Chapter 1: Inside the InDesign Interface
5
In other cases, deciding which tool is appropriate is more difficult. For example, you can create a
drop cap (a large initial letter set into a paragraph of type, like the one that starts each chapter in
this book) as a character option in the Character panel, or you can create a character style (format-
ting that you can apply to any selected text, ensuring that the same formatting is applied each
InDesign comes with its own terminology, much of it adopted from other Adobe products. The general
terms include the following:
l
Extension: A piece of software that loads into InDesign and becomes part of it, adding more
capabilities.
l
Frame: The container for an object, whether text, graphic, or color fill.
l
Link: The connection that InDesign makes to an imported file. The link contains the file’s
location, last modification date, and last modification time. A link can reference any image or
text file that you have imported into a layout. InDesign can notify you when a source text or
graphics file has changed, so you can choose whether to update the version in your layout.
(A hyperlink, often also abbreviated to link in casual conversation, connects elements in a
Web page to other Web pages or other resources such as PDF files.)
l
Master page: A template within a layout that contains elements that you want to occur on
any page that is based on that master page. For example, a specific master page might con-
tain page numbers and the standard text frame for body text, so when you add new pages to
the document based on this specific master page, those new document pages automatically
include the page numbers and standard text frames.
l
Package: The collection of all files needed to deliver a layout for commercial printing.
InDesign has a package feature that collects all these files for you.
l
Pane: A section of a dialog box or panel whose options change based on the set of controls

page once you find that you need them to appear on every page.
Another situation in which you can choose between local or global controls is specifying measure-
ment values. Regardless of the default measurement unit you set (and that appears in all dialog
boxes and panels), you can use any unit when entering measurements in an InDesign dialog box.
If, for example, the default measurement is picas but you’re accustomed to working with inches, go
ahead and enter measurements in inches.
Cross-Reference
Chapter 3 covers how to apply measurement values and set your preferred defaults. n
Exploring the InDesign Application Folder
Often, users simply launch an application from an alias or shortcut and never even look in the
application folder. This approach is just fine until it’s time to install a new plug-in or to share
important information with other users. Familiarizing yourself with the basic contents helps ensure
that you’re not throwing away anything important and that you’re working with the correct files
and folders.
If you locate the InDesign application folder on your hard drive and open it, you see that it’s
chock-full of stuff you may not even recognize. The two folders you need to know about in this
folder are the Presets folder and the Plug-ins folder.
The Presets folder
The Presets folder contains eight kinds of standards: Shortcut sets, color swatch libraries, work-
spaces, auto-correction tables, find-change tables, button libraries, motion presets for animations,
and page transitions. InDesign lets you create shortcut sets so that different users can have their
own shortcut definitions. These preferences are stored in the InDesign shortcut sets folder in the
Presets folder. Because these preferences are stored in files, they can be copied to other users’
Presets folder to help ensure consistent options among all users in a workgroup. Similarly, the
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Chapter 1: Inside the InDesign Interface
7
seven other kinds of saved standards you can create in InDesign are stored in the Presets folder and
can be shared with other users by copying them to other users’ Presets folders.

FIGURE 1.1
The standard document window provides controls for managing documents on-screen, changing the view
scale, displaying different pages, and placing objects on pages. At bottom: The Windows 7 screen is iden-
tical, except for where the window controls reside and stylistic differences between Windows and Mac OS
X, such as fonts used and border designs.
Quick Apply
button
Flyout
menu
Workspace pop-up menu
Ruler
Document window
Document tab and title
Menus
(Mac
OS X)
Close, Minimize,
Restore/Maximize
boxes (Mac OS X)
Tools
panel
Zero
point
Adobe
Bridge
Zoom field and pop-up menu
View Options pop-up menu
Screen mode pop-up menu
Arrange Documents pop-up menu
Application bar

