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bfcreativenyc1
Known Participant
February 25, 2017
Answered

Align stroke to inside option greyed out

  • February 25, 2017
  • 5 replies
  • 163243 views

Hi,

I know that this has been discussed in other posts, but there doesn't seem to be a definitive answer for this.

In the attached I'd like to align the white stroke to the inside, but as you can see in the appearance panel that option is not available.

How can this be remedied?

Thanks!

Correct answer Kurt Gold

The reason why you can't choose to align the stroke inside is because you applied the appearance set at the group level. Technically it could or should be possible to use it with strokes at the group level, but at the moment it's better to accept that limitation in a good temper, rather than debating why it doesn't work.

As already mentioned, the common workaround is to use the Offset Path effect instead, but it may be hurtful if you were going to constantly change the stroke weight for some reason. If that applies to your needs, you could go another route.

Prior to applying your appearance sets at the group level, you could take your group and – in the Appearance palette – double click the Contents item to get access to the appearance attributes of the single or probaly compound objects inside the group. Then you may set up your appearances. You will realize that the option to align strokes inside is now available.

5 replies

BowlingBallerina
BowlingBallerina
Participant
March 22, 2020

Changing the brush definition setting to "Basic" has opened up those stroke alignment options for me. When the stroke was set as "5 pt round" the alignment options were greyed out.

    J
    josephg44656780
    Participant
    October 24, 2017

    I'm going to tell you how to fix this; however, I want to point something out.

    "it's better to accept that limitation in a good temper, rather than debating why it doesn't work." is never the right answer. I recognize the author might not work for Adobe and may be a way of commiserating with the person who posted the question.

    Something like, “Thanks for the feedback. We recognize this is a problem. We’re working hard to make the experience better.” would be better.

    Here’s a work around that worked immediately for me.

    1. Select the object you want to affect.
    2. Use the pathfinder panel and click on Exclude.
    3. Now go to the appearance panel and the align to inside/outside options should be enabled.
      Monika Gause
      Community Expert
      Monika GauseCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      October 24, 2017

      josephg44656780  schrieb

      "it's better to accept that limitation in a good temper, rather than debating why it doesn't work." is never the right answer. I recognize the author might not work for Adobe and may be a way of commiserating with the person who posted the question.

      90% of people here do not work for Adobe. Only those marked "Staff" do.

      We are helping in our spare time and Kurt Gold is one of the most insightful Illustrator experts on the planet (at least in this forum).

      None of us can or will speak on behalf of Adobe.

      What you're telling us here doesn't make a lot of sense, since it doesn't solve the group issue. It doesn't even release the group. On top of that there are reasons for applying appearances at group level.

        J
        josephg44656780
        Participant
        October 24, 2017

        The original post makes no mention of group issue. The problem states the alignment options are disabled in the appearance panel. The solution I offered does solve this problem of the alignment options being disabled.

        Above is an example where the alignment options are disabled.

        Above is the pathfinder step.

        Immediately after using pathfinder, the align Stroke options are enabled again.

        This may not address other individuals' concerns over group levels, but it does address the problem, a problem reported in numerous forums online.

        I too am helping in my spare time. I'm sure Kurt Gold is quite insightful. My post clearly identified that Kurt may not work for Adobe.

        I hope this is helpful for anyone experiencing this problem. Please do let me know if I have made a mistake in the execution steps.

          _
          _Black_Baron_
          Participating Frequently
          March 16, 2017

          I have the same problem. The object is not grouped.

          Align Stroke: Inline / Outline is disabled.

          Any ideas?

          THANK YOU.

            Monika Gause
            Community Expert
            Monika GauseCommunity Expert
            Community Expert
            March 17, 2017

            yorh.ekin  schrieb

            I have the same problem. The object is not grouped.

            Align Stroke: Inline / Outline is disabled.

            Any ideas?

            THANK YOU.

            Please show what kind of objects these are? Live text? WHat kind of stroke? Is that even one object? Or more?

            Kurt Gold
            Community Expert
            Kurt GoldCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
            Community Expert
            February 25, 2017

            The reason why you can't choose to align the stroke inside is because you applied the appearance set at the group level. Technically it could or should be possible to use it with strokes at the group level, but at the moment it's better to accept that limitation in a good temper, rather than debating why it doesn't work.

            As already mentioned, the common workaround is to use the Offset Path effect instead, but it may be hurtful if you were going to constantly change the stroke weight for some reason. If that applies to your needs, you could go another route.

            Prior to applying your appearance sets at the group level, you could take your group and – in the Appearance palette – double click the Contents item to get access to the appearance attributes of the single or probaly compound objects inside the group. Then you may set up your appearances. You will realize that the option to align strokes inside is now available.

              Monika Gause
              Community Expert
              Monika GauseCommunity Expert
              Community Expert
              February 25, 2017

              Use the effect > Path > Offset path instead. Negative value moves to the inside

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