Illustrator 29.8.1 bug: pressing the A key does nothing, but should display the node select tool

@thomasb14279947 yeah, some of my students had this. It may be a corrupted keyboard preferences file.  To clear Illustrator's main preferences file, which often resolves strange update-related bugs. Close Illustrator completely. Relaunch Illustrator while holding down the following keys:

• PC: Control Alt Shift

• MAC: Command Option Shift

A dialog box will pop up asking if you want to "Delete Adobe Illustrator Preferences file?" Click Yes. Illustrator will open with all settings, including your shortcuts, returned to their default state. You may need to reset your workspace, but the 'A' key should be working.

Or just reset the keyboard shortcuts. Go to Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts... (Alt/Option Shift  Ctrl/Cmd K). In the Tools section, find Direct Selection Tool (it should show the 'A' shortcut). Click the Delete button next to the 'A' shortcut, then click in the shortcut box and press A again to re-assign it. If you have a custom set, save it with a new name, or choose one of the default sets. Click OK to apply the change.