Between Adobe and Microsoft, several programs are designed to, well, design. These programs allow the user to create templates, text, and images, for anything from letterheads to websites. They cover everything from the initial graphic concept to the actual publishing. The thing about these programs is that they are truly a good idea for anyone to learn, and yet they are each targeted toward specific industries. It is a good idea to learn programs like InDesign no matter what industry you are working in or planning on working in, because it removes any limits set against you. You have the ability to do everything yourself, saving time and money. You can do your own designing, your own marketing. You will stand out as uniquely valuable at any job interview because you can bring such productivity-enhancing skills to the table.
However, these programs are not just a good idea for some industries, they are necessary. Microsoft Project is extremely important for project managers to know. Adobe Dreamweaver is vital for web designers to know. Adobe InDesign falls somewhere between these industry-specific programs, and the programs that anyone can and should master. As The ACTS Learning Center owner Steven Patterson explains, InDesign has the same concept as Microsoft Publisher, but is a bit more technical. It is used to create logos, banners, letterheads, and layouts for articles, newsletters, brochures, posters, sings, magazines, and more. So, while InDesign is a great tool for any professional, it is especially vital for those going into the editorial industry. It is often listed as a requirement for these jobs, and if it isn’t, you definitely have a better shot if you can say you know this program.
InDesign is often learned in conjunction with programs like Photoshop and Illustrator because these all complement and complete an entire publishing process. This allows creation of images and graphics, manipulation, formatting, editing, and publishing. So, let’s say for example you are designing a layout for your magazine’s monthly feature. Using these programs, you can work with the photographs you choose, to manipulate and edit them to fit and look top notch. You can create and insert any other graphics. You can design the headline, and the byline, as well, choosing your own font, size, layout, etc. You can then lay out the actual body of the article and choose what will go where, if it will wrap around the images, and more. You can edit at any time, and publish. InDesign comes into play especially with all the text work, creating the headlines and any descriptions below, and then crafting the layout of the text itself. Learning the program gives you a better understanding of how to plan print work. What is easiest on the eye, most attractive, and most appealing? You can create and experiment with many different effects, and InDesign will help you structure these effects to adhere with the content and style of publication.
When going into an editorial career, it is important to know a program like InDesign, because crafting these layouts is much more complicated than creating a header with Word Art on Microsoft Word and choosing between one body or columns. You need to be able to incorporate pictures, graphics, captions, side tables, footnotes, and perhaps even advertisements. InDesign is like your editorial package deal for design and publishing, and especially when complemented by other programs like Publisher and Dreamweaver, can cover the entire process from initial idea to print.
