Protractor

[SamuelS...@adobeforums.com]

Is there a protractor tool to measure angles in Illustrator? I would like to create geometrically accurate shapes by measuring the angles.

Thanks,
sam

[Rob_Hecker.@adobeforums.com]

You can set exact angles using the transform palette, the line tool, and the rotate tool. There are actually even a few other ways to get accurate angles, such as by using smart guides.

Rob

[James_...@adobeforums.com]

Double-click the Line Tool to get a dialog which lets you create a line at any length and angle (a radius of your protractor).

You can make a Star or Polygon to create an instant "protractor" with as many points as you want. For example, if you want a protractor with tick marks every 11.5 degrees, AltClick with the Star tool and enter "360/11.5" in the number of points field.

You can also use the Object>Path>Add Points command to bisect an exiting circular curve segment.

JET

[John_...@adobeforums.com]

The measure tool, under the eyedropper, in conjunction with the info palette will report angles based on a click-drag

[SamuelS...@adobeforums.com]

Woah! thanks for the star tool 360/11.5 tip! Not only did it show me how to make a protractor, it also taught me how to make various shaped stars easy!

[James_...@adobeforums.com]

Not only did it show me how to make a protractor...

Since you "create geometrically accurate shapes" I should maybe mention that creating such a "protractor" and then scaling it either horizontally or vertically can give you something every technical illustrator needs: an elliptical protractor. For example:

1. SmartGuides on. Snap To Grid off. Current Fill: None. Current Stroke Weight .25.

2. Circle Tool: Click (don't drag). In the dialog, enter 1" for height and width.

3. Line Tool: Draw a vertical diameter of the circle, snapping to the top and bottom points of the circle. Leave the line selected.

4. Effect>Distort & Transform>Transform. In the Number of Copies field enter "360/5". Click the Preview checkbox. Note that the value you entered has calculated to "72". In the Rotate field, enter "360/72". Click OK.

5. Object>Expand Appearance.

6. Black Pointer: Drag a selection marquee around the whole thing. DoubleClick the Scale Tool. In the dialog enter 100% for width, 58% for height (because the sine of 35'16"--the tilt angle of an isometric ellipse--is approximately .58). Click OK.

7. Drag the whole thing to the Symbols Palette.

8. DoubleClick the Rotate Tool. Enter 60 degrees. Click OK. Drag the whole thing to the Symbols Palette again.

9. Type Cmd-D (Transform again). Drag the whole thing to the Symbols Palette.

You now have three 1" isometric protractors residing in your Symbols Palette, each of which is oriented to one of the three isometric planes; each with tick marks at 5 degree elliptical increments. You can use these to easily obtain off-axis object lines of a known length in your isometric drawing. For example:

An object edge of what you are drawing is 3.75" long, and is on the top plane, but is rotated 20 degrees about the vertical axis. How do you obtain this line at the proper length and angle? You:

1. Drag an instance of the top iso protractor from the Symbols Palette onto the page. From the Symbols Palette's flyout menu, select Break Link To Symbol.

2. DoubleClick the Scale tool and enter the actual size of the object edge times 100 (so it's a percentage); that is, enter 375%. Click OK.

3. Get the Direct Select Tool. Find the protractor's diameter line which is on the 30 degree iso axis. Mouse over the end of that line, and move to the adjacent diameter ends, counting 5, 10, 15, 20. AltClick the diameter which is at 20 degrees off the iso axis. Copy.

4. Delete (or move aside) the protractor. Paste in Front. That's your properly foreshortened simple-rotation object edge. Snap it into position on your drawing.

This PDF is an old one done in FH, but illustrates the same principle in real use:

<http://www.IllustrationETC.com/FHbuds/TypicalIso.pdf>

JET

[Harron_K....@adobeforums.com]

Very, very cool, James.

[Philip_...@adobeforums.com]

Jet: Why alt click on the star instead of just click? (See, someone does read the 2nd post...)

[James_E....@adobeforums.com]

You're right, Philip. A click is fine. What was in my mind when I typed that was the fact that double-clicking the Star Tool will not open its dialog as doing so on the Line Tool will.

Somewhere between my brain and my fingers, "you can't double-click" got translated into "you gotta AltClick"--which is how you click to set the transformation center and invoke the dialog at the same time for a transformation tool.

JET

[Philip_...@adobeforums.com]

Ahhh, the hands weren't communicating with the brain...

I thought you had some tricky trick, and I'm always up for new tricks.