draw rectangle arround a textRange or textSelection?

[levi23]

Hello such.

My question is simple. it is possible to get bounds of a textRange or TextSelection?

Draw the rectangle already know how to do it, but do not know how I can get the coordinates to draw it. I think it's not possible.

I'm wrong?

I would greatly appreciate your help.

a greeting

[o-marat]

Hello, levi23​!

You want to get this bounds?

Most likely you're right – through script no possible...

[levi23]

feared. And a part of the text (not the entire text) even if not selected?

Thank you.

a greeting

[o-marat · Accepted solution]

The only thing that came to my mind:

• find the numbers of the needed characters
• copy the text frame
• make it curves
• find the desired paths by numbers
• edit (e.g., add a frame around)
• remove the copy

[Silly-V]

Good approach. Extra help when doing this kind of operation is to color the desired text some key color so that when the text is converted to curves, you can easily isolate the bounds of that text by using a fill color as the 'filter' in the code.

[CarlosCanto]

here's one way of doing it.

// drawRectangleAroundSelectedTextRange
// CarlosCanto
// https://forums.adobe.com/thread/2232244
function main () {
    var idoc = app.activeDocument;
    var sel = idoc.selection;
    if (sel.typename == "TextRange") {
        var iframe = sel.parent.textFrames[0];
        var dup = iframe.duplicate();
        var range = sel;
        var rl = range.length;
        var story = range.story.textRange.contents;
        var sl = story.length;
        var rangeStart = range.characterOffset-1; // 1 based
        var rangeEnd = rangeStart+rl;
        var chars = range.story.textRange.characters;
        // remove from end of selected range to end of story
        if (rangeEnd < sl) {
            var delrange = chars[rangeEnd];
            delrange.length = sl-(rangeEnd);
            delrange.remove();
        }
        // remove from beginning of story to beginning of selected range
        var dup2 = iframe.duplicate();
      delrange = dup2.characters[0];
      delrange.length = rangeStart;
      delrange.remove();
      // remove range itself to get the first part of the text frame
      range.remove();
      dup2.position = [iframe.position[0]+iframe.width, iframe.position[1]];
      // make outlines and draw rectangle
      var igroup = dup2.createOutline();
      var margins = 1.5;
      var ipath = idoc.pathItems.rectangle(igroup.top+margins, igroup.left-margins, igroup.width+margins*2, igroup.height+margins*2);
      ipath.filled = false;
      ipath.stroked = true;
      ipath.move(dup, ElementPlacement.PLACEBEFORE);
      // remove duplicates
      igroup.remove();
      iframe.remove();
    }
    else {
        alert('Select a Text Range and try again');
    }
}
main ();

[levi23]

Woow much appreciate your response. The problem is that it only works on point text in a single line. Could adapt to mutilinea texts? (Point text and paragraph texts)?

Thank you very much again.

Apologized other question if it is not too much to ask. You could take a look at this post?

force redraw() script

Maybe your great knowledge get me out of doubt.

I just want to know if when making a TextRange by script. This can be used manually in the program in some way (removing it with the delete key for example)

Thank you very much

[CarlosCanto]

you'll have to split your multiline text into single lines first, search the forum, there should be scripts dealing with that, there's one made by Wundes.

check these threads as well

Re: Split TextFrame Lines

Re: How to divide all textFrames in one-character-per-textFrame?

about the other question, I haven't found an answer either.

[o-marat]

As another way - the code is written according to the algorithm, which I quoted earlier:

/**
 * ai.jsx (c)MaratShagiev m_js@bk.ru 08.11.2016
 * makes frame around TextRange.textSelection
 * */
//@target illustrator
(function addRectByTxtSel () {
  var d        = activeDocument,
      fr       = d.textFrames[0],
      re       = /\s/gmi,
      marg     = 2,
      col      = new CMYKColor (),
      selStart = fr.textSelection[0].characterOffset - 1, // first selected char
      selLen   = fr.textSelection[0].length, // text selection lenght
      selEnd   = selLen + selStart - 1, // last selected char
      fixSelLen, selSpaces,
      past, fixPastLen, pastSpaces,
      frCurv, gr, rect,
      selItems = [];
  col.magenta = 100;
  col.yellow  = 100;
  fixSelLen = selLen;
  selSpaces = fr.textSelection[0].contents.match (re);
  if (selSpaces) {
    fixSelLen = selLen - selSpaces.length;
  }
  past        = fr.textRange.characters[selEnd + 1];
  past.length = fr.contents.length - selEnd - 1;
  fixPastLen = past.length;
  pastSpaces = past.contents.match (re);
  if (pastSpaces) {
    fixPastLen = past.length - pastSpaces.length;
  }
  frCurv          = (fr.duplicate ()).createOutline ();
  for (var i = fixPastLen; i < fixPastLen + fixSelLen; i++) {
    var obj1 = frCurv.pageItems;
    selItems.push (obj1);
  }
  gr = d.activeLayer.groupItems.add ();
  for (var j = 0; j < selItems.length; j++) {
    var obj2 = selItems;
    obj2.move (gr, ElementPlacement.INSIDE);
  }
  rect = d.activeLayer.pathItems.rectangle (
    gr.position[1] + marg, gr.position[0] - marg, gr.width + marg * 2, gr.height + marg * 2);
  rect.filled      = false;
  rect.strokeColor = col;
  gr.remove ();
  frCurv.remove ();
} ());

If hyphenation  in Illustrator palette is enabled, it is not working correctly (cause the hyphens are not taken in the calculation). But I think it can be fix.

[moluapple]

Hello, also another way(working with multiline & hyphenation). Code based on Carlos

function main() {
    var idoc = app.activeDocument;
    var sel = idoc.selection;
    if (sel.typename == "TextRange") {
        var iframe = sel.parent.textFrames[0];
        var dup = iframe.duplicate();
        dup.selected = false;
        var range = sel;
        // log color
        var col = range.characterAttributes.fillColor;
        //set fill color to blank
        range.story.textRange.characterAttributes.fillColor = new NoColor();
        //set fill color again 
        range.characterAttributes.fillColor = col;
        //apply outline effect
        var effectStr = '<LiveEffect name="Adobe Outline Type">' + '<Dict data=""/>' + '</LiveEffect>';
        iframe.applyEffect(effectStr);
        iframe.selected = true;
        //expand appearance
        app.executeMenuCommand('expandStyle');
        var igroup = app.selection[0];
        var margins = 1.5;
        var ipath = idoc.pathItems.rectangle(igroup.top + margins, igroup.left - margins, igroup.width + margins * 2, igroup.height + margins * 2);
        ipath.filled = false;
        ipath.stroked = true;
        ipath.move(dup, ElementPlacement.PLACEBEFORE);
        // remove duplicates  
        igroup.remove();
    } else {
        alert('Select a Text Range and try again');
    }
}
main();