Software Spotlight

Adobe InCopy

If you write or edit copy for a designer using Adobe InDesign, you should definitely check out Adobe InCopy. Training Resources, LLC just finished writing an online tutorial for this program and it is now available at the Online University.

Many editors and wrtiers use a word processor, like Microsoft Word, for creating and editing copy — but with Adobe InCopy you can actually see the InDesign layout as you copyfit. This helps to reduce the back and forth between designer and editor resulting in a streamlined publication workflow process.

InCopy naturally has the traditional thesaurus, text macros, change tracking, spell checking and more. The new assignment feature allows the designer to divide the copy workload into color coordinated projects which are easily assigned to different team members and tracked. To learn more about InCopy's latest new features, try our new tutorial at the Online University.

Transistion from Microsoft Word

If you are switching to InCopy and have become comfortable with Microsoft Words’ keyboard shortcuts, you can choose to use those same shortcuts in InCopy. Just open up InCopy’s preferences and select ‘Shortcuts for MS Word’ in the ‘Keyboard Shortcuts’ window.

Auto-Correct Spaces

If you find yourself missing spaces (or adding too many) when you cut & paste text, InCopy (and InDesign) can fix this for you automatically. Just choose ‘Type’ from the preferences window and choose the options that you want in the ‘Type Options’ area of the preferences window.

Spell Checking Options

InCopy and InDesign have many spell checking abilities. Basic spell checking, dynamic (as you type) and you can even add words to your dictionary too!