Training in InDesign CS4 - New Features

Course Outline:

First project:
Create a dynamic SWF (Flash) presentation of your design concept for client review- The enhanced user interface and new interactive tools and panels in InDesign CS4 allow you to design and export interactive SWF files without needing to learn Flash authoring.

Explore the new interface- Work smoothly and swiftly within InDesign using several elegant interface enhancements that make it easy to operate among multiple InDesign documents at once.

Add interactive buttons- Create button appearance states and specify button actions more easily than ever with the new Buttons panel and Sample Buttons library.

Set up and test hyperlinks- Build hyperlinks that quickly navigate to external URLs, launch an e-mail client, or jump to a section within the same or even a different document with the enhanced Hyperlinks panel. Verify hyperlinks directly in InDesign.

Create animated page transitions- Choose from a rich set of page transitions that include curl, wipe, dissolve, fade, and many more. Preview transitions as Flash animations in InDesign, and use the new Page Transitions panel to customize and apply them.

Export the layout to SWF- Deliver high-impact, interactive SWF files directly from InDesign via the Export To SWF dialog box.

Second project:
Develop and finalize page designs for the first issue of (the fictional) check Magazine- Discover how customer-inspired enhancements to your everyday page layout toolset and new support for long document and multi-channel publishing make page design and production easier than ever in InDesign CS4.

Move and transform objects smoothly with smart Guides- Quickly align, space, rotate, and resize multiple objects in the layout using fewer steps, and without the need to open a panel or menu.

Discover the enhanced and customizable Links panel- Go way beyond filenames and update status in the completely redesigned Links panel, which can now list metadata and attributes of each linked asset right in the panel view- you decide which ones.

Rotate spreads onscreen- Easily edit rotated text with new spread rotation.

Edit tables more effectively- Use the Story Editor to edit text in tables without the distraction of formatting, and to copyfit overset table cells instead of changing table geometry. Add inline notes to tables to collaborate more effectively.

Add cross-references to streamline page layout and production- Rely on dynamically updated cross-references to make long document production more efficient and improve technical accuracy.

Use conditional text to create unique content for different audiences- Quickly deliver multiple versions of a single document for different users and channels by creating and applying conditions to text content. Turn conditions on and off to control the visibility of conditional text within a text flow.

Nip production problems in the bud with Live Preflight- Use the new Live Preflight panel, status bar, and custom preflight profiles to alert you to potential production problems in real time, directly within your layout.

Third project:
Create a rich interactive version of the magazine using InDesign and Flash cs4 Professional- Combine the page layout strengths of InDesign with the power of Flash authoring to create rich, interactive documents.

Design for Flash playback in InDesign- Leverage your skills and familiarity with the powerful typography and page design capabilities of InDesign to create layouts designed with Flash playback in mind.

Export the layout to the new XFL interchange format- Scale page elements to fit browser windows and choose text and graphic conversion options in a simple dialog box.

Open and edit the XFL file in Flash CS4- Maintain visual fidelity to the original layout pages and edit text and graphics in Flash CS4 Professional.