Using plug-in modules


    Plug-in modules are software programs developed by Adobe Systems, and by other software developers in conjunction with Adobe Systems, to add features to Adobe Illustrator. A number of special effects plug-ins come with your program and are automatically installed in the Plug-ins folder.

    If you change the location of the Plug-ins folder, or if you want to use a different folder as your plug-ins folder, you must use the Plug-ins & Scratch Disks preferences command to tell Illustrator about the new location of the plug-ins.

    You can also use plug-ins from Adobe Photoshop versions 3.0 to 5.5. In addition, you can use any commercial plug-in designed for use with Photoshop or Illustrator.

    Tip iconTo avoid duplicating your plug-ins between the two programs, make a shortcut (Windows) or an alias (Mac OS) to your Photoshop plug-ins in your Illustrator Plug-ins folder. Note that Illustrator CS does not support plug-ins from Photoshop 6.0 and later.

To specify the location of plug-in modules:

  1. Do one of the following:
    • In Windows, choose Edit > Preferences > Plug-ins & Scratch Disks.
    • In Mac OS, choose Illustrator > Preferences > Plug-ins & Scratch Disks.
  2. Click Choose and select the folder containing the plug-in modules.
  3. Do one of the following:
    • In Windows, click OK in the Browse For Folder dialog box.
    • In Mac OS, click Choose in the New Plug-ins Folder dialog box.
  4. Click OK in the Preferences dialog box.
  5. Quit Illustrator, and then restart it for the plug-in modules to take effect.

To install an Adobe Systems plug-in module:

  1. If an installer is provided, use it to install the plug-in module. Otherwise, drag a copy of the module to the Plug-ins folder inside the Adobe Illustrator folder.
  2. Restart Illustrator for the plug-in to take effect.

To install a third-party plug-in module:

    Follow the installation instructions that came with the plug-in module.

    Note: The open architecture of the Adobe Illustrator program allows developers outside of Adobe to create features that are accessible from within Adobe Illustrator. If you are interested in creating plug-in modules compatible with Adobe Illustrator, see the Adobe Systems U.S. Web site at http://www.adobe.com.

To get information about a plug-in:

  1. Do one of the following:
    • In Windows, choose Help > About Plug-ins.
    • In Mac OS, choose Illustrator > About Plug-ins.
  2. Select the plug-in from the list and click About.
  3. Click Ok, and then click Done.