Adobe’s Indesign 1.5 for Mac and Windows

Adobe’s page layout program, InDesign, has been recently updated to version 1.5 seven months after it was first released.

New features include QuarkExpress-like text on a path. Text is now bound to a path with three movable "brackets" for positioning type precisely along the path.

Adobe shipped InDesign 1.0 with instructions to leave the trapping to the RIP (but that approach had few takers). Version 1.5 now offers built-in trapping, an improved feature over version 1.0 but still lacks object-level trapping. However, trap settings can be adjusted on a page-by-page level. Styles offer the convenient ability to store groups of trap settings for use with different presses or different page ranges.

The maze of options in the Print dialog box remains but new print styles allow you to save your settings for future use. InDesign 1.5 supports drag-and-drop for colour swatches. The Distribute feature is an add-on. New features include a snazzy vertical justification feature to increase leading and add space between paragraphs, and a tool to manage all the Adobe and third-party plug-ins on which InDesign relies. Also includes a spine indicator in the Pages palette, a column break special character and customisable line styles.

For those using page layout application to do illustration, some new text features from Illustrator such as Rainbow, Skew and 3D Ribbon, drawing tools–Pencil, Smooth and Erase are included. You can also draw shapes from the centre out by pressing Option/Alt.

Although InDesign 1.5 is speedier than version 1.0, it still lacks a Story Editor, long document features and an interface with too many steps in as many dialog boxes and palettes. The main reason seems that Adobe wants to win over QuarkXPress users. It remains to be seen who wins the battle.