Art Files: Illustrator’s Missing ‘Collect for Output’

Feb 11

Illustrator, Product Review

Plenty of designers out there do their design work not in InDesign, but in Illustrator. If you’re among those, you’ve no doubt been confounded by the lack of a “collect for output” feature in Illustrator. Enter Art Files from Code Line Software.

And be sure to read on for a special discount offer on Art Files for our Go Media ‘Zine readers.

Get it together

Art Files is a standalone program for Mac OS X that gives Illustrator users a “collect for output” or “package” feature, just like in InDesign.

Perhaps because Art Files was created for such a specific purpose, it’s dead simple to use and to figure out what it does. If you need software like Art Files, it does exactly what you want it to do.

After launching Art Files, you’ll be presented with a new document window. Here you drag the .ai files you want to process and Art Files goes to work immediately. All linked images and any fonts used in the .ai document are presented in an easy-to-read folder/subfolder structure. Color-coded symbols inform you of any errors.

Art Files will even scan for fonts in the placed EPS documents within your file. How cool is that?

What it does

Art Files is designed so that each document scanned can be saved as an .artfiles document, allowing you to run the scan again in the future without needing to go back an locate the original files. Very handy.

Another great feature is the slide-out Info panel, which gives you a visual preview of the placed files, as well as Finder file paths to the file, and buttons to open the placed file in the Finder or open them directly in Illustrator. Again, very handy.

When it comes to collecting your files, again Art Files is on top of things. You have the option to save the resulting Collection with a Notes file, very similar to InDesign’s “instructions.txt” file. The Notes text file can contain custom notes (and you can set up a default notes section in the preferences as well), contact info and a log of the collection process.

Again, as expected when you click “Collect”, you are prompted to choose a location for the Collection folder. Once Art Files is done collecting you files you have a nicely packaged Collection folder with subfolders containing your linked files and any fonts used in the document.

The right tool for the job

As with the rest of Code Line’s graphics software tools for Mac, Art files fills a niche and does it just as you’d want and expect it to. If you need a “collect for output” or “packaging” feature for your Adobe Illustrator files, look no further.

Code Line Software has generously created a special offer just for the ‘Zine readers — use this link to get Art Files for 10% off the full $49.95 license. Offer is good until the end of February 2010. And this offer is good for any Code Line bundle that contains Art Files, including multi-user licenses.

Code Line also has a video overviewing the features of Art Files:

Go Media is a creative agency based in Cleveland, Ohio. Besides the GoMediaZine, we also work for clients and sell stock artwork and design files on the Arsenal.

Adobe, Adobe Illustrator, file prep, file preparation, Mac, OS X, pre-press, preflight, software, utility

This post was written by:

George Coghill - who has written 64 posts on GoMediaZine.

George Coghill is the editor of Go Media 'Zine and a freelance humorous illustrator/cartoonist specializing in mascot cartoon character design. His cartooning & illustration work can be seen at CoghillCartooning.com and at his cartooning and illustration blog. Be sure to follow me on Twitter here!

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  • Another great feature is the slide-out Info panel, which gives you a visual preview of the placed files, as well as Finder file paths to the file, and buttons to open the placed file in the Finder or open them directly in Illustrator.
  • nice tool. its on my mac but too bad cant put it on my PC. oh well
  • One of the features I really like is the slide-out Info panel, which gives you a visual preview of the placed files, as well as Finder file paths to the file, and buttons to open the placed file in the Finder or open them directly in Illustrator. This is great!
  • Hi it's really looks cool tool. I would love to use it. Thanks for sharing it dude.
    iPad Keyboard
  • Nick Pepperman
    Is it free? I would really like to do this. This looks really awesome!
  • Yes I think it is free, and I agree that this tutorial is really cool because it provides easy illustrations.
  • Very Useful information, this is both good reading for, have quite a few good key points, and I learn some new stuff from it too, thanks for sharing your information.
  • how about windows version.. since this tutorial for mac version. thanks anyway
  • bcarel
    Collect for output is still there, its a script located in one of the layers of folders directory. Search for CollectForOutput and you will find it. I simply saved the script as an application and placed it in my dock. Anytime I need to collect for output I just click it and select the save point...it does the work for me. It doesn't collect fonts, though that should never be a big issue with gathering the correct fonts. I usually save an Outlined File along with the original anyhow.
  • Great tip! Although Art Files will pull the fonts for you, and also will hunt down fonts within placed EPS files.
  • bcarel
    Absolutely cool I won't argue there. CollectForOutput script is free though and comes with everyones copies of Illustrator.
  • I agree, having the free built-in option is good to know, thanks for sharing.
  • MarenKellyDesign
    Forgive me for asking a possibly stupid question, but if you remember to outline all fonts and embed all links, doesn't that render something like this kinda pointless? Don't get me wrong, it's great that it can find everything for me and package, I was just wondering about this today actually, but I never really found outlining and embedding to be a major hassle- other than making the files larger...thoughts?
  • jimavery
    I have used this program since it first came out and it has been a very handy tool to have. I love it and would recommend it.!!!
  • Great to hear!
  • A Name
    CS5 coming out soon. As cool as this is, I'd rather wait and see instead of pay $50 ... oops, I mean $45, forgot that discount!
  • Brian
    You should request this feature with Adobe. Knowing them, they will have a highly buggy and half-a$$ed implementation no later than CS10, then get your hopes up that it will be fixed in CS11 but not come through, then finally get a ridiculously bloated, but somewhat working version by CS12 (you know, just to milk those 2 extra upgrade fees out of you).
  • Jubilee
    Outrageously lame of Adobe not to include "Collect for Output" in Illustrator... this cheap trick/omission is evidently designed to make people buy their bloated InDesign... Macromedia Freehand had the Collect for Output feature many years ago (along with multiple pages and page sizes in one document.) You'd think Adobe would wise up and add "Collect for Output" to AI, especially since they bought FreeHand and are strangling it with no updates. I'm still using FH 10 everywhere I can still get away with it. Saves hours of work each day over AI...
  • I agree with Geoff. I don't consider Illustrator to be a layout/design program, even though some use it that way.

    Art Files adds the functionality some may want/need if they use Illustrator to do layout.
  • Not sure that Adobe's intention was to force people to buy InDesign by omitting this feature. They're two different programs that share a few similar features.
  • I'll take that as a feature request, Simon. Thanks!
  • Well, there are still "a few" of us designers working in a windows environment :-)
  • A nice tool! Too bad it's for mac only.
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