Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Really Organized
Streamlining File Output with Artboards
Overview:
Create an artboard template that automates the output process; label and
name each artboard; export each artboard as a file for the application coders to use.
Illustrator's multiple artboards and flexible output options made it easy for
Dacosta! of Chocolate Soop
®
to produce all the elements coders need to
create custom, sticker-style wallpapers. Stikalicious™ is a character-based
wallpaper application for the iPad that Dacosta! created to showcase the
work of artists from around the world. The user selects a background and
desired characters, then layers, rotates, and scales them for a unique,
shareable wallpaper. Each character requires four versions—the smallest and
largest version of both the active and placed states.
1 Using a template for artboards.
Dacosta! began by creating artboards at the
size needed for the Collection icons, backgrounds, and the four states for
each character (~100 artboards per file). In order to clearly see the versions
with a white border, Dacosta! changed the artboard color. To do this, click on
the Document Setup button on the Control panel and enable Simulate Col-
ored Paper; then double-click on the top swatch beside the Transparency pre-
view and select a light gray in the color picker. To associate each artboard
with its role in the application, he both named it in the Artboard panel and
labeled each artboard on the canvas. Dacosta! saved the file in .ait (Illustrator
template) format, and when he received artwork, opened the template to
place each state for every character on its correct artboard, creating a com-
plete Stikalicious™ character set. For each artboard in the Artboard panel, he
used a predetermined naming convention, which the coders would use to
identify the role each element played in the application. Dacosta! saved the .ai
file for backup, then exported it to PNG format, enabling Use Art-boards in
the Export dialog. Use Artboards saves each artboard to a separate file with
the artboard name as its filename. Now the coders could finish the work on
the separate elements.
