Illustrator or InDesign for large Text Tables template?

[Dante501]

Hi All,

I am relatively new to Adobe CC.  I need to make a 4'x6' table for a group brainstorming session.  Am I best to create the table using Illustrator or InDesign?

Thanks kindly for your guidance!

don

[Kanikas]

Moving to Illustrator​

[Dante501]

Thank you for your reply; I apologize, could you clarify your comment please?

[Barb Binder]

Do you just need a big empty grid to fill in during the brainstorming session? In that case, Illustrator will be fine.

If you are creating a complex table with formatting, I'd encourage you to use InDesign.

[Dante501]

Hi Barb,

Thank you for the very quick reply; this is exactly the type of guidance I was seeking.

Your comments are good coaching that I should have been more clear.

The vertical and horizontal headers will contain a fair amount of formatted text whereas the body of the table will remain empty and be used to for brainstorming with Post It notes.  I do want the table to look professional and not like a huge excel table.

Could you confirm which tool you would recommend?

Again, thanks very much for making time to assist a newbie.

don.

[Barb Binder · Accepted solution]

The vertical and horizontal headers will contain a fair amount of formatted text whereas the body of the table will remain empty and be used to for brainstorming with Post It notes.  I do want the table to look professional and not like a huge excel table.

In that case, you could make it work with either program. Which program do you know better, and feel more comfortable using?

I tend to head to InDesign for tables because of its powerful table controls, but that might be overwhelming if you have not used InDesign before.

[Dante501]

Great, InDesign it is; thank you!!

[Barb Binder]

Great! If you get stuck, we can help you over here:

InDesign

[Dante501]

Dear Barb,

Thank you for the excellent advice.  I changed my mindset and decided to view the project as a learning opportunity rather than an intensely frustrating use of a new application.  To my surprise, it turned out well ... I used Acrobat Pro, Id and AI for various elements.  Gratitude.

I work primarily as a solo mobile researcher, not a designer.  I have to produce my own documents that involve text, graphics, images, tables, etc.  I work primarily in an Apple environment.  I find Word frustrating, limited and visually unrewarding.  I find Pages to be short on features.  When teaching, I use Keynote but need to get content ready.

Is InDesign and the cc Suite overkill for a non-designer?

Thank again for your guidance...so appreciative.

don.

[Barb Binder]

Hi Don:

Is InDesign and the cc Suite overkill for a non-designer?

No, not for what you are describing.

I have to produce my own documents that involve text, graphics, images, tables, etc.

Word was never intended for page layout. It began its life in the '80s as a DOS-based text editor, and added publishing features along the way. As a 30-year trainer on publishing applications, my observation is that you have to be really good at Word to lay out documents with text, graphics, tables, etc. if you want anything beyond a linear workflow (items flowing one under the other). The CC apps are designed to handle page layout and publishing tasks and they make it so easy (once you learn how to use them).

~Barb

[Dante501]

Barb - thank you for the extremely helpful background and your expert opinion - your reply is very insightful.  Gratitude.

don.