ID 2021 does not work with Mac OS Spaces – very long delays when re-wrapping paragraphs

[christianwoehrl]

Using ID 2021 on Mac Mini (2018) 6-core i7 under Catalina 10.15.7

1)

After repeatedly being unable to save an edited ID document or place text or other assets and having to kill the application, I found that I always get these problems when using the Mac desktop organizer "Spaces". Once I push the InDesign app onto any other than the default desktop (regardless if there’s a document open or not), all the program’s feedback windows (like when I want to place something) will still open on the default desktop, which is quite a nuisance.

2)

I routinely produce long print books (upwards of 800p). Just like any prior iteration of Indesign I used later than CS6, 2021 isn’t exactly suited for these tasks, as it often takes minutes to update the text flow after I made edits that affect following pages, while sometimes I even have to restart the program to get reliable page previews again. When thinking back to doing the same with ID CS6 on a Core2Duo, that task was usually done VERY much quicker.

(I actually kept this machine until today, for all my solo work that does not require the latest format for interchangeability, because basic typesetting work is, in all, much more reliable than with the CC versions.)

[Steve Werner]

You said you're using a Mac Mini and you told us the processor but not how much RAM you have installed. I suspect that if you're composing 800 page books that RAM might be the limitation.

My experience as a Mac user since the beginning of macOS X, and talking to lots of users, is that very few of them use the Spaces feature. I don't use it and I don't know anyone who does. But I don't see how that would affect text composition. (That's probably why no one else has responded to your quesiton.)

[christianwoehrl]

Hi Steve,

thanks for the reply and sorry for not making this clear enough: my Spaces grievance and the text wrapping effect are probably two different problems. (Guess I should‘ve opened two separate threads? New here…)

RAM is 32 GB and I usually make sure not to have more programs open than absolutely necessary for text composition work. (A text editor or PDF viewer, a browser with two or three research tabs, NO image editor, not even mail.) Plus, my books are mostly plain text, no colour, no images nor huge tables, half a dozen paragraph/character styles. Nothing too heavy, I’d guess, as I did this for years, and much smoother, back then on CS6 and the old computer with half the CPU power and RAM I have now. (And long delays when rewrapping even occur in 300 page documents.)

I do find Spaces quite convenient for arranging my layout, text editor and/or PDF apps in their respective optimal size and without distraction while making sure that even when switching between the apps, there‘ll never be a Finder window blocking my workspace view. And this Spaces effect always occurs, even with small layouts of two pages. But that‘s obviously the lesser problem as I could get used to using ID on the default desktop only and shift the rest to other areas.

The rewrapping thing is worse, as having to restart ID multiple times per hour just to achieve a correct view of my text badly affects my working rhythm, and I can't see what else I can do to avoid this. Neither is this an effect exclusive to ID 2021 as I said above, but in my observation, the program’s suitability for basic (though heavy-duty) typesetting work keeps degrading for years now, and I’d really appreciate just a bit more focus to the basics.

Best regards 

ChW

[christianwoehrl]

Some off-topic conclusion:

Starting this one thread and writing one answer resulted in three e-mails congratulating me on achieving a new rank and two badges. Maybe it’s just me but I find this gamification stuff childish, bordering on offensive, as I’d much rather be treated as a grown-up by the algorithms as well – especially in an environment where we’re presumably talking pro topics. So I won’t follow this any longer, nor will I engage in other discussions here as long as I can avoid it.

Best regards

ChW

[Srishti Bali]

We have raised this issue with the team and they're looking into it.

[Srishti Bali]

Hi there,

Sorry about this trouble. I am hopeful that the issue was fixed by now. If not, please try the suggestions shared on this page ( https://community.adobe.com/t5/indesign/resolve-slow-performance-and-unexpected-behavior-of-indesign... ) and let us know how it goes. 

Feel free to let us know if you still need assistance. We'd be happy to help.

Regards,

Srishti