Make a Table in InDesign

http://mashable.com/2011/07/20/spotify-infographic/

A table consists of rows and columns of cells. A cell is like a text frame in which you can add text, inline graphics, or other tables. You can create tables from scratch or by converting them from existing text, or export them from other applications. You can also embed a table within a table.

When you create a table, the new table fills the width of the container text frame. A table is inserted on the same line when the insertion point is at the beginning of the line, or on the next line, when the insertion point is in the middle of a line.

Tables flow with surrounding text just as inline graphics do. For example, a table moves through threaded frames when the text above it changes in point size or when text is added or deleted. However, a table cannot appear on a text-on-path frame.

Below are some important features to get you started. For a video tutorial on creating and formatting tables, see http://www.infiniteskills.com/demos/movie-player.php?h=565&w=970&sku=01710&movie=http://infiniteskills.bc.cdn.bitgravity.com/iskills-media/indesigncs6-demo/1101.mp4  (Ignore the part about following along with demo files.)

Create a table from scratch

The table you create fills the width of the text frame.

1. Using the Type tool, place the insertion point where you want the table to appear.
2. Choose Table > Insert Table.
3. Specify the numbers of rows and columns.
4. If your table contents will continue on more than one column or frame, specify the number of header or footer rows in which you want the information to be repeated.
5. (Optional) Specify a table style.
6. Click OK.

The row height of a table is determined by the specified table style. For example, a table style may use cell styles to format different parts of the table. If any of these cell styles include paragraph styles, the leading value of the paragraph styles determines the row height of that area. If no paragraph style is used, the document’s default slug determines the row height. (The slug is based on the leading value. In this context, a slug is the approximate height of the highlighting in selected text.)

Create a table from existing text

Before you convert text to a table, make sure that you set up the text properly.

1. To prepare the text for conversion, insert tabs, commas, paragraph returns, or another character to separate columns. Insert tabs, commas, paragraph returns, or another character to separate rows. (In many instances, text can be converted to a table without having to be edited.)
2. Using the Type tool, select the text you want to convert to a table.
3. Choose Table > Convert Text To Table.
4. For both Column Separator and Row Separator, indicate where new rows and columns should begin. Choose Tab, Comma, or Paragraph, or type the character, such as a semicolon (;), in the Column Separator and Row Separator field. (Any character you type appears in the menu the next time you create a table from text.)
5. If you specify the same separator for columns and rows, indicate the number of columns you want the table to include.
6. (Optional) Specify a table style to format the table.
7. Click OK.

If any row has fewer items than the number of columns in a table, empty cells fill out the row.

Selecting Table Cells, Rows and Columns

When you select part or all of the text in a cell, that selection has the same appearance as would text selected outside a table. However, if the selection spans more than one cell, the cells and their contents are both selected.

If a table spans more than one frame, holding the mouse pointer over any header or footer row that is not the first header or footer row causes a lock icon to appear, indicating that you cannot select text or cells in that row. To select cells in a header or footer row, go to the beginning of the table.

Select cells

Using the Type tool, do any of the following:

• To select a single cell, click inside a table, or select text, and then choose Table > Select > Cell.
  
• To select multiple cells, drag across a cell border. Be careful not to drag the column or row line so that you don’t resize the table.
  

To switch between selecting all of the text in a cell and selecting the cell, press Esc.

Select entire columns or rows

 Using the Type tool, do any of the following:

• Click inside a table, or select text, and then choose Table > Select > Column or Row.
  
• Move the pointer over the top edge of a column or the left edge of a row so that the pointer becomes an arrow shape, and then click to select the entire column or row.
  

Before and after selecting Row

Select all header, body, or footer rows

1. Click inside a table, or select text.
2. Choose Table > Select > Header Rows, Body Rows, or Footer Rows.

Select the entire table

Using the Type tool, do any of the following:

• Click inside a table, or select text, and then choose Table > Select > Table.
  
• Move the pointer over the upper left corner of the table so that the pointer becomes an arrow shape, and then click to select the entire table.
  
  
  

  Before and after selecting table
• Drag the Type tool across the entire table.
  

