Edit Points: Curved and Straight Line Segments in PowerPoint 2007 for Windows

A line (outline) in PowerPoint 2007 for Windows contains both points and segments. In this tutorial, we will show you how segments (the line area between one point and another) work. We will also explore the two types of segments: Straight and Curved. You can edit these segments and also convert a straight segment to a curved segment and vice versa in PowerPoint, as explained in this tutorial.

Curved Segment

1. Select the shape which has straight segments (such as Rectangle, see in Figure 1) and switch to Edit Points mode.
2. 
   Figure 1: A Rectangle in Edit Points mode
2. Now place the cursor on top of the outline of the shape. The cursor will change to a rectangle with a plus sign, as shown in Figure 2.
3. 
   Figure 2: Place cursor over the outline
3. Now right-click to bring up the contextual menu that you can see in Figure 3. From this contextual menu choose the Curved Segment option.
4. 
   Figure 3: Curved Segment option
4. This converts the straight segment of the line to a curved segment, as shown in Figure 4 (compare with Figure 3, above).
5. 
   Figure 4: Straight Segment changed to Curved Segment

Straight Segment

To convert a Curved Segment into a Straight Segment, follow these steps:

1. Select the shape which has curved segments (such as an Oval, shown in Figure 5) and switch to Edit Points mode.
2. 
   Figure 5: Oval shape in Edit Points mode
2. Now place the cursor above the outline of the shape. The cursor will change to a rectangle with a plus sign, as shown in Figure 6.
3. 
   Figure 6: Place cursor over the line segment
3. Now right-click to bring up the contextual menu that you can see in Figure 7. From this contextual menu, choose the Straight Segment option.
4. 
   Figure 7: Straight Segment option
4. This converts the curved segment of the line to a straight segment, as shown in Figure 8 (compare to Figure 7), above.
5. 
   Figure 8: Curved Segment changed to Straight Segment

Directly Working with Segments

You can also click anywhere on a segment and drag it as required to change the structure of the shape. PowerPoint automatically adds a new vertex at the point you dragged the segment, as shown in Figure 9 (compare with Figure 7, shown earlier on this page).

Figure 9: New point is added on the segment