Reshaping freehand drawn lines and shapes in an electronic document

The invention improves the appearance of freehand drawn lines and shapes in an electronic document by first recognizing freehand drawn lines and shapes and generating a line made up of sequential straight line segments for the freehand drawn line when the line does not form a closed line and generating a multiple straight-line-segment shape when the line forms a closed line. If a multiple segment shape is being reshaped, a basic shape is selected from reference ideal shapes as the basic shape of the multiple segment shape. The basic shape is adjusted to provide a specific shape as an improved shape for the freehand drawn shape. The recognition of the freehand drawn lines and shapes is accomplished by comparing source segments of a source freehand drawn line to a straight line and substituting a straight line segment for a source segment if the deviation between the source segment and the straight line is below a predetermined value. Sequential source segments of a source freehand drawn line are evaluated to determine if they are an angle segment. A segment pair of sequential source line segments are defined as an angle segment having two straight line segments intersecting at a common end point if both source segments of the segment pair are within a predetermined deviation value from a straight line. The straight line segments and angle segments are combined to form a multiple segment line if the line does not close on itself and a multiple segment shape if the line does close on itself.