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Creative Cloud Libraries in 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
      5. GPU performance
    2. Workspace
      1. Workspace basics
      2. Create documents
      3. Learn faster with the Illustrator Discover panel
      4. Accelerate workflows using the Contextual Task Bar
      5. Toolbar
      6. Default keyboard shortcuts
      7. Customize keyboard shortcuts
      8. Introduction to artboards
      9. Manage artboards
      10. Customize the workspace
      11. Properties panel
      12. Set preferences
      13. Touch Workspace
      14. Microsoft Surface Dial support in Illustrator
      15. Undo edits and manage design history
      16. Rotate view
      17. Rulers, grids, and guides
      18. Accessibility in Illustrator
      19. View artwork
      20. Use the Touch Bar with Illustrator
      21. Files and templates
    3. Tools in Illustrator
      1. Tools at a glance
      2. Select tools
        1. Selection
        2. Direct Selection
        3. Group Selection
        4. Magic Wand
        5. Lasso
        6. Artboard
      3. Navigate tools
        1. Hand
        2. Rotate View
        3. Zoom
      4. Paint tools
        1. Gradient
        2. Mesh
        3. Shape Builder
      5. Text tools
        1. Type
        2. Type on a Path
        3. Vertical Type
      6. Draw tools
        1. Pen
        2. Add Anchor Point
        3. Delete Anchor Point
        4. Anchor Point
        5. Curvature
        6. Line Segment
        7. Rectangle
        8. Rounded Rectangle
        9. Ellipse
        10. Polygon
        11. Star
        12. Paintbrush
        13. Blob Brush
        14. Pencil
        15. Shaper
        16. Slice
      7. Modify tools
        1. Rotate
        2. Reflect
        3. Scale
        4. Shear
        5. Width
        6. Free Transform
        7. Eyedropper
        8. Blend
        9. Eraser
        10. Scissors
        11. Dimension
    4. Generative AI (not available in mainland China)
      1. Generate scenes, subjects, and icons using text prompts
      2. Generate vector patterns using text prompts
      3. Generate vector shape fills using text prompts
      4. Recolor your artwork using text prompts
    5. Quick actions
      1. Retro text
      2. Neon glow text
      3. Old school text
      4. Recolor
      5. Convert sketch to vector
  3. Illustrator on the web (beta)
    1. Illustrator on the web (beta) overview
    2. Illustrator on the web (beta) FAQ
    3. Troubleshooting issues FAQ
    4. Keyboard shortcuts for Illustrator on the web (beta)
    5. Create and combine shapes on the web
    6. Add and edit text on the web
    7. Apply colors and gradients on the web
    8. Draw and edit paths on the web
    9. Work with cloud documents on the web
    10. Invite collaborators to edit on the web
  4. 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
  5. Cloud documents
    1. Basics
      1. Work with Illustrator cloud documents
      2. Share and collaborate on Illustrator cloud documents
      3. Share documents for review
      4. Upgrade cloud storage for Adobe Illustrator
      5. Illustrator cloud documents | Common questions
    2. Troubleshooting
      1. Troubleshoot create or save issues for Illustrator cloud documents
      2. Troubleshoot Illustrator cloud documents issues
  6. 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. Draw rectangular and polar grids
      7. Draw and edit flares
      8. Trace images
      9. Simplify a path
      10. Symbolism tools and symbol sets
      11. Adjust path segments
      12. Design a flower in 5 easy steps
      13. Create and edit a perspective grid
      14. Draw and modify objects on a perspective grid
      15. Use objects as symbols for repeat use
      16. Draw pixel-aligned paths for web workflows
    2. Measurement
      1. Measure and plot dimensions
    3. 3D objects and materials
      1. About 3D effects in Illustrator
      2. Create 3D graphics
      3. Map artwork over 3D objects
      4. Create 3D Text
      5. Create 3D objects
    4. 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
    5. 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
    6. Select and arrange objects
      1. Select objects
      2. Layers
      3. Expand, group, and ungroup objects
      4. Move, align, and distribute objects
      5. Align, arrange, and move objects on a path
      6. Snap objects to glyph
      7. Snap objects to Japanese glyph
      8. Stack objects    
      9. Lock, hide, and delete objects
      10. Copy and duplicate objects
      11. Rotate and reflect objects
      12. Intertwine objects
      13. Create realistic art mockups
    7. 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
    8. Type
      1. Add text and work with type objects
      2. Reflow Viewer
      3. Create bulleted and numbered lists
      4. Manage text area
      5. Fonts and typography
      6. Convert text within images into editable text
      7. Add basic formatting to text
      8. Add advanced formatting to text
      9. Import and export text
      10. Format paragraphs
      11. Special characters
      12. Create type on a path
      13. Character and paragraph styles
      14. Tabs
      15. Find missing fonts (Typekit workflow)
      16. Arabic and Hebrew type
      17. Fonts | FAQ and troubleshooting tips
      18. Creative typography designs
      19. Scale and rotate type
      20. Line and character spacing
      21. Hyphenation and line breaks
      22. Spelling and language dictionaries
      23. Format Asian characters
      24. Composers for Asian scripts
      25. Create text designs with blend objects
      26. Create a text poster using Image Trace
    9. Create special effects
      1. Work with effects
      2. Graphic styles
      3. Appearance attributes
      4. Create sketches and mosaics
      5. Drop shadows, glows, and feathering
      6. Summary of effects
    10. Web graphics
      1. Best practices for creating web graphics
      2. Graphs
      3. SVG
      4. Slices and image maps
  7. Import, export, and save
    1. Import
      1. Place multiple files
      2. Manage linked and embedded files
      3. Links information
      4. Unembed images
      5. Import artwork from Photoshop
      6. Import bitmap images
      7. Import Adobe PDF files
      8. Import EPS, DCS, and AutoCAD files
    2. Creative Cloud Libraries in Illustrator 
      1. Creative Cloud Libraries in Illustrator
    3. Save and export
      1. Save artwork
      2. Export artwork
      3. Create Adobe PDF files
      4. Adobe PDF options
      5. Use Illustrator artwork in Photoshop
      6. Collect assets and export in batches
      7. Package files
      8. Extract CSS | Illustrator CC
      9. Document info panel
  8. 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
  9. Automate tasks
    1. Data merge using the Variables panel
    2. Automation with scripts
    3. Automation with actions
  10. Troubleshooting 
    1. Fixed issues
    2. Known issues
    3. Crash issues
    4. Recover files after crash
    5. Safe mode
    6. File issues
    7. Supported file formats
    8. GPU device driver issues
    9. Wacom device issues
    10. DLL file issues
    11. Memory issues
    12. Preferences file issues
    13. Font issues
    14. Printer issues
    15. Share crash report with Adobe
    16. Improve Illustrator performance

