perfect circle

[bookouri]

I apologize for asking such a stupid, simple question, but I did do a search in the Illustrator Help files because I thought this would be a simple question, but I couldnt find anything there.

In Corel Draw there is a "constrain" key that you can hold down when drawing circles or squares so that they are not ovals or rectangles. Is there such a thing in Illustrator?

I drew some "perfect" circles in Illustrator by entering the circle size rather than drawing it out, but even though the circles look ok on screen, they are distorted when printed out. How can I "calibrate" Illustrator so that the printer actually prints what is on screen?

any suggestions would be appreciated, I'm new to Illustrator, so I dont know much about it yet.

thanks

 

[carlow]

the constrain key in Adobe products is the shift key when drawing a shape. When you are happy first release the mouse button afterwards the shift key

carlow

 

[itchybug]

bookie:

If your circles are numerically round in Illustrator, then I'd look into calibrating the PRINTER. Illustrator should output stuff in the right proportions, so more than likely it's a printer issue.

Bert

http://www.itchybug.com

 

[bookouri]

Thanks, i tried the shift key, but i guess i was releasing in the wrong order..

Im still trying to figure out the printer problem. Ive calibrated Ink Jet printers before, but I never found any way to calibrate the HP Laserjet.

 

[itchybug]

FYI, using bezier type paths (the type of path that's used in vector art, with direction handles determining the curve of a path), one cannot draw a perfect circle, just an approximation of a perfect circle made from paraboles. This does not, however, affect the height/width, just the actual circular shape. It's so close that no-one can tell the difference so it doesn't really matter for most applications, just some useless trivia...

Bert

http://www.itchybug.com

 

[itchybug]

booku:

To calibrate, go to the printer options (through the Control Panel or through Start>Printers & Faxes) and see if it allows you to set things up from there.

Bert

http://www.itchybug.com

 

[lynz007]

Hi, I know you were new to Illustrator, but I've used it for years, and am having problems like yours. I've installed the Creative Suite recently but for some weird reason, none of my keyboard constrain or toggle keys are working, which I think is what you were experiencing too. Usually holding down the shift key constrains a perfect circle or square, but mine are not working. Has anyone any ideas about how I can correct this? It's a nightmare trying to do artwork...Thanks.

 

[bookouri]

I think my problem in drawing perfect circles and squares was the sequence of letting go the keys. I tried like the message above and it seemed to work. Release the mouse first and then the constrain key. This didnt solve my printer problem though. My printer does an automatic calibration every time it's turned on, and even though it has "calibrated" I still cant get "perfect circles" to print. I have to draw them oblong and fudge it until i get it to print right. Im trying to move to Illustrator from Corel Draw but this kind of thing makes it hard to do.

Good Luck

 

[itchybug]

Bookie:

I still think it's a printer problem, you may be overlooking an option in the printer settings.

If all else fails, you could write an action that selects everything in the file and scales it by a certain percentage to make stuff round out.

HTH

Bert

http://www.itchybug.com