Would like to see functionality as in iPad Illustrator where objects show alignment to top/middle/bottom/left/right/center of other objects. - Mark

So, I have noticed that unchecking Smart guides and rechecking smart guides seems to do the trick. It is a recurring problem so I have to do it every week or two.

My smart guides are not working properly, therefore screwing up the way some of the tools work, unless the smart guides are disabled.

Per request, I'm attaching a video (and tried to upload the AI file, but "Invalid file type: .ai files not allowed"? Got any other way for me to send you the AI file?) of this phenomenon. Running 23.0.3 on Win10.

0:00-0:22 -- I've got smart guides turned on, and I'm hovering the mouse around the document. The logo in the top-left is outlined text, and the cursor wants to snap to all the control points in the paths. There's also a horizontal line (doubled via a transform effect), a single block of text, and an image + clipping mask group.

0:22-0:32 - I grab the left edge of the clipping rectangle in the image group and try to align it with the left edge of my text block. Smart Guides desperately want to align the center of the rectangle with control points in the outlined logo, even though the logo is on an entirely different layer, which is also locked, and the text block is the object directly below the clip/image group.

0:33-0:41 -- While still dragging the frame around, I hold CTRL. Now it wants to align the left edge of the frame with all the wrong things, which is *closer* to what I want, but still quite wrong.

0:42-1:20 -- I select the text block in question, so the edges are visible and start dragging the left edge of the clip/image group again. It pointedly refuses to snap to the left edge of the text block. The only way I get it to snap to where I want is drag the cursor directly over the top-left or bottom-left corner of the text block, and then release the mouse and do a second (contrained) move to slide the frame to where I want it vertically.

It's a painful process.

Not the original poster, but here's a thing.

I routinely work with Area Text rectangles and rectangular images (with or without a rectangular clipping mask) and other shapes, for basic flyer and newsletter design.

When I have an Area Text object (filled with text), the bounds of the text object are about the *last* thing the Smart Guides ever want to snap to, even if I'm drawing a rectangle (for use as an image clipping mask) right on top of the Area Text object; same Layer, directly above the Text object in the object stack.

Instead, the Smart Guides are all too happy to align to control points in the logo on the masthead, objects on other artboards, and god only knows what else. I usually have to just give up and set the left or right position of image frame numerically using the Transform panel, which defeats the whole point of the smart guides.

I think the Smart Guide snapping should be weighted more heavily towards objects that are A) in the same layer, and B) closer in the object stack to the object being manipulated. (e.g. the first thing the manipulated object should snap to are objects directly above and below it in the stack).

Or perhaps if Smart Guides were turned back to "Not So Smart, But More *Predictable* Guides". Like, have checkboxes for how 'far' afield it should look for something to snap to: only on the same Artboard, only on the same Layer, only within the same Group, etc.

Or something. They're kinda useless right now.