InDesign CC Tools—Windows
Selection tools
Selection tool
Selects, moves, resizes and transforms page items
• Shift: Adds or removes items from selection;
constrains proportions when resizing.
• Ctrl: Scales content along with container
frame.
• Alt: When dragging, copies the item; when
resizing, resizes from center of item.
• Ctrl+Alt: Selects items that are below other
items.
• Arrow keys: Nudges the selection. Press Shift
to nudge in larger increments.
• Double click in frame to select content or item
in a group, or switch to Text tool.
Selection tool
Direct
Selection tool
Page tool
Gap tool
Content
Collector
Direct Selection tool A
Adjusts points of a path, moves line segments,
direct-selects content in frames or within group
• Shift: Adds or removes path-points or group
objects from selection.
• Alt: Copies the selected line segment or directselected object.
• Arrow keys: Nudges the selection. Press Shift
to nudge in larger increments.
Page tool Shift+ P
Selects one or more pages, and changes Control
Panel to Page Selection mode
• Shift: Extends the range of pages selected.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Moves page independently of objects
when dragging a page. When dragging page
handles, adjusts the page size.
Gap tool U
Allows you to adjust the space between objects
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Shift: Adjusts two items opposite cursor.
Ctrl: Resize the gap instead of move it.
Alt: Move page items instead of resizing.
Arrow keys: Activates alternate gap,
such as switching horizontal and vertical
orientation.
B
Content Collector
Allows you to collect content from documents to
use on other pages or in other documents
• Click to collect one item at a time or drag a
marquee to collect several objects at once.
• Use the Content Placer tool to place the
collected content at the new destination. The
collected content remains available for as
long as the source document remains open.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
Selection Tool and Direct Selection Tool Control Panel
X and Y values of
reference point
Reference Point
Horizontal scale
Frame Width and Height
Vertical scale
Rotation angle
Shear angle
Rotation
direction
Flip horizontally Selection
or vertically
navigator
Frame border
weight and color
Text wrap
Auto fit content to
frame options
Content Collector Panel
Page Tool Control Panel
X and Y values to set
location of reference point
Reference Point to
place expanded page
Corner options
Effects
Fill and Stroke
Collected items
Standard page size
Width and Height of
new page
Interactivity options
Page orientation
Page options
Collection or
distribution
buttons
Distribution
methods
Navigation
Conveyer
collection
options
Drawing and type tools
Convert Direction Point tool Shift+ C
Allows you to change curve point to corner point
Line tool
Allows you to draw a line segment
• Shift: Constrains line to 45-degree angles.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Draws the shape from the center out.
Type tools
Line tool
Pen tool P
Allows you to draw straight and curved paths
Pen tools
Pencil tools
Frame tools
Shape tools
Type tool
T
Allows you to create text frames and select text
• Shift: Constrains aspect
ratio of a new text frame.
• Ctrl: Temporarily
switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Switches to Hand tool when editing text;
when creating a frame, draws from center out.
• Double-click in text to select a word; tripleclick to select a line; quadruple-click to select
paragraph; quintuple-click to select story.
Type on a Path tool
Shift+ T
Allows you to create and edit type on paths
• Click on a line or drawn shape to make the
object a path for type.
• To set the initial width of the type area, drag
when making an object into a path for type.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Switches to Hand tool.
• To close the shape, position the Pen tool over
the first anchor point on the shape and click.
• Press Enter to leave the path open.
• Shift: Constrains segment to 45-degree angles.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Switches to Convert Direction Point tool.
• Arrow keys: Nudge the last drawn point on
the path.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Copies the item and converts the point.
Pencil tool N
Allows you to draw a freeform path
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Before or after drawing, switches to
Smooth tool.
• Double-click on tool to set tool preferences.
Smooth tool
Allows you to remove excess angles from a path
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection
tool.
• Double-click on tool to set preferences.
Erase tool
Allows you to erase
points on a path
F
Frame tools
Allow you to create placeholders in various shapes
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•
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Shift: Constrains aspect ratio.
Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
Alt: Draws the shape from the center out.
Press Spacebar to move the
shape while it
is being created.
Shape tools M
Allow you to create placeholders in various shapes
• Shift: Constrains aspect ratio.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Draws the shape from the center out.
• Press Spacebar to
move the shape while
it is being created.
• Ctrl:
Temporarily
switches to Selection tool
• Alt: Switches to Smooth tool
Add Anchor Point tool
Allows you to add anchor points to a path
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Switches to Delete Anchor Point Tool.
Delete Anchor Point tool
Allows you to delete anchor points from a path
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Alt: Switches to Add Anchor Point Tool.
