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in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Adobe
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Please remember that existing artwork or images that you may want to include in your project may be protected under copyright law. The unauthorized
incorporation of such material into your new work could be a violation of the rights of the copyright owner. Please be sure to obtain any permission required
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vii
Chapter 1: Resources
Before you begin working with your software, take a few moments to read an overview of activation and the many
resources available to you. You have access to instructional videos, plug-ins, templates, user communities, seminars,
tutorials, RSS feeds, and much more.
In addition, check out these how-to guides to see examples of how leading designers use Illustrator to create amazing
artwork:
Activation and registration
Help with installation
For help with installation issues, see the Installation Support Center at www.adobe.com/go/cs4install.
License activation
During the installation process, your Adobe software contacts Adobe to complete the license activation process. No
personal data is transmitted. For more information on product activation, visit the Adobe website at
www.adobe.com/go/activation.
www.adobe.com/go/learn_ai_tutorials_howtos_en.
1
A single-user retail license activation supports two computers. For example, you can install the product on a desktop
computer at work and on a laptop computer at home. If you want to install the software on a third computer, first
deactivate it on one of the other two computers. Choose Help
> Deactivate.
Register
Register your product to receive complimentary installation support, notifications of updates, and other services.
❖ To register, follow the on-screen instructions in the Registration dialog box, which appears after you install the
software.
If you postpone registration, you can register at any time by choosing Help > Registration.
Adobe Product Improvement Program
After you use your Adobe software a certain number of times, a dialog box may appear asking whether you want to
participate in the Adobe Product Improvement Program.
If you choose to participate, data about your use of Adobe software is sent to Adobe. No personal information is
recorded or sent. The Adobe Product Improvement Program only collects information about which features and tools
you use and how often you use them.
You can opt in to or out of the program at any time:
• To participate, choose Help > Adobe Product Improvement Program and click Yes, Participate.
• To stop participating, choose Help > Adobe Product Improvement Program and click No, Thank You.
USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4
Resources
ReadMe
A ReadMe file for your software is available on-line and on the installation disc. Open the file to read important
information about topics such as the following:
• System requirements
• Installation (including uninstalling the software)
• Activation and registration
• Font installation
• Troubleshooting
• Customer support
• Legal notices
Help and support
Community Help
Community Help is an integrated environment on Adobe.com that gives you access to community-generated content
moderated by Adobe and industry experts. Comments from users help guide you to an answer.
2
Community Help draws on a number of resources, including:
• Videos, tutorials, tips and techniques, blogs, articles, and examples for designers and developers.
• Complete on-line product Help, which is updated regularly by the Adobe documentation team.
• All other content on Adobe.com, including knowledgebase articles, downloads and updates, Developer
Connection, and more.
Choose Help > product name Help in the application to access the Help and Support page, the portal to all of the
Community Help content for your product. You can also use the Help search field in some Creative Suite 4
applications, or press F1 (Windows), to access Community Help for your product.
The sites searched by the default Community Help search engine are hand-selected and reviewed for quality by Adobe
and Adobe Community Experts. Adobe experts also work to ensure that the top search results include a mixture of
different kinds of content, including results from on-line product Help.
For more information on using Community Help, see http://help.adobe.com/en_US/CommunityHelp/.
For a video overview of Community Help, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4117_xp.
Product Help
Adobe provides a comprehensive user guide for each product in several formats, including on-line product Help, PDF,
and printed book. Results from on-line product Help are included in your results whenever you search Community Help.
If you’re connected to the Internet, the Help menu within the product opens the product Help and Support page by
default. This page is a portal to all of the Community Help content for the product. If you want to consult or search
on-line product Help only, you can access it by clicking the product Help link in the upper-right corner of the Help
and Support page. Be sure to select the This Help System Only option before you do your search.
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Resources
If you’re not connected to the Internet, the Help menu within the product opens local Help, a subset of the content
available in on-line product Help. Because local Help is not as complete or up-to-date as on-line product Help, Adobe
recommends that you use the PDF version of product Help if you want to stay offline. A downloadable PDF of
complete product Help is available from two places:
• The product’s Help and Support page (upper-right corner of the page)
• Local and web Help (top of the Help interface)
For more information on accessing product help, see http://help.adobe.com/en_US/CommunityHelp/.
If you are working in Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Fireworks, or Dreamweaver, and you want to turn
off Community Help so that local Help opens by default, do the following:
1 Open the Connections panel (Window > Extensions > Connections).
2 From the Connections panel menu , select Offline Options.
3 Select Keep Me Offline and click OK.
Note: When you disable web services from the Connections panel, all other web services (such as Adobe Kuler and Adobe
ConnectNow) are also disabled.