You can also select a table in the same way you select an anchored graphic—place the insertion point immediately before or after a table, and then hold down Shift while pressing the Right Arrow key or Left Arrow key, respectively, to select the table. 

Formatting Tables

Use the Control panel or Character panel to format text within a table—just like formatting text outside a table. In addition, two main dialog boxes help you format the table itself: Table Options and Cell Options. Use these dialog boxes to change the number of rows and columns, to change the appearance of the table border and fill, to determine the spacing above and below the table, to edit header and footer rows, and to add other table formatting.

Use the Table panel, the Control panel, or the context menu to format the table structure. Select one or more cells and then right-click (Windows) or Control-click (Mac OS) to display a context menu with table options.

Read more at http://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/using/creating-tables.html

Preflight and Package your InDesign Documents

Before printing, exporting a PDF or handing off a document to another individual or service provider, you can perform a quality check on the document. "Preflight" is the industry-standard term for this process. While you edit your document, the Preflight panel warns of problems that can prevent a document or book from printing or outputting as desired. These problems include missing files or fonts, low-resolution images, overset text, and a number of other conditions. 

Preflight warnings are displayed at the bottom left of the document window, next to document navigation. The Preflight panel is under the Window menu > Output:

InDesign's Preflight Panel showing a modified link error.

View and resolve preflight errors in the error list. Only the categories with errors are listed. You can click the arrow next to each item to expand or collapse it.

Note that Preflighting does not necessarily detect colorspace or resolution problems. View image details in the Links panel to detect those errors.

Package files

You can gather the files you’ve used, including fonts and linked graphics, for easy handoff to your instructor, another individual or a service provider. When you package a file, you create a folder that contains the InDesign document (or documents in a book file), any necessary fonts, linked graphics, text files, and a customized report. This report, which is saved as a text file, includes the information in the Printing Instructions dialog box; a list of all used fonts, links, and inks required to print the document; and print settings.

Go to the File menu > Package:

InDesign performs an up-to-date preflight check. The Package Inventory dialog box indicates any detected problem areas. You can also give your service provider a composite PDF file made from your document or a PostScript file.

InDesign's preflight prior to creating the file package
detects two files that uses RGB color space

Click on the menu in the left column to investigate
and resolve any problems.

You can also configure preflight settings to define which conditions are detected. These preflight settings are stored in preflight profiles for easy reuse. You can create your own preflight profiles or import them from your printer or another source. 

See the Adobe.com website below for all about preflighting and packaging files.

Adapted from http://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/using/preflighting-files-handoff.html

Managing Links and Embedded Graphics

When you Place a graphic, its original file is not embedded into the document. Instead, InDesign adds a screen-resolution version of the file to the layout, so that you can view and position the graphic, and creates a link, or file path, to the original file on disk. When you export or print, InDesign uses the links to retrieve the original graphics, creating the final output from the full resolution of the originals.

Links can help minimize the size of a document by storing graphics outside the document file. After placing a graphic, you can use it many times without significantly increasing the size of the document; you can also update all links at once.


If the bitmap image you place is 48K or smaller, InDesign automatically embeds the full-resolution image, instead of the screen-resolution version in your layout. InDesign displays these images in the Links panel, so that you can control versions and update the file whenever you like; however, the link is not necessary for optimal output.


Note: If you move a document to another folder or disk (for example, if you take it to a service provider), be sure you also move the linked graphics files; they are not stored inside the document. You can copy all related files automatically, using the Preflight and Package features. (See the Further Reading section below: Performing a preflight check, and Packaging files.)


Links panel overview


All files placed in a document are listed in the Links panel. This includes both local (on disk) files and assets that are managed on a server. However, files that are pasted from a website in Internet Explorer do not display in this panel.

Links panel

A. Category columns B. Show/Hide Link Information C. One or more instances modified icon D. Modified icon E. Missing-link icon F. Embedded-link icon

A linked file can appear in the Links panel in any of the following ways:


Up-to-date An up-to-date file displays only the file’s name and its page in the document.
Modified This icon means that the version of the file on disk is more recent than the version in your document. For example, this icon will appear if you import a Photoshop graphic into InDesign, and then another artist edits and saves the original graphic in Photoshop.

