Orlando InDesign User Group Home Meeting Summary Archive

Meeting Summary

Instant InDesign with Gabriel Powell
Wed, Mar 25th, 2009 at 6:00 PM
Winter Park Civic Center
Event Details

Wow! We were blessed to have Gabriel Powell, author of Instant InDesign: Designing Templates for Fast and Efficient Page Layout and Adobe Certified Instructor (http://www.instantindesign.com, Podcast: instantindesign.com, Learn Photoshop by video), to give so many great tips, tricks, and methods. He turned out to be a very step-by-step, easy to follow instructor. He helped us improve a long list of InDesign features, options, and tools to make design and projects work better and faster.

Review topics from Gabriel's book's table of contents, and purchase this rich resource book at http://www.peachpit.com/store/product.aspx?isbn=0321495713.
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Stump the Chumps
Ask Questions While You Eat, 6-7pm.

User Group members and our Adobe Certified Experts participated in a Q&A session called "Stump the Chumps" before the main meeting.

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Guest Speaker: Gabriel Powell

Q: What's the main difference between InDesign CS3 and CS4?
A: Cross references (text on other pages) & live preflight are two powerful ones.

CS3 Q: How do I delete old colors in styles in new file?
(i.e.: Pantone spot colors - load styles)
A: If there is a graphic using that palette or color you can't delete.
Double-click, convert to CMYK Process, then try to delete.
Also, try InDesignSecrets.com Search for "delete spot or Pantone color."

Q: Where are the icons from CS2 to fit to content?
A: Object menu > Fitting

Q: With two lines of text is it possible to add a different style to each line?
A: Show hidden characters > use Shift+Return to create a forced line break. You must have a Paragraph break to use this feature. Make 2 separate paragraphs of these two lines of text by returning after the first line. In Paragraph styles, make a separate style for each line (paragraph).

Building a Great InDesign Template
Gabriel started off with defining a template as a preset document with the various element that make up a design to serve as a starting point as a great design that also facilitates speed, consistency and efficiency.

He covered a lot of material, including Page Framework, Master Pages, Type and Graphic Specs, Style Sheets, Nested Line Styles, Layers, Anchored Objects, Object Libraries, TOC, Custom User dictionaries, Style Guides.

InDesign CS4: double-click bottom middle and it resizes frame.
Drag guides to visually mark layout to save time later.
Tab key hides and unhides palettes.
The letter "O" in wingdings font creates a check box.
Hover over text to see which overrides are present on any style with a + sign in the Styles box.
Character Styles always override Paragraph styles.

Step-by-Step Guide to Designing InDesign Templates
Peachpit Website
http://www.peachpit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=1181454&seqNum=1

Seven Principles of Great Template Design
Instant InDesign Website
http://www.instantindesign.com/index.php?view=389

Adobepress.com
Peachpit.com
Lynda.com - great place for tutorials

Thanks so much to Gabriel! Great Job.

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Prizes: Please remember our vendors, review software and books.

Grand prize- InDesign Software: Josh Furman

Books
• The Adobe Photoshop CS4 Layers Book by Richard Lynch: Terry Newby
• Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Photographers:
• The Ultimate Workshop by Evening & Schewe: Larry Poliner
• Creative Suite 3 Integration by Keith Martin: Bill Ploss
• Photoshop CS4 Essential Skills by Mark Galer: Agi Bussanich
• Color: Messages and Meaning: James Elban
• Photoshop CS4 The Missing Manual
by Lesa Snider King: Jennifer Eubank
• Commercial Photoshop Retouching in the Studio
by Glenn Honiball: Johnny Strohl
• iPod shuffle and T-Shirts from Max Your Mac
http://www.maxyourmac.com

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Housekeeping

Macintosh Users Group
We are invited to attend Macintosh Users Group of Orlando (MUGOO) to find out great tips, tricks, applications to make Mac Life even more exciting.
http://www.flmug.org/ (2nd Thursday of each month MUGOO meetings)

Raffle Tickets (see prize winners list below)
3 raffle tickets for $10, 8 tickets for $20, 15 tickets for $30;
Students with ID: 1 ticket for $5.
Raffle tickets are sold to pay for our wonderful Winter Park Civic Center Room
($300 per night), speaker expenses, pizza, desserts, utensils. Many thanks to
Kristen Braswell (the Prize Diva) for finding GREAT prizes every meeting: if you
have contributions or ideas contact: Kristen: kbraswell@watg.com

iPHone User Group meets 3rd Thursday at Panera Bread on University,
just down from UCF entrance and short distance from 417 Expressway.

Thank you

A special thank you to Mark Poulalion for taking the photos, Faith Amon for helping with the auction, setup, and registration, Kristen Braswell for her help with prizes, and Susan Pfeil for setup and cleanup.

Many thanks to Sponsors:

Camp Software Filemaker Pro experts and developers http://www.campsoftware.com

Thank you Max Your Macs, one of our newest sponsors. Please support their services.

Sponsor leads contact: Faith Amon: faith@frecklefootcreative.com

Thanks as always to our location and communication sponsors.

We appreciate everyone who attended! Tell your friends they can join us, too!

