I wonder if I am doing something wrong. When working on any document with more than one layer, I find if I group some items on the top layer (layer 2) the grouped object jumps down to layer 1 and I have to drag it back up to layer 2. Also when working on the top layer 2, sometime I want to lock layer 1 so I am not accidentally choosing items but when I try to group anything on layer 2 I get a message telling me that layer 1 is locked and won't let me do it until I unlock the layer. I thought the whole idea of locking layers was so I could work on each one independently.

Is this what it is supposed to do or am I doing something wrong?

When you group objects, CorelDRAW send the new group to the Active Layer; the one with the red name.

If the active layer is locked, you'll get that message.

Ahmad Ajlouny:

When you group objects, CorelDRAW send the new group to the Active Layer

Thank you Ahmad, but isn't the ACTIVE layer the one that I am actually working on and not the layer underneath?

The Active Layer is the one with the red name, where new objects will be added (when you draw, copy/paste, group, weld… objects).

So there is one Active Layer. But you can reach any object on any layer (not just the Active) if the "Edit Across Layers" button on the Object Manager is enabled.

To make a layer active, click the name of the layer.

Logically, that should be the case.

But somehow the developement team has a different definition of Active layer.

Like Ahmad said, unless you click on the layer name, otherwise the layer will not be recognised as active by CorelDraw although you are working on that layer.

Michael:

unless you click on the layer name, otherwise the layer will not be recognised as active by CorelDraw although you are working on that layer.

That is the part that was bugging me, I assumed that if I was working on a layer that would be the active layer, it seems to be active in the Object Manager, isn't that how it works in PhotoPaint? It is counter-productive to have to continually click on the layer in Object Manager before I group items that I am working on.

Also what about when I lock Layer 1 then try to group items on layer 2 I get a pop-up message telling me that layer 1 is locked and won't let me do it until I unlock the layer?

As I said in my previous post, you are reaching objects on Layer 2 while the active is Layer 1 (you have "Edit Across Layers" enabled), so when you group these objects, CorelDRAW send them to the active layer; Layer 1, which is locked, so you get that message.

Click on the name of Layer 2 (or any layer on which you want to add objects) to activate it and then group.

You have the other option; disable "Edit Across Layers", see if that suits you.

Corel PHOTO-PAINT's layers are like CorelDRAW's objects.

Blaming Corel's developers will hinder your efforts to learn CorelDRAW!

Please let me know if you need more details.

A very good way is to read CorelDRAW Help. It has a handy Search tab (See the attached image).

You can increase the font size of CorelDRAW Help; wOxxOm CorelDRAW X4 Font Size adjuster for Help File

Ahmad Ajlouny:

A very good way is to read CorelDRAW Help. It has a handy Search tab (See the attached image).

Thank you again Ahmad, it was the Edit Across Layers part that I did not get, I will give it a try. As far as searching in the help files, I do that quite often, the problem with search the help files, if you don't use the right words then you don't always find a suitable answer. Just to clarify, I wasn't blaming Corel, as I said in my original post, "I wonder if I am doing something wrong" because it seemed counter-productive to have to keep clicking on the layer I was already working on.

It's a general advice; a lot of people find it easy to blame and criticize Corel developers. Maybe I shouldn't have written it.

Please forgive me.

Have you tried "wOxxOm Font Size Adjuster"?

Ahmad Ajlouny:

Maybe I shouldn't have written it. Please forgive me.

Thank you :)