What I find is easiest now is to select the top row of circles, then Shift-Alt-drag them down to the bottom line of the box and create a copy. Ctrl-D to duplicate that move several times until the circles line the vertical side of the box.
Shift-alt-drag that new circle down so you have two circles along the vertical side. Now, Alt-drag one of the circles to the side of the box to start the vertical line of circles. The circle will duplicate itself again, at the exact same distance as your original move! Keep hitting Ctrl-D until you have enough circles to fit the top of the rectangle. Now, don’t do anything else, but immediately hit Ctrl-D (Command-D). Move it over as far as you think it will look good when cut out of the rectangle. Use the black arrow tool to select the circle, then Shift-Alt-drag (Shift-Option-drag) the circle to the right to duplicate it (and constrain the movement to a straight line). (I’m not too concerned with exact dimensions here, so I’ll resize the rectangle “to fit” the circles eventually.)
Start with a rectangle and a little circle on the edge of the rectangle. In this example, I’ll make a postage stamp shape, using Ctrl-D to duplicate the circles that I’ll eventually cut out of the sides. It takes about 15 minutes to set up the base and stepping action, but once made. Years ago I developed a set of actions that set up a base template using what ever bearers and marks you create, then the actually step and repeat, that will step and repeat, repeatedly, perfectly. The command can be found under Object > Transform > Transform Again. With actions, Illustrator is a great vehicle to step and repeat. One of my favorite tricks to use in Illustrator which I forgot to mention in my “favorite Illustrator tips” blog is Ctrl-D (Command-D), which allows you to duplicate your last transformation and is especially useful when you’re copying objects and want them to be spaced an exact distance apart.
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