Job Opportunities

Aquent has several local opportunities posted online:
http://jobs.aquent.com/myaquent?APROC=AWUISubmitAdvancedJobSearch

Upcoming Industry Events

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Hands-on Workshop: UCF Computer Lab
Adobe Illustrator Essentials & Beyond (applies to AI: CS, CS2, CS3, CS4)

Adobe Certified Instructor, Douglas Mitchell, 407.616.0854 (call with any questions, please)
Saturday, April 18, 2009, 9am - 4:30pm for $79 at UCF Downtown
36 West Pine Street (behind Church Street Station).
Register/confirm: doug@trainingbrain.com
Download Free Workbook: http://www.trainingbrain.com
Payment: $79 check or cash (at door on 4/18)
Lunch: one hour (many shops within walking distance, including Subway)

Illustrator Class Topics
- Determine key preferences for ease and control
- Set up panels, tools, and interface
- Learn to view, zoom, and move artwork for accurate drawing
- Learn artwork construction using paths, anchor points, stroke, and fill
- Select all or parts of artwork using different selection tools
- Use Copy and Paste Identical, Stacking Order, Layers Organization
- Create infinite color schemes using Color Guide
- Create artwork using gradients and Gradient Mesh
- Create artistic type for Illustrator and Photoshop
- Create artwork using the Pen tool with Bezier curves
- Create artwork using shape tools and the Symbols library
- Create artwork using the Graphic Styles library, the Brushes library, and the Gradient Mesh tool
- Create artwork automatically using Live Trace
- Create artwork using Effects filters
- Combine artwork using Illustrator and Photoshop
- Troubleshoot artwork for printing problems
- Create artwork using Effects filters
- Combine artwork using Illustrator and Photoshop
- Troubleshoot artwork for printing problems

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XML Hands On Workshop with Author Jim Maivald
Saturday, May 30, 2009
8:45am - 4:30pm
International Academy of Design & Technology
5959 Lake Ellenor
Room 114
Orlando FL 32809
Main number: (407) 888-4006
Directions: I-4 to exit S. Orange Blossom Trail (south). Drive approx 4 miles to W. Oak Ridge Road, turn right. One block down, on the left side.

This seminar is being held especially for IDUG members. You can participate for only $89; if you want to bring your own laptop, the cost is only $79. Normally, this seminar costs over $300 per day.

Space is limited, so register as soon as you can at: http://www.xmlfordesigners.com

Comments from attendees

"Very thorough...explanations on Style Sheets, Objects, etc. were great & simple to understand."

"Great presenter, clear and concise, learned a lot."

Incredibly knowledgeable template designer."

"Venue is great! Topic was helpful for my current job. I will be attending more and more meetings."

"Gabriel is an excellent presenter. Great pacing, excellent balance of meticulous description and thoughtful explanation. Please bring him back again."

"Gabriel was fantastic at exploring in detail but easily understood by everyone. He showed great ways to help enhance the workflow."

"This presenter is absolutely ideal as a guest speaker. He knows his material and knows how to teach...This was a great evening of instruction. Thank you."

"Speaker organized - material very relevant to my projects. Pace of presentation very good; I could follow and understand the presentation. Meeting area very good; you can see & hear the program."

"Gabriel's teaching style is very easy to follow. I learned a lot! The "buffet" was over the top."

Next Meeting

XML - Automating Print and Web Workflows with James Maivald (author of "Cooking with XML")
Wednesday, May 27, 2009, 6:00 PM
Winter Park Civic Center
1050 Morse Blvd.
Winter Park, FL 32789

(Please note the related hands-on XML workshop on Sat., May 30 -- see "Industry Events" above.)

XML is everywhere today. It’s on the Web; it’s used in print; it’s even on your cell phone! Yet chances are that although you see it on almost a daily basis, you probably don’t know what it is.

XML is a tagging language—similar to HTML—developed to enable users to identify and publish data quickly and across various media. In fact, more and more companies are discovering the power and flexibility of XML in hundreds of different applications from print to Web and beyond. For example:

· Insurance companies are using XML to produce customized booklets and other documentation for their customers.

· Book publishers are using XML to transfer their paper-based libraries
to electronic formats.

· Magazines and newspapers are using XML to help move their news, sports and features to Web-based content management systems.

· Restaurants are using XML to generate menus and advertisements from spreadsheets and databases.

· Manufacturers are using XML to maintain and manage part inventories for daily operations.

· Developers are using XML to move Web content to print easily and efficiently, and

· Designers are using XML to create catalogs, price lists and instant business identities!

Adobe InDesign has some of the most powerful XML features of any page layout program, right out of the box. Combine XML data and the layout and presentation control of Adobe InDesign software and you create a powerful automated publishing workflow. With its rich scripting support and flexible XML options, InDesign provides an incredible foundation that meets or exceeds your publishing requirements.

But XML is not easy to learn on your own; its arcane syntax and convoluted structure can be difficult to decipher for the average designer. Fortunately, we are hosting one of the foremost experts on XML and InDesign at the May 27th IDUG meeting!

Jim Maivald is the author of A Designer’s Guide to Adobe InDesign and XML (Adobe Press, 2008). Jim is a graphic designer and an Adobe-certified Expert in InDesign. He is a regular speaker at national conferences and workshops on XML and other topics.

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Meeting Dates for 2009 - Wednesdays - We Have A Super Speaker Lineup!
May 27th, 2009
July 22nd, 2009 (July may change to Friday July 24th)
September 23rd, 2009
November 18th, 2009

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We look forward to seeing you at our next meeting.
Thank you for all your support,
Edward Feldman, Orlando Chapter Representative and Founder
and The Creative Suite User Group, Leadership Committee
Douglas Mitchell, Faith Amon, Kristan Braswell, Laura Liu, Ana McCambridge, Mark Poulalion, Fabian Quintero and Cameron Thorp

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Attached File/s

• Building_a_Template_Slides.pdf  -  Delete...

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