The LABELS tab is available on the ribbon when you highlight one or more layers in the Layers or Explorer windows. This tab is another way to access label options that are also available from the Layer Properties dialog box. It contains the following groups of commands.
Label Content Group
These commands label content with columns or expressions.
Command | Description |
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Label using | Select a column in the table to use labels from. |
Abbreviate with | Select this check box and a column in the table that contains abbreviated labels. This uses abbreviations when there are a large number of labels. |
Label Placement Group
These commands provides common preset rules for how labels are placed on the map. The preset rules are groups of options that you would normally have to set individually in the Layer Properties dialog box. The available rules change depending on the type of layer selected. For example, for a layer of regions, some of the rules include Auto Size, Auto Position and Centroid. For a line layer the options are Curved, Curved with Fallback, Rotated, and Horizontal.
The other commands in the Label Placement group – position, offset, overlaps and duplicates – are the same as those in the Layer Properties dialog box.
Icon | Command | Description |
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Label Rules | Lists common preset label rules.
Default Point Labeling |
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Label Position | Use these default position (Anchor Point) buttons and the label offset to set label placement.
Top Left Top Center Top Right Center Left Center Center Right Bottom Left Bottom Center Bottom Right The anchor point is the label's position relative to the map object. The default anchor point varies with the type of map object: Regions default to Center, Lines to Above Center, and Points to Right. |
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Offset | Sets the number of points (a measurement of text size) that a label is placed from its anchor point. | |
Label Overlap | Sets how to display labels when they overlap.
Discard Labels – Remove labels that overlap each other on the map. Allow Overlaps – Allow labels to draw on top of each other. Labels may not display when they overlap labels that have a higher priority on the map. Try Other Positions – Avoid overlapping labels (to display more labels) by repositioning them around the object the label is describing. |
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Allow Duplicates | Allows duplicate labels for different objects to display, for example, (Portland, OR) and (Portland, ME). Use this option with street maps to label street segments individually. | |
Label Partial Objects | Label polylines and objects whose centroids are not visible in the Map window. This only applies to autolabels. Customizing a label does not change its location. |
Label Style Group
These commands set label display style, such as font family, size, special effects, and whether or not to show label lines. These are the same options available from the Layer Properties dialog box. An important difference, however, is you can see an immediate effect of your style choices when Enable Preview command is turned on and you hover over, for example, a font name or size on a drop-down list. You can preview Label Rules, see Enable Preview Command.
Icon | Command | Description |
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Font Family | Change the font family. Available when a text box is activated on the layout. | |
Font Size | Change the font size. Available when a text box is activated on the layout. | |
Increase Font Size | Change the font size incrementally larger when a text box is activated on the layout. | |
Decrease Font Size | Change the font size incrementally smaller when a text box is activated on the layout. | |
Bold | Applies a stronger appearance to label text. | |
Italic | Slopes label text to the right. | |
Underline | Adds an underline to label text. | |
All Capitols | Displays label text in all capitols (TEXT). | |
Expanded | Adds space between the characters of label text (t e x t). | |
Shadow | Adds a shadow effect behind label text. | |
Font Color | Select a color to apply to label text. | |
Halo | Adds a luminous outline around label text. | |
Highlight | Sets a color to use behind labels to make them more legible on the map. | |
Label Background Color | Selects the background color to use with Halo and Highlight effects. | |
Label Lines | Lists the following commands. The last selected style is active. Label lines display after you move the label from where it was originally created. None: Do not display a line with the label. Simple: Create a call-out by using a simple line that connects the label to the anchor point. Arrow: Create a call-out by using an arrow and line that connects the label to anchor point. Line Style Modify the style of the call-out lines. |
Enable Preview Command
This command shows a preview of the label while you are making label style choices. If your map contains a large number of labels, the preview display can be slow. So consider turning off the Enable Preview feature when you don't need it.
Preview is available for font family, font size, label foreground color, label background color (when halo or highlight is set) and Label Rules. The Enable Preview only enables or disables previewing for layers. It is not available for use with the Layout window.
Icon | Command | Description |
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Enable Preview | Enables a preview of the label while you are making style choices. |