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Chapter 2. Introducing InDesign CS5

In This Chapter

• Opening InDesign

• Creating new documents

• Looking at and setting up the workspace

• Creating your first publication

InDesign is a sophisticated page layout program. You can use it to create professional-looking documents, including newsletters, books, and magazines. You can also use it to create HTML pages and PDF documents that include interactivity or videos. InDesign has become a tool that lets you publish just about anywhere. For example, you can create a document that includes hyperlinks and video and export it to PDF, or you can export XML (Extensible Markup Language) from InDesign. You can even export XHTML and then import it into Dreamweaver to create Web pages.

As powerful an application as InDesign is, you'd think it would be difficult to use, but it isn't. This minibook shows you how to use InDesign to make creative page layouts. In this chapter, you discover the InDesign interface and start your first publication.

Getting Started with InDesign CS5

InDesign is used for creating page layouts that include type, graphics (such as fills and strokes), and images. The InDesign document you see in Figure 2-1 includes elements from Adobe Illustrator (logos) and Photoshop (images). If this file were to be exported as a PDF or HTML file, it could include video and even Flash files.

In the following sections, you get familiar with creating and opening documents in InDesign. In Chapters 3 through 9 in this minibook, you see how to add various ...