Why is AI so touchy when joining paths?

[cmscss]

Hi There,

How do you troubleshoot issues joining paths?

I never saw path issues in Freehand but after 15 years using Illustrator, I see this error from time-to-time. The only way I've found to reliably fix them is to use paths as a template, and redraw them.

Cutting/pasting paths using the direct select tool often works but sometimes not. What am I missing?

[Omar.Fathy]

You should know that you cant use the Join command for paths, you can use it just for anchor points.
That is mean that you should select two anchor points of open path/s then you can make join.
You can also use the Join Tool without selecting anything, Just you need to click and drag over the two points to join.

[cmscss]

Thanks guys...

Omar.Fathy  wrote

You should know that you cant use the Join command for paths, you can use it just for anchor points.
That is mean that you should select two anchor points of open path/s then you can make join.

Yep, that's what I do, align two points on top of each other, drag a selection over them and hit CMD + J

[chanaart]

You can select 2 path and go to object: Path: Join

Another way is to connect it with the pen tool

Illustrator and other vector based software are tedious when is comes to connecting path and how you connect them.

you need to select the path and than join.

Check out the join tool in the tool panel! this might help too

chana

[cmscss]

chanaart  wrote

You can select 2 path and go to object: Path: Join

Check out the join tool in the tool panel! this might help too

Thanks for that,

Object > Path > Join resulted in the same error.

Closing the objects as seperate objects, making them overlap, then using Pathfinder > Unite resulted in the same error

But the join tool worked - why is that?

There must be something different about the paths. It's something I've never understood about Illustrator - does anyone know what is different?

[cmscss · Accepted solution]

OK, for some reason the original, unclosed paths were compound shapes (even though they were just two unclosed paths).

Expanding them converted them to normal paths.

What's the advantage of treating objects with holes in them as a seperate object-type or shape?

[Monika Gause]

cmscss  schrieb

What's the advantage of treating objects with holes in them as a seperate object-type or shape?

When you want to cut a hole into an object, it will ultimately become a compound path. Compound shapes or live paint objects can do it as well, but only inside Illustrator, they won't be exported to PDF or other vector formats.

https://www.vektorgarten.de/illustrator-compound-path-shape.html

[cmscss]

Thanks Monika, that blog post was helpful.

I guess my question was more conceptual. In Freehand, shapes with holes in them were never a different object-type, they were just two or more joined paths. So you never ended up with unclosed paths that were compound shapes because as soon as a path was unclosed, it could be joined with other paths as per usual. No need to convert (or expand) between different types.

I guess I was trying to understand the advantage, or why Illustrator uses a different object-type (compound shape) which requires a conversion step.

[cmscss]

Editable text is one advantage, although it must be converted at some stage right?

[Monika Gause]

cmscss  schrieb

Thanks Monika, that blog post was helpful.

I guess my question was more conceptual. In Freehand, shapes with holes in them were never a different object-type, they were just two or more joined paths.

In FreeHand you just didn't notice. FreeHand's "Jojn" commend did a lot of different things, one of them being creating compound paths. When you punch a hole into a shape, no matter which vector software you use, you end up with a compound path. Some software won't even tell you, because it doesn't have a layer panel or an object browser or whatever,and some call it slightly differently, but it's the same kind of thing in all of them.

[cmscss]

Yep, fully aware that Freehand created compound shapes but Freehand auto-converted them when un-joining. To me, this is more intuitive because after un-joining, the paths not only look normal (as they do in Illustrator) but they also behave normally.

Somehow in Illustrator, you can end up with paths that look normal but don't behave normally unless you convert them (orphan compound paths if you will). So I was just trying to understand if there's an advantage to this.

[Monika Gause]

Do you have an example file with an uncontrollable released compound path?

[cmscss]

The screenshot in the first post was an example of two unclosed, but separate compound paths (was trying to join at the top middle point). But I no longer have the file in that state.

Unfortunately, I don't encounter this often which is why this is the first time in 15 years that I've asked about it. Will try to remember in future and post a file as I'd love to get to the bottom of it.

But yes, I've definitely encountered unclosed paths that are compound shapes in Illustrator.

[JETalmage]

But yes, I've definitely encountered unclosed paths that are compound shapes in Illustrator.

Cmscss,

Just FYI, in Illustrator, a Compound Shape and a Compound Path are two different constructs. Compound Shapes are "live effects" created in the Pathfinder palette. Compound Paths are the ubiquitous "paths with a hole in them" constructs common to most any vector drawing program, font, etc., like you are accustomed to in FreeHand.

FreeHand does not allow an open path to be a subpath in a compound path, nor (as I recall) a single path to be a compound path (but need to check).

JET

[JETalmage]

You should know that you cant use the Join command for paths, you can use it just for anchor points

You should know that has not been true since several versions predating CC.

1. Black pointer: Select two or more open simple (not compound) paths.
2. Ctrl-J. The selected paths join according to their nearest endpoints.
3. Undo. Deselect.

4. White pointer: ShiftAltClick a segment (not an Anchor) of each of the paths (i.e., select all of each path with the white pointer).
5. Ctrl-J. Again, the selected paths join according to their nearest endpoints.
6. Undo.

Thus, you only need to tediously "directselect" the endpoints you want to join if they are not the nearest endpoints of the paths you are joining.

6. Black Pointer: Select all the paths.
7. Object Menu: Compound Path>Make. (Unlike FreeHand, open paths can be compounded.)

8. Deselect.
9. White pointer: ShiftAltClick a segment (not an Anchor) of each of the subpaths (i.e., select all of each subpath with the white pointer).
10. Ctrl-J. Nothing happens.

Even though all of the selected subpaths are subpaths of the same Compound Path, Illustrator will not join them.

11. Deselect.
12. White pointer: Select just an endpoint of two different subpaths.
13. Ctrl-J.

In typically inconsistent Illustrator behavior, the two subpaths will join, even though they are still subpaths of a Compound Path, and even though joining will not work when the "whole" subpaths are "direct selected".

JET