2. 2
Adobe InDesign CS6is apage-layoutsoftware that takesprint publishingandpagedesignbeyond
current boundaries. InDesign is adesktop publishingprogram that incorporates illustration
capabilities into its interface. It alsoallows for cross platform interaction with Illustrator, Photoshop,
andAcrobat.
NOTE: This tutorial is fairly comprehensivein that it discussesthe most common aspectsof
InDesign and has been developedto take beginnersthrough the software from start to finish.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.Getting Started Page3
2.Setting upthe Document Page3
3.Toolbox Page4
4.Organizing the Document Page8
• Column Specifications Page9
• Rulers Page9
• Guides Page10
7.Inserting/FormattingText Page11
8.Type Menu Page11
9.Using Colors Page12
10.Working With Objects (Images,Graphics,and Elements) Page13
• Links Page13
• Placing Images Page14
• EnablingTextWraps Page15
• Grouping Page15
• Locking Page16
16. Saving Page16
17.ExportingTo PDF Page17
18.New Features in CS6 Page18
3. 1. GETTING STARTED
Beginby openingAdobe InDesign CS6.
On aPC,click Start > Programs> Adobe > InDesign CS6,or click on the InDesign short cut
on the desktop.
On aMac,click Macintosh HD > Applications > Adobe InDesign CS6,or click the InDesign
icon in the Dock. (Figure 1)
Figure1. Navigation to InDesign CS6 on a Mac.
2. SETTING UP THE DOCUMENT
Setting up your document correctly from the start will makeyour job mucheasier asyou work through
your project.This will require some advanced planning.
1. Tocreate anewdocument, click File> New > Document.This will open the Document
Setupdialogbox. Here you will beableto set up the correct pagesize, margins,and
page columnsfor your document. (Figure2)
Figure 2. Opening a new document in InDesign.
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4. 4
Options include, but are not limited to:
Number of Pages
Type a value for the total number of pages for this document.
Facing Pages
Select this option to make left andright pages faceeach other in a double-page spread.
Deselect this option to let eachpagestandalone, suchaswhen you planto print on both sidesof a
sheetof paperor want objects to bleedin the binding.
Master TextFrame
Select this option to create atext frame the sizeof the areawithin the marginguides,
matchingthe column settings you specified.The master text frame is added to the master.
Page Size
Choose apagesizefrom the menu,or type valuesfor Width andHeight. Pagesize
represents the final sizeyou want after bleedsor trimming other marks outside the page.
There are presets for common sizes such as letter, legal,andtabloid.
Orientation
Click the Portrait (tall) or Landscape(wide) icons.Theseiconsinteract dynamically with
the dimensionsyou enter in PageSize.WhenHeight isthe larger value,the portrait icon
isselected.When Width is the larger value,the landscapeicon is selected. Clicking the
deselectedicon switchesthe Height andWidth values.
NOTE: The default unit of measurementin InDesign is pica(p0). If you type avalue into
the Width or Height text fields andusethe abbreviation for inches(in), InDesign will
automatically convert it.
Bleed
After clicking More Options, the bleedareaisusedto align objects that you want to
extend all the way to the trim line of your printed document.
Slug
After clicking More Options, the slugareais usedfor instructions to the printer, sign-off
forms, or other information related to your document.The slugareais discardedwhen
the document is trimmed to its final page size.
2. When you have entered all of your document settings, click OK.
NOTE: If you incorrectly enter information in the Document Setup dialog box, or if you need to
adjust any of this information while you are working, you can make changes at any time by click-
ingFile> Document Setup.
2. SETTING UP THE DOCUMENT CON T.
3 . T O O L B O X
If you usedAdobe Photoshop or Adobe InDesign before you should be familiar with the
toolbox in InDesign CS6asit sharessomeof the tools from these applications. If you are anovice user of
Adobe products you should keepin mind that you might not needto useall the tools. In this tutorial,
only the basic tools will be discussedin depth.
5. 3. TOOLBOX CON T.
Figure4. Extra Tools in InDesign.
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Some tools in the toolbox have additional tools linked to them.These tools have small black triangles in
the right-hand corner.To view the additional tools click and hold down on any tool that has a black
triangle in the corner. (Figure 4)
Figure3.Tools in InDesign.
6. 3. TOOLBOX CON T.
