how to import and layout text in adobe indesign...

How to Import and Layout Text in Adobe InDesign CS5

Subject Descriptors: InDesign CS5, Import, Layout, Word, Excel Table, Text Frame, Headline,Linked, Show Threads, Insert Break, Formatting, Alternating Fills, Patterns, Color, Remove Strokes

Application (Version): Adobe InDesign CS5 - Windows

Task Description: Learn how to import and layout text in InDesign CS5

Tutorial Date: 4 June 2009, by Virinia Smith. Updated 29 June 2010

Create a New InDesign Document

Either create a new InDesign document or open an existing document and navigate to a blank page orblank area of a page so that you can create a text frame.

How to Import and Layout Text in Adobe InDesign CS5 - 1

Change Type Preferences

The first step is to change a preference in InDesign CS3 that determines how InDesign handles placedWord and Excel file. Press Command+K (PC: Ctrl+K) to open Preferences, and click on the Typecategory on the left. Enable the option to Create Links When Placing Text and Spreadsheet Files.This will ensure that when a placed file is updated in Word or Excel, it will also update your InDesigndocument. There's a caveat to that with Excel files, but we'll discuss that later.

Create or Open a Word Document

You're going to need a Word file to follow along with in this part of the tutorial. The Word file we're goingto use as an example also uses style sheets in Word. This is not absolutely necessary, but if you setyour Word users up with a template it will help you going forward.


Create Text Frame for Headline

The next step will depend upon your layout needs. InDesign allows you to create frames first or createthem while placing your content. In this example, we want the article to go into a specific area of thepage, so let's create the frames first. Click with the Type tool (T) and drag out an area for yourheadline.

Create 3-Column Text Frame

Now that you have a headline frame created, create a three-column frame below it. To make threecolumns, select Text Frame Options under Object or simply press Ctrl+B. In the Text Frame Optionsdialog box that appears, type "3" into the Column Number. Then select your Text tool (T) and drawthe frame.


Link the Text Frames

Now that we have our headline frame created, let's create a linked three-column frame below it. Switchto your Selection tool (V) and click on the out port near the bottom right of the frame you created. Yourcursor will change into a placement icon and you can then drag out one large text frame below yourheadline frame. You can verify that the two frames are linked together by choosing Show Text Threadsfrom the View menu.


Place Text Cursor in First Frame

Now we're ready to place our Word document. Switch back to your Type tool and click inside the firstframe that you set up for your headline. A faster way to do that would be to double-click inside the firstframe with Selection tool. This will automatically switch you to the Type tool and place your cursor inthe frame. Choose Place from the File menu.


Activate Show Import Options

You can just choose your Word document in the Place dialog and click Open and the Word file will beplaced. All of the controls for how that Word file will be placed are in the Show Import Options sectionof the Place dialog. Select your Word document in the Place dialog, enable the Show Import Optionscheckbox, and click Open.


Choose Either to Preserve or Map Style Sheets

Most users will opt to Remove Styles and Formatting from Text and Tables. This means that thetext will come in with a default font that you can style in InDesign. However, if the person used stylesheets in Word and those style sheets match the same exact names as the ones in your InDesigndocument (yes, it's case sensitive), then your document will come in beautifully formatted. So if thatwere the case, you would choose Preserve Styles and Formatting from Text and Tables. If you areunsure of the styles used, choose Customize Style Import, and click the Style Mapping button.


Force Text to Second Frame

One side effect from placing this article is that the headline frame is too large. We could increase thesize of the headline or decrease the size of the frame, but let's say we want to keep everything thesame size and just force any text below the byline down to the next frame. Don't hit the Return (PC: Enter) key; there's a better option. Place your cursor after the last word you want to be in the headlineframe and choose Frame Break from the Type>Insert Break Character menu. This will forceeverything after the cursor to begin in the next frame.


Place Excel Table in InDesign

If your Word document contained a table, it would automatically be converted into an InDesign tableand placed with the rest of the text. For tables generated in Excel, the process is pretty much the same:Place your Excel document with the Show Import Options box checked in the Place dialog.

Choose Unformatted Table from the Table pop-up menu in the Formatting section and click OK.Because we didn't create a frame first, the table will be placed at the current cursor location, or you'llget the placement icon so that you can place the frame whenever you want.


Select the Entire Table

The table that you placed will be pretty plain. You can, of course, go through and change the fonts andeven use your style sheets for consistent formatting. However, remember the caveat we mentioned inStep 1? If you have a linked spreadsheet and someone makes changes to it in Excel, your InDesigntable will update, but you'll lose all custom formatting done in InDesign. To format all the text at once,switch to the Type tool and position it in the upper-left corner of the table until the icon changes to adiagonal arrow. Click to select the entire table.

Create Your Rows and Columns

Beyond simple text formatting, you can also change the fill color of the cells. My favorite method ofdoing this is to choose Alternating Fills from the Table>Table Options menu.


Choose Patterns

The resulting Table Options dialog allows you to choose a pattern for which rows or columns that youwant to fill. After selecting a pattern, choose your colors and click OK.

View Results

In this case, We have a dark text blending in with a dark fill. To fix this problem, we will need to changethe text color.


Change Text Color

To change the text color, highlight the rows that need to be changed and select the Color palette in theright toolbar. First, select the Text icon and then select the color you want for your text (in this case,white).

Remove the Strokes

Users often ask if you have to keep the visible lines/strokes separating the cells. The answer is no. Withthe entire table selected as we did in Step 2, you can choose 0 points for the stroke value in the Strokepalette.


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