Threading Text Frames


Threading Text Frames

InDesign provides three options for threading (or linking) text frames: manual, semi-autoflow, and autoflow. Each has its own icon, as shown in Figure 16-7. The method you choose depends on how much text you're dealing with and the size and quantity of your text frames:


Figure 16-7: The loaded-text icon (left). There are two variants ‚ autoflow (center; hold the Shift key) and semi-autoflow (right; hold the Option or Alt key) ‚ that let text flow to other frames during import.
  • You might use the manual method, in which you click on the first text frame's out port and then on the second text frame, to link two text frames across several pages for an article continuation.

  • The semi-autoflow method, which allows you to click on a series of text frames to flow text, works well for linking a succession of text frames in something like a catalog layout.

  • The autoflow method adds text frames and pages as you import text and is intended for flowing long text files such as a book chapter or annual report.

Threading frames manually

To thread text frames manually, you simply use a selection tool to link out ports to in ports. You can pre-thread existing text frames by linking empty text frames, and add text later, or you can create threads from a text frame that contains text.

Tip ‚  

Linking manually from out port to in port works well for continuing a magazine article from one page to the next .

Note ‚  

Oddly, you cannot thread frames while the Type tool is selected, so remember to switch to a selection tool.

To thread text frames:

  1. Create a series of text frames through which you intend to flow text.

    You can also create empty frames of other shapes , and the frames do not need to be on the same page.

  2. Click either the Selection tool or the Direction Selection tool.

  3. Click the out port of the first text frame in the thread.

    The pointer becomes the loaded text icon.

  4. Click the in port of the second text frame in the thread.

    You can also click any empty frame or click and drag to draw a new text frame. How text flow behaves depends on the text frame's status:

    • If the first frame held no text, when text is later placed or typed into it, any text that does not fit that first text frame will flow into the second frame.

    • If the first frame held text but was not already linked to another text frame, any overset text will flow into the text frame.

    • If the first text frame was already linked to another text frame, the text will now be redirected to the text frame you just selected.

  5. Use the Pages pane to add or switch pages as necessary while you continue clicking out ports and in ports until your chain of threaded text frames is complete.

  6. When you're finished threading text frames, select another object on the page or another tool.

    When you import a story into any text frame in this chain, it will start in the upper-right corner of the first frame and flow through the frames in the same order as the threads.

    Tip ‚  

    To see text threads easily while threading across pages, change the document view to 20 percent or so.

    Note ‚  

    Text flows in the order in which you select frames. If you move a frame, its order in the text flow remains unchanged, so if you're not careful, you could, for example, accidentally have text flow from a frame at the top of the page to one at the bottom of a page and then to one in the middle of a page.

Threading frames semi-automatically

InDesign's semi-autoflow method of threading text frames varies only slightly from the manual method. Follow the same steps for threading text frames manually, except hold down the Option or Alt key each time you click in the next text frame. This lets you bypass the in ports and out ports and simply click from text frame to text frame to establish links. Note that if a text frame contains overset text, the text flows through the frames as you create the thread.

Tip ‚  

While first placing a word processing file, you can also Option+click or Alt+click in the first text frame to begin a semi-autoflow process.

Note ‚  

Remember to Option+click or Alt+click each text frame or you'll revert to manual threading.

Text frame anatomy

Before you start threading text frames, you need to understand what a text frame is trying to tell you about its text. To get the message, you need to select the text frames with one of the selection tools ‚ when the Type tool is selected, all you can see is overset text. The text frame provides the following indicators, as shown in the figure.

  • In port (empty): A small white square on the upper-left corner of a text frame is the in port, indicating where a story will enter the frame.

  • In port (with arrow): Within a chain of threaded text frames, the in port might contain a right- facing arrow indicating that the story is continuing into this frame.

  • Out port (empty): A small white square on the lower-right corner of a text frame is the out port, indicating that the story fits comfortably within the frame.

  • Out port (with arrow): Within a chain of threaded text frames, the out port might contain a right-facing arrow indicating that the story is continuing into another frame.

  • Out port (with plus sign): A small red plus sign in the out port indicates that more of the story exists than can fit in the text frame or chain of threaded text frames.

  • Threads: When you choose View Show Text Threads (or press Option+ z +Y or Ctrl+Alt+Y), you can view threads, or lines, indicating the direction in which frames are threaded. (To see multiple text chains, Shift+click to select text frames from different threads.)

In the small text frame containing the byline, you can see an empty in port (upper-left corner) and an empty out port (lower-right corner), indicating that the text fits comfortably in the box. The lower-right corner of the first text frame on the page displays an out port with an arrow, indicating that text is flowing to another box. A thread shows exactly where the text enters the next text frame at its in port, which contains another arrow. The lower-right corner of the last text frame shows overset text, indicating that all the text still doesn't fit.

 

Threading frames and adding pages automatically

The autoflow method for threading frames is what lets you flow a lengthy story quickly through a document. You can either autoflow text into the master text frame or into automatically created text frames that fit within the column guides. InDesign flows the text into any existing pages, then adds new pages based on the current master page. You can initiate autoflow before or after placing a word processing file.

Placing text while autoflowing

If you haven't imported text yet, you can place a file and have it automatically flow through the document. This method works well for flowing text into pages that are all formatted the same way, such as a book. Here's how it works:

  1. Confirm that the master page in use has a master text frame or appropriate column guides.

  2. With no text frames selected, choose File Place or press z +D or Ctrl+D.

  3. Locate and select a word processing file, then click Open .

  4. When the loaded text icon displays, Shift+click in the first column that will contain the text.

    InDesign adds all the necessary text frames and pages, and flows in the entire story.

Autoflowing after placing text

If you've already placed a text file into a single text frame or even a threaded chain of text frames, you can still autoflow text from the last text frame. To do this, click the overset icon in the out port, then Shift+click on any page to indicate where to start the autoflow.

Tip ‚  

You might use this method if you're placing the introduction to an article in a highly designed opener page, then flowing the rest of the article into standard pages.

Breaking and rerouting threads

After text frames are threaded, you have three options for changing the threads: You can break threads to stop text from flowing, insert a text frame into an existing chain of threaded text frames, and remove text frames from a thread.

  • To break the link between two text frames, double-click either an out port or an in port. The thread between the two text frames is removed and all text that had flowed from that point is sucked out of the subsequent text frames and stored as overset text.

  • To insert a text frame after a specific text frame in a chain, click its out port. Then, click and drag the loaded text icon to create a new text frame. That new frame is automatically threaded to the previous and next text frame.

  • To reroute text threads ‚ for example to drop the middle text frame from a chain of three ‚ click the text frame with the Selection tool and press Delete or Backspace. The text frame is deleted and the threads are rerouted. You can Shift+click to multiple-select text frames to remove as well. Note that you cannot reroute text threads without removing the text frames.




Adobe InDesign CS Bible
Adobe InDesign CS3 Bible
ISBN: 0470119381
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 344
Authors: Galen Gruman

flylib.com © 2008-2017.
If you may any questions please contact us: flylib@qtcs.net