Understanding the Drawing Canvas

I'm experiencing problems with the drawing canvas in Office 365 Word. I want to use connectors attached to my shapes, so have put the shapes into a drawing canvas. However, I am unable to select and align shapes because whenever I do so the drawing canvas is also selected, hence all the shapes end up stacked on top of each other at the edge of the canvas, or vanish off the canvas completely! Is there any way to select shapes on the canvas without the canvas being selected?

Recently while I was coediting a Word file in OneDrive, my collaborator tried to select and delete a certain shape in a series of canvases. Unknowingly, she selected the entire canvas each time, deleting the canvases and all they contained.
I was able to restore from a backup. But I'd like her to be able to work "in" my canvases without fearing that she might delete them.
Is there a way to prevent the canvas from being deleted while allowing its contents from being deleted, moved, or edited?
I've tried encasing an empty canvas in a Rich Text Content Control, then adding contents to the canvas. But I couldn't get the control to let me protect the canvas while allowing me full rein to play with its contents.
Any suggestions?

Recently while I was coediting a Word file in OneDrive, my collaborator tried to select and delete a certain shape in a series of canvases. Unknowingly, she selected the entire canvas each time, deleting the canvases and all they contained.
I was able to restore from a backup. But I'd like her to be able to work "in" my canvases without fearing that she might delete them.
Is there a way to prevent the canvas from being deleted while allowing its contents from being deleted, moved, or edited?
I've tried encasing an empty canvas in a Rich Text Content Control, then adding contents to the canvas. But I couldn't get the control to let me protect the canvas while allowing me full rein to play with its contents.
Any suggestions?

how do i draw a container like the one maersk or msc?

Hello,
My question is how to re-size
a combination of different shapes in canvas? Or If those shapes are contained within the drawing canvas, then how we can manage them as a whole?

Oh! Thanks to Tim from 29 Sep 2014 - I found the solution!

The question I have is how to AVOID the drawing canvas when all I want to do is add an arrow on a picture I've pasted into my document. I haven't figured out how to keep the drawing canvas from popping up, nor how to add my picture to the drawing canvas and then add an arrow.

You cannot select New drawing Canvas under Shapes in the New Office 365. How can I do that?

Hi Ken,

I know the Group function is still available. The selection of multiple shapes at once is the royal pain. Your macro is most helpful...thanks :)!

- Lee

Grouped shapes is still supported in Word 2010 but the rubber band method of grouping is not available. Instead, shapes must be added to the group one by one.

The following macro will group selected shapes. Simply drag the cursor down to select paragraphs that anchor the shapes and run the macro. Don't worry if there is text in the selection, it will be ignored.

Sub GroupShapes()
Dim aRange As Range
Set aRange = Selection.Range
If aRange.ShapeRange.Count < 2 Then
MsgBox "ERROR: Need 2 or more shapes non inline shapes in order to group"
Exit Sub
End If
On Error GoTo Gerr2
aRange.ShapeRange.Group
If MsgBox("Confirm the grouping of these shapes?" & vbCr & vbCr & _
"Note: inline shapes cannot be included", vbYesNo) = vbNo Then
aRange.ShapeRange.Ungroup
aRange.Select
End If
Exit Sub
Gerr2:
MsgBox "Cannot group this selection"
End Sub

Hi Geraldine,

Thanks for contributing. One of the "sales hypes" for Word 2010 was its new and improved graphics design engine. Like many of my colleagues, I was sucked in by this feature. After installing Word 2010, I designed a graphic containing 65 shapes and lines, I tried to select all the shapes so I could move them over as a group. No go. I then found out I had to use the New Canvas feature. Sadly, that information would have come in handy because I didn't need to do that in Word 2007. As you can see, using the Selection Pain (no, that's not a spelling error!) doesn't work. Your suggestion is excellent for graphics where only a few shapes are used. As for your Step 3, you can't select more than one shape at a time.

When Microsoft does something right, they do it extremely well. I wish they would devote some of their obscene profits to building the Word program from the starting gate, only this time, ask the professionals what they need and how things must be done. As Word sits right now, it is not designed for professionals, but rather typists (no offence to anyone--but that's the truth). They have the know-how to write a stellar program. Problem is, most of their clients don't need a bug-free, professional publishing program--however, that is changing. The demand for quality documentation is on the rise and Microsoft is already way behind. A program that only replaces the typewriter and checks spelling is no longer enough!! The 80s are over.

Geraldine Barnes-Hampton,
Try using the Selection Pane; it's not as convenient as lassoing, but it might be a bit easier than selecting each image directly on the page:

1. Under Customize the Quick Access Toolbar > All Commands, add "Select (SelectMenu)"; click OK.
On your QAT, a new button displays a white selection arrow and a dropdown menu.
2. In the button's dropdown menu, select SelectionPane...
The Selection Pane opens, listing "Shapes on this Page."
3. OK, I can't figure out a way to select several at a time. Can anyone?

Good observation, Darkflux.

I'm afraid Word has miles to go before it becomes a "supertool;" if ever.

