How to view my .ai vector files without opening my illustrator?

Question

I have hundreds of them and its hard to open each one

is there a program that helps?

Answer 1

You can make a database of them using various photo-library softwares, like iPhoto or Preview on the Macintosh, some of the software that comes with digital cameras. I use Extensis Portfolio at work to keep track of images, including vector images.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Extensis-Corp-Po...

Answer 2

This is going to sound really weird, but if you have no way of previewing the files through your operating system, I would do a contact sheet in Photoshop. It's under File->Automate->Contact Sheet II. You can either group the files in a single folder or just do them in groups in separate folders. Just choose the folder you want to use, set how many you want per row and how many rows per page, and make sure you have checked the box that puts the name of the file below each image. Once you run it, you will have thumbnails of all your files along with the file names right below them.