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Saving artwork in Illustrator format


    When you save artwork in Illustrator format, you can choose which version of Illustrator you want the file to be compatible with. You can also set a variety of options that control how data is saved in the file.

To save artwork in Illustrator format:

  1. Save the artwork as described in About saving and exporting artwork. Choose Illustrator (AI) as the file format.
  2. In the Illustrator Native Format Options dialog box, select the Adobe Illustrator version with which you want your file to be compatible. Keep in mind that certain features, such as gradients, layers, and transparency, may not be supported by earlier versions of the Illustrator file format.
  3. Set additional options, and click OK:
  4. Create PDF Compatible File

    Saves a PDF representation of the document in the Illustrator file. Select this option if you want the Illustrator file to be compatible with other Adobe applications. (This option is available only for Illustrator 10 format.)

    Use Compression

    Compresses PDF data in the Illustrator file. Using compression increases the time required to save the document, so deselect this option if you're experiencing very slow (8 to 15 minute) save times. (This option is available only for Illustrator 10 format when the Create PDF Compatible File option is selected.)

    Embed All Fonts

    Embeds all fonts that are used in the artwork. This ensures that the original font is used for display and printing on computers that do not have the font installed. (Selecting the Embed Fonts option increases the size of the saved file.)

    Subset Fonts

    Specifies when to embed fonts based on how many of the font's characters are used in the document. For instance, if a font contains a thousand characters but the document only uses 10 of those characters, you may decide that embedding the font is not worth the extra file size.

    Embed ICC Profile

    Creates a color-managed document. (See Embedding profiles in saved documents.)

    Include Linked Files

    Embeds files that are linked to the artwork.

    Use Japanese File Format

    Saves the artwork as a Japanese language file that is compatible with Illustrator versions 3, 4, or 5. (This option is not available for later Illustrator versions.)

    Transparency

    Determines what happens to transparent objects when you choose a version of Illustrator format earlier than 9.0. Select Preserve Paths to discard transparency effects and reset transparent artwork to 100 percent opacity. Select Preserve Appearance option to maintain the appearance of transparency by flattening transparent areas of the artwork. If your artwork contains complex, overlapping areas and you require high-resolution output, click Cancel and specify rasterization settings before continuing. (See Printing and saving transparent artwork.)