shape doesn't close between + and * vertically

[QiangF]

Normally there is no gap between adjacent + and *, eg:

--+*

but if the two are vertically aligned, there is a gap:

  *----.
--+ ab |
  | ab |
--*----'
  +

also, when simply vertically align the two, * is treated as a character:

|
+
*

[ivanceras]

@QiangF characters such as +, *, . have a lower signal intensity . You may need to use characters like | and - to explicitly mean a connection to the *. Balancing the signal intensity is quite hard since it affects all other formation.

---*

  *----.
--| ab |
  | ab |
--*----'
  |

|
|
*