About Creative Cloud Libraries

A Creative Cloud Library is a collection of design assets. Several types of design assets can be added to a Creative Cloud Library. With Adobe Illustrator, assets can be one of these types: Colors, Color Themes, Character Styles, Graphics, and Text.

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Explore Creative Cloud Libraries in a few simple steps.

Open Illustrator

Creative Cloud Libraries help you organize, browse, and access creative assets. For example, you may want to create a Creative Cloud Library that contains all the components most frequently used in a specific project.

  • Linked assets: Edit once - update everywhere.
    Always use the latest iteration or version of your asset with linked assets. No matter where your asset is used, if you edit the library copy, all your projects are updated with the edited asset. Adobe CreativeSync ensures that you get the right and updated asset – each time you reuse assets across desktop and mobile projects.
  • Everywhere access. All the time.
    Your libraries are available from within various Creative Cloud desktop apps like Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Creative Cloud Assets and Adobe mobile apps like Comp and Draw — even when you’re offline.
  • Share and collaborate.
    Share assets and components from your libraries with other users. Allow others to work with items in your shared libraries, or share them with more users. Ensure consistency across projects with common assets like graphics, colors, character styling, or style guides.
  • Adobe Stock integration
    The new Adobe Stock service provides you with access to 50 million high-quality, royalty-free images, videos, and graphics. Using the Libraries panel, navigate to, license, and use images and graphics right from within Illustrator.
  • Organize.
    Categorize components into libraries that are meaningful to your workflows and creative projects.
  • The right asset. Every time.
    Reuse assets across desktop and mobile projects without worrying that you’ll grab the wrong versions or that you’ll delete or overwrite by mistake.
  • Easily save to Creative Cloud Libraries.
    Save assets directly to your libraries from Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro and Adobe mobile apps and services like Shape, Brush, Color, Comp and Hue. Assets are automatically converted to the right formats for use in your desktop or mobile apps.