l
The current view percentage is shown at the end of the file name, such as @ 74% to indi-
cate that the document is displayed at 74 percent of actual size.
l
An asterisk (*) appears in front of the file name if the document has unsaved changes.
l
If multiple windows are open for the same document, InDesign indicates the various win-
dows by adding :1, :2, and so on to each window, with :1 indicating the first window, :2
the second, and so on. (Note that a colon precedes the number.)
You can close a document quickly by clicking the Close box (the X icon) on the document’s tab.
Cross-Reference
Chapter 2 explains how to work with multiple documents, as well as how to use the old-style document
windows instead of the tabbed ones introduced in InDesign CS4. n
Rulers
Document windows always display a horizontal ruler across the top and a vertical ruler down the
left side. The horizontal ruler measures from the top-left corner of the page across the entire
spread; the vertical ruler measures from the top to the bottom of the current page.
You can use these rulers to judge the size and placement of frames and lines on your page.
Although InDesign provides more-precise methods for placing objects — such as the Control
panel, in which you can enter exact values — designers often use the rulers for rough placement
while they experiment with a design, as shown in Figure 1.2.
Tip
When you create new objects, move them, resize them, or rotate them, InDesign provides an indicator near
the mouse to show you the object’s current status — called the transformation value — such as size or rotation
angle, as you can see in Figure 1.2. n
By default, both rulers display increments in picas, but you can change the measurement system
for each ruler in the Units & Increments pane of the Preferences dialog box (choose InDesign ➪
Preferences ➪ Units & Increments or press Ô+K on the Mac, or choose Edit ➪ Preferences ➪ Units
& Increments or press Ctrl+K in Windows).
If you do make such a change while no documents are open, the rulers in all new documents

to the upper-left corner of the leftmost page, double-click the intersection of the rulers in the
upper-left corner.
After the zero point is moved, all the objects on the page display new X and Y values even though
they haven’t moved. Objects above or to the left of the zero point have negative X and Y values,
and the X and Y values of other objects do not relate to their actual position on the page or spread.
The effects of changing the zero point can be confusing, especially if you’re in a workgroup with
other users who may change the zero point and forget to restore it to the upper-left corner. To pre-
vent this problem, you can lock the zero point, making it more difficult for users to change it. To
lock the zero point, Control+click or right-click the zero point and choose Lock Zero Point from
the contextual menu.
Of course, a user determined to change the zero point can simply choose Unlock Zero Point from
the contextual menu. But doing so is a conscious act on their part, and the fact that you locked the
zero point usually sends the message that you want to keep it that way.
Scroll bars
Standard scroll bars run down the right side and across the bottom of the document window. As in
most applications, you can either click and drag the scroll bars or click the scroll buttons to move
around on a page or move to other pages in the document.
A powerful but confusing capability in InDesign is something called a reference point. InDesign lets
you work with objects from nine reference points — any of the four corners, the middle of any of the
four sides, or the center — such as when you’re positioning the object precisely or rotating the object.
You choose these reference points in the Control panel or Transform panel, using the grid of nine points
arranged in a square.
By default, InDesign works with the central reference point, which is great for rotating an object but can
lead to confusion when you enter in the X and Y coordinates to place it precisely. That’s because most
people use the upper-left corner of an object when specifying its coordinates, not the center of the
object. So be sure to change the reference point to the upper left whenever entering X and Y coordi-
nates in the Control or Transform panels. (I use the upper-left reference point in this book unless other-
wise indicated.)
How do you change which reference point is active? That’s easy: Just click the point in that preview
grid. The active reference point — called the control point — is black, whereas the others are white.

