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Use the Touch Bar with Illustrator

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  1. Illustrator User Guide
  2. Get to know Illustrator
    1. Introduction to Illustrator
      1. What's new in Illustrator
      2. Common questions
      3. Illustrator system requirements
      4. Illustrator for Apple silicon
    2. Workspace
      1. Workspace basics
      2. Create documents
      3. Tools
      4. Default keyboard shortcuts
      5. Customize keyboard shortcuts
      6. Artboards
      7. Customize the workspace
      8. Properties panel
      9. Set preferences
      10. Touch Workspace
      11. Microsoft Surface Dial support in Illustrator
      12. Recovery, undo, and automation
      13. Rotate view
      14. Rulers, grids, and guides
      15. Accessibility in Illustrator
      16. Safe Mode
      17. View artwork
      18. Use the Touch Bar with Illustrator
      19. Files and templates
      20. Synchronize settings using Adobe Creative Cloud
    3. Tools in Illustrator
      1. Selection
        1. Overview
        2. Selection
        3. Direct Selection
        4. Lasso
        5. Artboard
      2. Navigation
        1. Overview
        2. Zoom
        3. Rotate View
      3. Paint
        1. Overview
        2. Gradient
        3. Shape Builder
      4. Type
        1. Overview
        2. Type
        3. Type on Path
  3. Illustrator on the iPad
    1. Introduction to Illustrator on the iPad
      1. Illustrator on the iPad overview
      2. Illustrator on the iPad FAQs
      3. System requirements | Illustrator on the iPad
      4. What you can or cannot do on Illustrator on the iPad
    2. Workspace
      1. Illustrator on the iPad workspace
      2. Touch shortcuts and gestures
      3. Keyboard shortcuts for Illustrator on the iPad
      4. Manage your app settings
    3. Documents
      1. Work with documents in Illustrator on the iPad
      2. Import Photoshop and Fresco documents
    4. Select and arrange objects
      1. Create repeat objects
      2. Blend objects
    5. Drawing
      1. Draw and edit paths
      2. Draw and edit shapes
    6. Type
      1. Work with type and fonts
      2. Create text designs along a path
      3. Add your own fonts
    7. Work with images
      1. Vectorize raster images
    8. Color
      1. Apply colors and gradients
  4. Cloud documents
    1. Basics
      1. Work with Illustrator cloud documents
      2. Share and collaborate on Illustrator cloud documents
      3. Upgrade cloud storage for Adobe Illustrator
      4. Illustrator cloud documents | Common questions
    2. Troubleshooting
      1. Troubleshoot create or save issues for Illustrator cloud documents
      2. Troubleshoot Illustrator cloud documents issues
  5. Add and edit content
    1. Drawing
      1. Drawing basics
      2. Edit paths
      3. Draw pixel-perfect art
      4. Draw with the Pen, Curvature, or Pencil tool
      5. Draw simple lines and shapes
      6. Image Trace
      7. Simplify a path
      8. Define perspective grids
      9. Symbolism tools and symbol sets
      10. Adjust path segments
      11. Design a flower in 5 easy steps
      12. Perspective drawing
      13. Symbols
      14. Draw pixel-aligned paths for web workflows
    2. 3D effects and Adobe Substance materials
      1. About 3D effects in Illustrator
      2. Create 3D graphics
      3. Create 3D objects
      4. Create 3D Text
    3. Color
      1. About color
      2. Select colors
      3. Use and create swatches
      4. Adjust colors
      5. Use the Adobe Color Themes panel
      6. Color groups (harmonies)
      7. Color Themes panel
      8. Recolor your artwork
    4. Painting
      1. About painting
      2. Paint with fills and strokes
      3. Live Paint groups
      4. Gradients
      5. Brushes
      6. Transparency and blending modes
      7. Apply stroke on an object
      8. Create and edit patterns
      9. Meshes
      10. Patterns
    5. Select and arrange objects
      1. Select objects
      2. Layers
      3. Group and expand objects
      4. Move, align, and distribute objects
      5. Stack objects    
      6. Lock, hide, and delete objects
      7. Duplicate objects
      8. Rotate and reflect objects
    6. Reshape objects
      1. Crop images
      2. Transform objects
      3. Combine objects
      4. Cut, divide, and trim objects
      5. Puppet Warp
      6. Scale, shear, and distort objects
      7. Blend objects
      8. Reshape using envelopes
      9. Reshape objects with effects
      10. Build new shapes with Shaper and Shape Builder tools
      11. Work with Live Corners
      12. Enhanced reshape workflows with touch support
      13. Edit clipping masks
      14. Live shapes
      15. Create shapes using the Shape Builder tool
      16. Global editing
    7. Type
      1. Create text
      2. Fonts and typography
      3. Format type
      4. Import and export text
      5. Format paragraphs
      6. Special characters
      7. Create type on a path
      8. Character and paragraph styles
      9. Tabs
      10. Text and type
      11. Find missing fonts (Typekit workflow)
      12. Update text from Illustrator 10
      13. Arabic and Hebrew type
      14. Fonts | FAQ and troubleshooting tips
      15. Create 3D text effect
      16. Creative typography designs
      17. Scale and rotate type
      18. Line and character spacing
      19. Hyphenation and line breaks
      20. Text enhancements
      21. Spelling and language dictionaries
      22. Format Asian characters
      23. Composers for Asian scripts
      24. Create text designs with blend objects
      25. Create a text poster using Image Trace
    8. Create special effects
      1. Work with effects
      2. Graphic styles
      3. Create a drop shadow
      4. Appearance attributes
      5. Create sketches and mosaics
      6. Drop shadows, glows, and feathering
      7. Summary of effects
    9. Web graphics
      1. Best practices for creating web graphics
      2. Graphs
      3. SVG
      4. Create animations
      5. Slices and image maps
  6. Import, export, and save
    1. Import
      1. Import artwork files
      2. Import bitmap images
      3. Import artwork from Photoshop
      4. Place multiple files | Illustrator CC
      5. Unembed images
      6. Import Adobe PDF files
      7. Import EPS, DCS, and AutoCAD files
      8. Links information
    2. Creative Cloud Libraries in Illustrator 
      1. Creative Cloud Libraries in Illustrator
    3. Save
      1. Save artwork
    4. Export
      1. Use Illustrator artwork in Photoshop
      2. Export artwork
      3. Collect assets and export in batches
      4. Package files
      5. Create Adobe PDF files
      6. Extract CSS | Illustrator CC
      7. Adobe PDF options
      8. File information and metadata
  7. Printing
    1. Prepare for printing
      1. Set up documents for printing
      2. Change the page size and orientation
      3. Specify crop marks for trimming or aligning
      4. Get started with large canvas
    2. Printing
      1. Overprint
      2. Print with color management
      3. PostScript printing
      4. Print presets
      5. Printer's marks and bleeds
      6. Print and save transparent artwork
      7. Trapping
      8. Print color separations
      9. Print gradients, meshes, and color blends
      10. White Overprint
  8. Automate tasks
    1. Data merge using the Variables panel
    2. Automation with scripts
    3. Automation with actions
  9. Troubleshooting 
    1. Crash issues
    2. Recover files after crash
    3. File issues
    4. GPU device driver issues
    5. Wacom device issues
    6. DLL file issues
    7. Memory issues
    8. Preferences file issues
    9. Font issues
    10. Printer issues
    11. Share crash report with Adobe

