yes you can do that - but you need to create a pattern brush from two pattern tiles
the method I gave you before was a 'quick fix' - now here's how you do it 'properly'
type your dashes with question mark as before - expand - but then go to edit menu and click define pattern, give it a name, and click ok
then type a question mark only - expand - go again to edit menu, define pattern, name, ok
check the swatches palette to make sure your two new pattern tiles appear there
then, with nothing selected, click the new brush button, select pattern brush, and click ok to open the options palette - you should see something like the attached, where 'line' and 'question mark' represent the two pattern tiles you have just made
click on side tile and then on the name of the pattern tile that is the dashes + question mark
next click on either start or end tile as appropriate, and then on the name of the pattern tile that is the question mark
then click ok
and hopefully if I have made sense you have your brush
This worked also. Thanks some more. I don't think I would have been able to figure it out from the documentation alone.
More questions:
I saved the patterns to a user defined library and a did like wise for the brushes I made (which were different combinations of dashes and shapes).
I notice though there seems is no way to edit libraries (files) directly to remove from or add to them. They appear blank when I opened them but store the info in them somehow. The only way I could add or remove from either library was to select specific patterns or brushes from their respective swatches and then save over their existing libraries. No way to at least append a new pattern to a library?
Comment: there are so many swatches/panels and specialized tools to keep track of, very hard to get a handle on it all.
Bookmarks