changes the horizontal guides and the Columns color affects the vertical guides.
Page controls
InDesign has several controls for maneuvering through pages: page-turning buttons, and the
Page field and pop-up menu. All are at the bottom left of the document window, as shown in
Figure 1.1.
Use the Page pop-up menu (to the right of the Page field) to get a list of available pages, including
master pages (see Figure 1.1).
The Page field and pop-up menu are encased by two sets of arrows; these arrows are page-turning
buttons, which let you turn pages sequentially or jump to the first or last page in the document.
From left to right, clicking these arrows takes you to the first page, the previous page, the next
page, and the last page.
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Chapter 1: Inside the InDesign Interface
13
To jump to a specific page number, highlight the current number in the Page field, type a new
page number, and press Return or Enter.
Tip
You can use the shortcut Ô+J or Ctrl+J to open the Go to Page dialog box, in which you can select a page
number to go to. n
To jump to a master page, type the first few characters of the master page’s name in the field.
Jumping to document pages can be a little more complicated. Because the page number that dis-
plays and prints on the document page does not have to match the position of the page in the doc-
ument — for example, the third page might be labeled iii instead of 3 — there are two methods for
entering the page number you want to jump to: section page numbers and absolute page numbers.
Cross-Reference
Chapter 5 covers these page-control methods in detail. n
Reveal pop-up menu
This menu lets you find the original file on your computer using one of three menu options: Reveal
in Finder (for Mac OS X) or Reveal in Explorer (for Windows), Reveal in Bridge (which opens the

l
The third element is the View Options pop-up menu, which lets you hide and show frame
edges, rulers, various guides and grids, and hidden characters from one handy location.
(These options are also available through a variety of scattered View menu options and via
Type ➪ Show/Hide Hidden Characters.)
l
The fourth element, the Screen Mode pop-up menu, duplicates the screen-mode buttons’
settings at the bottom of the Tools panel (covered later in this chapter).
l
The fifth element, the Arrange Documents pop-up menu, gives you fast access to InDesign
CS5’s controls over how document windows are arranged (covered in Chapter 2).
l
The sixth element, the Workspaces pop-up menu, gives you quick access to the work-
spaces you’ve defined (covered in Chapter 2).
l
The seventh is the Adobe Community Search field, an online feature that lets you find
help on the Adobe Community Web site.
l
The eighth is Access CS Live, a set of online subscription services (CS Review, Buzzword,
and Share My Screen) for sharing previews of your documents with others so you can get
comments and feedback online, as well as to do basic text editing in a shared file.
New Feature
The CS Live service is new to InDesign CS5. The subscription-based collaboration service extends Adobe’s
previous Acrobat.com offerings, as explained later in this chapter. n
Using Tools
InDesign by default displays a docked panel on the left side of the screen called the Tools panel
(longtime users also know it as the Toolbox, the name used in early InDesign documentation),
which contains 31 tools plus 12 other functions. It appears by default at the upper left of the
screen (see Figure 1.3).
The tools let you create and manipulate the objects that make up your pages. The tools work simi-

Hand tool
Swap Fill and Stroke
Zoom tool
Fill
Apply options
Select Contents
Screen Mode options
Marker tool
Stroke
Default Fill and Stroke
Select Container
Note
The one tool not directly accessible from the Tools panel is the Marker tool. It appears after you’ve used the
Eyedropper tool to select an object’s color, so you can apply that color to another object, as Chapter 8 and the
special color insert explain. You can also use the Eyedropper tool to select an object’s or text’s attributes and
then apply those attributes via the Marker tool to another object or to other text, as Chapters 12 and 19
explain. n
Selecting tools
To select a tool and start using it, click it in the Tools panel. As long as you’re not using the Type
tool, you can also press a keyboard shortcut displayed in parentheses in the Tool Tips (covered
later in this chapter).
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Part I: Welcome to InDesign
16
In addition to the tools you can see, the Tools panel contains a few hidden tools consolidated into
little pop-out menus. Any tool with a small arrow in its lower-right corner is hiding one or more
similar tools, as shown in Figure 1.3. There are several ways to access these hidden tools:
l
Control+click or right-click a tool that has a pop-out indicator. When the pop-out

