Secrets Revealed: InDesign Efficiency
As I mentioned the last time I stopped by, I’ve been reviewing David and Anne-Marie’s collection of InDesign Secrets videos at lynda.com lately, in an attempt to both re-acclimate myself to ID after a long hiatus and get ready for hanging with the InDesignerati at PePcon in Austin. Because there are over 80 episodes (and counting), I’be been trying to group them into useful themes.
So maybe I should call this series of posts “Secrets Gathered Up, Sorted Out, and Revealed Thematically.” Too cumbersome? Too inefficient? Well, my Secret-loving friends, that is exactly my point:
Today’s Theme: Efficiency (Stay With Me Here)
The collection I’m sharing today is all about working efficiently, or better yet, working gracefully. Although the words “efficiency,” “workflow,” or even worse, “housekeeping,” can evoke an overwhelming desire to nap, the fact is, learning to move gracefully through an application means that you can make the boring stuff happen without having to think about it. Thus, you leave the bulk of your brain cells and patience dedicated to the creative side of your design endeavor.
All of these videos can be found in the table of contents for the course at lynda.com, and any link you see in blue means the video is unlocked for everyone regardless of membership. (And if you don’t have a lynda.com account with which to watch the exclusive ones, you can get a free week’s trial subscription at https://lynda.com/trial/indesignsecrets.)
Here’s an annotated list of efficiency-centered episodes:
005 Customizing the Links Panel
Lest you ever think Anne-Marie is an undiscerning InDesign Fan Girl (ha, as if!), she explicitly states that there is a part of the revamped (CS5) Links panel that she doesn’t care for. However, twirling closed that Link Info section of the panel doesn’t mean you have to give up easy access to the information that’s most useful to you. In this episode, AM shows you how to customize the columns of the top (read: good) section of the panel.
019 Preview and Presentation Modes
In this movie, David explores the usefulness and customization options of two of InDesign’s optional display modes. In Preview Mode, your guides, frames, and other distractions go away and allow you to focus on the design. In Presentation mode, all of InDesign goes away, allowing you to help someone else focus on the design.
020 Using Multiple Windows for Comparisons
You’ve probably had multiple InDesign windows open before, but opening multiple windows on the same document allows you to work on detail while keeping the big picture in mind. Consider a close up of one section while looking at the entire layout, see your document in both Normal and Preview modes at the same time, or (brilliantly) see the effects of your formatting changes free from the distraction of the selection highlight.
027 Managing Your InDesign Panels
It’s a lithe new world, and having a gazillion panels open (even if it’s on a second monitor) is clunky and inefficient. In this episode, David reviews workspace customization and panel management. Don’t snore. If you had one command that could clean up your real-world desktop to its perfect organization, you’d use it, wouldn’t you. (Let’s assume that you’re not one of those annoying folk who know where everything is in the chaos.) Give InDesign’s instant “clean up my desk” commands a try.
066 Customizing the Story Editor Preferences
Speaking of distraction and chaos, sometimes it’s very difficult to review or refine your text when its scattered across your layout and interrupted by frame breaks and pretty pictures. In this episode, Anne-Marie introduces the Story Editor to those who have yet to try out its distraction-free environment. And she gives some great advice on how to make that environment even more tranquil and useful.
Although it can seem dull to concentrate too much on efficiency, when you get control of your InDesign environment, your fingers will start to do the mundane stuff for you. Thus you and your brain can focus more clearly on brining your creative ideas to life. Check out these and all the InDesign Secrets movies here, and remember, the blue links are unlocked for all.
Not to sound like a faultfinder, but could you edit “All though” in the third paragraph to “Although”? Thanks. And thanks for the useful efficiency tips.
@Ed: Done! thank you for pointing that out.