What are linked assets?

In Illustrator CC 2014 and earlier, every graphic asset, once dragged from the Libraries panel into an Illustrator document, was no longer linked in any way to the original asset. Consequently, modifying the original asset in a library had no effect on the copy used in the document. Illustrator assets dragged from a library were 'unlinked assets'.  

However, from Illustrator CC 2015 onwards, with the linked assets feature, an asset dragged from a library to a document is a 'linked asset'. This is the default behavior. Each modification made to the asset in the Library affects all its linked copies used in Illustrator document(s).

To bring graphics from library as an unlinked asset, press Alt/Option while dragging it from the Libraries panel.

Note:

All assets that were used in Illustrator CC 2014 are unlinked assets. To use the linked assets feature, drag the asset again from the Libraries panel in Illustrator CC 2015.

Libraries panel overview

Creative Cloud Libraries are displayed in the Libraries panel in Illustrator. If you create libraries on different computers while using the same Adobe ID, the assets and libraries are all visible in the Libraries panel across computers.

To open the Creative Cloud Library panel (Libraries panel), click Window > Libraries. Use the Libraries panel to:

  • Create, view, rename, remove, and use a Creative Cloud Library
  • Add, remove, edit, and rename assets in a Creative Cloud Library
  • Sort and view assets in a Creative Cloud Library
Interact with your Creative Cloud Libraries through the Libraries panel

A. Creative Cloud Library drop-down menu B. Show items as icons C. Show items in a list D. Stock search drop-down E. Assets F. Add Content icon G. Progress/Sync icon H. Delete icon 

Work with a Creative Cloud Library

Open the Libraries panel

Do one of the following:

  • Click Window > Libraries.
  • In the Brushes panel (F5), click the Libraries panel icon ().

Create a Creative Cloud Library

  1. Do one of the following:

    • Click the dropdown in the Libraries panel, and then choose Create New Library.
    • Click  on the upper-right corner of the Libraries panel to expand the flyout menu, and then choose Create New Library.

  2. Type a name, and then click Create.

Delete a Creative Cloud Library

  1. Select a library using the Libraries panel dropdown.

  2. Expand the flyout menu, and then choose Delete.

Rename the Creative Cloud Library

  1. Select a library using the Libraries panel drop-down menu.

  2. Expand the flyout menu, and then choose the Rename.

Copy or move assets between libraries

  1. Select one or more assets in a library.

  2. Right-click an asset.

  3. From the context menu, select Copy To or Move To, and then choose the library you want to copy or move assets to.

Collaborate with Creative Cloud users

You can share your libraries with other users for them to view, edit, use, rename, move, or delete the contents of the shared library. If another Creative Cloud subscriber has shared a library with you, you can further share it with other Creative Cloud users.

Share a library

  1. In the Libraries panel, select a library from the drop-down menu.

  2. In the Libraries panel, expand the flyout menu, and choose Collaborate.

  3. In the browser page that opens up, provide an email address, and specify what kind of access you would like to provide:

    • Can Edit: The invited user can access the assets and modify them. 
    • Can View: The invited user can only use the assets from the Library. No editing is possible. This is read-only access.

  4. Add an optional message for the person you would like to share the library with.

  5. Click Invite.

Accept an invite

  1. Launch the Adobe Creative Cloud desktop app and log in with your Adobe ID credentials.

  2. When a library is shared with you, you receive a notification in the Creative Cloud desktop app. Click the bell icon to access your notifications.

  3. Click Accept for each library collaboration invitation.

Cancel a share

  1. In the Libraries panel, select the name of a library that you would not like to share anymore from the drop-down menu.

  2. In the Libraries panel, expand the flyout menu, and choose Collaborate.

  3. In the browser page that opens up, delete the names of all the users that the Creative Cloud Library is shared with.

Leave a shared library

  1. In the Libraries panel, select the name of a library that you would not like to collaborate on anymore from the drop-down menu.

  2. In the Libraries panel, expand the flyout menu, and click the Leave library option.

Delete a shared library

Note: You can only delete a library that you own.