Printed resources
Printed versions of the complete on-line product Help are available for the cost of shipping and handling at
www.adobe.com/go/store.
3
Support resources
Visit the Adobe Support website at www.adobe.com/support to learn about free and paid technical support options.
Services, downloads, and extras
You can enhance your product by integrating a variety of services, plug-ins, and extensions in your product. You can
also download samples and other assets to help you get your work done.
Adobe creative on-line services
Adobe® Creative Suite® 4 includes new on-line features that bring the power of the web to your desktop. Use these
features to connect with the community, collaborate, and get more from your Adobe tools. Powerful creative on-line
services let you complete tasks ranging from color matching to data conferencing. The services seamlessly integrate
with desktop applications so you can quickly enhance existing workflows. Some services offer full or partial
functionality when you’re offline too.
Visit Adobe.com to learn more about available services. Some Creative Suite 4 applications include these initial
offerings:
Kuler™ panel Quickly create, share, and explore color themes on-line.
Adobe® ConnectNow Collaborate with dispersed working teams over the web, sharing voice, data, and multimedia.
Resource Central Instantly access tutorials, sample files, and extensions for Adobe digital video applications.
For information on managing your services, see the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/go/learn_creativeservices_en.
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Resources
Adobe Exchange
Visit the Adobe Exchange at www.adobe.com/go/exchange to download samples as well as thousands of plug-ins and
extensions from Adobe and third-party developers. The plug-ins and extensions can help you automate tasks,
customize workflows, create specialized professional effects, and more.
Adobe downloads
Visit www.adobe.com/go/downloads to find free updates, tryouts, and other useful software.
Adobe Labs
Adobe Labs at www.adobe.com/go/labs gives you the opportunity to experience and evaluate new and emerging
technologies and products from Adobe. At Adobe Labs, you have access to resources such as these:
• Prerelease software and technologies
• Code samples and best practices to accelerate your learning
• Early versions of product and technical documentation
• Forums, wiki-based content, and other collaborative resources to help you interact with like-minded users.
Adobe Labs fosters a collaborative software development process. In this environment, customers quickly become
productive with new products and technologies. Adobe Labs is also a forum for early feedback. The Adobe
development teams use this feedback to create software that meets the needs and expectations of the community.
4
Adobe TV
Visit Adobe TV at http://tv.adobe.com to view instructional and inspirational videos.
Extras
The installation disc contains a variety of extras to help you make the most of your Adobe software. Some extras are
installed on your computer during the setup process; others are located on the disc.
To view the extras installed during the setup process, navigate to the application folder on your computer.
• Mac OS®: [startup drive]/Applications/[Adobe application]
To view the extras on the disc, navigate to the Goodies folder in your language folder on the disc. Example:
• /English/Goodies/
Illustrator video tutorials
Adobe and its partners provide a basic set of video tutorials on Adobe TV and in the Video Workshop on the Adobe
website, in addition to excellent tutorials provided by other members of the community.
Note: Video tutorials on Adobe TV were created for Illustrator CS4. Video tutorials on Video Workshop were created for
Illustrator CS3. Because most features don’t change substantially from one version to the next, most materials created for
Illustrator CS3 are still valid and useful for Illustrator CS4. All video tutorials referred to within this section are still useful
and valid for Illustrator CS4.
Click any of these links to view a video tutorial that teaches you how to use Illustrator.
Work area and getting started
Introducing Illustrator CS4 (Adobe TV)
Managing the workspace (Adobe TV)
Creating a new document (Adobe TV)
Working with multiple artboards (Adobe TV)
Drawing and painting
Drawing with the Shape, Line, and Eraser tools (Video Workshop)
Drawing with the Pen tool (Video Workshop)
Drawing with the Pencil tool (Video Workshop)
Using the Paintbrush tool (Video Workshop)
Using brushes and blobs (Adobe TV)
Using brushes (Video Workshop)
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Resources
5
Using the Blob Brush (Adobe TV)
Filling and stroking (Adobe TV)
Using Live Trace to trace a hand drawn sketch (Video Workshop)
Using Live Paint (Video Workshop)
Using Live Paint (Adobe TV)
Editing objects
Reshaping a path (Adobe TV)
Using control handles (Adobe TV)
Scaling and rotating (Adobe TV)
Scaling, skewing, and rotating (Video Workshop)
Using Appearance and Graphic Styles (Adobe TV)
Creating 3D shapes (Video Workshop)
Selecting and arranging
Using smart guides and key alignment (Adobe TV)
Selecting and manipulating objects (Video Workshop)
Using layers and groups (Video Workshop)
Aligning and distributing objects (Video Workshop)
Working with text
Getting started with text (Adobe TV)
Point and path text (Adobe TV)
Creating point and area type (Video Workshop)