Missing The graphic is no longer in the location from which it was imported, although it may still exist somewhere. This can happen if someone moves the original file to a different folder or server after it’s been imported into an InDesign document. You can’t know whether a missing file is up to date until its original is located. If you print or export a document when this icon is displayed, the file may not print or export at full resolution.

Embedded Embedding the contents of a linked file suspends management operations for that link. If the selected link is currently in an “edit in place” operation, this option is not enabled. Unembedding the file restores management operations to the link.

For a video tutorial on using the Links panel, see www.adobe.com/go/lrvid4027_id.

InDesign Secrets provides a videocast on Links panel tips and techniques at Saving time with the Links panel.


Use the Links panel

• To display the Links panel, Choose Window > Links. Each linked file and automatically embedded file is identified by name.
• To select and view a linked graphic, select a link in the Links panel and then click the Go To Link button , or choose Go To Link in the Links panel menu. InDesign centers the display around the selected graphic.
• To sort links in the panel, choose Sort By Status, Sort By Name, Sort By Page, or Sort By Type in the Links panel menu or the context menu.

Placing a graphic


The Place command is used most often, and it's the recommended way to import a graphic. You can also import a graphic from your desktop, or from any removable media, by using drag-and-drop or copy-and-paste. The drag-and-drop method works like the Place command, with images appearing in the Links panel after they're imported; however, you cannot set import options for the files you drag and drop. (See InDesign Help: Alternate methods for importing graphics.)
Note: If you place or drag and drop a graphic from a removable medium, such as a CD-ROM, the link will break when you remove that medium from your system.






To import a graphic by placing it:


1. Do one of the following:

1. To import a graphic without first creating a frame, make sure that nothing in the document is selected.
2. To import a graphic into an existing frame, select the frame.
3. To replace an existing image, select the graphics frame.

2. Choose File > Place and select a graphics file.
3. If you want to view the graphics file before importing, select Preview.
4. If you want to replace the selected object, select Replace Selected Item.
5. If you want to set format-specific import options, do one of the following:

1. Select Show Import Options to see format-specific settings, and then click Open (Windows) or Choose (Mac OS).
2. Hold down Shift as you click Open/Choose or Shift-double-click a filename.

6. If another dialog box appears, select your import options, and click OK. (See IndDesign Help: Understanding graphics formats and their options.)
7. Do one of the following:

1. To import into a new frame, click the loaded graphics icon in the layout at the place where you want the upper left corner of the graphic to appear.
2. To import into an existing unselected frame, click the loaded graphics icon anywhere in that frame.
3. To import into an existing selected frame, you don't need to do anything; the image automatically appears in that frame.

If you accidently replace an existing graphic with an image you're placing, you can undo the placement by pressing Ctrl+Z (Windows) or Command+Z (Mac OS) to return the original image to the frame, and display the loaded graphics icon.


Alternate methods for importing graphics


The Place command is the primary method of importing, because it provides the highest level of support for resolution, file formats, and color, via the impaort options included with most file types. If you're creating a document where those characteristics aren't critical, you can copy and paste or drag-and-drop to import graphics into InDesign. When you use these methods to transfer a graphic into an InDesign document, some attributes of the original object may be lost, depending on the limitations of the operating system and the range of data types the other application makes available for transfer.


Copying and pasting or dragging and dropping between two InDesign documents, or within a single document, preserves all of the graphics attributes that were imported or applied. For example, if you copy a graphic from one InDesign document and paste it into another, the new copy will be an exact duplicate of the original, even including the original's link information, so that you can update graphic when the file on disk changes. (See Managing links and embedded graphics in Adobe InDesign Help.)


When copying and pasting a graphic from another document into an InDesign document, InDesign does not create a link to the graphic in the Links panel. The graphic may be converted by the system clipboard during the transfer, so both image quality and print quality may be lower in InDesign than in the graphic's original application.

