How to convert point to symbol?

[pgseye]

Hi,

I'm using some specialised software for statistical analysis that outputs scatterplots in vector format, but colour-codes the data points (two groups, red and blue). The software doesn't have any facility to change the format of the output. I want grayscale for journal publication reasons and can do this quite easily, but of course the points aren't easy to distinguish this way.

I'm relatively new to illustrator. Is there a way to take one set of data points and change them to a symbol - say a cross or something like this, so that one can immediately look at the chart and now the lay of the land without having to try and discriminate shades of gray.

Thanks heaps.

Paul

 

[apepp]

...using the symbol method would mean manually positioning your new symbols in place as the imported data points aren't already symbols, if they were it would be a case of simply replacing the symbol in the symbols palette...

...your other options might be to select the group color you want to change (select > same > fill (or stroke)...

...then you could use an effect menu option to physically change the appearance, something like effect > distort & transform > pucker & bloat...

andrew

 

[pgseye]

Thanks Andrew, I'll try that.