Creating type on a path (Video Workshop)
Working with Character and Paragraph text and styles (Video Workshop)
Working with Open Type and the Glyphs panel (Video Workshop)
Using text effectively between Illustrator and Flash (Video Workshop)
Using color
Working with color groups and color harmonies (Adobe TV)
Using Kuler color themes (Adobe TV)
Using the Separations Preview (Adobe TV)
Using the Color Guide to find and create color solutions (Video Workshop)
Creating, editing, and experimenting with color groups (Video Workshop)
Assigning and replacing colors in artwork (Video Workshop)
Using smart objects to manage colors (Video Workshop)
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Resources
6
Using gradients, masks, and transparency
Working with gradients (Adobe TV)
Working with transparency (Video Workshop)
Working with blend modes (Video Workshop)
Working with opacity masks (Video Workshop)
Working with clipping masks and pathfinder (Video Workshop)
Working with symbols and 9-slice scaling
Using symbols effectively between Illustrator and Flash (Video Workshop)
Understanding 9-slice scaling (Video Workshop)
Using 9-slice scaling (Video Workshop)
Importing, exporting, and saving
Importing and copying and pasting between web applications (Video Workshop)
Creating mobile content in Illustrator (Video Workshop)
Saving files for the web (Video Workshop)
Exporting artboards to Flash (Adobe TV)
Exporting content from Illustrator (Video Workshop)
Creating interactive PDFs (Video Workshop)
Exporting to PDF 1.7 (Video Workshop)
Using Creative Suite applications together
Introducing CS4 Design Premium (Adobe TV)
Introducing CS4 Web Premium (Adobe TV)
Introducing CS4 Production Premium (Adobe TV)
Using ConnectNow to share your screen (Adobe TV)
Using Adobe Bridge
Introducing Bridge CS4 (Adobe TV)
Working with metadata and keywords (Adobe TV)
Previewing and comparing images (Adobe TV)
Creating a web photo gallery (Adobe TV)
Using Device Central
Introducing Adobe Device Central CS4 (Adobe TV)
Using the online library (Adobe TV)
Managing mobile projects (Adobe TV)
Automating testing of mobile content (Adobe TV)
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Resources
7
What’s new
Enriched workspace tools
Multiple artboards in your documents
Create multi-page files containing up to 100 artboards of varying sizes. You can create artboards that overlap, appear
side-by-side, or are stacked on top of one another. You can also save, export and print artboards independently or
together. Multiple artboards have replaced the Crop Area tool. (See
Tabbed document windows and Document Arrangement panel
Display multiple documents in a tabbed view, or open them side by side so you can easily compare or drag items from
one document to another. Simply click a document’s tab to open it, or click Close (x) on a tab to close it. Use the
intuitive Arrange Documents window to quickly arrange your open documents in a variety of configurations. (See
“Manage Document windows” on page 15.)
Application bar and workspace switcher
The application bar at the top of each Creative Suite application provides menus and options in one easy to access
place. Use the workspace switcher to quickly jump to different workspace configurations to meet your specific needs.
Also along this bar, you can access Adobe Bridge and the document arrangement panel. (See
on page 10.)
Practical smart guides
Smart guides are now even more practical with unobtrusive appearance and behaviors. Instant pop-ups appear with
alignment and measurement information, such as deltas between objects and angles of rotation (that you can specify)
when moving or transforming objects. Of course, objects still snap to any alignment you choose to make it easy to
arrange and transform objects exactly how you want. (See
“Smart Guides” on page 48.)
“Using multiple artboards” on page 37.)
“Workspace overview”
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Quick, easy, and obvious key object alignment
The Align panel and Control panel now provide quick access to the key alignment option. A key object is the one object
that you want other objects to align to. You specify a key object by selecting all the objects you want to align, including
the key object, and then clicking again on the key object. When selected, the key object appears with a thick blue
outline, and the Align To Key Object icon appears in the Control panel and Align panel. Simply choose an alignment
option, such as Horizontal Align Left or Vertical Align Center, and all the other selected objects align to the key object.
“Align or distribute relative to a key object” on page 210.)
(See
Resources
New drawing and color tools
Blob Brush tool for merging paths
Use the Blob Brush to draw paths that merge with existing artwork. The Blob Brush draws paths that are fill only - no
stroke - and can merge with existing artwork that has the same fill, and no stroke. The Blob Brush can merge with
existing artwork that has complicated appearances (as long as there is no stroke on the artwork and the Blob Brush is
set up to paint with the exact same fill and appearance settings). For example, if you’ve created a yellow filled rectangle
with a drop shadow applied, you can set up the Blob Brush with those attributes and then draw a path across the
rectangle, and the two paths will be merged. You can easily select and edit the resulting shape. Use the Blob Brush
together with the Eraser tool for truly intuitive vector painting. (See
on page 157.)