  1. In the Libraries panel, select the name of a library that you want to delete from the drop-down menu.

  2. In the Libraries panel, click the flyout menu, and click the Delete library option.

  3. Click Delete to confirm the action.

Work with library assets

Colors

Note:

Hover the mouse pointer on an available color asset to view the name and hexadecimal code of the color.

Add a color

  1. Select an asset in the active Illustrator document.

  2. Click the Add Content () icon in the Libraries panel and choose Fill Color from the drop-down menu.

Add a color (New Swatch dialog)

  1. In the Swatches panel (Window > Swatches), click the New Swatch icon.

  2. In the New Swatch dialog, define the name, type, mode, and values for the color.

  3. After you define the color, select the Add To My Library checkbox. Select a different Library, or choose Create New Library, if you do not want to use the current Library.

  4. Click OK.

Add a color theme (from Color Groups)

  1. In the Swatches panel (Window > Swatches), select a Color Group.

    Note:

    To add a Color Group as a Color Theme, your Color Group must have a minimum of one color, and a maximum of five colors.

  2. In the Swatches panel, click the Add to Library  icon , to add the current Color Group as a Color Theme in your library.

Add to Swatches panel

  • In the Libraries panel (Window > Libraries), right-click a Color Theme, and choose Add To Swatches.

Use a color

Select an object in the active Illustrator document, and then do one of the following:

  • Click a color in a library in the Libraries panel (the color is applied to the active proxy [fill or stroke].
  • To apply a color fill, right-click the color and choose Set Color.
  • Use the proxy to determine what the color is applied to - the object's fill or stroke properties.

Edit a color

  1. In the Libraries panel, do one of the following:

    • Double-click a color
    • Right-click a color and choose Edit.

  2. Select a color using the Color Picker dialog and then click OK.

Rename a color

  1. In the Libraries panel, do one of the following:

    • Double-click the name of a color.
    • Right-click a color and choose Rename.

  2. Type a new name for the color and press Enter.

Delete a color

In the Libraries panel, do one of the following:

  • Select a color and then click the delete icon.
  • Right-click a color and then choose Delete.

Character Styles

Note:

When you add a Character Style to your Creative Cloud Library, more than 50 attributes of a piece of text are stored.

Add a Character Style to a library

  1. Select a text object in the active Illustrator document. The Add Content icon () in the Libraries panel is activated.

  2. Click the Add Content icon () and choose Character Style from the drop-down menu.

Note:

All the attributes available in the Character Style Options dialog (Window > Type > Character Styles > double-click a character style) are copied as part of the Character Style.

Add a Character Style to the Character Style panel

Right-click a Character Style in a library, and click Add to Character Styles.

Apply a Character Style

  1. Select a text object in the active Illustrator document.

  2. In the Libraries panel, do one of the following:

    • Click a Character Style.
    • Right-click a Character Style, and choose Apply Character Style.
Note:

If a Character Style does not have the font associated with it on the local computer, a warning icon is displayed at the bottom right corner of the Character Style thumbnail.

Rename a Character Style

  1. In the Libraries panel, do one of the following:

    • Double-click the name of a Character Style.
    • Right-click a Character Style and choose Rename.

  2. Type a new name for the Character Style and press Enter.

Delete a Character Style

In the Libraries panel, do one of the following:

  • Select a Character Style and then click the delete icon.
  • Right-click a Character Style and then choose Delete.
Note:

You can also use a Character Style in the document (Use in Document option), so the copy and the Character style are placed into the active document.

Graphics

You can store objects and assets from your document in the Creative Cloud Library. The assets you store as a Graphic in a Creative Cloud Library retain their vector form. When you reuse a Graphic from a Creative Cloud Library in another Illustrator document, it is in vector form.

Add a graphic

With an active Illustrator document open, do one of the following:

  • Drag and drop the art into the Libraries panel.
  • Select the art and click the Add Content () icon in the Libraries panel. Then, choose Graphic from the drop-down menu.

License or preview an Adobe Stock image

  1. In the Libraries panel, in the Search Adobe Stock box, type a keyword related to an image that you are searching.

  2. From the results displayed, select an image. You can also choose to either buy the photo or save a preview of the photo to your current library. If you place the pointer on selected image, the License and Save to downloads and Save Preview to Downloads icons are displayed. If you select the license option, the following pop-up appears for confirmation.