You might want to rename this tool in your mind as the Mover tool because it’s the only tool that
lets you drag objects around on-screen.
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Chapter 1: Inside the InDesign Interface
17
Tip
If you’re working with text and have the Type tool selected, you can switch to the Selection tool temporarily
by holding down Ô or Ctrl instead of using the Tools panel. n
Here’s how the Selection tool works:
l
To select any object on a document page, click it. If you can’t seem to click it, it might
be an object placed by a master page (a preformatted page used to format pages automati-
cally) or it might be behind another object.
l
To select an object placed by a master page, press Shift+Ô or Ctrl+Shift while you
click.
l
To select an object that is completely behind another object, Ô+click it or
Ctrl+click it.
l
To select multiple objects, click and drag around the objects or Shift+click them
individually. Because you need to press Shift anyway while selecting objects placed by
master pages, you can always multiple-select those objects.
l
Then apply the desired transformation or effect. For example, to move selected objects,
click somewhere within the objects and drag the mouse. To resize a selected object, click
and drag any handle. (Press Shift+Ô or Ctrl+Shift while you drag to maintain the propor-
tions of the object.) To resize both a selected frame and its graphic, press Ô or Ctrl while
you drag. Press Shift+Ô or Ctrl+Shift to keep things proportional. To rotate an object,

l
To select the contents in graphics frames placed by a master page, Shift+Ô+click or
Ctrl+Shift+click, as with the Selection tool. The Direct Selection tool lets you easily
select objects behind other objects and select items within groups.
l
To select multiple graphics frames’ contents, click and drag around the objects or
Shift+click them. Because you need to press Shift anyway while selecting objects placed
by master pages, you can always multiple-select those objects.
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Chapter 1: Inside the InDesign Interface
19
l
Then apply the desired effect. For example, to move a graphic within its frame, click
inside the inside frame and drag the graphic. Or move an inside frame’s edge or corner to
resize it or reshape it. You can apply effects to the selected inside frame such as rotation
using the tools in the Control panel or by using the techniques explained in Part III.
Note
Both the Selection and Direct Selection tools can be used for threading (linking) text frames (see Chapter 18).
This is one of the few cases when you have more than one tool to handle a task. n
Page tool
The new Page tool (shortcut Shift+P) lets you move an entire page’s contents, as well as open a set
of menu options to change the page size and orientation. Chapter 5 covers this tool in more detail.
Gap tool
The new Gap tool (shortcut U) lets you change the gap between objects by automatically resizing
the objects as you adjust the gap with the mouse, as Chapter 10 explains.
Type tool
The Type tool (shortcut T) lets you type, edit, and format text. The Type tool also lets you create
rectangular text frames as you need them. (See Chapters 9 and 18.)
Note

Cross-Reference
For more information about using the Pen and anchor point tools, see Chapter 16. n
Pencil tool
The Pencil tool (shortcut N) lets you draw freeform shapes by having InDesign trace your mouse
movements, creating a curve based on that automatically. (See Chapter 16.)
Smooth tool
The Pencil tool has a pop-out menu to select the Smooth tool, which lets you smooth lines, curves,
and shapes. It has no shortcut. (See Chapter 16.)
Erase tool
The Pencil tool also has a pop-out menu to select the Erase tool, which lets you erase portions of
an object. It has no shortcut. (See Chapter 16.)
Frame tools
InDesign has three frame tools: Rectangle Frame (shortcut F), Ellipse Frame, and Polygon Frame.
Their icons are distinguished by a large X inside. The latter two tools, which have no shortcuts, are
available from the Rectangle Frame tool’s pop-up menu. The frames created by these tools are
meant to hold either graphics or text. To create frames with these tools, click and drag using the
rulers or information in the Control panel or Transform panel to judge the size and placement. To
create a perfect circle with the Ellipse Frame tool or a perfect square with the Rectangle Frame tool,
press Shift while you click and drag. (See Chapter 9.)
You can fill and stroke the empty frames for use as design elements or you can import text and
graphics into them using the Place command (choose File ➪ Place or press Ô+D or Ctrl+D). You
can also click in an empty frame with the Type tool to begin typing in it. (See Chapters 9 and 19.)
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Chapter 1: Inside the InDesign Interface
21
Shape tools
If you’d rather create actual graphics frames, use the Rectangle (shortcut M), Ellipse (shortcut L),
or Polygon (no shortcut) tools. (The Ellipse and Polygon tools are pop-out tools available from the
Rectangle tool.) The tools are meant to create shapes that you use as artwork rather than as con-