“Draw and merge paths with the Blob Brush tool”
8
Expanded Gradients panel and tool
Using the enhanced Gradient tool, you can interact with gradients on the object itself by adding or changing color
stops, applying transparency to color stops, and changing the direction or angle of a linear or elliptical gradient (also
new in CS4). The Gradient panel now provides a menu of all your saved gradients, direct access to color panels, and
transparency controls for individual color spots, among other things. (See
Transparency in gradients
Create gradients with two or more colors and define the opacity of any or all individual colors. By specifying different
opacity values for the different color stops in your gradient, you can create gradients that fade in or out and reveal or
hide underlying images. (See
Separations Preview panel
Preview your color separations on your monitor before printing to avoid color output surprises such as unexpected
spot colors and unwanted overprinting. The Separations Preview panel lets you easily turn colors on and off so you
can see how blending, transparency, and overprinting will appear in color-separated output. (See
separations” on page 410.)
“Gradients” on page 184.)
“Gradients” on page 184.)
“Preview color
Improved access to core functionality
Clipping masks with clear simplified appearance and access
Adobe Illustrator now displays only the masked area while you are moving or transforming a masked object. Doubleclick the masked object to open it in Isolation mode, where you can view and edit the mask independently of all other
objects. (See
“Clipping masks” on page 241 and “Isolate artwork for editing” on page 198.)
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Resources
In-panel Appearance editing
Select an item in the Appearance panel to view and use the enhanced full-featured controls. Click hyper-links to open
option dialog boxes for effects, strokes, and fills. Click a visibility icon for any attribute to easily turn it on or off. (See
“Appearance attributes” on page 349.)
Enriched Graphic Styles panel
The newly updated Graphic Styles panel provides you with a quick and easy way to view and apply styles to objects in
your document. Use the Use Text For Preview option to view a style as it appears on text, or right-click a thumbnail to
quickly preview how that style will look on a selected object on the artboard. Effect-only styles now display the outlines
of the object on which the style was created, so you can recognize your effect-only styles at a glance. Merge a style with
an object’s existing style or merge two or more different styles on an object by simply using the Alt or Option key when
applying the style. (See
“Graphic styles” on page 366.)
Enhanced integration at export
Support for Flex extensions
Efficiently deliver more editable, workable content to developers for web, interactive, and RIA projects. For instance,
use the Flex Skins for Illustrator to create and export vector skins in the Adobe Flex format. (See
on page 270.)
“Save in FXG format”
9
Multiple artboard export support
Creating documents with multiple artboards now makes it easy to create multi-page documents for exporting. You can
export artboards to any of the following formats: PDF, PSD, SWF, JPEG, PNG, and TIFF. Or import a multiple
artboard Illustrator file into Adobe InDesign or Adobe Flash.You can now easily create multiple-page PDFs. When
exporting to Flash SWF format, multiple artboards export as multiple files. (See
“Saving artwork” on page 267 and
“Export artwork” on page 273.)
Chapter 2: Workspace
Welcome to Adobe® Illustrator® CS4. Illustrator gives you an efficient workspace and user interface to create and edit
artwork for print, the web, and mobile devices.
To see a video on using Adobe Illustrator, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4015_ai.
Workspace basics
Workspace overview
You create and manipulate your documents and files using various elements, such as panels, bars, and windows. Any
arrangement of these elements is called a workspace. The workspaces of the different applications in Adobe® Creative
Suite® 4 share the same appearance so that you can move between the applications easily. You can also adapt each
application to the way you work by selecting from several preset workspaces or by creating one of your own.
Although the default workspace layout varies in different products, you manipulate the elements much the same way
in all of them.
10
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Workspace
11
A
E
F
BDC
G
H
Default Illustrator workspace
A. Tabbed Document windows B. Application bar C. Workspace switcher D. Panel title bar E. Control panel F. Tools panel G. Collapse To
Icons button H. Four panel groups in vertical dock
• The Application bar across the top contains a workspace switcher, menus (Windows only), and other application
controls. On the Mac for certain products, you can show or hide it using the Window menu.
• The Tools panel contains tools for creating and editing images, artwork, page elements, and so on. Related tools are
grouped.
• The Control panel displays options for the currently selected tool. The Control panel is also known as the options
bar in Photoshop. (Adobe Flash®, Adobe Dreamweaver®, and Adobe Fireworks® have no Control panel.)
• Flash, Dreamweaver, and Fireworks have a Property inspector that displays options for the currently selected
element or tool.
• The Document window displays the file you’re working on. Document windows can be tabbed and, in certain cases,
grouped and docked.
• Panels help you monitor and modify your work. Examples include the Timeline in Flash, the Layers panel in Adobe
Photoshop®, and the CSS Styles panel in Dreamweaver. Panels can be grouped, stacked, or docked.
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Workspace
• On the Mac, the Application frame groups all the workspace elements in a single, integrated window that lets you
treat the application as a single unit. When you move or resize the Application frame or any of its elements, all the
elements within it respond to each other so none overlap. Panels don’t disappear when you switch applications or
when you accidentally click out of the application. If you work with two or more applications, you can position each
application side by side on the screen or on multiple monitors. If you prefer the traditional, free-form user interface
of the Mac, you can turn off the Application frame. In Adobe Illustrator®, for example, select Window > Application
Frame to toggle it on or off. (In Flash, the Application frame is on permanently. Dreamweaver does not use an
Application frame.)
Hide or show all panels
• (Illustrator, Adobe InCopy®, Adobe InDesign®, Photoshop, Fireworks)To hide or show all panels, including the
Tools panel and Control panel, press
• (Illustrator, InCopy, InDesign, Photoshop) To hide or show all panels except the Tools panel and Control panel,
press Shift+Tab.
You can temporarily display hidden panels if Auto-Show Hidden Panels is selected in Interface preferences. It’s
always on in Illustrator. Move the pointer to the edge of the application window (Windows®) or to the edge of the
monitor (Mac
OS®) and hover over the strip that appears.
• (Flash, Dreamweaver, Fireworks) To hide or show all panels, press F4.
Tab.
12
Display panel options
❖ Click the panel menu icon in the upper-right corner of the panel.
You can open a panel menu even when the panel is minimized.
(Illustrator) Adjust panel brightness
❖ In User Interface preferences, move the Brightness slider. This control affects all panels, including the Control
panel.
Reconfigure the Tools panel
You can display the tools in the Tools panel in a single column, or side by side in two columns. (This feature is not
available in the Tools panel in Fireworks and Flash.)
In InDesign and InCopy, you also can switch from single-column to double-column (or single-row) display by setting
an option in Interface preferences.
❖ Click the double arrow at the top of the Tools panel.
Search For Help box
Use the Search For Help box on the right side of the Application bar to search for Help topics and online content. If
you have an active Internet connection, you can access all content on the Community Help website. If you search for
Help without an active Internet connection, search results are limited to Help content that is included with Illustrator.
1 In the search box, type the name of the item on which you want to search (such as a feature, application, or tool).
2 Press Enter.
All topics available from the Community Help center appear in a separate browser window.
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Workspace
About screen modes
You can change the visibility of the illustration window and menu bar using the mode options at the bottom of the Tools
panel. To access panels when in Full Screen Mode, position the cursor at the left or right edge of the screen and the
panels will pop up. If you’ve moved them from their default locations, you can access them from the Window menu.
You can choose one of the following modes:
• Normal Screen Mode displays artwork in a standard window, with a menu bar at the top and scroll bars on the
sides.
• Full Screen Mode With Menu Bar displays artwork in a full-screen window, with a menu bar at the top and
scroll bars.
• Full Screen Mode displays artwork in a full-screen window, with no title bar or menu bar.
Using the status bar
The status bar appears at the lower-left edge of the illustration window. It displays any of the following:
• current zoom level
• current tool in use
• current artboard in use
• navigation controls for multiple artboards
• date and time
• number of undos and redos available
• document color profile
• status of a managed file
Click the status bar to do any of the following:
13
• Change the type of information displayed in the status bar by selecting an option from the Show submenu.
• Show the current file in Adobe Bridge by choosing Reveal In Bridge.
• Access Version Cue® commands.
See also
“Adobe Version Cue” on page 35
Enter values in panels and dialog boxes
You enter values using the same methods in all panels and dialog boxes. You can also perform simple math in any box
that accepts numeric values. For example, if you want to move a selected object 3 units to the right using the current
measurement units, you don’t have to work out the new horizontal position—simply type +3 after the current value
in the Transform panel.
Enter a value in a panel or dialog box
❖ Do any of the following:
• Type a value in the box, and press Enter or Return.
• Drag the slider.
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Workspace
• Drag the dial.
• Click the arrow buttons in the panel to increase or decrease the value.
• Click in the box and then use the Up Arrow key and Down Arrow key on the keyboard to increase or decrease the
value. Hold down Shift and click an arrow key to magnify the increase rate or decrease rate.
• Select a value from the menu associated with the box.
A B C
D
E
Ways to enter values
A. Arrow buttons B. Text box C. Menu arrow D. Slider E. Dial
14
Calculate values in a panel or dialog box
1 In a text box that accepts numerical values, do one of the following:
• To replace the entire current value with a mathematical expression, select the entire current value.
• To use the current value as part of a mathematical expression, click before or after the current value.
2 Type a simple mathematical expression using a single mathematical operator, such as + (plus), - (minus), x
(multiplication), / (division), or %
(percent).
For example, 0p0 + 3 or 5mm + 4. Similarly, 3cm * 50% equals 3 centimeters multiplied by 50%, or 1.50 cm, and 50pt + 25% equals 50 points plus 25% of 50 points, or 62.5 points.
3 Press Enter or Return to apply the calculation.
Control panel overview
The Control panel offers quick access to options related to the objects you select. By default, the Control panel is
docked at the top of the workspace.
Options displayed in the Control panel vary depending on the type of object or tool you select. For example, when you
select a text object, the Control panel displays text-formatting options in addition to options for changing the color,
placement, and dimensions of the object. When a selection tool is active, you can access Document Setup and
Preferences from the Control panel.
ABC
Control panel
A. Hidden options B. Link to another panel C. Panel menu
When text in the Control panel is blue and underlined, you can click the text to display a related panel or dialog box.
For example, click the word Stroke to display the Stroke panel.
USING ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR CS4
Workspace
Change the kinds of controls that appear in the Control panel
❖ Select or deselect options in the Control panel menu.
Open and close a panel or dialog box from the Control panel
1 Click a blue underlined word to open its associated panel or dialog box.
2 Click anywhere outside of the panel or dialog box to close it.
Dock the Control panel at the bottom of the workspace
❖ Choose Dock To Bottom from the Control panel menu.
Convert the Control panel to a floating panel
❖ Drag the gripper bar (located on the left edge of the panel) away from its current position.
To redock the Control panel, drag the gripper bar to the top or bottom of the application window (Windows) or screen
OS).
(Mac
Customizing the workspace
15
Manage windows and panels
You can create a custom workspace by moving and manipulating Document windows and panels. You can also save
workspaces and switch among them.
Note: The following examples use Photoshop for demonstration purposes. The workspace behaves the same in all the
products.
A
B
C
Narrow blue drop zone indicates Color panel will be docked on its own above the Layers panel group.
A. Title bar B. Tab C. Drop zone
In Photoshop, you can change the font size of the text in the Control panel, in the panels, and in tool tips. Choose a
size from the UI Font Size menu in Interface preferences.
Manage Document windows
When you open more than one file, the Document windows are tabbed.
• To rearrange the order of tabbed Document windows, drag a window’s tab to a new location in the group.
• To undock a Document window from a group of windows, drag the window’s tab out of the group.
• To dock a Document window to a separate group of Document windows, drag the window into the group.
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Note: Dreamweaver does not support docking and undocking Document windows. Use the Document window’s
Minimize button to create floating windows.
• To create groups of stacked or tiled documents, drag the window to one of the drop zones along the top, bottom, or
sides of another window. You can also select a layout for the group by using the Layout button on the Application bar.
Note: Some products do not support this functionality. However, your product may have Cascade and Tile commands
in the Window menu to help you lay out your documents.
• To switch to another document in a tabbed group when dragging a selection, drag the selection over the document’s
tab for a moment.
Note: Some products do not support this functionality.
Dock and undock panels
A dock is a collection of panels or panel groups displayed together, generally in a vertical orientation. You dock and
undock panels by moving them into and out of a dock.
Note: Docking is not the same as stacking. A stack is a collection of floating panels or panel groups, joined top to bottom.
• To dock a panel, drag it by its tab into the dock, at the top, bottom, or in between other panels.
• To dock a panel group, drag it by its title bar (the solid empty bar above the tabs) into the dock.
• To remove a panel or panel group, drag it out of the dock by its tab or title bar. You can drag it into another dock
or make it free-floating.
16
Navigator panel being dragged out to new dock, indicated by blue vertical highlight
Navigator panel now in its own dock
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Workspace
You can prevent panels from filling all the space in a dock. Drag the bottom edge of the dock up so it no longer meets
the edge of the workspace.
Move panels
As you move panels, you see blue highlighted drop zones, areas where you can move the panel. For example, you can
move a panel up or down in a dock by dragging it to the narrow blue drop zone above or below another panel. If you
drag to an area that is not a drop zone, the panel floats freely in the workspace.
• To move a panel, drag it by its tab.
• To move a panel group or a stack of floating panels, drag the title bar.
Press Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) while moving a panel to prevent it from docking. Press Esc while
moving the panel to cancel the operation.
Note: The dock is stationary and can’t be moved. However, you can create panel groups or stacks and move them
anywhere.
Add and remove panels
If you remove all panels from a dock, the dock disappears. You can create a dock by moving panels to the right edge
of the workspace until a drop zone appears.
