How to speed up quicktime playback

Option click on the fast forward button to speed up the playback rate in quicktime.

Hold down the option button and click on the fast forward icon that looks like two triangles facing the right. Every option click on the fast forward button speeds up the playback by .1x. The fastest rate for audio is 1.9x's and the audio drops out at 2x's the playback rate . It's hard to understand
speech that speed anyway. Option clicking on the rewind button will slow down the playback rate while playing in reverse.

Art Utility

Download from Sellfy

Art Utility is an app that automates tasks in Adobe Illustrator®(not affiliated or approved by Adobe Systems Incorporated).

I made this app five years ago and it still works! Someone recently requested a copy of it and I have decided to offer it as "pay what you want" from Sellfy. I am doing this because I no longer support this app. I still create AppleScripts but I no longer create user interfaces for them.

Free Graph Paper PDFs

Eight versions of graph paper with no sign up required or other strings attached. Each PDF contains 4 pages with different grid sizes as shown below.  The first PDF has uniform line widths and the second PDF has bold lines at every inch. 

Page 1: 3 divisions per inch, .3333" grid
Page 2: 4  divisions per inch, .25" grid
Page 3: 5  divisions per inch, .2" grid
Page 4: 8  divisions per inch, .125" grid

To download click on the link below. You should see a preview and then click on the download button at the top (it looks like an arrow pointing down with a horizontal line beneath it). These pdfs can be edited with Illustrator if necessary. If you want to share this graph paper please share the link to this post.

Download free graph paper PDF
Download free graph paper PDF with bolded divisions 

How to preview fonts in Adobe Illustrator

Use the up or down arrow key to cycle
through the fonts in the character panel.

Highlight the text or select the text frame in the illustrator document. Click once on the font name in the character palette which should highlight the font name in blue. Use the up or down arrow keys to cycle through the fonts. The selected text in the document will change to the new font. Alternatively you can hover the pointer over the name of the font in the character panel, and then scroll up or down. These techniques also work for other values in panels such as the font size or leading.

If you enjoyed this tip you may be interested in my post about illustrator tips and keyboard shortcuts.

Illustrator notes and shortcuts

The following is a working list of notes and keyboard shortcuts for Adobe Illustrator. I've always kept notes on how I've solved problems, and lists of my favorite keyboard shortcuts. Here are some of my Illustrator notes. Please note that this is a working document that will change over time.

How to reduce the size of an Illustrator file

The easiest ways to reduce the file size of Illustrator documents that contain linked graphics is to uncheck the option to "Create PDF compatible file" in the "Save As" dialog box.

Assign A Keyboard Shortcut To An AppleScript

FastScripts, by Red Sweater Software is how I assign keyboard shortcuts to my scripts. It works just like the standard Script Menu, except it has many improvements. Fast scripts will allow you to assign keyboard shortcuts to your scripts and this works amazingly well! I've assigned keyboard shortcuts to some of my Illustrator scripts and it feels as though they are a native part of the program. It's a much more seamless experience than having to navigate the standard Script Menu.

It also provides dialog box messages when your script errors, which is much more useful than the silent treatment that I get from the regular Script menu. It's free to download and it never expires. The only limitation of the free version is that it's limited to 10 keyboard shortcuts, which I feel is generous. The unlimited version is currently $14.95 $9.95 (a $5 reduction since I first wrote this. Updated 10-10-15).