SelectionTools
DRAWING AND TYPETOOLS
Pentool lets you draw
straight and curvedpaths.
Typetool lets you create
text framesand selecttext.
Gaptool lets you adjust
the space betweenobjects.
Convert Direction Point
tool lets you convert corner
points andsmooth points.
Smooth tool lets you re-
move excess angles from
apath.
Direct Selection tool lets
you select points on apath
or contents within aframe.
Add Anchor Point tool lets
you addanchor points to a
path.
Type on a Path tool lets
you create and edit type
on paths.
Page tool lets you create
multiple page sizes within
adocument.
Delete Anchor Pointtool
lets you remove anchor
points from apath.
Penciltool lets you draw
a freeformpath.
Selection tool lets you
select entire objects.
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7. DRAWING AND TYPE TOOLS CONT.
TRANSFORMATION TOOLS
Erasetool lets you delete
points on apath.
Polygon Frame tool lets
you create a multi-sided
shapeplaceholder.
FreeTransform tool lets
you rotate, scale,or shear
anobject.
EllipseFrametool lets you
create acircle or oval
placeholder.
Polygon tool lets you create
multi-sided shape.
Sheartool lets you skew
objects around afixed
point.
Line tool lets you draw a
line segment.
Rectangletool lets you
create asquareor rect-
angle.
Rotate tool lets you rotate
objects around afixed
point.
RectangleFrametool lets
you create asquareor
rectangle placeholder.
Ellipsetool lets you cre-
ate a circle or oval.
Scaletool lets you resize
objects around afixed
point.
3. TOOLBOX CON T.
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8. 4. ORGANIZING THE DOCUMENT
MODIFICATION AND NAVIGATION TOOLS
Eyedropper tool lets you
sample color or type at-
tributes.
Scissorstool cuts paths
at specifiedpoints
Gradient Feather tool lets
you fadeanobject into the
background.
Note tool lets you addcom-
ments.
Measuretool measures
the distance between two
points.
Hand tool moves the page
view within the document
window.
Gradient Swatchtool
lets you insert andadjust
gradients
Zoom tool adjuststhe
view magnification in the
documentwindow.
Working in InDesign cansometimescall for mathematicalprecision in the layout of the document.This
section provides tips on how you canusethe availableRulers, Guides,andColumn Specifications to make
your final output precisewith the placementof your text and graphics exactly where you want them.
Usingthe Zoom Tool in conjunction with the GuidesandRulersis helpful becauseit allows you to focus in
on specific areasof your documents to makethe placement of your text andgraphicsasaccurate as
possible.Youcan access the Zoom Tool byselectingit from the Tool Box (Fig. 3)
The following sections within this tutorial explain:
• Column Specifications(Page 9)
• Rulers (Page 9)
• Guides(Page10)
3. TOOLBOX CON T.
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9. 4. ORGANIZING THE DOCUMENT CONT.
COLUMN SPECIFICATIONS
To insert columnsinto your document click Layout > Margins and Columns.
1.Enter the number of columnsyou would like in the Number of Columns text field (Fig. 5).
2.Enter the space (in inches)that you would like in between your columnsin the Gutter text field.
3.Makesure the chainimageislinked andnot broken if you would like InDesign to automatically
make all the settings the same throughout the rest of your document.
RULERS
Rulers are usedto measurethe placement of texts and
imagesin your document.The rulers measurein inches,
starting at “0”, andrun horizontally andvertically from
the top left corner of your document.
If the Rulersare not displayed, click View > ShowRulers
(Fig. 6). Or, if the Rulers are beingdisplayed, andyou want
to get rid of them, goto View > Hide Rulers.Clicking and
draggingon the box where the horizontal andvertical
rulers meet adjuststhe placement of the ruler.
NOTE:The rulers must beshown in order to draw
Guides,which are describedin the next section.
Figure5. Marginsand Columns
Figure6.Rulers
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10. 4. ORGANIZING THE DOCUMENT CONT.
GUIDES
Guidesare temporary horizontal andvertical lines that you canset up within your document to produce
pagelayout with mathematicalprecision.They are not actuallydrawn into your document; they exist only
on-screen to help you with your layout. Guidesare usefulbecausethey help keepall parts of the document
alignedproperly, andthey assistwhen measuringwith the rulers.The Rulersmust beshownin order to
insert Guides.
