Proof Color List

Overview

This PowerScript creates a list of colors from your document, perfect for quickly listing colors on approval forms or in asset documentation.

  • Create lists from selected shapes or swatches.
  • Only list Spot colors or include process colors as well.
  • Select the layout, including font size, rows and columns.
  • Choose a swatch shape such as circles, rectangles or custom shapes to be the swatch color.
  • NEW Preview the list of colors and edit the descriptions or uncheck them so they don't show
  • NEW Setup a colour library
    • Common colors such as CMYK 0,0,100,0 will be re-labeled as “CMYK Yellow”
    • Select the match type, an exact match, delta or close with a tolerance
  • NEW Set the position, above or below your artboard or at a fixed position on the page

Why is it needed

For approval forms, specifications sheets and the like the designer often needs to create a list of colors used in the artwork , this script simplifies the process. It can also pickup colors that should not be in the artwork, because the will also be listed.

Interface

Options Tab


  • Source Select the source of the colours, Selection is the current selection in Illustrator, All Swatches or just selected Swatches
  • Include process colors: If ticked then all colours will be listed, if un-ticked then just Spot colors will be listed
  • Include full color breakdown: By default the name of the color is used, ticking this option will show the actual color formula in RGB, CMYK or Lab
  • Position: Set where the color list will appear
  • [Get Colors] This will get the colours from the source and display them in the list below
  • [Select All] This will check all the colours in the list, if a color has not check mark it will now appear in the generated list on the page
  • [Select None]
  • Colour List You can use this list
    • Uncheck colors so they won't appear on the generated list
    • Change colour names
    • Delete colours (pressing the X)_

Pressing [Create List] will generate the colour list in your document

Color Name Library Tab

Use this library to replace color formulas with named colors.

  • Matching Colour: Edit the colour to match to
  • Display name: The name the color formula will be changed to
  • Match type:
    • Exact: The color formula must be an exact match for example, CMYK:0,0,100,0 will match to “Yellow”, but CMYK:0,0,99.7,0 will not
    • Close: Uses the tolerance value to match the color, for example, with a tolerance of 2, CMYK:50,90,0,0 will match any color from CMYK:48,88,0,0 to CMYK:52,92,0,0
    • Lab ΔE: calculates the Delta-E difference between two colours and matches if below the tolerance value.
    • None: Will not match
  • Lab ΔE Method: Set the Delta E formula to use

Layout Tab

  • Font: The font used
  • Font Size: the font size used
  • Text left padding: This is the space between the color swatch shape the color name
  • Vertical spacing: The vertical space between color samples
  • Shape Width: The width of the color swatch shape
  • Shape Height: The height of the color swatch shape
  • Color Shape:
    • Custom Will use the custom shape from one you have previously saved
    • Circle Will generate a circle the size of the shape width and height
    • Rectange Will generate a rectangle the size of the shape width and height
    • None No color swatch
  • Shape: This is code used to generate the shape for the swatch shape. To create your own custom swatch shape, select a shape in Illustrator and press the Use Selected Shape as Preview button
  • Fit Custom shape to size: When not checked, the custom shape will be used at its original size; checking this will FIT the shape inside the shape width and height sizes.
  • Rows: The maximum number of vertical rows
  • Column Spacing: The distance between columns