Create option to change order & position in which layers are duplicated or copy/pasted in the layers panel
Layer organization is extremely important to my work. I'm constantly duplicating layers using the select + alt feature, and constantly having to re-order layers because they automatically get placed above the layer I'm working on. I would like the option to make my duplicated layers go immediately below the layer I'm working on.
I would also like the option for copy/pasted layers to go immediately above/below the original layer, or all the way at the bottom.
I spoke to an Adobe rep on chat and they said this isn't currently possible.
Neal V.
shared this idea
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Lisa Machado
commented
OK, I work in Illustrator daily as a designer since over 10 years and somehow can't imagine that it's always behaved this way... It's always been THE work-around for copy paste to ensure that stuff stays where it is when duplicated.
I don't know what photoshop does but its primary function isn't building complex graphics so I'm more eager to address this for Illustrator. I can hardly imagine this being the optimal way for Alt+Drag to work - then you might as well just use the copy/paste functionalities? Thanks for forwarding the thread!
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'Other CC programs' — not completely correct also... Photoshop does exactly the same thing Ai does (including ripping from groups).
InDesign — indeed puts each copy on top of each original. -
It’s hardly 'suddenly'.
This behavior is native for Illustrator, and was like this for decades.
Take a look at these three tests, recorded in Ai 10, Ai CS6, and the latest Ai Beta 28.5.0.66.As you can see, Illustrator puts duplicated objects above the topmost originally selected one.
It becomes even funnier when we some of the selected objects are inside of groups — they get ripped out the groups (not shown in the GIFs though).This is not a bug, it’s just how it always was...
But you are totally correct. Same is true for the most of Paste commands — none of them honors the original structure, and all the copies go either at the very top of the layer, or above/below the topmost/bottommost one for In Front / Back commands...I am converting it to a feature request instead and adding my vote.
Thanks for raising this up here (I bet it was before... will merge together if I find more). -
Lisa Machado
commented
Alt+Drag suddenly rearranges layer positions to the front
Latest update suddenly puts all duplicated items via Alt+Drag together in the layer order - instead of their original positions (!). So it changes the layer position they had (in front / behind other things).
As in other CC programs - when you Alt+Drag several objects, they should always duplicate in the same positions of the layer as they were before - not put themselves in front of everything. So whatever is behind or in front of another object, should duplicate identically. This is the only work-around to a copy + paste that throws in everything on top. But this suddenly stopped working and I have to re-send everything I used to have in the back, to the back. Just did the same thing in InDesign and it behaves fine over there - only Illustrator has this bug. Alt-Drag should never change the order/position the objects have within a layer, please fix this.
Running Windows 11 Enterprise 22H2 and latest update of Ai CC.
