I know I posted this in another reply but thought it needed a thread of it's own.
How do you change the rounded corers on a box after it is drawn?
How do you resize a box with rounded corners without trashing those corners? (I know use the direct select tool but that is not very use-friendly or accurate)
How do you clone?
How do you duplicate a object and the last movement you did?
How do you spray randomly on a page with a series of illustrations you have created?
Spray randomly: first create symbol out of your art (drag into symbol-palette) then use the symbol-tools
Monika Gause answered in HOW about 1 year agoThanks this was helpful. This only sprays the one symbol though, what if you have 5 symbols you want to randomly spray?
David Hardman commented about 1 year ago
That doesn't work like it does in FreeHand.
You can mix symbol sets, like first spraying instances of one symbol, then choosing a different one and spraying it between the instances of the first one into the same set. Afterwards kind of stirring the thing with the symbol-Shifter- or -Spinner-tool
Or you can use scatter brushes instead. There may be other methods, depends on what exactly you want to achieve.
Monika Gause commented about 1 year ago
I can help with the few that I know for sure.
Round corners: Draw your box. Go to the Effects menu and choose Stylize/Round Corners. You can use the Solid Select tool and resize in any way. So long as you don't Expand Appearance you can modify the rounded corder under the Appearance tab.
Clone: Select your object and copy (Command-C) and then Paste in Front (Command-F) it pastes it on top of the original object.
Duplicate: If you click and drag the object while you hold down the Option key you will make a duplicate with a direction. Now just choose Transform Again (Command-D under Object menu) and your object will repeat the movement.
I miss the ease of Freehand. I hope it gets released open source. That would be cool.
Jose Gonzalez answered in HOW about 1 year ago
I was just leafing through the dearadobe.com pages and came across some interesting ones. I've run into all of these at one time or another but over time they fade from memory (until I run into it again). So, this isn't an answer but rather adding to the list. Also, while I know how to do most or all of them in AI now, I think they're worth collecting as a testament to how easy and elegant FH is by comparison.• How do you align and then join nodes?
Jabez Palmer answered in HOW about 1 year ago
• How do you crop an image with a shape? (Adobe: paste inside is better. period.)
• How do you manipulate a gradient once created (without resorting to mesh gradient), ie direction, angle, transform/contort?
• How do you copy and paste attributes? (I hate screwing around with that stupid little eye dropper)
• How do you align objects, keeping one the stationary "locked" element? (why can't I align to a locked object in AI?)
• How do you auto size text boxes or scale those boxes without cropping text? (so much more intuitive in FH)
• How do you complete a path operation without squirming in your chair? (and what the hell does "expand" mean? it's the wrong word for what I'm trying to do)
• How do you find and replace text or attributes throughout a document?
• How do you select a group of nodes without selecting everything your dragged path touches? (do I really have to individually select nodes I want to work with one at a time? If I drag select a group and end up with other objects selected, it seems near impossible to shift-select the objects I don't want to deselect--it just won't cooperate)
• How do you make multiple pages of differing sizes (a CS4 version?) I haven't tried, just parroting another's issue)
• How do you choose what form to place text in, ie loose, in a box, etc? (unlike AI, FH just has one that does everything you need)
• How do you delete a node from a vector shape without creating a gap in the bezier curves that define the shape?
• How do you get a node to continue from the pen tool so you can reattach it to another one and close the shape?
• How do you get Adobe to give you all FH license owner contact info so you can reach them all and build a movement?Here we go:
How do you align and then join nodes?
That's a quickie, in just two keystrokes since '87:
Cmd-Shift J (Align nodes horizontally and vertically)
Cmd-J (Join them and choose corner or curve node)
How do you crop an image with a shape? (Adobe: paste inside is better. period.)
Select the image and click on the "Mask" button in the top bar (gotcha, period).
How do you manipulate a gradient once created? (without resorting to mesh gradient)
Use the refined gradient bar (select object and gradient tool; many handles to tweak). This has greatly improved in CS4 !
How do you copy and paste attributes? (I hate that stupid little eye dropper)
Keep on screwing or define a style (drag it in), but I bet that's too much fuss for you ?
How do you align objects, keeping one the stationary "locked" element?
Select all elements (don't lock any of them though) and click the one that needs to be the 'stationery' object. In CS4 you'll see it will get a thicker outline (improved behavior).
How do you auto size text boxes or scale those boxes without cropping text?
Once initiated (either clicked or dragged the text object) you can't swap it afterwards...
How do you complete a path operation without squirming in your chair?
Hold the option key while clicking the button - but beware: this behavior was toggled twice in recent versions, so verify to see what your version does !
How do you find and replace text or attributes throughout a document?
Choose one of the many "Select" methods, either the magic wand or command.
How do you select a group of nodes without selecting everything your dragged path touches? (Do I really have to individually select nodes I want to work with one at a time? If I drag select a group and end up with other objects selected, it seems near impossible to shift-select the objects I don't want to deselect--it just won't cooperate)
I don't know exactly what you mean - but DO try the Isolation mode, it's much easier than the white arrow with the plus or even option-clicking to select within groups etc. Double-click on any complex object (group, mask, compound, etc.) and you're in !
How do you make multiple pages of differing sizes (a CS4 version)?
There's one tool that does it all (no panel). Click the page-with-crop-sign tool and see how it serves your needs. Option drag to copy pages and check out the preferences.
How do you choose what form to place text in, ie: loose, in a box, etc?
Like I stated higher up in the reply, either click or drag to initiate.
How do you delete a node from a vector shape without creating a gap in the bezier?
Choose the pen-tool; it will change to a pen with a minus when hovering over a node. If you did delete the section between the nodes, no problem: Cmd-J will connect them.
How do you get a node to continue from the pen so you can reattach it to another one?
Instead of selecting it, click or click-drag it, as if you freshly drew it. Watch the pen, it will stop showing the x-sign (meaning "ready to initiate a new path").
How do you get Adobe to give you all FH license owner contact info?
Try catching an Adobe big shot in a compromising situation (like using Corel Draw or having a family member with SilverLight in their website) and blackmail him/her.
Peter Villevoye answered in HOW about 1 year ago
