Two interesting issues with moving text blocks in Edit Text tool since build 370

[rakunavi]

Hello all,

In build 370, the functionality of the Edit Content tool has been separated into two tools: the 'Edit Text' tool and the 'Edit Objects' tool.

• Version History - Build 10.0.0.370 Bugfixes and Improvements
  The 'Edit Content' tool has been split into two tools: an 'Edit Text' tool - to edit easily text blocks (like columns/paragraphs) on pages, and an 'Edit Objects' tool - to edit base content items directly.

The developer's intention for the change was previously introduced by Daniel in his previous post as follows.

The Function was split into two options because the old checkbox to enable "edit text as blocks" caused no end of headaches both for new users who accidentally toggled it, and for us on the support team needing to repeatedly explain this to everyone. Now it is separated to ensure that it is clear which you should be using to edit text.

The minor loss of functionality in the inability to use "all" content editing mode to select full sized blocks is considered by the dev team to be offset by the clarity of use these two tools offer. If you need to move a full sized block of text though, you can always use the edit text tool specifically.

Thus, I had thought that the changes in build 370 were limited to the separation of commands from the perspective of UI improvement, but I now realize that the behavior itself was also significantly changed in build 370. Below I would like to report on two interesting behavior. Note that in this report, the frame that appears when selected with the Edit Text tool will be referred to as a text block, and the blue frame that appears when selected with the Edit Objects tool will be referred to as a text element.

• No2_figure.png

Issue 1

• In the video below, "sample_mono.pdf" is opened for both build 368 and build 389, the Edit Text tool is activated, and the text block is selected and repositioned. You can use either the mouse or the keys. In the video, operation is performed with Shift + Arrow keys. At the end of the build 389 part, the entire contents are selected in Edit Objects tool, including the outside of the page, to check the distribution of text left out of the selection. As you can see, in build 389, basically, if the entire text element extends beyond the page, it is deselected at that point and left off the page. If the text attributes are identical, as in "sample_mono.pdf", the boundaries of the text elements can be predicted somewhat easily, so the behavior can be roughly predicted as well.
  
  
  • No3_Animation_Mono.gif
  • SampleFiles.zip
  In the following video, "sample_color.pdf" is opened and the text block positions are changed in the same way for each build. The more complex the text attributes, the more difficult it is to predict the boundaries of the text elements, and the more difficult it is to predict the behavior.
  
  
  • No5_Animation_Color.gif
  The Edit Text tool is convenient because you can select an entire text block by clicking anywhere in the text block. However, if there is even a small chance that part of the text block will be outside the page while you are moving it, it might be better to select the entire text by dragging with Edit Objects tool, even if it is more tedious, to avoid unintended consequences.
  
  Personally, I prefer the behavior up to build 368, where the result is predictable at a glance. If you want to remove base content text that exists outside of the page, you can simply use the "Remove Cropped Content" command to remove it after all editing work is done. With the current behavior, I am concerned about the risk of unintentionally leaving text outside the page during the editing process.

Issue 2

• The problem noted in Issue 1 can be avoided by selecting the text block and then increasing or decreasing the X and Y coordinate fields in the Transformaion group of the Arrange tab. However, this presents another problem (Issue 2). When the text block is moved beyond a certain length, there is a discrepancy between the input and displayed values in the coordinate fields. The text block in the sample file has the coordinates of the upper left corner set to (X,Y) = (10 mm,10 mm) for both "sample_mono.pdf" and "sample_color.pdf". In the following verification video, you will change the X-coordinate among them.
  
  
  • No6_figure.png
  For "sample_mono.pdf" file, in the first half of the video, the X-coordinate is changed from the initial value of 10 mm to -123 mm and then back to the original value of "10 mm", and so on. The input value in the X-coordinate field matches the displayed value. Everything is normal.
  
  Then, in the second half of the video, the X-coordinate is changed from the initial value of 10 mm to -124 mm and back to the original value of 10 mm, and the operation is repeated several times. Then, a discrepancy between the input value and the displayed value occurs in the middle of the operation. In addition, the value switches by simply entering the Enter key, which is abnormal. The position of the text block reflects the input value in the X coordinate field, but the displayed value is wrong.
  
  
  • No4_figure.png
    
    
    No7_TransformX_mono.gif
  The same verification is performed for "sample_color.pdf". In the first half of the video, the X coordinate is changed between 10 mm and -27 mm to make sure there are no problems. In the second half of the video, the X coordinate is changed between 10 mm and -28 mm to confirm that there is a discrepancy between the input and displayed values of the field.
  
  
  • No8_TransformX_color.gif
  In the above verification, the values -124 mm for "sample_mono.pdf" and -28 mm for "sample_color.pdf" are important. Each corresponds to the X coordinate at which the first text element leaves the text block selection. Incidentally, using the Transfomation function, the exact first boundaries can be checked as -123.58 mm for "sample_mono.pdf" and -27.15 mm for "sample_color.pdf". The following video shows how the first text element is excluded from the text block selection at the X coordinate of -124 mm.
  
  
  • No9_from123to124.gif
  If you select the entire text block in Edit Objects tool and look at the boundaries of each text element, you will see why these are the boundaries that determine whether a problem occurs.
  
  
  • No10_figure.png

Personally, I think issue 2 is a bug. I can't say anything about issue 1, but it would be beneficial for users to be aware that the behavior of moving outside the page frame has changed since build 370.

Thank you for taking the time to read this message.

Best regards,
rakunavi

- PDF-XChange Editor Plus Version: 10.4.1 build 389
- OS Version: Windows 11 Home 23H2 Build 22631.4169
- PC Model: Lenovo IdeaPad C340-15IWL, HP All-in-One 22-c0xx

[Daniel - PDF-XChange]

Hello, rakunavi

Thank you for the reports... these are most definitely unintended items. I am passing them along now.

Kind regards,