In both the printing and engraving industries, absolute accuracy can be critical. For instance, sometimes I place a panel of color on a page and place white, centered text on top of it. To ensure that the text is centered precisely within the panel, I first click on the panel and then in the Property bar on the top center, the radio button. If the panel went to the top of the page, the Y-coordinate would be 0″ and the X-coordinate would be the distance from the left edge of the page and the middle of the column. If I copied that number and placed it in the X-coordinate box of the selected type after making sure the top middle radio button was selected, the type would be exactly centered within the color panel. The vertical position of the type could then be adjusted by eye, knowing that the type was perfectly centered horizontally.
There are many instances like this where precision is a must and others in which we can rely on our eyes for positioning. I often have a panel of color butting up against a photo. If the placement is not precise, they may appear to be touching each other, but later I discover a thin slice of white showing through between the photo and the background in the final piece. Not good! By selecting the color panel and clicking on the top right radio button, I can copy the number in the X-coordinate box. I then click on the photo, making sure the upper left radio button is selected, and paste the number into the X-coordinate box and hit return. The right edge of the color panel is then perfectly aligned with the left edge of the photo. That is accuracy you can count on.
