Illustrator Tip: assign your own keyboard shortcuts

One feature Adobe added to Illustrator in version nine is the ability to create your own keyboard shortcuts. This can speed up the design process by allowing the user to create custom "quick key" combinations that make sense for their individual design sense. 

This feature can be found under the Edit menu (usually the last item in this menu). The user can apply custom shortcuts to either the Tools themselves or to the Menu Commands. Also, Adobe made this feature 'smart' in that it will alert the designer if a selected key command is already in use by Illustrator to perform another operation. 

Using shortcuts, either the default set or custom ones you create, will help reduce the overall time it takes to produce a design. Using this tip to save a few minutes here and there on every project will make you a faster and more profitable designer.