Inserting Guides
Toinsert aGuide, placeyour pointer on the Horizontal (or Vertical) ruler at the top of your document.
Click anddragdown onto the document where you would like your guideto be.Youshould notice a
dotted line that correlates with the movement of your pointer. Measurethe distance you are pulling your
Guide down at byusingthe Vertical (Horizontal) ruler on the left of your document.The Guide will
appearas a thin aqua line. If you do not like where you placedyour Guide, you can moveit to another
part of the document byclicking anddraggingit, or, you canremove it completely bydraggingit off of the
document.
“Snap to” Guides
Snappingto aGuide is like “magnetizing” it. If you draganimageor element near aGuide (within a fraction
of aninch), the imageor element will lock into placewith the Guide.Toturn snappingon or off, click
View > Grids and Guides> Snap to Guides(Fig.7).
Hiding Guides
If you would like to view your document without the aidof the Guides,you canhide them temporarily
bygoingto View > Grids and Guides> Hide Guides(Fig. 8).
Figure7. Snap to Guides
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Figure8. Hide Guides
11. INSERTING AND FORMATTING TEXT
TYPE AND PARAGRAPH MENU
Now that you haveabasicunderstandingof setting up adocument andusingthe Tool Box, you canbegin
inserting text. Usingthe Text Tool (T) (Fig. 3), click onto your pageto enablethe text cursor. Don’t be
discouragedif the cursor doesnot line up exactly where you want to placeyour text – you canmove and
format your text later. Begintyping your content. Once you haveyour raw text on the pageyou can begin
manipulatingit to your liking.
Changefrom the Text Tool to the Pointer Tool andclick over your text.You will notice that your text
hasbeenplacedinto a“box” of sorts.This iscalledanElement. Manyobjects andall of your text must
bewithin anElement; there isno “freestanding” text in anInDesign document asyou might find in a
Microsoft Worddocument.
Usingthe Pointer Tool, you canmovethe Elementof text around to anywhere you like on the page. Using
the “grippers” on the corners of the Element,you canadjust the width andlength of the Element. If you do
not specify alength for the Element, it will expandaccordingto the length of your text, however, if you
adjust the length of the Elementto besmallerthan your text, your text will not bevisible. A red tab below
the Element indicates that there is more content within the Element that is not visible
(Fig.9).
A common wayto format andmanipulateyour text is to usethe TypeMenuat the top of the screen.
InDesign CS6addsall the advancedfeatures, aswell asaccessto the Paragraphmenu.When the Type
Tool isselected,the Control Pallette should appearat the top of the screen. If it is not, click Window >
Control.At the extreme left handsideof the pallette are the two buttons that let you switch backand
forth between Type andParagraphcontrols.
Figure 9. Left box shows text that fits in the Element.Right box shows that all text is not showing in the Element.
Figure10. TypePallette
Figure11. Paragraph Pallette
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12. USING COLORS
InDesign includes thousandsof color options aswell asthe ability to mix andcreate your own colors.
After openinganewdocument, the Colors Palette window should appearon the right-hand sideof the
screen. If it isnot there, click Window > Color.
InDesign includes10 default color options within the SwatchesPalette (Fig.12).Thesecolors are selected
from the two common color models:RGBandCMYK. (Use RGBcolors if your output will beon a
computer or TV screen. UseCMYK colors for print documents.)
Tomix custom colors, open the Color Pallette. Dependingon the color mode, you’re using,it will
open in RGB(Fig.13)or CMYK (Fig.14).Mix huesusingthe slider bars.Toaddyour custom color to the
SwatchesPalette, clickAdd to Swatches.Youcanalsoremove colors from the SwatchesPalette by
clicking and dragging.
The newswatch will appearin the SwatchesPallette with the default nameset to reflect the color
mixture. For example, in Figure 12, pure Cyanin CMYK mode is listed asC=100 M=0 Y=0 K=0. One can
easily change this to somethingmore descriptive by double-clicking the swatch and simply renamingit.
Figure12. Default Swatches Pallette
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Figure13. RGB color pallette set to black
Figure14. CMYK color pallette set to black
13. WORKING WITH OBJECTS
Now that you havelearnedhow to insert andedit text Elements,you needto understandhow to work
with other kinds of objects within your document. Nearly every InDesign document will contain text,
and/or graphics.Using the three together takes thorough knowledgeof InDesign’s capabilities.