Character Control Panel
Character/
Paragraph toggle
Font Style
Font
Font size
Leading
Advanced Styles
Kerning
Vertical Scale
Horizontal Scale
Tracking
Baseline Shift
Skew
Character Style
Language
Paragraph Control Panel
Character/ Paragraph
toggle
Right Indent
Left Indent
First Line Left
Indent
Alignment and
Justification
Last Line Right
Indent
Space Before
Drop Cap
Number of Lines
Space After Bulleted List
Drop Cap
Characters
Paragraph Style
Baseline Grid
Alignment
Hyphenation
toggle
Paragraph Style
Override Cancelation
Numbered
List
Columns
Gutter
Span Columns
Horiz. Cursor
Position
Drawing Tools Control Panel
Fill and Stroke
Object Styles
Text Wrap
Line Weight and Color
Effects
Corner Options
Transformation tools
Scissors tool
Free Transform tool
Gradient Swatch tool
Gradient Feather tool
C
Scissors tool
Allows you to split a selected item in two
Rotate R
Allows you to rotate the frame around a reference
point
• Shift: Constrains transformation to 45-degree
increments
• Ctrl: Switches to Selection tool
• Alt: Relocates center of rotation and displays
Rotation dialog
• Ctrl: Switches to Selection tool
• Alt: Switches to Add Anchor Point tool
Scale S
Allows you to scale the frame from a reference point
Free Transform tool E
Allows you to scale, rotate or shear a page item
• Shift: Constrains aspect ratio
• Ctrl: Switches to Selection tool
• Alt: Relocates center of scaling and displays
Scale dialog
• Shift: Constrains ratio
• Ctrl: Scales container only, not content
• Alt: Transforms from center out
Gradient Feather tool Shift+ G
Applies or modifies a gradient feather effect for a
page item
Shear O
Allows you to shear a page item
• Shift: Constrains aspect ratio
• Ctrl: Switches to Selection tool
• Alt: Copies item while shearing
Gradient Swatch tool G
Applies/modifies a gradient swatch to a page item
• Click to set the origin, drag to set the direction
and the ramp.
• Shift: Constrains direction to 45-degree angle.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Double-click on tool to open Gradient panel.
• Click to set the origin, drag to set the direction
and the ramp.
• Shift: Constrains direction to 45-degree angle.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Double-click on tool to open Effects dialog.
Transformation Tools Control Panel
Line Weight and
Color
Fill and Stroke
Object Styles
Text Wrap
Effects
Corner Options
Note tool
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Measure tool
Hand tool
Zoom tool
• Ctrl: Switches to Type Tool.
• Alt: Switches to Hand Tool.
I
• Shift: Constrains panning either horizontally
or vertically.
• Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
• Double-click the tool to fit page in window.
• Hold down mouse button in the layout
window to zoom out and back in.
Z
Zoom tool
Changes the magnification of the page within the
layout window
• Shift: Samples or applies only the object’s
swatch
• Alt: Clears the current attributes
• Double-click on tool to open options
Menu bar view shortcuts
Quick Zoom
View Info panel to see the distance (D value)
Shift: Constrains to 45-degree angles
Ctrl: Switches to Selection tool
Alt: Changes tool to a protractor tool when
you position cursor over one end of a
measuring line
Hand tool
H
Pans the spread or page within the layout window
Note tool
Creates a non-printing note in text. View notes in
story window or in the Notes panel.
Eyedropper tool
Allows you to
sample color or
type attributes and
apply them to other
objects
Measure tool
K
Allows you to measure the distance from one item
to another
Screen Mode
View Options
Arrange
Documents
Quick Zoom
Allows you to quickly move from one preset zoom
level to another
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•
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•
Click to zoom in, or drag to zoom to area.
Ctrl: Temporarily switches to Selection tool.
Alt: Zooms out instead of in.
Double-click tool to view at 75%.
View Options
Allows you to toggle on and
off: frame edges, rulers, guides,
smart guides, the baseline grid,
and hidden characters such as
paragraph marks
Screen Mode
Allows you to view the document in
various ways
Arrange
Documents
Allows you to arrange the way you
view multiple documents at one
time, from tiling them in rows or
columns to showing them in a grid
Other tools
Stroke/Fill toggle
Container/Text toggle
Color/Gradient
application toggle
View toggle
Stroke/Fill toggle X
Allows you to toggle between the
stroke and fill functions; when in a
text frame, between text fill and stroke
• Icon in lower left changes colors
back to default
Color/Gradient Application toggle
Allows you to apply the last used color or gradient
to the selected item
View toggle W
Allows you to view different aspects of the
document
• Normal: Shows you the document with
guides and frames visible
• Preview: Hides
guides and frame
edges
• Bleed: Shows the
document with the
printer crop marks
and bleeds
• Slug: Shows the
non-printable part
of the document where you might include
notes for the printer
• Presentation: Shows the pages against
a black background, hiding the InDesign
workspace
Tips & Tricks
Zoom Tricks
• Power Zoom: Hold down the
Spacebar+Alt and scroll
• Press Ctrl++ to Zoom in
• Press Ctrl+- to Zoom out
• Fit on Screen: Double-click in Hand tool
• Zoom to 75%: Double-click in Zoom
tool
Text Tricks:
• Select text and press Shift+Ctrl+> (or <)
to increase or decrease selected text
• Select text and press Ctrl+Alt+> (or <)
to increase or decrease all text in text
frame
• With Selection tool, double-click on any
text frame handle to fit frame to content.
• With Selection tool, double-click on a
handle of any overset text frame to resize
the frame to include all the content (if
possible).
• Word count: Click in text frame and open
the Info panel
Workspace:
TAB + Ctrl to toggle between workspace
layouts
Stroke/Fill toggle:
X to switch stroke and fill
Panels:
TAB to show/hide all panels (including toolbar,
menu bar, and control panel)
F5 to show/hide Swatches panel
F6 to show/hide Color panel
F7 to show/hide Layer panel
F8 to show/hide Info panel
F10 to show/hide Stroke panel
F11 to show/hide Paragraph Styles
F12 to show/hide Pages panel
Selection Trick:
Ctrl + Alt to select items beneath other
frames
8/15/2014 2014©University of Notre Dame
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