stevenjs
asked on
Is there really no way to add a segment to an existing path in Adobe Illustrator?
Greetings,
Try though I have, I can find no help on this in Illustrator's Help. Yet this seems to me (and others) such an elemental thing to want to do, yet there does not seem any way to do it except to draw a separate line segment, cut the existing path to create two endpoints, then join the three endpoints. ???!!
Please tell me I am missing something completely.
Thanks.
regards,
stevenjs
__________________________
"I am but an egg."
--Stranger in a Strange Land
Try though I have, I can find no help on this in Illustrator's Help. Yet this seems to me (and others) such an elemental thing to want to do, yet there does not seem any way to do it except to draw a separate line segment, cut the existing path to create two endpoints, then join the three endpoints. ???!!
Please tell me I am missing something completely.
Thanks.
regards,
stevenjs
__________________________
"I am but an egg."
--Stranger in a Strange Land
ASKER
Hi, Lobo,
Thanks for picking up on this, when no one else has.
No, I'm don't have a screen capture, though that's an intriguing thought.
It's really extremely simple though. Let's say I have a circle. I want to draw a diameter across it with the Pen Tool. I can draw what "looks" like a diameter, but the diameter line is not an integral part of the circle path. Its endpoints are not joined with the circle's side points. And what's worse, they can't be joined without that ridiculous admonition that only endpoints can be joined.
Worse still, in desperation, I used the scissors to cut the circle's side, then tried to join the three "endpoints" to integrate the diameter. No dice, apparently, only two endpoints maybe joined, not three.
This is totally baffling, as it would seem the most desirable of things to want to do, especially since, unless the new segment (the diameter in this case) is integrated, you can't fill the halves differently, etc.
In Flash, you just have to put one point on top of another, no matter, they join automatically. That makes perfect sense to me.
Let me know if there's something more I can explain.
regards,
stevenjs
_________________________
"I am but an egg."
Thanks for picking up on this, when no one else has.
No, I'm don't have a screen capture, though that's an intriguing thought.
It's really extremely simple though. Let's say I have a circle. I want to draw a diameter across it with the Pen Tool. I can draw what "looks" like a diameter, but the diameter line is not an integral part of the circle path. Its endpoints are not joined with the circle's side points. And what's worse, they can't be joined without that ridiculous admonition that only endpoints can be joined.
Worse still, in desperation, I used the scissors to cut the circle's side, then tried to join the three "endpoints" to integrate the diameter. No dice, apparently, only two endpoints maybe joined, not three.
This is totally baffling, as it would seem the most desirable of things to want to do, especially since, unless the new segment (the diameter in this case) is integrated, you can't fill the halves differently, etc.
In Flash, you just have to put one point on top of another, no matter, they join automatically. That makes perfect sense to me.
Let me know if there's something more I can explain.
regards,
stevenjs
_________________________
"I am but an egg."
Hi stevenjs,
Gotcha. Nope, that's not possible in Illustrator nor in CorelDraw. Not sure about Freehand. The idea in Illustrator is that a path is a continuous vector with one beggining point and one end point that can be joined or not. A solution to your circle problem resides in the use of Layers and the Pathfinder to cut your shape into segments that overimpose on separate layers. If you're interested I can write you a how-to.
Good Vibes!
Lobo
Gotcha. Nope, that's not possible in Illustrator nor in CorelDraw. Not sure about Freehand. The idea in Illustrator is that a path is a continuous vector with one beggining point and one end point that can be joined or not. A solution to your circle problem resides in the use of Layers and the Pathfinder to cut your shape into segments that overimpose on separate layers. If you're interested I can write you a how-to.
Good Vibes!
Lobo
ASKER
Lobo,
Thanks for the definitive statement. I think this is a woeful flaw in my favorite program. I'm surprised they haven't addressed it.
Yes, please, I am ill-adept at the use of Pathfinder in cookie cutting. There's also this "cut shape below" function I know nothing about.
regards,
stevenjs
__________________________
"I am but an egg."
--Stranger in a Strange Land
Thanks for the definitive statement. I think this is a woeful flaw in my favorite program. I'm surprised they haven't addressed it.
Yes, please, I am ill-adept at the use of Pathfinder in cookie cutting. There's also this "cut shape below" function I know nothing about.
regards,
stevenjs
__________________________
"I am but an egg."
--Stranger in a Strange Land
ASKER
Lobo,
Yes, a how to, please.
stevenjs
__________________________
"I am but an egg."
--Stranger in a Strange Land
Yes, a how to, please.
stevenjs
__________________________
"I am but an egg."
--Stranger in a Strange Land
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
membership
This solution is only available to members.
To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.
I'm not sure I understand the question correctly. Do you have a JPG or screen cap of what you have and what you want to do?
Good Vibes!
Lobo