Grids, guides and rulers

Coordinates on a slide

Manim measures a slide in its own units: a standard 16:9 slide is about 14.2 units wide and 8 units high, with the origin (0, 0) at the centre, x increasing to the right and y increasing upwards. Positions in the code, such as .move_to((2, 1, 0)), use these units.

The inspector's X and Y fields show the position of the selected object's centre in pixels of the rendered frame (1280 × 720 for a standard deck), measured from the top-left corner. Manimble converts between the two when it writes the code.

Grid lines

Choose View ▸ Grid Lines (⌥⌘G) to show a grid one Manim unit apart, with the axes through the centre of the slide marked. When the grid is shown, dragged objects also snap to it.

Snapping

View ▸ Snap to Objects (⌥⌘S) is on by default. While you drag an object, its edges and centre snap to:

• the edges and centres of other objects,
• your guides,
• the edges and centre of the slide,
• the grid, when it is shown.

Orange lines show what the object has snapped to. Hold ⌥ while dragging to move freely.

Guides

Guides are lines you place to line objects up across a slide.

• Choose View ▸ Add Vertical Guide or View ▸ Add Horizontal Guide, or use the guide buttons on the Home bar. A cyan guide appears in the middle of the slide.
• Drag a guide to move it. Drag it off the slide to remove it.
• View ▸ Clear Guides removes them all.

Guides are remembered for each deck, are shown on every slide, and are never part of the slides themselves.

Rulers

Choose View ▸ Ruler (⌥⌘U) to show rulers along the top and left of the slide. They are graduated in Manim units, with 0 at the centre of the slide, and follow the zoom. They mark the extent of the slide and of the selection, the pointer's position, and each guide.

Drag from a ruler onto the slide to add a guide, or drag a guide's marker on the ruler to move it.

Show objects

View ▸ Show Objects (⌥⌘J) outlines every object on the slide, which helps you find objects that are small, transparent or hidden behind others.

Zoom

Command	Shortcut
View ▸ Zoom In	⌘=
View ▸ Zoom Out	⌘-
View ▸ Fit in Window	⌘0

You can also pinch on a trackpad to zoom, and scroll to pan.