Chapter 27. Group And Direct Selection Tips 6:48

  • Will cover
    • Selection Tool
    • Group Selection Tool
    • Magic Wand Tool
    • Lasso Tool
  • Select multiple objects with the Selection Tool
    • Object → Group
    • Make them into a group
    • Can un-group them
  • Group Selection Tool
    • Get into a group and select a piece of the group without un-grouping it
      • Key cap configure perhaps is made of groups?
      • How to deal with each logical keycap layer having it’s own font?
    • Lets you move individual objects keeping them in their group
  • A group of groups of objects is a nest
  • Select one group, shift-click another group, now you can group those two groups
  • This seems to be one way to keep everything positioned correctly
  • Each time you click a nest it cycles through selecting all of the groups
    • Group logically related features as their own groups so that you can dig deeper and deeper as you would expect
  • Double-clicking objects in a nest access isolation groups which cycles through the nested groups
  • Either way when you are in a particular group, the edit menu operates on the objects in that group. So Edit → Select All selects everything in that group. Obvious but news to me.
  • Just noticed in the top area that it also shows the groups including the one that you are in right now
  • How long do groups live?

Chapter 26. Controlling Selection With Preferences 5:49

  • A whole chapter on selection, got my attention!
  • Andy says that it is one of most important skills
    • Vector programs are called object-oriented
  • This lesson is all about the Selection Tool (V)
  • You can hide the bounding box of an object
    • How do you reshape the object?
      • Use the tools from the toolbar
  • Preferences → Selection & Anchor Display
    • Tolerance
      • How close you are to an anchor point before AI informs you that you are there
      • Nice to set it to one so that you are operating precisely
  • Shift-Click to select multiple objects
  • Command-Drag on an object to move all of them

Chapter 23. New Tricks With Guides 3:42

  • When you set the origin point you are setting that position on the ruler to 0,0
  • When you snap the origin to an object you can use the ruler to position a guide exactly N units away from that object
    • Double click the genesis point to reset it to the default position
    • You are left with a guide so you know where to place the new object
  • When you hold shift to work with a guide it always snaps to the whole location
  • Command-rag from origin brings two guides
  • Guides are indispensable

Chapter 22. Resizing An Art-Board From Center 3:56

  • You can automatically resize an artboard by centering it and shrinking it on an object
  • You can also manually do it by
    • Selecting the object on which to center
    • Selecting the dropdown of the align tool to choose Align To Artboard
    • Manually selecting center vertical and horizontal
    • Shift-Option and resize on the corner of the artboard keeps the object centered
    • This will take some examples

Chapter 21. Generating Multiple Illustrator Art-boards 5:31

  • Author is an illustrator by trade
    • Did everything by hand before AI
    • Now does it all in AI
  • For Techne or Tekne or Texni
    • Use for Keycap layout
    • Use for shield lettering
    • Use for keyboard printing
    • Use for website
    • Use for business cards
    • Use for logo
  • Artboards are artboards, not pages, InDesign is for that

Chapter 20. Hiding And Locking Illustrator Objects 3:12

  • Teacher
    • Great sound
    • Uses examples and repetition
    • Combination of casual conversation light-heartedness and serious philosophy about workflow and cognitive space
  • Goal: Only work on the butterfly
    • Accidentally select something else, move the wrong thing, undo it
    • Instead lock the background to avoid the accident
  • Approaches
    • Background is in a group, so select it, and lock it
    • You can manipulate every other object
    • Unlock when done
  • Easier way
    • Everything is in one layer right now, wrong approach, should use separate layers
    • In this example you open the layer and lock the individual groups
    • Can also hide them
    • Show and hide layers and groups
    • Even though you have everything in one layer, you can still do what you want in your workflow