Indesign Limiting Rounded Corner Options

[bobdlee84]

Hi everyone,

In Indesign, I often like to make a rectangle and then round the corners in so that it looks like a nice little capsule or what have you.

For some reason, Indesign is now limiting the amount of rounding that I am able to do. I can no longer make my perfectly rounded little capsules.

To make matters weirder, the rounded corner option seems to be the only option that is limited.

Any ideas of what's gone wrong?

Thanks for your help!

[Barb Binder]

CC 2017?

How are you rounding the corners? With the yellow widget or with Object > Corner Options? They both work the same for me as in earlier versions.

[bobdlee84]

It's CC 2015.3. I'm using object > corner options, but the little yellow widgets are limited in the same way.

Maybe I should update the application?

[Barb Binder · Accepted solution]

I didn't have any issues on 2015.3, so I'm not sure what is limiting them. Is it the size of the object? Is it tiny?

Resetting preferences may be the way out. Or just closing and restarting.

If you are going to upgrade, take a minute to read this, and leave 2015 installed, on the off chance 2017 brings new bigger issues:

https://www.rockymountaintraining.com/adobe-creative-cloud-not-working-upgrade/

[bobdlee84]

I think you've hit on the problem. Larger objects seem to handle the corners just fine. I guess I'll have to round the corners with anchor points.

Thanks for your help!

[bobdlee84]

Here's what I ended up doing: I made my tiny rounded rectangle in Illustrator, then copied and pasted it into ID.

[Barb Binder]

So smart!

[Pu Koh]

but not so helpful if you want to be a live text box that you can resize easily.

[jlcpu]

I'm seeing something like this in InDesign 14.0.3, updated recently. Pretty sure that prior to this update, I could round corners until 50% rounded, so they look like capsules, similar to the buttons currently used on Adobe's site. Now, regardless of size, I can get close but not completely rounded. A square should be able to be rounded until it looks just like a circle.

[DippityDooDom]

I'm having htis same issue, as I adjust the corner size, it starts looking like it'll work, until I get about halfway to a circle, then one carner starts taking over. The Corner Options menu only allows me to change the top left corner. My boxes are about a square inch, so I don't think it's too small.

I have no idea how to solve this, but I expected it has something to do with my boxes not being closed objects, the lines contines past the corner (I'm trying to nake swirls on a line). But then I tried drawing a closed box (with the pen tool) and I'm still getting the same problem.

I'm using the fully updated 16.1

[jlcpu]

I just updated to 16.2.1, Mac, and I can create a closed box with the pen tool, and give it rounded corners which reach each other, therefore giving it a continuous curve. (And it solves the issue I was seeing previously)

But experimenting with an open path, I see what you're talking about — that's really a separate question.

I don't think you'll be able to achieve your goals using rounded corners. You'll need to create actual bezier curves. You can do that in InDesign, but might find Illustrator more flexible for the drawing part. You can always copy an object from Illustrator and paste into InDesign, usually with pretty good results. Good luck!

[Laubender]

Hi DominicG21,

this thread started in November 2016.

In the last 4 to five years not much changed with the Rounded Corners feature.

But there is one very important thing that changed when InDesign 2020 was released:

The shape of a rounded corner on a rectangle with the same values in x- and y-direction is now the same as you will draw it with the oval tool and then create quarter circles.

All that said: Can you show a screenshot what is not working?

Maybe you are used to the pre-2020 versions of InDesign?

Maybe something has changed or is broken? Maybe there are other factors that are involved?

What is the limit you see?

I can make a "perfect circle"* out of a square if I set the values for rounded corners to the half of its height for example.

With InDesign 2020 and 2021 version 16.2.1.102. I cannot do this with InDesign 2019 or previous versions:

* "perfect circle" in the sense that it matches perfectly a circular object done with InDesign's Oval tool.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[DippityDooDom]

It definitely does not work with open squares created with the pen tool (it also doesn't allow for selecting single corners)

It works if it's a square created from the Rectangle Tool...

But not for (closed) squares created with the pen tool

[Laubender]

Hi Dominik,

when drawing a perfect square with the Pen tool make sure that its path is closed.

Only then Rounded Corners will offer 4 values for the corners.

Workaround: Convert the polygon to a rectangle.

A fast way to convert a polygon, closed path or not, to a rectangle is:

Object > Convert Shape > Rectangle

Now, the important thing is:

If your value for the rounded corner exceeds the value of height / 2 or width / 2 the Rounded Corner options will fail as in your screenshot.

See this sample where I used some guides to get my square perfectly right, one open polygon:

Rounded corners applied, value is 3 mm:

It will get it wrong if I want a corner size that is "impossible" on a small object like that.

Let's test it with 10 mm:

One could debate now why InDesign let me input a value that leads to that strange result…

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )