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Inspiring
September 8, 2017
Question

Changes to latest illustrator

  • September 8, 2017
  • 3 replies
  • 625 views

Haven't used illustrator since CS4. Has any of these changed for the better with newer versions?

1. marquee select without grabbing other shapes that the marquee crosses

2. Print selected

3. save selected as or export selected

4. print/export/save as anything outside the artboard

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    3 replies

    Mike_Gondek10189183
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    September 8, 2017

    1. a  lasso tool was added which can help with that. I usually for example lock or hide my background layer and then frame select with the direct select tool to get what I need.

    2. not sure how rcraighead​ gets shift command 3 to work.  I disabled my conflicting key command for screenshots in system preferences, and was not able to get that.  Would save  a step from what my usage of  select >> inverse  & hide instead.

    or set layers to be printable or hide them and use this when printing

    3. Yes export selection has been added and bit mapped web formats are available, bit not a .ai format.

    4. Nothing new has been added to work specifically on items outside the artboard.

    rcraighead
    Legend
    September 11, 2017

    MikeGondek, I'd like to understand why this does not work for you. I find it very useful.

    Key commands I use for "Hide" (Mac) for at least CS5 thru CC 2017:

    Command+3 = "Hide Selected"

    Command-Option+3 = "Show Hidden"

    Command-Option-Shift+3 = "Hide unselected"

    Similarly, Key commands for "Lock" (Mac):

    Command+2 = "Lock Selected"

    Command-Option+2 = "Unlock all"

    Command-Option-Shift+2 = "Lock unselected"

    I looked at System "Shortcuts" and do not see a conflict. The closest is "Copy Screen image to clipboard" (Command-Control-Shift+3).

    Doug A Roberts
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    September 11, 2017

    in your first post you said cmd-shift-3, which is the default screenshot shortcut.

    PrepressPro1
    Legend
    September 8, 2017

    1. Marquee: There is a plug-in from Esko which add two tools to the Direct Select called bX Direct Tool and bX Dust Direct Tool. These tools make selecting with a marquee much more intuitive. I find that nobody uses the Magic Wand tool except me where I work. I have found the Magic Wand to be a very handy tool for selecting objects which have similar characteristics. It's like select same menu but with the  flexibility of a point and click tool.

    There is a forum for suggesting features for future versions of Illustrator.

    Illustrator Feature Requests

    rcraighead
    Legend
    September 8, 2017
    1. Marquee… hasn't changed that I know of. Using "Direct Selection" tool along with "Option" and/or "Cmd" keys is more powerful than a marquee in my opinion. Never even use the marquee in AI.
    2. Print selected… With items selected that you want to print, type "Shift-Option-Cmd+3" to hide all unselected and print. You can always save that as an Action if you'd like.
    3. Save selected as… You may find the new "Asset Export" and "Export for Screens" features useful for this.
    4. print/export/save as anything… Not sure what you're asking here. You want to do something with items outside the artboard? I would select all, then Shift-Option-Cmd+Drag over the artboard to deselect artboard items, then do as you wish with the remaining selection.