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kasiak68913773
kasiak68913773
Participant
June 7, 2018
Answered

Esc Key Not Working

  • June 7, 2018
  • 8 replies
  • 19678 views

I use the Esc Key to deselect in Illustrator but it suddenly stopped working. Help!

heres what I did so far:

-checked if it worked everywhere else, yup

-restarted the program

-updated the app

-checked keyboard shortcuts and "deselect" is set as standard Cnrl+shft+A, cannot change it to the esc key though

I'm using a Mac!

Correct answer tcul tech

Had the same problem this morning. ESC stopped exiting the type edit mode. 

Macbook Pro, M1 Max, Ventura 13.4.1, Illustrator version 27.7

Changed keyboard increment. Quit. Relaunched and restored original value.

Escape now works as it always has since I started using Illustrator 20 years ago.


Thanks, adamb47200684…

 

8 replies

B
Benjamin38040387n9ek
Participant
June 14, 2024

this software has the most incompetent, indirect, and user-hating  interface i've ever seen. "line" tool shortcut is \. L is shortcut for something else. "v" is the select tool. deselecting is harder than it should be. whenevr i click out of a text box, suddenly I'm creating another text box i never selected a tool for? JFC this is god awful, how is it this hard to do simple tasks that are LITERALLY EASIER IN MS PAINT

Monika Gause
Community Expert
Monika GauseCommunity Expert
Community Expert
June 14, 2024

If you do not like the shortcuts, just change them in Edit > Shortcuts.

As for everything else: you have to learn it. It's a tool that is supposed to work in a professional environment operated by professionals.

T
tcul techCorrect answer
Participant
July 11, 2023

Had the same problem this morning. ESC stopped exiting the type edit mode. 

Macbook Pro, M1 Max, Ventura 13.4.1, Illustrator version 27.7

Changed keyboard increment. Quit. Relaunched and restored original value.

Escape now works as it always has since I started using Illustrator 20 years ago.


Thanks, adamb47200684…

 

    SJK_AU
    SJK_AU
    Participant
    January 3, 2023

    Adobe this is gross... do better !

    Monika Gause
    Community Expert
    Monika GauseCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    January 3, 2023
    quote

    Adobe this is gross... do better !


    By @SJK_AU

     

    On which Illustrator version and which system using which functionality do you have issues with the Esc key?

     

    Apply has changed a lot on recent system versions concerning the keyboard use and accessibility. You might want to investigate that.

    R
    Raghda26444389zwdk
    Participant
    October 5, 2022

    dear, I faced the same and I read this and tried what the guys suggest it didn't work so I understood that this is the keyboard issue in the mac it self. I just chose another English type for my mac i switch to the UK English and delete the old one and it worked right after i restart my mac 

     

      A
      Amanda5FC5
      Participating Frequently
      July 4, 2021

      This did not solve the problem for me, even after several attempts and restarting the computer.  Any other ideas?  It really messes up workflow when keyboard shortcuts aren't working properly.

        A
        Amanda5FC5
        Participating Frequently
        July 4, 2021

        In the meantime, switched to using V to switch to selection tool.  Maybe better in the long run anyhow.

        adamb47200684
        adamb47200684
        Participating Frequently
        December 11, 2019

        I found a solution that seems pretty unrelated but worked:

        • Go into Illustrator > Preferences > General:
        • Change “Keyboard Increment” to 1, press "OK" (Take note of, or copy, the number you have here so you can put it back in later)
        • Close Illustrator and reopen
        • Change “Keyboard Increment” back to default (0.013889 in) and press "OK"
          D
          defaultu8shsa6qg7u8
          Participant
          March 12, 2021

          thank you for posting this solution. I've been working in illustrator for a decade and this has been driving me crazy.

            adamb47200684
            adamb47200684
            Participating Frequently
            March 13, 2021

            You're welcome! I know I felt pretty crazy myself. These seemingly small occurrences can really throw a wrench in your workflow. Happy to have provided some relief 😄

              adamb47200684
              adamb47200684
              Participating Frequently
              December 11, 2019

              This is not solved.

                jane-e
                Community Expert
                jane-eCommunity Expert
                Community Expert
                June 7, 2018

                Hi kasiak68913773

                Escape is not a shortcut for Deselect in Illustrator.

                Escape is a shortcut for several things, such as exiting Isolation mode when you double-click and switching to the Selection tool when you have an insertion point with the Type tool. Do those work?

                And there are several ways to deselect. Let us know if you want those as well!

                adamb47200684
                adamb47200684
                Participating Frequently
                December 11, 2019

                This does not answer the question posted. Esc has always allowed me to exit the "Type Tool" and it just stopped working.

                  Ton Frederiks
                  Community Expert
                  Ton FrederiksCommunity Expert
                  Community Expert
                  December 11, 2019

                  What version of Illustrator, what System?

                  Works for me to switch to the Selection tool and exit type.

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