Adobe Illustrator Does Math
Anything that you can learn to save you time will only make you faster and more efficient. I’ve been using design software for years, and no matter how much I think I know, I always find another little hidden gem that makes it that much better. Every now an then, you have to make calculations with your designs and illustrations. You might want to rotate something just the right amount to make certain points line up, or other situations may arise. Whatever the reason, you don’t have to sit there and multiply everything out. Even if you do, you might still be wrong. However, you can make simple calculations, right inside of Illustrator’s interface. this week’s video shows you just how to do that. It’s easier than you think, and incredibly handy!
A Handy Little Feature
Not everyone can divide 360 by 16 off the top of their heads. This feature is extremely useful for making odd calculations. It even handles calculations that don’t work out evenly. It will calculate to the tenths value for your work, which is great. I love how you can make this calculation right inside of whatever field you are working in. In the video, I needed to rotate the octagon a certain amount of degrees, but didn’t know which number would get the results I wanted. After a couple of seconds of trial and error, I was able to determine the right amount to rotate the object to make everything line up. What a huge time saver.
What do you think?
Now that you know you can make simple calculations inside of Illustrator, what will you do with it? I find it incredibly handy, and will keep this in mind from now on when trying to find just the right number to make everything line up. With a little extra thought, you can save yourself a ton of time.