Learn how to work with the MacBook Pro Touch Bar in Illustrator.

Illustrator supports Touch Bar, the multitouch display at the top of the new MacBook Pro keyboard. Using the Touch Bar, you can access Illustrator features and controls right in the context of your current task on the main screen. The Touch Bar supports familiar gestures, such as tap, drag, and slide.

Note:

For more information about Touch Bar fundamentals, see this Apple documentation page.

Touch Bar interface

By default, a part of the Touch Bar interface is reserved for macOS system controls. Controls for Illustrator are displayed in the app-specific area in the middle of the Touch Bar interface.

Default Touch Bar interface

A. Illustrator controls B. macOS system controls (Control Strip and Esc) 

Contextual operations

Several context-specific operations become available depending on what you're working on in Illustrator.

  • In the Start workspace, the Touch Bar displays the controls to create and open a document.

  • When no object is selected in the Illustrator workspace, the Touch Bar displays controls to create and open a document, place a file, show or hide rulers, grids, and guides, and work with artboards.

  • When a path object is selected, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the fill color, stroke color, opacity, alignment, and arrangement.

  • When multiple path objects are selected, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the fill color, stroke color, opacity, alignment, and arrangement. You can also apply Pathfinder effects  and g roup selected objects.

  • When a text object is selected, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the fill color, stroke color, opacity, alignment, arrangement, paragraph alignment, and font size.

  • When multiple text objects are selected, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the fill color, stroke color, opacity, alignment, arrangement, and paragraph alignment. You can also group the selected text objects using the Touch Bar.

  • When your selection contains a text object and a path object, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the fill color, stroke color, opacity, alignment, and arrangement. You can also group the selected objects using the Touch Bar.

  • When an image is selected, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust its opacity, alignment, and arrangement. You can also choose the option to crop or mask the image using the Touch Bar.

  • When you select a grouped object, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the opacity, alignment, and arrangement of the group. You can also ungroup the objects using the Touch Bar.

  • When any other object is selected, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the opacity, alignment, and arrangement.

  • When multiple other objects are selected, the Touch Bar displays controls to adjust the opacity, alignment, and arrangement. You can also group the objects using the Touch Bar.

Illustrator controls in the Touch Bar

Icon Control name Description
New Use this control to jump to the New Document dialog box that lets you create a document in Illustrator. You can choose from a wide variety of presets and templates, including templates from Adobe Stock. 
Open Opens Illustrator documents and other compatible files using the File > Open command
Place Imports a file into the currently open document using the File > Place command
Ruler Shows or hides the ruler
Grid Shows or hides the grid
Guides Shows or hides guides
Artboards Displays additional options to create or delete an artboard
Navigate artboards Navigates to the first, last, previous, or next artboard in your document
Fill color Displays a color picker. Adjust the sliders to select a fill color
Stroke color Displays a color picker. Adjust the sliders to select a stroke color
Opacity Adjusts the opacity (0-100%) of the selected object
Align You can align the selected object using the options available in the Align panel and align to a selection, an artboard, or a key option.
Arrange Changes the stacking order of the selected object in your artwork. You can choose one of the following options: Bring To Front, Bring Forward, Send Backward, and Send To Back. For details, see Stack objects. 
Paragraph alignment Lets you align and justify the text using options available in the Paragraph panel
Font size Lets you use the slider to adjust the font size
Pathfinder Lets you choose the desired options from the Shape Modes and the Pathfinder Effects to combine multiple objects into new shapes
Crop Launches the cropping interface in Illustrator. You can crop linked or embedded images using intuitive widget controls. Then, select Apply to crop the image or Cancel to exit the cropping interface using the Touch Bar.
Mask Creates a clipping mask
Group Combines the selected objects into a group so that they are treated as a single unit
Ungroup Ungroups a grouped selection so that the objects are treated as individual elements

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