In previous versions of Illustrator, selecting two or more objects and performing a Pathfinder operation (Add, Subtract, Intersect, etc.) would result in what’s called a Compound Path. The original shapes remained, but only the results of the Pathfinder operation would be visible. The Compound Path approach gave you the ability to “reclaim” the original shapes if you needed to.
Above: Pathfinder creating a Compound Path after a Subtract operation;
note the “leftover” original shapes. They’re not visible,
but they’re still accessible in Outline mode.
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But most users wanted the “pure” finished shape: holding down Option or Alt while clicking a Pathfinder option would eliminate the leftovers without making a Compound Path:
Above: Prior to Illustrator CS4, holding down Option (Mac) or Alt (PC)
while choosing a Pathfinder operation would give you an expanded result,
with the non-visible object fragments permanently deleted.
Neat, but what if you ever wanted the old stuff back?
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If you’re in the habit of holding down Option/Alt while performing a Pathfinder operation, you might want to change your habit when you upgrade to Illustrator CS4. Now, Pathfinder results are automatically expanded, with no modifier key necessary, and Option/Alt now has the opposite meaning: it now prevents expanding, and results in the creation of a compound path. So, if you want just the resulting shapes (with no leftovers), don’t press Option/Alt while performing a Pathfinder operation.
This change got me by surprise since the launch of CS4 I’ve been having nightmare with this, numerous times I’ve been wanting to go back and change something and I never could, this will save me loads of time re-editing sapes thanks!
btw
I love this change, most ppl want final shape, it saves times.
thank you so much.
You did me a huge favor.
Thanks Claudia, the change did catch me by surprise. Nothing like toggling the behavior from version to version 😉
THANKS !!!!!, i almost became crazy. That is a IMPORTANT CHANGE, REALLY… THANKS!!!!!!
It’s to keep our brains nimble 🙂
No, I think a lot of the changes in CS4, across the Suite, were to make the applications a bit easier for new users. The side effect, of course, is that experienced users have to adjust. I’m willing to forgive a few alterations in light of some of the wonderful improvements in Illustrator. But I do grumble about the change for channel shortcuts in Photoshop, for what that’s worth.
And keep in mind that you can customize the shortcuts to suit you, so feel free to fight back!
I find this annoying Adobe changing all those shortcuts we are used to. What in hell do they have to gain for?
Great, I didn´t know the alt thing, now I can use it like the old Illustrator. You helped me a lot!!!!
Rick,
I can’t seem to find a preference for restoring the old CS3 behavior. Now I’ll have to dig through old computers to see when the Opt/Alt thing changed. I guess it doesn’t matter, but it’s sort of nice to know for historical purposes. Or to impress geek friends 🙂
I quite like your Dutch New York site, and, digging deeper, I see from your portfolio that you are an Illustrator aficionado, and, digging further, find that you are a fellow Catholic school survivor. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance.
As I recall, the first version to have Pathfinder (9? 7?) had it that way: you held down the alt/option key to retain the shapes. So in CS4, they’ve changed it back again. Not having CS4 in front of me, I wonder if they give you the choice to change the functionality back to the CS3 way in Preferences.
Yes, I love this in Illustrator up through CS3. But what’s odd is that if you want an expanded result in CS4, you *don’t* need to use Option/Alt any more (the result of a Pathfinder operation is automatically expanded by default), and you’ll notice that the Expand button is grayed out. It only becomes operational if you *do* use Option/Alt to produce an un-expanded result.
While it’s great that Pathfinder now does what I consider “the right thing” with no modifier key, I figure that this new behavior will catch some longtime Illustrator users by surprise 😉
Stay warm!
You might want to add that the button Expand in the Pathfinder panel finishes the action if you have only done it half the way.
Regards,