tionally. When you scale text or graphics frames, the text or image within them is resized as well.
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Part I: Welcome to InDesign
22
As with the Rotate tool, the Scale tool doesn’t let you select items to scale. You either need to select
an object first with a selection tool or Ô+click or Ctrl+click it with the Scale tool. (See Chapter 11.)
Shear tool
The Shear tool (shortcut O) works much the same as the Scale tool. Rather than resize the object
and contents, the Shear tool slants selected objects in the direction you drag. But it also rotates the
object, creating a more three-dimensional perspective effect. (See Chapter 11.)
FIGURE 1.5
Objects rotate based on the active reference point: At right, the active reference point is the center point;
at left it is the lower-right corner.
Gradient Swatch tool
The Gradient Swatch tool (shortcut G) lets you change the direction of existing gradient fills or
strokes applied to objects. To apply gradients to objects, you use the Gradient panel. (See Chapter 8.)
Gradient Feather tool
The Gradient Feather tool (shortcut Shift+G) acts just like the Gradient Swatch tool except that it
fades the gradient to transparent rather than to a solid color, providing a quick way to apply a
feathering effect. (See Chapter 12.)
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Chapter 1: Inside the InDesign Interface
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Note tool
The Note tool lets you insert a nonprinting note (such as a reminder to yourself or another
designer) in text. After selecting the tool, click in any text to insert the note. The Notes panel
opens, in which you can type the note and navigate to other notes. (See Chapter 19.)
Eyedropper tool

Bleed, Slug, and Presentation. (If the Tools panel is configured to be in two-column mode, you’ll
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Part I: Welcome to InDesign
24
see the Normal iconic button at bottom left and the Preview iconic button at bottom right; the
Preview iconic button also acts as a menu to access the other three screen modes.)
The Normal screen mode shows all InDesign indicators such as frame edges and the pasteboard,
whereas the Preview mode shows the layout without any indicators, to simulate its final appear-
ance to the reader.
New Feature
The new Presentation mode lets you show your layout as if it were a slideshow, such as for a client walk-
through presentation, as Chapter 2 explains. n
The Bleed screen mode shows any objects that bleed beyond the page boundaries, and the Slug
mode shows the space reserved for information such as crop marks and color separation names
used in final output, as covered in Chapters 4 and 31. You set these up when you create new docu-
ments or by choosing File ➪ Document Setup or pressing Option+Ô+P or Ctrl+Alt+P.
Note
These five view modes are also accessible by choosing View ➪ Screen Mode and then the desired option from
the submenu, as well as from the Screen Mode iconic pop-up menu in the application bar (covered earlier in
this chapter). n
Using tool tips and keyboard shortcuts
To start getting familiar with the tools, first make sure that the Tool Tips pop-up menu is set to
Normal or Fast in the Interface pane of the Preferences dialog box (choose InDesign ➪ Preferences ➪
Interface or press Ô+K on the Mac, or choose Edit ➪ Preferences ➪ Interface or press Ctrl+K in
Windows). Point at each tool to learn its official name, as shown in Figure 1.3; let the pointer rest
on the tool for a few seconds (if Tool Tips is set to Normal) and a tool tip appears, telling you the
name and shortcut key of that tool.
Knowing the actual name is the key to learning about any tool — after all, neither the InDesign
documentation’s index nor this book’s index lists tools by the way they look (for example, little