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Setting modal controls and excluding commands


    After recording an action, you can insert a modal control. This lets you pause a command to display its dialog box and specify different values, and to manipulate a modal tool to apply new settings. (A modal tool requires pressing Enter or Return to apply its effect.)

    If you do not use a modal control, Illustrator runs the command using the values specified when you first recorded the action (and the dialog box does not appear).

    You can also exclude commands that you don't want to include as part of a recorded action or that you don't want to play when running the action.

To set a modal control:

  1. Make sure that the Actions palette is in list view. (If necessary, deselect Button Mode in the Actions palette menu.)
  2. Do one of the following:
    • Click the column to the left of the command name to display the dialog box icon. Click again to remove the modal control.
    • To turn on or disable modal controls for all commands in an action or set, click the column to the left of the action or set name.

To exclude or include a command:

    Do one of the following:

    • Click to clear the check mark to the left of the command name. Click again to include the command.
    • To exclude or include all commands in an action or set, click the check box to the left of the action or set name.
    • To exclude or include all commands except the selected command, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the command.