Changes multiple strokes (or fills) of an object at once

[sPretzel]

Hi,

I have an object A which has two strokes of the same size (but of different colour). I have multiple objects like A (but not identical to A, other than the stroke size) on the artboard. I want to change the size of both strokes to a new size (both will be the same size again) but a different size from what is currently set. I want to do that for all these objects on the artboard at once.

To keep things simple, I will only attempt in this example to change the size of the two strokes of object A, but bear in mind that ultimately, I want to do the same to all the other similar objects on the artboard.

I create a line with stroke set to the same stroke size as A. Then I Select>Same>Stroke Weight and make the change to the new stroke size, but only one of the strokes of object A is changed. The other is not. If I then select a line with stroke size set to the original stroke size of A and repeat Select>Same>Stroke Weight, object A is not even selected! 

1- Is this expected behaviour?

2- How can I achieve what I want?

This is for CS4.

Thanks.

[Monika Gause]

Please post pictures.

[sPretzel]

Hi Monika,

Pictures wouldn't add anything. Let me describe a little better.

I create a rectangle. Set one stroke to black 1pt size, and add another stroke to the rectangle, set to black 1pt too. That's my object A.

I then create a line with stroke set to 1pt size (colour doesn't matter).

With the line selected, I Select>Same>Stroke Weight. Object A is selected. I then set stroke to 2pt. That's the new stroke size.

When I select the rectangle, I see that only one of its two strokes had its size changed to 2pt. The other is still at 1pt!

So I go back to the line, set its stroke to 1pt again, and while it is selected, I Select>Same>Stroke Weight. This time, the rectangle is not even selected even though it has one stroke of size 1pt.

[Monika Gause]

I do not want to imagine anything. Please let me have a look at it.

[sPretzel]

Well, I've attached a pdf (AI editable). I'm not sure it will help much. I did the first few steps I described earlier. I stopped at what I describe starting at "So I go back to the line" (last paragraph).

[Monika Gause]

Interesting.

I assume the behaviour has to be expected, because if you select two strokes on one object manually (by clicking on them) you still cannot change their stroke weight together.

So maybe the good old Transform Each approach is necessary: first scale them with Scale strokes and effects on and then scale them back with scale strokes and effects off.

[sPretzel]

What is strange is also the order in which the stroke is affected. It seems that the last stroke that was changed is what AI considers to be the stroke of the object, and so if both strokes are selected (or if the object is selected), only that stroke is changed.

Interesting.

I assume the behaviour has to be expected,

By @Monika Gause

I have a feeling this is a behaviour by omission rather than a behaviour by design. It doesn't make sense to me.

I suppose you mean Object>Transform>Transform Each and the Scale Strokes & Effects in Preferences. It could work in my scenario. But if the objects are not alike (like different stroke sizes), I wouldn't be able to make them all alike with the same final stroke size. Perhaps I wouldn't want to tamper with fill either (not sure how that could be a problem but for the sake of argument).

So I take it there is no good way I'm missing out on. I actually ended up doing it the dumb way, by hand, one object and one stroke at a time. You know the old saying, which I occasionally make mine: "when the going gets dumb, the dumb get going".  😄 I suppose I could have done one pass with Select>Same>Stroke Weight and then have one stroke to do by hand only afterwards.

I am assuming by your answer that this problem is still a "feature" in the latest version of AI.

[Monika Gause]

I have tried it in version 2023. But there haven't been any changes in that regard.

There might be scripts that deal with it. 

[Kurt Gold]

Doing it manually is the way you have to go at the moment.

As far as I know there is still no access to the Appearance palette via scripting.