Oh, one of my pet peeves (at least indirectly) at work. Pretty much what Rob said, but I feel the need to rant a bit.

First, this is a result of previews in EPS files and PDF data in .ai files. The file size added to an EPS depends on the dimensions of the artwork. The size added by PDF data I think depends on the amount of artwork (I never looked at this one, since I don't use that option, see below). And here is where my peeve comes in.

EPS should not be used as a working file format, just for an end product if you want to send it to a printer or place it in another program like InDesign or Quark. Even then, PDF is better these days. And for that reason of a printable end product, you want your layers on so they print. So, save as Illustrator file during production, and save an EPS copy for printing/placing in other programs, file-size-be-damned.

Then there's the .ai Illustrator file. As of Ill 9, Adobe switched to a PDF-based format, and conveniently provided a PDF compatibilty save option - you could now view the Illustrator file directly with Acrobat/Adobe Reader. Again, it's a bit of an end-product peeve - save as PDF only at the end, and retain the Illustrator file for later editing. But there is more here. Saving with the PDF option can cause problems with lots of and/or complex artwork - you may get a memory error at the end, tho the Illustrator part is saved. And, the PDF compatibility option doesn't give you as much control over PDF options as Save As PDF or ripping it with Distiller, and you want that control for better printing quality, especially when dealing with complex Illustrator effects and filters.

If you just want a quick-n-dirty PDF for screen viewing or home printing of small Illustrator files, the PDF compatibility option should work fine. But if you turn off layers to make a smaller file, you won't see anything in Adobe Reader, so what's the point of using the PDF option?

Wouldn't it be easier to just upgrade that old 200MB hard drive? I mean, I realize that saving 50% of the file size sounds impressive, but when you're talking about professional level tools and eliminating a few hundred kilobytes by doing something guaranteed to annoy anyone else who has to work with the file (not to mention puzzling yourself years from now when you open that old forgotten file to do an update for a client) it just seems a little pointless.

It's a neat piece of trivia, though -- previews can add up.

The option in the Illustrator CS and CS2 "save" dialog box to "Make PDF Compatible File" can make your .ai file *enormous*... I have had fairly complex maps that have been 80-90MB with it on and have reduced to 2-3MB with it off! My advice is to leave it off and make EPS files to distill if you want a PDF... distilled files always produce "cleaner" PDFs, anyway.

This can be because a PDF includes all linked files and depending on the users choice also the fonts in the originating document. So naturally the PDF's get bigger than the originating AI files, if those use linked files.

Yes, but "Create PDF Compatible File" is Illustrator's default save mode. This means that by default Illustrator creates enormous, bloated files with images and fonts embedded instead of a smaller, more practical file with linked images. Seems like strange behaviour to me...

Illustrator files (.ai) can get bloated as you work with them.

It's possible that in this case, the act of simply saving the file under a new filename, strips the bloat, leaving only the actual file's data and a smaller file size.

This also works for bloated word documents.

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wOOge
http://mac.axonz.com

[robg adds: I don't have Illustrator to test this with, so I asked a friend about it. He confirmed that it works, but that you also then lose the previews normally associated with these files. Without previews, placement in another application (such as InDesign) is quite difficult, as you can't see what you're placing. Apparently, you'll see a warning to this effect if you save with everything hidden.]

Yes - this is true - if you typically only look at the thumbnails of a file and don't pay any attention to file names_ Thumbnails/ Previews of any file [graphics or otherwise] can change or revert to generic icons depending on various factors like system or software crashes and power failures_ If you delete out the DS Store files in a Folder or Directory_ Repairing Permissions or resetting the PR-RAM on reboot or booting to a repair disk [the system disc or Norton for example] and running repairs - any of these can change or modify a particular preference setting that kills the link to the hidden icon file or deletes it out altogether_

As a designer - I love Icon View and tools such as Adobe's Bridge - I tend to also pay attention to File names and typically save out revision numbers for various versions of a project - so I pay attention to these as well_ Another thing that helps is project organization itself_

Aside from the above - if you turn on the Preview Function [can't remember the exact name - not at my computer] - but the option is in the View settings in the Finder <Apple-J> or like I mentioned Adobe Bridge above_ By default it will actually generate a thumbnail view that is scalable to a certain extent when you navigate to any given Folder_ And if files have been added or moved or modified since you last navigated to that Folder - they will regenerate the next time you navigate into that Folder_

The other thing - is that in the long run a few kilobytes here and there are really not gonna matter much when you are talking about 250Gbs of storage and your Illustrator Files are hitting 50Mbs and you are building layered PSD Files [photoshop] that hit 50-200Mbs_ Unless you are trying to eMail a client an AI file [beyond my reasoning why - but] in order to shrink the size down under the alotted 2Mb mile marker for sending attachment through a web-based eMail service - just use a little more compression on the JPG or the PDF or the EPS file_ It not very difficult to learn how to tweak the output settings for file size efficiency_

But again - a couple of Kb here and ther on your AI files or having missing icons is probably one of the least of my concerns when I'm working with graphics files_ Unless someone is stuck on and old Bondi iMac w/ a 4Gb HD and maxed out at 256Mb RAM w/ no firewire support and stuck on a 10T Ethernet connection - then I'd say don;t worry about it_

Or you can just set Preview Format to None when you Save As. Then you don't have to hide anything, or be bother to anyone else trying to use your files.

I made a 135MB Illustrator PDF into a 777KB PDF but just running a quartz filter used to reduce PDF filesize. Worked great for me. I made an Automator application to make it quick to shrink them for email to clients.

Hi



Please follow this video tutorial and you will see a small thing can reduce the file size easily. It was really helpfull for me.





How to Reduce AI Vector file size: An Adobe illustrator Tutorial

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5m3TKrXE3g



My AI file size was not going under 1 MB even by deleting extras so what I did is I opened a raster small image of 100 kb with Adobe Illustrator. then deleted the image and saved the file as AI. Then I Copied the whole vector content of original AI file that was bigger then 1 MB with ctrl+c command and pasted it in the new file created with raster image. and saved it. Wow the new file size is only 137 kb now.





Thanks