How to create bulleted text list in Illustrator CS?

[Richard_Bewley@adobeforums.com]

Sounds simple enough, but currently defeating me.
I am in the process of designing a workflow diagram, and need to include a bulleted list. Rather than manually place bullets, I would like to know if there is a better approach to achieve this, which would also enable me to use custom bullets.
Thanks
RB

[James_Talmage@adobeforums.com]

Unfortunately, AI still offers no support for in-line graphics. So the simple (in other illustration programs) matter of using a native graphic as a bullet inside text is not an option.

So, set up a hanging indent Paragraph Style for the bulleted paragraphs and a Character Style for the dingbats:

In Character Map (or AI's Glyphs Palette), peruse a dingbat font for a glyph which you want to use as the bullet. Note what the keyboard character is for that glyph.

Back in AI, in an AreaType object, type:

A tab
The character corresponding to the desired dingbat glyph
A tab
The text of the first bullet paragraph

Open the Tabs window and set tabs for a hanging indent, something like:

Left margin: .5"
First line indent: -.5"
Centered tab at .25"
Left tab at .25"

From the Paragraph Styles flyout menu select New Paragraph Style. Name the new style "DingbatLine". Click DingbatLine in the styles list to apply it to the current paragraph.

Select just the character you typed in place of the desired dingbat. Change its font to the dingbat font. From the Character Syles flyout menu select New Character Style. Name the new style "Dingbat". Click Dingbat in the styles list to apply it to the current character.

Thereafter, while typing the text, key:

Tab
The character corresponding to the dingbat glyph
Tab
The paragraph text

Apply the paragraph style to the paragraph. Then select the dingbat character and click the Dingbat style in the Character Styles Palette.

Beware of a bug in AI relating to text Styles: If you later scale the whole AreaText object, its tab spacings will not scale accordingly. So be sure to create your styles at the actual text object size you desire.

JET

[Richard_Bewley@adobeforums.com]

Hi James
many thanks for the comprehensive and very useful reply.
Adding bulleted lists in AI is a lot more elaborate than I had hoped- a feature request maybe ;o)
Thanks again
RB

[latchet_mcbride@adobeforums.com]

Hi Richard,

If you just want a bulleted list like this:

• Type
• Type
• Type

Just hold ALT, then type 0149 and it will insert a bullet for you. Follows JET's for getting the hanging indent etc.

Hope this helps.

Latchet

[Unregistered]

This is actually much easier than tabbing... you can simply use a space or 2, then create a negative hanging indent that lines up your lettering - after this you just create a positive margin of equal amount to the negative hanging indent.

Blamo, bullets.