One of the Tips of the Day suggests that to select an object within a group

• Select the group
• Open the Quick Edit Editor > object tab
• Hold the shift key down
• Repeatedly press the TAB key until the object shows in the Quick Editor


I thought this would be a handy way to make changes to an object within a group without ungrouping. But, it doesn’t work (for me, at least).

I have tried it in SS Pro, Web Engine and SS Standard. All it does is cycle through the various options within the editor, and the group itself remains displayed.

While the tip is in error, you can still use this function, but using different keys. Click in the drop-down object list in either the Object Editor or Quick Edit, then use the up & down arrow to cycle through the objects and display what they are.

The tip has the first two steps reversed. You should open the Quick Editor first, then select the group.

Then with the group selected (not the Quick Editor), Shift+Tab will take you backwards through the objects of the group. Usually!

This won't always be the case, as it is relying on the group being formed immediately after the other objects. If you have juggled the Z-order, or made the group much later than the objects contained in it, then the group and objects might be well separated.

In that case, you may as well just use the Tab key repeatedly to go forward through the objects until you see the correct object pop up in the Quick Editor.

Thanks Bruce,

How the hell did you ever figure that out? I mean being with the first two steps of the tip being back to front.

Although it does work, for me, it cycles through all objects on the page, not just the selected group. But it is still a lot better preference than ungrouping every time.

There's nothing special about the objects of the group. It's just that if you locate the group first, and then tab back from there, you should discover the objects of the group sooner rather than later.

This tip is relying on the thought that if you create the objects first, then group them, the group object comes after the objects (in the z-order).