Isolation mode requires more than 2 clicks
I have to double click several times to enter isolation mode when an asset is in multiple nested groups.
It was not apparent I needed to double click multiple times to drill down into subgroups until writing this feedback and observing the program much more closely.
I was trying to enter isolation mode by rapidly clicking on the element I wanted to isolate, but Illustrator does not drill down into a deeper group unless there is a pause in clicks. It is therefore possible to click on an element 10-20 times in quick succession which is interpreted as only a single double click.
I would like to see clicking several times in quick succession drilling deeper through groups to a single element instead of only drilling one layer deep no matter how many clicks (above 2).
D. Bosveld
shared this idea
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Alas, I doubt Illustrator can do anything with the behavior of the double-click, specifically with the pauses between. It’s something OS handles, and hijacking it, if even possible, going to be pretty unstable and glitchy... :(
As for the bounding box you don’t get while using the Direct Selection tool — well, I never suspected you want to resize using it. I suggested the method to quickly isolate an object you want, to the very bottom of the structure... so it’s hit 'A', click and object, hit the assigned hotkey — there you go, you have it isolated. Then you can pick any other tool and do whatever you want with the object — like resize.
And the VFA plugin I mentioned earlier was specifically built for dealing with imported PDFS, it does not make a difference.
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D. Bosveld
commented
Thanks for the suggestion to map that command, it doesn't seem to work how I would prefer. I can't seem to isolate an object without using the single select tool, but then it only appears to have the handles to move the box instead of changing its size. In regular select mode, it often selects the wrong item and isolates a clipping group which is not particularly helpful.
I would like to remove the amount of nested groups, but in this case I'm trying to edit a pdf as I don't currently have the original file used to create the pdf.
I would like to see 4 clicks in quick succession being parsed as two double clicks instead of one double click. I feel like this makes the navigation much more intuitive with heavily nested groups. This would make it so I could click in quick succession without pausing to drill all the way down to isolate a single object.
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This is an expected behavior. One double click equals going down one layer deep.
However, there is a method to dive as deep as possible in a single operation — select the shape you want to isolate with the Direct Selection or the Group selection tool and press a custom assigned hotkey for Isolate Selected Object. You can assign one in Keyboard Shortcuts, Menu Commands > Other Object section (or use a search there to locate the command quickly). It’s empty by default. I prefer it to double-clicking for the same reason you do.Another way is too just compress and remove unnecessary nested groups. Ai does not have a built-in functionality for this, but there is a commercial plugin, VectorFirstAid, and it does it perfectly, among other things.