For more information on working with Adobe Stock images with your libraries, see Using Adobe Stock.

Use a graphic

Do one of the following:

  • Right-click a graphic in the Libraries panel, and choose the Place Copy option from the context menu.
  • Right-click a graphic in the Libraries panel, and choose the Place Linked option from the context menu.
  • In an active Illustrator document, drag an asset from the Libraries panel and place it on the artboard using the Placegun tool. You can load multiple items in the Placegun tool and add them to the layout.

Edit a graphic

  1. Do one of the following in the Libraries panel:

    • Double-click a graphic
    • Right-click a graphic and choose Edit.

  2. Edit the component when it opens up in an Illustrator document window.

  3. Save the document.

    The graphic is updated in the Creative Cloud Library, and the thumbnail is automatically refreshed. Also, if the asset was created in Illustrator CC 2015 or later, it is a Linked Asset, and Adobe CreativeSync ensures that it is updated across all locations where it is used.

Rename a graphic

  1. In the Libraries panel, do one of the following:

    • Double-click the name of a graphic.
    • Right-click a graphic and choose Rename.

  2. Type a new name for the image and press Enter.

Delete a graphic

In the Libraries panel, right-click a graphic and then choose Delete.

Add and share text assets

You can add text objects from your document to Creative Cloud libraries and then share them with other users and across applications. Text assets in a library retain the character/paragraph styles and other attributes originally applied to them. You can reuse text assets in libraries across Illustrator or InDesign documents.

If a text objects has effects and appearances applied to it, you must add it to the library as a graphics asset to preserve them.

Add a text asset

In an active Illustrator document, do one of the following:

  • Select a range of text or a text frame and click the Add Content () icon in the Libraries panel. Then, choose Text from the drop-down menu.
  • Select a range of text or a text frame. Right-click the text and choose Add To Library from the context menu.
  • Drag and drop the text object into the Libraries panel. By default, the asset is added as a text asset to the Creative Cloud library.
  • To add the text object as a graphics asset, press Control (Windows)/ Command (Mac) key while dragging the selection to the Libraries panel.

Use a text asset in a document

Do one of the following:

  • Right-click a text asset in the Libraries panel. Now, choose Place Copy from the context menu.
  • To place text in your document without any styles applied to it, right-click the text asset in the Libraries panel. Now, choose Place Without Styles from the context menu.
  • Position the insertion point in the text. Then, in the Libraries panel, right-click the text asset and choose Place Inline from the context menu.
  • Drag one or more text assets from the Libraries panel and place it in your document using the Placegun tool. Then, do one of the following:
    • Click a text object to add the text asset to it.
    • Click anywhere within the canvas to place the text asset in a separate text frame.
Note:

By default, Illustrator brings the text asset into the document with its character/paragraph styles and attributes preserved intact. If you want to use the text asset in your document as plain text without any of these associated styles, right-click the text asset in the Libraries panel and choose Place Without Styles from the context menu.

Integration with InDesign

Text assets added to libraries are also available from within the Libraries panel in InDesign. You can edit and use text assets across these two applications. In the Libraries panel List view, the icon to the right of the text asset in the Libraries panel indicates the application in which it was created.

For more information, see Rendition of shared text assets in Illustrator and InDesign.

Edit a text asset

In the Libraries panel, follow these steps:

  1. Right-click the text asset and then choose Edit.
  2. Edit the component when it opens up in an Illustrator document. 
  3. Save the document.

Alternatively, you can double-click the text asset to edit it in the application in which it was created.

The text asset is updated in the Creative Cloud Library and the thumbnail is automatically refreshed. Also, the asset is updated across all locations where it is in use.

Rename a text asset

In the Libraries panel, do the following:

  • Right-click the text asset and choose Rename.
  • Type a new name for the image and press Enter.

Delete a text asset

In the Libraries panel, right-click a text asset and then choose Delete.

Find stock images visually similar to a library element

The visual search functionality in the Libraries panel lets you quickly find stock images similar to a library element. Follow these steps:

  • In the Libraries panel, right-click an element and then select Find Similar from the context menu.

Illustrator displays the search results right within the Libraries panel.

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