For the purposesof this tutorial, it isimportant to understand the kind of “objects” to which this tutorial
refers:
• Text (Element) - A block of text within a defined “text box” (discussed in a previoussection).
• Image - A picture file with one of the following extensions: .jpg, .gif,.tif, .pct, .bmp,.ai, .pdf, or
.png, created in another program such as MS Excelor Photoshop.
•Graphic - Vector illustration created directly in InDesign usingthe provided penor other path
tools.
The following sections offer anin depth explanation of how to insert andadjust Images,Graphics, and
Elementswithin your document.
• Grouping (Page15)
• Links(Page15)
• PlacingImages (Page15)
• EnablingText Wraps (Page16)
• Layers andArranging (Page17)
LINKS
InDesign is primarily alinking device; it cancreate simplegraphics,but it’s strength lies in the wayit
assemblesdisparateelements into acohesivedocument.As ageneralrule, wheninserting imagesinto
your document, you should never usethe “copy & paste” technique. Instead, saveyour imagefiles in the
samefolder asyour InDesign document, and“link” them into the document (discussedin the next
section).You canview the source location of the imagesthat are linked into your document, aswell as
other important datasuchascolorspace andfiletype, bygoingto the Links Palette (Fig. 15).To view the
pallette, goto Window > Links(Fig.16).
Figure15. Links pallette Figure16.Toview Links pallette
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14. PLACING IMAGES
Placeisthe function usedto insert animageinto your document. It is comparableto Microsoft Word’s
“Insert Picture from File” function.When you Placesomethinginto your document, it is “linked” to the
document from its current location (aspreviously mentioned).Therefore, it is recommendedthat you store
all of your content for your document in the same location.
To Place an imageinto your document do the following:
1. Make sure the Pointer Tool is selected. (If the Text Tool is selected when placing an image, the image
will insert within ablank Element - not asanindependent unit. Imageswithin Elementsare difficult to
format andreposition.)
2. Go to File> Place.
3. Navigate through the pull down menus to find the file that you want to insert. Select the file and hit
OK (Fig.17).
4. Yourcursor will changeinto asmallgreypicture box that represents your “unplaced” image.Find
the approximate location where you want to drop the image and click the mouse once.
Once you havePlacedthe object, switch to the Pointer Tool to movethe object to the preciselocation
where you want it. If you want to resize your image,single-click on your image,click the FreeTransform Tool
(E) andyou canresizeit usingthe “grippers” – little black squares- that surround the image.Click and draga
gripper inward or outward to expandor shrink you imageasdesired. If you would like to maintain the
original proportions of the imagewhenyou resize it, hold down the Shiftkeyasyou perform the resizing
action.
WORKING WITH OBJECTS CON T.
Figure17.“Place” dialogue box
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15. WORKING WITH OBJECTS CON T.
ENABLING TEXT WRAP
If you havealargeblock of text andwould like to insert
animagein closeproximity without the text or image
overlapping,you canuseafunction calledText Wrap
(which is usedfrequently in Microsoft Word.) Usingthe
Pointer Tool, click on the imageandgoto Window >
Text Wrap.There are severalvisualoptions that display
the different kinds of Text Wraps (Fig. 18).The numerical
settings at the bottom of the window denote how much
“buffer space”should bemaintainedbetween the image
andthe text.
Figure18.TextWrappallette
GROUPING
Frequently, you will havemanyImages,Graphics, andElementson the screen at once. It canbevery ben-
eficial to connect several of thesetogether once they are positioned correctly so that you canmoveall of
them at once and maintain the relational distance between each of them.This function is called Grouping.
To Group two or more objects, do thefollowing:
1. Select all of the objects that you want to Group together.This canbedone in two ways(both using
the PointerTool):
• Hold down the Shift keyand click on each object individually, or,
• Starting in anempty spaceon the page,click andhold the mouseanddragit outward creating a
“ghost box” around all of the objects you want to select.When you releasethe mouseall of the
items within the box should be selected.(Fig.19)
2. Click Object > Group (Fig. 20).
3. If you click over the newly groupedobjects with the pointer tool you will notice that they arebound
together asone large object.The tip-off isthat the boundingbox connectingthem, which wasonce
solid, has now becomedashed,andthe individualobject outlines have disappeared.(Fig.21).
