Exciting Updates in Adobe InDesign 2024

🎨 Introduction to Adobe InDesign 2024

Adobe InDesign 2024 is here, bringing a slew of updates that promise to enhance your design process. Whether you are a seasoned pro or just starting, these updates could significantly impact your workflow.

In this blog, I'll walk you through the six major updates announced at the Adobe Max conference this month. Let's dive in!

📦 Style Packs

First off, let's discuss the Style Packs. Although they are being highlighted in the 2024 update, Style Packs are not exactly new. They were introduced last year. If you navigate to Window and then Styles, you'll find Style Packs.

Style Packs offer pre-designed style options for your projects. However, I find them somewhat lacking in aesthetic appeal. You can also create your own Style Packs, which provides more customization.

While this isn't a groundbreaking feature, it might still be useful for those who haven't explored it yet.

👁️ Hide Spreads

One of the more intriguing updates is the ability to hide spreads. A spread can be a single page, a two-page spread, or even a three-page spread. This feature allows you to hide specific spreads within your document.

Here's how it works:

• Select the spread

• Right-click and choose "Hide Spread"

• Hidden spreads won't be exported

This can be particularly useful for planner designers who want to experiment with different layouts or covers within a single file.

📝 Suffixes for JPEG and PNG Exports

Next up is the ability to add suffixes to your JPEG and PNG exports. This feature is activated when you choose either JPEG or PNG upon exporting your file.

The suffix options include:

• Page size

• Page number

• Incremental numbers

For example, if you choose "Page size," your exported file might be named something like file_24x39.jpg. This feature can help you keep track of different versions and sizes of your designs.

📊 Analytics for Publish Online

Publishing your InDesign documents online just got smarter with the new Analytics option. This feature allows you to integrate Google Analytics directly into your online publications.

Here's how to do it:

• Go to File

• Choose "Publish Online"

• Navigate to the third tab

• Add your Google Analytics Measurement ID

This feature is particularly useful for tracking the performance of your online publications. Note that it requires the new Google Analytics 4 (G4) ID.

🔤 HarfBuzz Integration

Another update is the HarfBuzz integration for glyphs. This feature aims to improve the readability of complex scripts such as Hebrew, Arabic, Indic, and Latin scripts.

Although HarfBuzz has been around since 2020, it appears that this update makes it more widely available. This is excellent news for designers working with multilingual projects.

📜 UXP JavaScript Plugin

The final update is the replacement of CEP with UXP. This change was initially announced back in 2019 or 2020, but it's now fully integrated into InDesign 2024.

UXP stands for Unified Extensibility Platform, and it's essentially a JavaScript plugin. This update aims to streamline the plugin development process, making it easier for developers to create and manage plugins.

🎉 Conclusion

That's a wrap on the six major updates in Adobe InDesign 2024. While some of these features may not be groundbreaking, they still offer valuable tools that can enhance your design process.

As a planner designer, these updates might not drastically change your workflow, but they are worth exploring. Remember, there's always more to learn with Adobe InDesign, and these updates are just the tip of the iceberg.

If you're new to InDesign or looking to brush up on your skills, I highly recommend signing up for my free 5-day Adobe InDesign 101 course. The link is below.

Have a fabulous day and happy designing!