Adapted from Adobe InDesign Help

Further Reading

Managing Graphics Links:
http://help.adobe.com/en_US/indesign/cs/using/WSDE47C603-CE39-4952-942B-A84893EA06E7a.html

Preflighting InDesign Documents:
http://help.adobe.com/en_US/indesign/cs/using/WSa285fff53dea4f8617383751001ea8cb3f-7060a.html

View and Resolve Preflight Errors:
http://help.adobe.com/en_US/indesign/cs/using/WSa285fff53dea4f8617383751001ea8cb3f-7060a.html#WSD347C6F1-EA23-40ec-9C9D-760F36D29E27

Packaging InDesign Documents:
http://help.adobe.com/en_US/indesign/cs/using/WSa285fff53dea4f8617383751001ea8cb3f-7060a.html#WSa285fff53dea4f8617383751001ea8cb3f-7058a

Save an InDesign CC File to CS6 (Save Backwards to an Earlier InDesign Version)

If you are working in InDesign CC and want to be able to open your document in CS6 (or earlier), you need to export an IDML file.

In the newer software, e.g. InDesign CC, export (File > Export) the document to the InDesign Markup Language (IDML):

Then open the IDML file in the older software (e.g., InDesign CS6 or CS5). It will convert it to an untitled InDesign document.  

Saving a document in a previous version of InDesign is also referred to as “saving down.” Content created using features specific to the later version of InDesign may be modified or omitted when you open the document in a previous version of InDesign.

The current IDML format replaces the Interchange (INX) format used for saving backwards in previous versions (CS4 and earlier).

To open the InDesign CS5 document in InDesign CS3, open the exported IDML file in InDesign CS4, save it and export it to InDesign CS3 Interchange (INX), and then open the exported INX file in InDesign CS3. 

You might need to make sure that the computer running the previous version of InDesign is updated with the appropriate plug-ins so that it can open the exported IDML file. The person running InDesign CS4 can obtain the compatibility plug-ins by choosing Help > Updates and following the prompts. Plug-ins can also be installed from the Adobe website: Visit Product updates page on the Adobe website, and choose to the InDesign from the product list. 

— http://help.adobe.com/en_US/indesign/cs/using/WSa285fff53dea4f8617383751001ea8cb3f-6d52a.html

Read more about saving backwards in InDesign here: http://forums.adobe.com/docs/DOC-1024

 

Wrapping Text Around Graphics

You can make text wrap around any frame, including text frames. When you apply a text wrap to an object, InDesign creates a boundary around the object that repels text.

1. Choose Object > Text Wrap to display the Text Wrap palette.

2. Using the selection tool (black arrow) or direct-selection tool (white arrow), select a frame.

3. In the Text Wrap palette, click the button for the desired wrap shape:

• Wrap Around Bounding Box creates a rectangular wrap whose width and height are determined by the bounding box of the selected object.
• Wrap Around Object Shape also known as contour wrapping, creates a text wrap boundary that is the same shape as the frame you've selected (plus or minus any offset distances; see the next step).
• Jump Object keeps text from appearing in any available space to the right or left of the frame in the column containing the frame.
• Jump to Next Column forces the next paragraph to the top of the next text column or text frame.

4. For the wrap offset values, enter offset distances. Positive values move the wrap away from the edges of the frame; negative values position the wrap boundary inside the respective edges of the frame.

To apply text wrap to items on a master page, hold down Ctrl+Shift (Windows) or Command+Shift (Mac OS) and click the item on the document page. With the image selected on the document page, apply text wrap.

—CS3 for Dummies, InDesign Ch. 5, Merging Text and Graphics, pgs. 160-163

Type on a Path

Type can also be set along a path – be it a curvy path or a polygon, or open or closed path. Draw a path, then click and hold on the Text Tool to get more options. Select the T that's kicked over on its side (Text on Path Tool).

Click on the path with that tool, and type in your text. The text follows the path! What excitement!

To move the type around on the path, click on it with the Selection Tool. Notice the "I-Beam" at the origin point of the text (if the text is set centered, it's in the center of the text; if set justified left or right, it will be at the left or right of the text). Click on the I-Beam with the Selection Tool and drag it to where you want it. If you drag it to the opposite side of the path, it will flip upsidedown.

Align type centered or on the left or right margin using the paragraph palette or control panel.

Tip: If you align the "I-Beam" with the center handle of the bounding box and align text centered using the paragraph palette, your text will center automatically and perfectly.