Move with Basepoint — User Guide

1Introduction

Move With Basepoint lets you move any set of selected objects with precision, in one fluid motion. You pick a basepoint — an exact point on any object vertex — and then a destination — an exact point on any other object vertex. Everything you selected then moves together so that the basepoint lands exactly on the destination.

It works like the built-in Set Selection Origin and Move commands combined, but on the fly and with no extra dialogs or button clicks. As you move the cursor, a red diamond snap marker locks onto the nearest meaningful point — a pin, a via, a trace end, a draw vertex, a circle center, and more — so you can align circuits and place parts exactly where you want them. It also lets you snap along any 45° axis, so you can use one object to set a direction and then place your selection aligned to it but offset by any distance.

This guide is written for someone using the tool for the first time. No prior experience with it is assumed.

2Requirements & Setup

Xpedition Layout must be running with a design open. The tool works directly on the active design.
A valid ExactCAD license must be applied. If you have not done this yet, use the ExactCAD Licensing tool to enter your license code.
A keyboard shortcut should be assigned to launch the tool. Most users assign the letter M. Assigning the shortcut is covered in the ExactCAD Install Instructions and the Hotkeys guide.
Any design unit is supported. The tool adapts automatically whether your design is set to thou, inches, millimeters, or microns.

Note: If you launch the tool without a license applied, it will tell you that no license code has been found and direct you to the ExactCAD Licensing tool. Apply your license once, and the tool is ready for everyday use.

3How It Works

A complete move takes just two clicks after you have some object selected and start the tool:

First click — the basepoint. This is the point the move is measured from. It can be any vertex on any object in the design, such as a particular pin or corner — it does not need to be part of your selection.
Second click — the destination. This is where that basepoint should end up. Your whole selection shifts by the distance and direction between the two points.

Between the two clicks, a translucent ghost image of your selection follows the cursor so you can see exactly where everything will land before you commit. A red diamond snap marker rides along with the cursor and jumps to the nearest useful point, so both the basepoint and the destination land precisely on real geometry rather than wherever the cursor happens to be.

4Moving Objects Step by Step

Select the objects you want to move. Select any combination of parts, traces, vias, draw objects, text, and other design objects, using the normal Xpedition selection tools.
Press your shortcut key (for example, M) to start the tool. The prompt area at the bottom of the screen reads “SELECT THE BASEPOINT FOR THE MOVE FUNCTION.”
Set the basepoint. Move the cursor over the point you want to use as your reference. The red diamond marker snaps to the nearest vertex. When it sits on the point you want, click once.
Move toward the destination. A ghost image of your selection now follows the cursor. The prompt area reads “SELECT THE DESTINATION POINT FOR THE MOVE FUNCTION.”
Set the destination and click. Hover over the target point until the red diamond marks it, then click. Your selection moves so the basepoint lands exactly on that destination, and the tool finishes.

Setting the basepoint: the red diamond snaps to a pin on the selected part and labels it as the basepoint. — Step 1 — the red snap marker locks onto the reference point; click to set the basepoint.

A ghost image of the selection follows the cursor and lands its basepoint on a target pin marked as the destination. — Step 2 — a ghost image follows the cursor; click the destination to land the basepoint exactly there.

Tip: Because the basepoint can be any point in your design and the destination can be any other point in the design, this is an ideal way to drop one circuit precisely onto a connector, line up parts pin-to-pin, or repeat a placement at an exact offset.

5Snapping in Detail

The red diamond snap marker is what makes the tool precise. As the cursor moves, the marker searches a small area around it and jumps to the most useful nearby point.

5.1 What the Marker Finds

The marker recognizes points on essentially anything in the design:

Snap target	What the marker locks onto
Pins, vias, mounting holes, test points	The center of the pad or hole.
Traces and draw lines	Each end point, each corner (vertex), and the midpoint of every segment.
Closed draw shapes and outlines	Every corner of the shape and the midpoint of every edge.
Circles and arcs	The center, plus the four quadrant points (top, bottom, left, and right).

Examples of points the snap marker finds: pin center, trace end and midpoint, draw vertex and edge midpoint, and circle center and quadrant. — The snap marker finds vertices, midpoints, centers, and quadrant points on any object.

Note: When several objects overlap, the marker gives priority to pins, vias, and similar pad-based objects, then to draw graphics. Component placement outlines are intentionally ignored so they do not get in the way of snapping to the geometry you care about.

5.2 Snapping Along 45° Axes

After the marker has locked onto a real point, you can move the cursor a short distance away and it will follow the nearest standing axis radiating from that point — 0°, 45°, 90°, 135°, 180°, 225°, 270°, or 315°. The marker creates a “virtual” snap point out along that axis line, wherever your cursor is.

This means you can use a pin (or any vertex) to establish a direction, then place your selection aligned to that pin but offset from it by any distance along the axis. It is a fast way to keep things perfectly in line without needing a real object at the exact spot you want to land on.

Eight dashed axis lines radiate from a reference pin at 45-degree increments; the marker snaps to a virtual point along the 45-degree axis, offset from the pin. — Use any vertex to set a direction, then snap to a virtual point along any 45° axis — aligned, but offset.

Tip: The axis behavior engages only after you move slightly away from the last point the marker locked onto. If it is not following an axis, move the cursor a little farther from that point.

6What Gets Moved

Whatever you have selected moves together as one group. The tool handles the full range of design objects, including:

Components, including test points
Traces and vias
Draw objects on user layers and conductor layers — including board outline, route border and route fence, rule areas, rooms, obstructs, contours, conductive shapes, teardrops, and manufacturing outlines
Plane shapes
Mounting holes
Text on user layers, conductor layers, and standalone fabrication text

Note: Generated (dynamic) plane fills are produced from their underlying shapes. After a move, refresh or re-pour planes as you normally would so the copper regenerates in its new location.

7Canceling & Finishing

To cancel before the move, right-click or press Esc at any time before the second click. The tool closes and nothing is moved.
When the move finishes, the tool clears the snap marker, releases the selection, and closes automatically. You are ready to start your next action immediately.
To reverse a completed move, use the normal Xpedition Undo command.

8Tips & Troubleshooting

“You need to select something first.” The tool was started with nothing selected. Close the message, select your objects, then press the shortcut again.
A licensing message appears on start-up. Your license has not been applied, has expired, or does not include this tool. Apply or renew your code with the ExactCAD Licensing tool.
The marker is not snapping where you expect. Zoom in. The marker searches a small area around the cursor, so getting closer to the target makes it easier to land on the exact point.
The marker will not follow a 45° axis. Move the cursor a little farther away from the last point it locked onto — the axis behavior needs a small amount of separation before it engages.
You want to land aligned to a pin but not on it. Hover the pin to set the direction, then move out along the desired 45° axis and click the virtual snap point.
You moved the wrong thing. Use Xpedition Undo to reverse the move, re-select, and try again.