Configuring the Workspace

Choose an Initial Workspace

I start off with Essentials Classic Workspace because it offers all the basic panels and tools. I add panels as needed when I am working. In the upper-right corner of the application, you’ll see the Workspace menu. Choose the workspace that best fits your creative goal, and the panels that Illustrator thinks are the most useful will appear.

One feature I find very annoying is that in some workspaces, the toolbar will become streamlined and many of the tools will not be visible. How frustrating that can be! To make things look “cleaner” the tools are moved to the Edit section at the bottom of the toolbar. Look for the three dots at the bottom of the toolbar; that is where all the other tools are hiding.

When you choose a workspace, all the panels relevant to that workspace will be visble. At the top of the stack of panels is a small button with << in it. When clicked, it expands the panels so you can see their contents. Clicking it again collapses the panels to icons.

You can adjust each panel’s height by grabbing the bar along the bottom edge—watch for the two-headed arrow, then drag the bar to resize the panels.

To unnest panels, click on the panel’s tab and drag the panel to a free space. Nest panels together by clicking on the panel tab and dragging it into another tab. The panel will become transparent and a blue outline will appear when you are in the right nesting zone.

Create a New Workspace

When the panels appear to be just as you’d like them (for now), capture that arrangement by returning to the Workspace menu and choosing New Workspace…. Name it — I’m going with “Real Essentials.” If any of those panels go missing, or if there is a mess of panels in the way, you can choose Reset Real Essentials from that menu to recall your preferred setup.