Bézier: click and drag. Node edit: Alt + drag from a corner point pulls handles out.
	Independent handles — each side has its own angle and length, for a sharp but curved turn.	Bézier: hold Alt while dragging a handle.
	Closing a path — the last segment returns to the first point. A closed path can be filled.	Bézier: move near the first point until it highlights, then click.

Using the Node edit tool

Select a path and choose the Node edit tool. Its points and handles appear.

Action	How
Select a point	Click it · Shift+click adds or removes from the selection
Select all points	A
Move points	Drag them (all selected points move together)
Add a point	Double-click on the path — the new point gets short handles along the segment
Delete points	X, Delete or Backspace
Make a corner point smooth	Alt + drag from the point
Reshape a curve	Drag a handle
Grab mode	G, then move the mouse; X / Y lock to an axis; click or Enter to confirm, Escape to cancel
Back to Select	Escape

Every edit is one undo step.

What can be edited node by node

• Paths drawn with the Pen or Bézier tool.
• Imported SVG artwork — paths keep their real Bézier curves. (Shapes imported with a gradient fill become polygons whose curves are approximated by points; see Importing SVG.)
• The result of Convert to curves — available in the Boolean section of the inspector (Modern), the top bar (Pro) and the right-click menu. It turns a boolean object, or two or more selected shapes (merged together), into one editable path.

Primitive shapes — rectangle, ellipse, polygon, star, drop and the custom shapes — are edited through their parameters (corner radius, number of points…), not point by point. A single primitive shape can't be converted to a path yet.