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Selmore
Participant
August 1, 2019
Answered

Illustrator force-uses eraser tool while any other tool is selected

  • August 1, 2019
  • 4 replies
  • 2416 views

Hi there,

I am a bit in a pinch here and am experiencing some troubles with Illustrator, InDesign and Photoshop. For a upcoming animation I need to properly layer illustrator artwork as it was originally made for online and made up out of 200 paths. AE cannot read paths by itself so I want to use the selection tool to select everything and add it to their own layers.

However, whenever I try to use any tool in Illustrator, the eraser tool keeps being used. If I use the selection tool and try to select something, Illustrator erases something. Sometimes it fixes itself for 5 seconds and then goes back again. Trying to reset the workspaces or trying to switch to a different one also won't help. Tried to uninstall Illustrator and reinstall, and the first thing I was greeted with was the eraser tool. Someone knows whats up?

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Bill Silbert

    Try trashing your Illustrator preferences. To do so:

    For Macintosh Users: The User Library folder in which Illustrator’s preferences are stored is hidden by default on most Macintoshes. To access it make sure that Illustrator is closed and click on the desktop to launch a Finder Window (Command-N).With this window in column view follow the path User>Home folder (it’s the folder with an icon that looks like a house—it may have the user’s name rather than “Home”) and click on the Home folder. With the Option Key pressed choose Library from the Finder Go Menu. “Library” will now appear within the Home folder. Within the Library folder find the folder called Preferences and within it find the folder called “Adobe Illustrator <Version #> Settings” (earlier versions of Illustrator might just say “Adobe Illustrator”) and the file called “com.adobe.Illustrator.plist” and delete both that folder and that file. When Illustrator is next launched it will create new preference files and the program will be restored to its defaults.

    For Windows Users: You can try the quick way of resetting on a PC which is to hold down Ctrl + Alt + Shift when launching Illustrator and respond affirmatively when asked if you want to reset. There have been some recent reports that the window asking if you want to reset is not popping up but that the prefs are being reset anyway. If this works great but if it doesn’t you may have to manually delete them.

    To do so:

    On Windows 7 and above the preference files are hidden. To find them go to the Control Panel and open Folder Options and then click the View tab. Then select “Show hidden files and folders” or “Show hidden files, folders or drive options” in Advanced Settings. Then delete (or rename) the folder at the end of this path: C:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Illustrator [version number]\ Settings\<Language>. Make sure that Illustrator is closed when you do this. When you relaunch the program it will create  new preference files and the program will be at its default settings.

    The advantage of manually deleting preference files is that after you’ve reset up the program (make sure that no document window is open) to your liking, you can create copies of your personalized “mint” preference files (make sure that you quit the program before copying them—that finalizes your customization) and use them in the future to replace any corrupt versions you may need to delete.

    4 replies

    Selmore
    SelmoreAuthor
    Participant
    August 2, 2019

    I forgot to delete the com.adobe.illustrator.plist. Did that and now works like charm again. Thank you guys!

    Bill Silbert
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    August 2, 2019

    Happy to help.

    Monika Gause
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    August 1, 2019

    Is a Wacom connected by any chance?

    Selmore
    SelmoreAuthor
    Participant
    August 2, 2019

    I have a Wacom connected to the computer. Model PTK-640. I have tried trashing the illustrator preferences and emptying my trash bin. I deleted all Illustrator preference folders and files I could find. I re-started my computer and went to Illustrator. Unfortunately this did not solve the issue for me.

    Bill Silbert
    Community Expert
    Bill SilbertCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
    Community Expert
    August 1, 2019

    Try trashing your Illustrator preferences. To do so:

    For Macintosh Users: The User Library folder in which Illustrator’s preferences are stored is hidden by default on most Macintoshes. To access it make sure that Illustrator is closed and click on the desktop to launch a Finder Window (Command-N).With this window in column view follow the path User>Home folder (it’s the folder with an icon that looks like a house—it may have the user’s name rather than “Home”) and click on the Home folder. With the Option Key pressed choose Library from the Finder Go Menu. “Library” will now appear within the Home folder. Within the Library folder find the folder called Preferences and within it find the folder called “Adobe Illustrator <Version #> Settings” (earlier versions of Illustrator might just say “Adobe Illustrator”) and the file called “com.adobe.Illustrator.plist” and delete both that folder and that file. When Illustrator is next launched it will create new preference files and the program will be restored to its defaults.

    For Windows Users: You can try the quick way of resetting on a PC which is to hold down Ctrl + Alt + Shift when launching Illustrator and respond affirmatively when asked if you want to reset. There have been some recent reports that the window asking if you want to reset is not popping up but that the prefs are being reset anyway. If this works great but if it doesn’t you may have to manually delete them.

    To do so:

    On Windows 7 and above the preference files are hidden. To find them go to the Control Panel and open Folder Options and then click the View tab. Then select “Show hidden files and folders” or “Show hidden files, folders or drive options” in Advanced Settings. Then delete (or rename) the folder at the end of this path: C:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Illustrator [version number]\ Settings\<Language>. Make sure that Illustrator is closed when you do this. When you relaunch the program it will create  new preference files and the program will be at its default settings.

    The advantage of manually deleting preference files is that after you’ve reset up the program (make sure that no document window is open) to your liking, you can create copies of your personalized “mint” preference files (make sure that you quit the program before copying them—that finalizes your customization) and use them in the future to replace any corrupt versions you may need to delete.

    melissapiccone
    Community Expert
    Community Expert
    August 1, 2019

    First, reset the preferences. Uninstall and reinstall doesn't do this for you -

    https://helpx.adobe.com/illustrator/using/setting-preferences.html

    Next, make sure non of you keys are stuck on your keyboard - just incase it's something weird like that.

    Melissa Piccone | Adobe Trainer | Online Courses Author | Fine Artist