4.To ungroupthese objects, click on the grouped objects and hit Object > Ungroup.
Figure19.All selected, not grouped
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Figure20. Object > Group Figure21.Grouped
16. LOCKING
Sometimes,you mayhaveanobject placedexactly where you
want it andyou will want to avoidmoving it byaccident. (For
example, if you havealargeimageor graphic asabackground for
the page,you mayselect it andmoveit accidentallyif you are
not careful.) Therefore, InDesign hasafunction calledLock- ing
to help you avoidsuchaccidents.When anobject isLocked, it
cannot be moved, adjusted, or altered in anyway.
ToLock objects, select them usingthe Pointer Tool andclick
Object > Lock Position (Fig. 22). Notice now that InDesign
restricts the object from beingaltered in anyway.Tounlock the
object(s), click Object > UnlockAll on Spread (Fig.23).
NOTE: As with Grouping, you canhold down the Shiftkeyto
select multiple objects.
Savingyour document should beahabit whenworking in InDesign. Savingfrequently lessensthe risk of
losing the work you have been doing.
1.Tosaveyour InDesign document goto File>
SaveAs.
2.The SaveAs dialoguebox will appear (Fig. 24).
3.Navigate to the placeyou would like your
document to besaved byusing the
drop-down menuand navigation window.
4.Enter the nameof your document in the SaveAs
text field.
5.Click the Savebutton in the lower right corner
of the dialogue box.
6.Check to makesure that your document is
saved in the placeyou intended.
WORKING WITH OBJECTS CON T.
SAVING
Figure22. Object > Lock
Figure23. Object > Unlock
All on Spread
Figure24. File > SaveAs
Figure24. File > SaveAs
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17. WHAT ISA PDF?
Portable Document Format (PDF)files are anexcellent wayto sharepagefiles with others without the
common hassles of matchingapplications, fonts, largefile sizes,and crossplatform compatibility (Mac
to PC).A PDFfile contains all of the elementsrequired to view andprint adocument that matchesthe
original design in all respects(type style and size, images,color, layout,etc.)
PDFscanbeviewedandprinted without accessto the original application that created it. Viewingand
printing isdone from AdobeAcrobat Reader,software that can becopied and freely distributed.
Another feature of PDFfiles is their compact nature.These files are compressedin multiple waysto render a
document that is just afraction of the sizeof the original document.This makesthem very handyfor
transportation and storage.This feature enables PDF files to be efficiently attached to e-mailmessages.
Unlike their originating documents, PDFfiles are not fully editable, without specializedsoftware.This canbe
an
advantage whensharingfiles that you don’t want changed in any way.
NOTE: InDesign differs from most programs in the way it creates PDFs.
CREATING APDF
When you are ready to create the PDF file take the following actions:
1.Save your document.
2.Go to File> Export > Adobe PDF.
3.A dialoguebox will appearaskingyou to save(Fig. 27); this time, you will besavingthe PDFfile, not
the original document. Namethe newfile (without deleting the .pdffile extension.) andhit Save.A
dialoguebox will appearin which you canadjust settings from jpgquality to the particular pages
you want to include in the PDF (defaults to all). Makechanges accordingly andhit OK.
EXPORTING TO PDF
Figure25. File > Export > Adobe PDF Figure26. PDF dialoguebox.
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18. Turning on the New Features
Makesureto select the New in CS6(Fig.26) tab located in adropdown box at the top right of the
application screen.When looking in the tabslocated in the toolbar, the newchangeswill behighlighted in
blue or purple (Fig.27).
Liquid Layout Feature
This feature canbeusedto keepcontents on one pagethe samein adifferent pagewhenusingan alternate
layout. For example, if one pageisin adifferent layout or size,to keepit flowing smoothly without having
to rescaleeachpage,click on the Layout tab andturn on the Liquid Layout feature. Once this option has
beenselected, you arethen presented with other options of how you want acertain page or the entire
document to be presented.
New Features of InDesign CS6
Figure26. Essentials tab > New in CS6
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Figure27.Window >Drop-down menu
highlight new features.
Figure28. Layout > Liquid Layout
Figure29. Choose from the drop-down
menuto turn on Liquid Layout and
options.