17
• To remove a panel, right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac) its tab and then select Close, or deselect it from
the Window menu.
• To add a panel, select it from the Window menu and dock it wherever you want.
Manipulate panel groups
• To move a panel into a group, drag the panel’s tab to the highlighted drop zone in the group.
Adding a panel to a panel group
• To rearrange panels in a group, drag a panel’s tab to a new location in the group.
• To remove a panel from a group so that it floats freely, drag the panel by its tab outside the group.
• To move a group, drag the title bar (the area above the tabs).
Stack floating panels
When you drag a panel out of its dock but not into a drop zone, the panel floats freely. The floating panel allows you
to position it anywhere in the workspace. You can stack floating panels or panel groups so that they move as a unit
when you drag the topmost title bar. (Panels that are part of a dock cannot be stacked or moved as a unit in this way.)
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Free-floating stacked panels
• To stack floating panels, drag a panel by its tab to the drop zone at the bottom of another panel.
• To change the stacking order, drag a panel up or down by its tab.
Note: Be sure to release the tab over the narrow drop zone between panels, rather than the broad drop zone in a title bar.
• To remove a panel or panel group from the stack, so that it floats by itself, drag it out by its tab or title bar.
Resize panels
• To minimize or maximize a panel, panel group, or stack of panels, double-click a tab. You can also single-click the
tab area (the empty space next to the tabs).
• To resize a panel, drag any side of the panel. Some panels, such as the Color panel in Photoshop, cannot be resized
by dragging.
Manipulate panels collapsed to icons
You can collapse panels to icons to reduce clutter on the workspace. In some cases, panels are collapsed to icons in the
default workspace.
18
Panels collapsed to icons
Panels expanded from icons
• To collapse or expand all panel icons in a dock, click the double arrow at the top of the dock.
• To expand a single panel icon, click it.
• To resize panel icons so that you see only the icons (and not the labels), adjust the width of the dock until the text
disappears. To display the icon text again, make the dock wider.
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• To collapse an expanded panel back to its icon, click its tab, its icon, or the double arrow in the panel’s title bar.
In some products, if you select Auto-Collapse Icon Panels from the Interface or User Interface Options preferences,
an expanded panel icon collapses automatically when you click away from it.
• To add a floating panel or panel group to an icon dock, drag it in by its tab or title bar. (Panels are automatically
collapsed to icons when added to an icon dock.)
• To move a panel icon (or panel icon group), drag the icon. You can drag panel icons up and down in the dock, into
other docks (where they appear in the panel style of that dock), or outside the dock (where they appear as floating,
expanded panels).
Restore the default workspace
• Select the default, Essentials workspace from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
• To rename a workspace, select it, and edit the text.
• To duplicate a workspace, select it, and click the New button.
For a video on customizing the workspace based on different workflows, see www.adobe.com/go/vid0032.
19
Save and switch workspaces
By saving the current size and position of panels as a named workspace, you can restore that workspace even if you
move or close a panel. The names of saved workspaces appear in the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
In Photoshop, the saved workspace can include a specific keyboard shortcut set and menu set.
Save a custom workspace
1 With the workspace in the configuration you want to save, do one of the following:
• (Photoshop, Illustrator) Choose Window > Workspace > Save Workspace.
• (InDesign, InCopy) Choose Window > Workspace > New Workspace.
• (Dreamweaver) Choose Window > Workspace Layout > New Workspace.
• (Flash) Choose New Workspace from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
• (Fireworks) Choose Save Current from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
2 Type a name for the workspace.
3 (Photoshop, InDesign) Under Capture, select one or more options:
Panel Locations Saves the current panel locations.
Keyboard shortcuts Saves the current set of keyboard shortcuts (Photoshop only).
Menus Saves the current set of menus.
4 Click OK or Save.
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Display or switch workspaces
❖ Select a workspace from the workspace switcher in the Application bar.
In Photoshop, you can assign keyboard shortcuts to each workspace to navigate among them quickly.
Delete a custom workspace
• Select Manage Workspaces from the workspace switcher in the Application bar, select the workspace, and then
click Delete. (The option is not available in Fireworks.)
• (Photoshop, InDesign, InCopy) Select Delete Workspace from the workspace switcher.
• (Illustrator) Choose Window > Workspace > Manage Workspaces, select the workspace, and then click the Delete icon.
• (InDesign) Choose Window > Workspace > Delete Workspace, select the workspace, and then click Delete.
(Photoshop) Start with the last or default panel locations
When you start Photoshop, panels can either appear in their original default locations, or appear as you last used them.
In Interface preferences:
• To display panels in their last locations on startup, select Remember Panel Locations.
• To display panels in their default locations on startup, deselect Remember Panel Locations.
