Participant

Question

InDesign multiple columns

Forum|Forum|16 years ago
September 26, 2009
3 replies
48841 views

If I was designing a page with multiple 2 or 3 columns....

the text I'm placing on that page will certainly be more than 1 column... is there a way or an option i need to click on so that when i place the text into the first column in will automatically fill in the other 2 columns until the text is all there? Also this question relates to place an image inside of the page with the wrap text option... i wanted it to automatically go to the next column if the image pushes the text further than the parameters of the text box.

thanx!!!!

Kathlene Sage

Known Participant

I'm not sure what I am missing, but please be nice if you need to explain it better to me.

The OP sounds (to me) like the pages are set up to columns and not necessarily the text frame. If he wants the text frame to be set up in columns, create, the text box, go under text frame options and set the columns up there.

Peter Spier

Community Expert

I agree that it sounds like the page is set up with multiple column guides. In that situation autoflow will always make multiple threaded frames that fit the column guides, not a single multi-column frame.

The only way to get the multi-column frame would be to create it on the master page, and that's a bad workflow, in my opinion, as it is much less flexible as far as flowing in existing pages and leads to issues with reapplied master text frames when pages swap sides in a spread. I'm not sure what you are missing, either...

Try some experiments with flowing a document long enough to fill a couple of pages. Use column guides and master page frames and see what happens. In particular, make a blank doc with two differernt master pages, one with a three-column frame and one with a two column frame, and pre-make a few blank pages, alternating the master once or twice, then auto-flow. Do the same, but remove the master text frames, and try again.

Kathlene Sage

Known Participant

........ I love experimenting........ I'll try your examples, but I have to admit that I am confused. I am not sure why i would ever make a master text frame unless I was certain it was the same in every page I create. My thinking has always been that If I want a three column text page, I set up a three column margin, and make a three column text frame. I've never had much to do with the master pages because I wouldn't want to have to override the master page items to put the text in nor for changes..... Sorry that I am obviously missing something but I'll try your suggestions and I am ever so geekishly anxious (she admits sheepishly) to find out what it is and learn something new. Thanks for the exercises.

Peter Spier

Community Expert

If you've already got three coulmns set up with guides you needn't do more than File > Place... (Ctrl [Cmd] + D) and hold the shift key while clicking the mouse in the first column. The first frame will begin where you click and extend to the bottom margin, and ID will automatically add frames in the next two columns, and even on additional pages if necessary, until the entire story is placed. You don't need an existing frame at all. Frames after the fist will all start at the top margin and run to the bottom.

If you want an image to move withthe text, you'll need to insert it as an anchored object. Text wrap on anchored objects only affects text following the anchor, however, so you need to be carful about where you add it.

Ther ae several oprions for putting two clumns onto a three-column layout. If you only need to do it once or twice you can make a two-column frame, or add soem ruler guides if you want to draw two independent one-column frame, but auto-flow does not recognize ruler guides. A better approach is probably to make a second master page withthe correct column layout. Select the new master page, the go to Layout > Margins and Columns... to adjust.

M

M_Jay_Victor

Participating Frequently

If you want it to auto flow that master, dont you have to go Layout>layout adjustment>Enable Layout Adjustment for that to work?

Peter Spier

Community Expert

M.Jay.Victor wrote:
If you want it to auto flow that master, dont you have to go Layout>layout adjustment>Enable Layout Adjustment for that to work?

I'm not sure I understand the question. Autoflow uses whatever is on the master page, and adds pages as necessary based on the master of the page with the last frame in a thread.

If you have multiple pages available with different column layouts (and don't use master text frames), auto flow will cheerfully use what's there. If you decide to change after flowing, enabling Layout Adjustment first will rearrange the number of columns.

The trick is to NOT use master text frames.

M

M_Jay_Victor

Participating Frequently

Put down your text box and hit control or apple "B" and set it to the right number of columns, or

Lay out three text boxes, then at the bottom right of the first one, click the little square. Then click the second text box and repeat for third.

M

M_Jay_Victor

Participating Frequently

Should have mentioned... go to view > show text threads to see the links it makes. Also if you by chance have to do this across multiple pages there are ways to do that too.

C

christinjonAuthor

Participant

M.Jay

If i have presetted my pages to be 3 columns... and want a particular spread within that doc to be 2 columns, how can I do that?

thanx

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