I love these forums, however, in a forum about good software, people discover how to do things the engineers never dreamed possible. In forums about Word (and there are hundreds), people discover how to work around the multitude of bugs and poor design features.

i think that MS could completely eliminate Publisher if they would simply provide a switch in Word that would allow you to move between Layered Mode and Text Mode. that seems to be the only real difference anymore, and i am one to avoid using more programs than are needed. this functionality would make Word a "supertool" again, unlike any other before...

In my case I want to LASSOO ONLY SOME but not all, of the 50+ images on my page. (They are pasted from my website so they are not in a "canvas") I certainly don't want to select each one individually, or even Select All then deselect 20% of them.

My work around is awful and involves Excel or Publisher.

Any suggestions for a Word solution?

Hi Barb,

Thanks for chiming in. Your technique does not work in Word 2010 unless the objects are created inside a canvas. It does work in Word 2007.

I just tried your technique. I opened a blank document, and then drew a square, circle, triangle, and star. Using your technique, I can't lasso all four shapes-even when I set the shapes to "In front of." I can select each one by holding down the Control key, but that sucks when you have dozens of shapes.

Is it possible I have some function turned off? I doubt it because hundreds of others have complained to no avail.

Please tell me how you do it in Word 2010. Hundreds would like to know! Many thanks.

- Lee

Lee Batchelor: Not True! You don't have to hold the shift key down to select so many multiple objects. Go to Home menu-"select"(at the far right)choose "select objects". Then draw your lasso. The techniques are still there, just have to find them! <gg> Personally, I never use the canvas. I teach my students to just bring objects "in front of" when creating the drawings. Then when they group the object as a whole, they can drop it in anywhere they want on the page. If they want word wrap to wrap around their final drawing, they'll have to change it to "in line with" or something like that.

You can turn on "Automatically create drawing canvas when inserting autoshapes" under File, Options, Advanced, Editing options in Word 2010. Wasted so much time trying to connect shapes without the canvas!!!! Ahhh

When I upload Word documents to my university marking system, Google Drive or cloud storage systems sometimes everything within the drawing canvas seems to go missing.
Anyone know what can I do to prevent this?

So I'm not alone, Mike. Wow, I wasn't aware of that canvas behavior in Word 2013! That's even worse than my situation. Why do such basic concerns fall on deaf ears at MS? It's not as though we're asking for an entire program rewrite!

To be fair, Word (all versions) is a pretty good program. It's the minor annoyances that drive you crazy and interfere with productivity. I know of a few colleagues who (near retirement) quit writing when Word 2007 was released. One declared, "When it comes to styles, it has a mind of its own. Word 2003 did everything I needed, but then they went and ‘improved’ it." It shouldn't be that way.

I use several software programs produced in Germany and Japan. They are flawless, uncomplicated, and everything works as promised. There are no moronic design features. The reason is because their developers monitor the forums very closely and fix things that are considered broken. Perhaps MS figures they're too big and don't need to worry. The bigger they are, the harder they fall. For proof, I give you modern-day Detroit.

- Lee

I use graphics singly and your statement that the canvas isn't helpful for that fits me. Now in the new and improved 2013 Word, I can't disable it nor can I change any of its defaults. Inserting a text box amid existing text blows everything apart which necessitates taking the time to change it to overlay the text. They I cannot change anything surrounding it unless I then also resize the canvas for THE box I inserted. Not exactly a productivity enhancement. I am using Office 365.

Thanks for chiming in, Randy.

The fact that MS made that change for Word 2011 MAC users tells me two things:
- Microsoft takes PC users for granted.
- Microsoft admitted to dropping the ball in Word 2010 and won’t spend the money to fix it.

Perhaps there is a way to have Word 2010 automatically create a canvas, however, I’d bet dollars to donuts, some third party person needs to create a macro for that function. Users are very lucky to have third party people to create extra functionality for Word products, however, I find that most of these macros bail Microsoft out of their customer obligation, which is to fix their buggy program!!

I really wish someone would create a word processing program that works and isn’t riddled with bugs features we don’t want. But there’s another topic!

According to an MVP, Word 2011 for the Mac creates a canvas automatically when a drawing object is inserted. It would be worth observing whether this is true for Word for Windows 2010 and later. (I'm mainly a Word 2007 user and use a separate drawing program when possible.) As also a Word for Mac 2011 user, I've seen recommendations to use PowerPoint for creating then pasting drawings (said to have "same graphic engine" but better tools).

Good tip.

Please don't forget to mention that in Word 2007, we were able to lasso several shapes outside the canvas. To enjoy the same functionality in Word 2010, you MUST use a canvas.

This backward action by MS has annoyed countless users!! The stock answer from MS is, "Hold the shift key down while you select each shape." Try doing that with 30 shapes in one diagram.!!

I don't deny that the canvas is a great tool, however, as a professional writer, I often import diagrams from source documents where a canvas was not used. I should not have to set up a new canvas in the new document to accommodate the imported shapes. As usual, MS dropped the ball on this. They like to call it, "a design feature of their new graphics engine." Rubbish!!

When is MS going to stop doing stupid things and ask users what they want instead??