20
Tools
Tools panel overview
The first time you start the application, the Tools panel appears at the left side of the screen. You can move the Tools
panel by dragging its title bar. You can also show or hide the Tools panel by choosing Window
You use tools in the Tools panel to create, select, and manipulate objects in Illustrator. Some tools have options that
appear when you double-click a tool. These include tools that let you use type, and select, paint, draw, sample, edit,
and move images.
> Tools.
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You can expand some tools to show hidden tools beneath them. A small triangle at the lower-right corner of the tool
icon signals the presence of hidden tools. To see the name of a tool, position the pointer over it.
Tools panel overview
21
A
A
B
D
F
Indicates default tool
* Keyboard shortcuts appear in parenthesis
C
E
G
H
I
Selection tools
Selection (V)
Direct Selection (A)
Group Selection
Magic Wand (Y)
Lasso (Q)
Artboard (Shift +O)
B
Drawing tools
Pen (P)
Add Anchor Point (Shift+)
Delete Anchor (-)
Point
Convert Anchor
Point (Shift+C)
Line Segment (\)
Arc
Spiral
Rectangular Grid
Polar Grid
Rectangle (M)
Rounded Rectangle
Ellipse (L)
Polygon
Star
Flare
Pencil (N)
Smooth
Path Eraser
C
Type tools
Type (T)
Area Type
Type On a Path
Vertical Type
Vertical Area
Type
Vertical Type
On a Path
D
Painting tools
Paintbrush (B)
Blob Brush (Shift+B)
Mesh (U)
Gradient (G)
Eyedropper (I)
Measure
Live Paint Bucket (K)
Live Paint Selection
(Shift+L)
E
Reshaping tools
Rotate (R)
Reect (O)
Scale (S)
Shear
Reshape
Warp (Shift-R)
Twirl
Pucker
Bloat
Scallop
Crystallize
Wrinkle
Free Transform (E)
Blend (W)
F
Symbol tools
Symbol Sprayer
(Shift+S)
Symbol Shifter
Symbol Scruncher
Symbol Sizer
Symbol Spinner
Symbol Stainer
Symbol Screener
Symbol Styler
G
Graph tools
Column Graph (J)
Stacked Column
Graph
Bar Graph
Stacked Bar
Graph
Line Graph
Area Graph
Scatter Graph
Pie Graph
Radar Graph
H
Slicing and cutting
tools
Slice (Shift+K)
Slice Select
Eraser (Shift+E)
Scissors (C)
Knife
I
Moving and zooming
tools
Hand (H)
Print Tiling
Zoom (Z)
View hidden tools
❖ Hold down the mouse button on the visible tool.
View tool options
❖ Double-click a tool.
Move the Tools panel
❖ Drag its title bar.
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Hide the Tools panel
❖ Choose Window > Tools.
Tear off hidden tools into a separate panel
❖ Drag the pointer over the arrow at the end of the hidden tools panel and release the mouse button.
Close a separate tool panel
❖ Click the close button on the panel’s title bar. The tools return to the Tools panel.
Select a tool
❖ Do one of the following:
• Click a tool in the Tools panel. If there is a small triangle at a tool’s lower-right corner, hold down the mouse button
to view the hidden tools, and then click the tool you want to select.
• Hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS), and then click a tool to cycle through and select hidden tools.
• Press the tool’s keyboard shortcut. The keyboard shortcut is displayed in its tool tip. For example, you can select
the Move tool by pressing the V key.
To hide tool tips, choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS),
and deselect Show Tool Tips.
22
AB
C
D
E
Selecting a hidden tool
A. Tools panel B. Active tool C. Tear off panel with hidden tools D. Hidden tool triangle E. Tool name and shortcut
Change tool pointers
The mouse pointer for most tools matches the tool’s icon. Each pointer has a different hotspot, where an effect or
action begins. With most tools, you can switch to precise cursors, which appear as cross hairs centered around the
hotspot, and provide for greater accuracy when working with detailed artwork.
❖ Choose Edit > Preferences > General (Windows) or Illustrator > Preferences > General (Mac OS), and select Use
Precise Cursors. Alternatively, press Caps Lock on the keyboard.
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Tool galleries
Illustrator provides many tools for creating and manipulating your artwork. These galleries provide a quick visual
overview for each tool.
Selection tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following selection tools:
23
The Selection tool (V) selects
entire objects.
The Lasso tool (Q) selects
points or path segments
within objects.
The Direct Selection tool (A)
selects points or path
segments within objects.
The Artboard tool creates
separate artboards for
printing or export.
See also
“Keys for selecting” on page 467
Drawing tool gallery
Illustrator provides the following drawing tools:
The Group Selection tool
selects objects and groups
within groups.
The Magic Wand tool (Y)
selects objects with similar
attributes.
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