CompExporter VD

For use with Adobe® Illustrator®.

What does CompExporter VD do?

CompExporter VD

CompExporter VD batch-exports artwork variants from Adobe® Illustrator®. Put simple category:value tags in your top-level layer names, and the script exports every combination of those variations. Use it for logo packages, greeting cards, packaging variants and other artwork with several layouts, colors or themes.

It comes with two scripts: CompExporter.jsx generates the exports, while LayerTagger.jsx helps you create, rename, reorder and validate the layer tags.

Watch the CompExporter demo video on YouTube.

An example

Suppose your Adobe® Illustrator® document has these top-level layers:

Information,visible:false
Donut Day,event:donut day,size:large
Birthday Cake,event:birthday,size:large
Donut Day,event:donut day,size:small
Birthday Cake,event:birthday,size:small
Background,color:blue
Background,color:green

The categories color, event and size are independent export axes. With two values for each category, CompExporter produces eight combinations:

  • blue_birthday_large
  • blue_birthday_small
  • blue_donut day_large
  • blue_donut day_small
  • green_birthday_large
  • green_birthday_small
  • green_donut day_large
  • green_donut day_small

A layer without a comma is unmanaged: if visible, it appears in every export; if hidden, it appears in none. The reserved visible:false tag keeps the Information layer out of the exports without adding anything to the filenames.

Requirements

Installing CompExporter VD

  1. Download, install and start PluginInstaller.
  2. Click this link to fetch Scripts Panel OT: Scripts Panel OT for use with Adobe® Illustrator®. Then click the Install… button, or click the … button to see all install options.
  3. Click this link to fetch CompExporter VD: CompExporter VD. Then click the Install… button, or click the … button to see all install options.
  4. Open Scripts Panel OT in Adobe® Illustrator®. If Adobe® Illustrator® was already running during installation, restart it.

Alternatively, you can install this software directly from PluginInstaller. Select Available Software, then scroll through the list and/or use the Search box to locate CompExporter VD.

CompExporter is free to use. No registered account or license activation is required.

Start with the sample file

Run Copy Sample File to Desktop.jsx from Scripts Panel OT. It copies the bundled HappyCards.ai sample to your Desktop and opens it in Adobe® Illustrator®, or opens the existing copy if one is already there. The sample uses the EmojiOne font to simulate some graphic elements.

We recommend starting with this sample to see how the layer tags work. Keep an unchanged copy for reference, customize a separate copy, then run CompExporter.jsx to export the variants.

Preparing layers with LayerTagger

Use layer visibility to choose which top-level layers LayerTagger edits. Its actions let you:

  • Set or clear a category’s values across visible layers.
  • Rename a category while preserving its values.
  • Reorder tags to match the export filename order.
  • Strip category data to return layers to unmanaged status.
  • Validate the tags and generate a pre-flight report.

The validation report lists managed layers, parse errors and the number of export combinations. It is written beside the saved Adobe® Illustrator® document. Validate before exporting, especially when working with several categories.

Tagging rules and export limits

  • A managed layer name has the form layer name,[category:]value,[category:]value....
  • You choose category names to suit the artwork, such as color, layout, month or sku.
  • A layer can match more than one value in the same category.
  • visible:yes and visible:no are control tags, not filename parts.
  • Tags are read from top-level layers. Sub-layer artwork is included through its parent layer.
  • Choose PDF, PNG, SVG or EPS at the start of a run. All exports in that run use the same format.
  • The script exports the active artboard. For multiple artboards, select and export each one in turn.
  • The number of exports grows with every combination: four categories with five values each produce 625 files. Check the pre-flight count before exporting.

CompExporter restores managed layers to their original visibility after the run, including if a run fails or is interrupted. Save a copy of important artwork before preparing tags or exporting.