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Video: Use the Convert Direction Point Tool in Adobe InDesign CS6

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You're watching VisiHow. In this tutorial, we are going to show you how to use "Convert Direction Point Tool" in Adobe InDesign CS6 in Windows 7.

1. 1
   To begin, you should open Adobe InDesign. You can do it either from your desktop or by coming down to the bottom-left corner and clicking the Windows icon once. Clicking it will bring up a list of the recently used programs.

   

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2. 2
   Click "Adobe InDesign CS6" if you see it on the list. InDesign has a pink-and-purple icon with the letters "ID" on it.

   

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3. 3
   Alternatively, click the search bar at the bottom of the screen and type "Adobe InDesign".

   

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4. 4
   Then, click "Adobe InDesign CS6".

   

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5. 5
   From the workspace, click on "File" in the top-left corner.

   

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6. 6
   You can move the cursor to "New" and click "Document...". This will create a new document. You can also do this with the shortcut "Ctrl" + "N". Alternatively, you can click "Open..." to open an existing document from the "File" menu as well. For more information, refer to our tutorials on ]how to create a new document and on how to open an existing document.

   

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7. 7
   Let's click "OK".

   

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8. 8
   Click "Pen Tool". It is in the vertical toolbar on the left side of the window. "Pen Tool" is about halfway down the toolbar. In the bottom-left corner of the icon, you may notice a small black triangle, which indicates that when you click and drag the icon, a menu of similar tools will appear.

   

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9. 9
   Create lines on canvas. You will see that the cursor has changed to a fountain pen. For more information, refer to the tutorial on how to use the pen tool.

   

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10. 10
    Next, click and drag the "Pen Tool" to select the "Convert Direction Point Tool". The icon of this tool is a bent line. Alternatively, press "Shift" + "C" on the keyboard. Using keyboard shortcuts is recommended, as it is easier to manipulate objects with the key combinations while anchor points are selected. Clicking this tool will change the cursor to the icon of the tool, letting you know that you can begin to manipulate anchor points.

    

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11. 11
    Click anchor points. This tool changes the direction of a line or curve that has been created using the "Pen Tool". When an anchor point has been selected, it will turn blue. A blue anchor point will be the one that is edited with "Convert Direction Point Tool".

    

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12. 12
    Click and drag the first anchor point that you've created.

    

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13. 13
    Click the "Selection Tool" black arrow.

    

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14. 14
    Click the object and press "Delete" to start from scratch.

    

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15. 15
    Click and drag "Convert Direction Point Tool" to select "Pen Tool" again. It's on the vertical toolbar.

    

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16. 16
    Start drawing another set of lines.

    

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17. 17
    Click and drag the "Pen Tool" to select the "Convert Direction Point Tool" again.

    

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18. 18
    Click and drag anchor points to manipulate the direction of the line at the highlighted anchor points.

    

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19. 19
    You can continue to alternate "Pen Tool" and "Convert Direction Point Tool" to draw more. This is especially useful when creating cloud patterns.

    

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20. 20
    You can create an outward curve, for example.

    

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21. 21
    Then, you can create an inward curve. It will be directed inwards automatically.

    

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22. 22
    Continue using "Convert Direction Point Tool" to make the line go the desired way. Become familiar with these tools in InDesign. They are very similar to the ones in Illustrator. This helps you to create the required curves in InDesign and not copy them from Illustrator, which will help to avoid any conversion problems.

    

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This concludes our tutorial showing you how to use "Convert Direction Point Tool" in Adobe InDesign CS6 in Windows 7. If you have any questions or comments regarding this video or the program used, then just add them to the comment section below. Thank you for choosing VisiHow!

If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.

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