Got an idea for Illustrator???

Please make us able to pick the appearing colour from blendmodes and transparencys.

Let me explain:

If I make a blue box, and then put another box, say yellow, overlapping the blue one while having transparency and/or blendingmode other than normal - I cannot pick the appearing colour where the boxes overlap.

The pipette will pick up the solid colour of the yellow box, and also If you checked it, the transparency/blending-MODE - but there is no option to just get the appearing colour. The only way to do this is to rasterize the artwork and pick the colour that way, then undo. Not quite elegant.

I do have several ideas for Illustrator which I have been using since version 10 and now I have CS4. I have started using it more frequently, since my main vector based graphics programs (Harvard Graphics and Harvard Chart) are not supported in Windows 7. They are still shipping the product but there is no clue that it will not work under the new Windows.

I do a lot of scientific graphic work and need what are known as population pyramids which are paired histograms back to back.  I helped design the HGAP version and they did a lovely job, but this was in the 1990s when software companies really did listen to their clients.

I also use SPSS which does produce population pyramids but their graphic editor is a real dog and slow to boot.SPSS is unable to produce high quality production ready graphs, so I am obliged to draft my pyramids on the virtual machine version of HGAP, export to .wmf, and place them into Illustrator to fix them up.  In short, I know Illustrator can produce the desired quality of output, but every element has to be reformatted.

I have examined the entire graph mini feature in Illustrator and confess I am disappointed both in the range of graphs it can do and the entire interface of the graph feauture. It needs to be made MUCH MORE FRIENDLY.

I think Illustrator could reach the market segment that I represent, the science and general academic community with a little revision of a really good product.

yours faithfully,

Rob Shell

Stats

University of the Western Cape

I have a few easy to realise ideas. I teach fashion designers all over the world Adobe Illustrator for seven years now. They really need a few simple things. When you create a Brushes library, it would be helpfull if you could give each Brush a color. I mean inside the Brushes panel and Graphic Styles panel as well.This way, users can find a brush more quickly. Also, it would be helpfull when you create a library that it does not have to go into alphabetical order automaticly. Maybe there is a way that users can specify them selves in which order the library will be saved and shows when you open the library.

Then, a huge miss is large previews inside the Symbols panel. In fashion the Symbols could be used to store stuff like buttons, zipper pullers etc. But it doesn't work good enough because the previews are way to small. I mean they need BIG previews. For instance when command / control clicking on a Symbol, showing a huge preview.

Another great great help would be if it would be possible to instantly add something to a library like Brushes, Swatches, Symbols or Graphic Styles. Now you have to open the library file as a regular document drawing. Then add or edit content, save it. And open it as a library again. The result is, at almost all my customers, designers do not make their own libraries, because they think it is to difficult, or to much work.

In fashion lots of designers came from Canvas. They constantly keep asking me if it is possible to crop a picture inside Illustrator. I would not encourage Photoshop editing inside Illustrator to much. But, cropping a picture would be a huge time saver. Also files can stay smaller in size, because now they still have to use a clipping mask to do the job.

I have to create installers for designers which installs all my libraries, actions and workspaces automaticly. But that's difficult because each computer is different in screen size etc. Maybe it would be cool if there would be some kind of preferences manager where designers can install libraries, pre-saved workspace, shortut files etc etc. Lot's of designers find it to difficult to remember where to store all this stuff and make al this stuff. That's how I make a living doing it for them. But still it would be cool if all this stuff could be done from one sort of wizzard / manager. And even cooler if I could automaticly save a file that installs all this myself created stuff at a users computer automaticly. The biggest pain is that to much IT departments do not realize the users need to be able to edit their 'Presets' folder. Often they get no acces to that so they cannot work properly. You could say, that's ignorent IT work. In fact that's true. But you can solve the problem making one manager from where you can install all these personal preferences. And off-course this stuff should be stored at a place where you are sure users will allways have acces to it. Even if an IT department locks down almost the whole computer.

I know a well devloped IT department should work with clients properly pre-installed and configured. But in reality that's hardly the case. I work for the biggest fashion brands in the world and I only know one company in the Netherlands who are almost doing it right. And then, it becomes even harder because I need this IT department if a user want's to make changes in the standard library structure.

Good luck developing Illustrator. Since CS4 Illustrator finally became te most interesting tool for the fashion industry. Thanks to the multiple artboard feature.

Onno Rijpstra

http://www.ecorn.nl

Hi Mordy,

I wish the developers could find something to replace the scribble effect.  There used to be a 'hatch' filter in version six of Illustrator that was scrapped because it was considered to be too complex, I think.  However, when you got the hang of it, it was great!  The hatch you created could even be applied to a gradient. It would be good if something like it could be created as an effect.  Just make it less complex!

I've never heard of a single Illustrator who's found the scribble effect useful or had a good word to say about it.  Ditch it, Adobe.

Best wishes,

Trevor

Yes, PLEASE put the halftone pallete (or something that will allow us to do the same things) from Freehand in illustrator!

I need to be able to assign specific screen angles and frequencies within one document (without changing any colors).

Hi.

I'm working with SCADA systems, like Siemens Wincc, Cytect, Cimplicity, and so on.

There is a problem with every single one of them. Their graphic editors are extremly poor.

I wish there some day could come a HMI/SCADA system with the Adobe Illustrator as a drawing tool, and you would be able to take advantage of all the cool effects and posibillities Illustrater gives you, when drawing HMI projects.

Is this something you ever have concidered to make?

It's hard to be used to working with cool effects in Illustrator, and you suddenly have to deal with the poor drawing tools in SCADA systems....

Why don't you bang your heads together with the guys in Siemens, and make a f... nice Scada system with Illustrator Drawing engine? :-)

I hope it will happen one day :-)

Scott — I am a different opinion. What is needed is such a simple wish-list (Top needed By number of votes cast).

I miss the simple indication of the deficiencies or defects in my work tools Illustartor.
But instead of adding only his own and those same response should be added an option to vote YES for the post - I want to. NO - I am opposed.

A simple number of votes will indicate what is most important to work longer in the new version.

Discussion should be in addition to items from the wish list.

Few versions of the top lists Illustrator:

1. Amendments to existing tools

2. Additional extensions for existing tools

3. Ideas for new tools

2 features that come to my mind right now:

- Cone gradients ('angle' gradients in Photoshop)

- Inner shadow