Dear Team,I hope this message finds you well.I would like to bring to your kind attention some feedback regarding the latest update of Adobe InDesign (Version 20.3). Firstly, I am pleased to see that the new Math Expressions feature has been introduced — it is a wonderful addition, and I know many Adobe users, including myself, had been eagerly waiting for it. It is great that we no longer have to rely on third-party plugins for this functionality.However, I have observed a few issues that I would like to highlight for your consideration:When inserting a math expression, the application does not accept numbers typed using the numeric keypad (located on the right side of the keyboard).Currently, the inserted expression aligns with the baseline instead of the middle leading, which affects the overall appearance. Ideally, math expressions should align with the middle leading for better formatting.It would be beneficial to expand the range of available math expressions, as many other equation editors offer a wider set by default.Regarding graphics or shapes: when an image is inserted into the text, it also aligns with the baseline. This causes formatting challenges, which is one of the reasons many book publishers and media houses still prefer using Adobe PageMaker over InDesign.I hope you understand these concerns and consider addressing them in future updates. Having worked with Adobe products for over 15 years, I have several additional suggestions that could further enhance user experience. I would be happy to share them with you if you are interested.Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to your positive response.

Participant

Question

Feedback and Suggestions on Latest InDesign Update (Version 20.3)

Forum|Forum|11 months ago
April 26, 2025
3 replies
417 views

Dear Team,

I hope this message finds you well.

I would like to bring to your kind attention some feedback regarding the latest update of Adobe InDesign (Version 20.3). Firstly, I am pleased to see that the new Math Expressions feature has been introduced — it is a wonderful addition, and I know many Adobe users, including myself, had been eagerly waiting for it. It is great that we no longer have to rely on third-party plugins for this functionality.

However, I have observed a few issues that I would like to highlight for your consideration:

When inserting a math expression, the application does not accept numbers typed using the numeric keypad (located on the right side of the keyboard).
Currently, the inserted expression aligns with the baseline instead of the middle leading, which affects the overall appearance. Ideally, math expressions should align with the middle leading for better formatting.
It would be beneficial to expand the range of available math expressions, as many other equation editors offer a wider set by default.
Regarding graphics or shapes: when an image is inserted into the text, it also aligns with the baseline. This causes formatting challenges, which is one of the reasons many book publishers and media houses still prefer using Adobe PageMaker over InDesign.

I hope you understand these concerns and consider addressing them in future updates. Having worked with Adobe products for over 15 years, I have several additional suggestions that could further enhance user experience. I would be happy to share them with you if you are interested.

Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to your positive response.

Others

Robert at ID-Tasker

Legend

@Brain Mapping Academy

I haven't upgraded to 20.3 - but in 20.0 - there is a bug:

You need to prepare MathML in a specific way in order to get proper alignment.

Unfortunately, because of the "broken" scripting way to add equations - Equation object is always created outside of the text so it needs to be relocated back where it should be in the text - and there is no info in InDesign's equation object about baseline shift - correct baseline shift only works when equation is "inserted" manually.

I can easily import equations from WORD into InDesign - convert them to MathML in WORD, then convert this MathML to native Equation object in the InDesign - but baseline shift problem remains:

It's much easier when using MathType - you can import equations and they will be correctly positioned - but macros are broken - not working in WORD - so it can't be fully automated either - user would've to perform export to EPSs manually in WORD - I've contacted Wiris but they were not interested in helping me to solve the problem.

Then, unfortunately, EPS images representing equations inserted by MathType - if not exported first - are just vector images - without extra info about baseline shift.

I've tried a lot of different things - to modify Snippets and IDML - unfortunately, there is no way to "refresh" MathML object - like it can be done with QR codes.