When typing, if the clock hits 56 seconds, it will input a ~ in my textbox

Hi @antony.b,

Thanks for your patience and for providing more information. It sounds like a very unusual issue, and I understand how frustrating this must be. Since you’ve ruled out keyboard macros and are using a laptop keyboard, let’s try a couple more steps to troubleshoot:

1. Sometimes, unexpected behavior like this can be caused by corrupted preferences. You can reset Illustrator preferences by holding down Ctrl + Alt + Shift while launching Illustrator and selecting “Yes” when prompted to reset preferences. Please note that this will reset your settings to default, so you might want to back them up first.

2. Ensure no background applications or scripts are running that could be interacting with Illustrator. Sometimes, third-party apps or utilities can cause odd behavior with input fields.

3. Perform a full system scan to check for malware or unwanted software that might be causing keyboard input anomalies.

4. If none of the above steps help, a clean reinstall of Illustrator might be necessary. You can uninstall the app via the Creative Cloud app, restart your system, and then reinstall it.

If the issue persists, please let us know, and we can explore further options. Also, if you have access to another device, try running Illustrator there to see if the issue replicates, which could help narrow down whether it’s system-specific or related to your Adobe environment.

Let us know how it goes, and we’ll be here to assist further!

Best,

Anshul Saini