This idea is inspired in mograph features of Cinema4D.
It would be great to have an instance (or clone) of an object so that when you alter the shape of the source object, the clone alters automatically.

This would also be a powerful simmetry tool as well but much more flexible since you can position the clone wherever you want.
You would be able to clone it several times in a grid and alter all clones by fixing one single object (similar to what can today be achieved with Transform menu, but with much much more flexibility and control).

It would be nice to be able to randomize clones position in a grid array, and so forth.

We have SEVERAL excellent tools in 3D software which could IMMENSELY improve vector software usage as well.

Gears. Crenelations on castles. Zippers. These are a few things whose border can be described by a square wave. Or by a rectangular wave.

But you can't do this easily in Illustrator. Oh, you can add a dotted line to a shape - but that's an awkward workaround. How about a new live effect?

effect->distort & transform->crenelation would bring up a new live effect where you can apply square waves to whatever object you're affecting.

Suggested parameters:

• size - similar to the size parameter in roughen/zigzag, this would control how far the generated path deviates from the original path
• pulse width - a slider to control the relative lengths of deviations to one side versus the other
• possibly something to induce a slow change in the pulse width as we progress along the path
• possibly an option to randomize the pulse width
• the usual smooth/curve point options that roughen and zig-zag have

I think I'm getting at a broader idea that includes some requests already posted - Advanced user defined variables to duplicate or step and repeat objects any number of times. This would allow users to either or conform or randomize copies of a Transform for advanced effects. I saw this idea some years ago by a Russian guilloche pattern product called Excentro ( http://www.excourse.com/excentro/index.html ) screenshot attached, that does just that.

Perhaps this is a third party plugin, or a separate Adobe product, but I think it would be great to take this on as an Illustrator feature. You can imagine the variety of step and repeat live effects that users could create, not just for guilloche patterns, but for many other art and design purposes, and it would be great to import this into After Effects!!

duplicate its graphic objects any number of times with the individual attributes of the objects modified by user defined values

I never really understood why effects are loaded in the background in outline mode. Why is it necessary to load an effect when you don't even see it? I thought the purpose of outline mode was for when the artwork have become heavy and takes longer time to load. The usual reason why my artwork becomes so heavy is because of all the effects I use. I wish I could switch to outline mode for quick edits instead of having to wait for the effect to load every time I do a tiny adjustment. Effects should be turned off in outline mode and turned back on when you return to preview mode.

I've been experimenting with ways to create soft edges and stylized natural textures in my work. I find myself wishing for this to be able to quickly and easily create, say, an erratically faded and mottled edge to a filled path by giving it an opacity mask made up of a jagged white-to-black fade pattern brush, plus some black spots from a scatter brush.

I would like to be able to add strokes and/or fills to a path via the Appearance palette, and have these paths show up in an auto-generated opacity mask for the path instead.

Possibly this might be done by having a 'create opacity mask' live effect, with the 'clip' and 'invert mask' options available, that I could then place additional strokes and fills within.

Alternatively there might be a way to say 'this fill/stroke goes in the opacity mask' - probably also a live effect.

Multiple strokes/fills set to go into the opacity mask should all end up in the same mask.

As a function of the transform tool, or perhaps a tool in it's own right, a feature to numerate copies in sequence and/or apply fully scanning bar or QR codes. E.g. raffle tickets, concert tickets, coupons, vouchers, etc.

This would be invaluable as a time-saving measure, and allow an artist/designer to keep something like tickets completely in-house. I've been working with Illustrator for 15 years, and to my knowledge there's no feature that does anything like this. When I design concert or raffle tickets I have to use a 3rd party vendor, pretty much just for the bar code and sequencing. The ability to number things seems like a natural extension of the Transform tool.

MAKE IT SO!
Spok, out.