Tips & Techniques is a PDF digest of software tips and techniques that we send occasionally to clients, prospects, and friends. Contact us if you would like to be notified via email when a new issue is available.

See the Tips & Techniques blog for many more design & production tips!

January 2008 Tips & Techniques
View spreads in Acrobat 8 • Adobe Swatch Exchange (ASE) files • Deleting Preference files• An Adobe and industry timeline • New Microsoft fonts.

January 2007 Tips & Techniques
The fine points of InDesign's Rectangle tools • Making InDesign's Pages palette more efficient • A plug-in for converting Quark files to InDesign • A Web site for background textures • A cool Web site for creating color swatches • How to view proper spreads in Acrobat 8 • Beta software that claims to convert PDF files into editable InDesign files • How to automatically log all the edits you make to a photo.

April 2006 Tips & Techniques
How to use Snippets in InDesign CS2 • Creating PDF Presentations in Photoshop CS and CS2 • Resources at Adobe Studio • Scroll wheel shortcuts • Using Isolated Groups to crop images in Illustrator.

November 2005 Tips & Techniques
Viewing exact ink percentages in InDesign and Quark • Adobe Blogs • A free InDesign plug-in • Using layers to lock objects in InDesign and Quark • Moving objects to locked layers in InDesign • Photoshop's Filter>Extract command.

June 2005 Tips & Techniques
Master page tips for InDesign • Text cleaning utility • Creating text wraps properly in InDesign • Creating attractive stroked text easily in Ilustrator • Digging through stacked objects in Quark and InDesign • Fixing damaged InDesign files.

March 2005 Tips & Techniques
Opening Quark6 files with InDesign • InDesign's hidden diagnostic dialog box • How to print a selected portion of a page in Acrobat • Modify keyboard shortcuts for multiple Undoes in Photoshop • Copy/Paste preferences between Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign • How to quickly switch between curled and straight quotes in InDesign.

December 2004 Tips & Techniques
Using "scrubby sliders" in Photoshop • How to quickly switch between open windows of an application in Mac OS X • Creating two-page spreads in Quark and InDesign • Duplicating pages in InDesign • Nudging page items in Quark, InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop • A neat typography Web site • How to print the contents of a folder in Mac OS X.

May 2003 Tips & Techniques
Creating hanging indents in Quark and InDesign • Using Acrobat's Fields palette • Shortcuts for deleting text in InDesign and Word • Interchanging fill and stroke colors of an object with InDesign and Illustrator • An Illustrator trick for creating type outlines • A great Web site for some free vector artwork.

April 2003 Tips & Techniques
Adding tab character shortcuts to InDesign • A free preflight utility • Controlling copy and paste behavior between Illustrator and Photoshop • Quick navigation in Acrobat • Ruler guide tricks in Quark and InDesign • A free GoLive book • Zoom shortcuts in Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop, and PageMaker • Creating small files in Acrobat, InDesign, and PageMaker.

January 2003 Tips & Techniques
Selecting all the text from the cursor to the end of a story in InDesign and Quark • Using the crop tool to increase the canvas size in Photoshop • Brush shortcuts in Photoshop • Controlling raster effect resolution in Illustrator • Removing fonts in Suitcase.

October 2002 Tips & Techniques
Adjusting word spacing to help with copyfitting in InDesign & Quark • Deleting layers in Photoshop • Using "Document Compare" in Acrobat • Entering "dingbat" characters in InDesign.

July 2002 Tips & Techniques
The best ways to save Illustrator graphics • Layers palette changes in Photoshop 7 • Forcing styles in QuarkXPress • Selecting all ruler guides in InDesign • Using the cursor keys in InDesign, Illustrator, and PageMaker.

February 2002 Tips & Techniques
Forcing text to jump to the next column or box in Quark • Precise guide positioning in Photoshop • Quick measurement unit changes in InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop • Selecting overlapping objects in InDesign and PageMaker • Using printer styles in InDesign, PageMaker, and Quark.

December 2001 Tips & Techniques
Selecting all text to the end of the story in Quark • Multiple undoes from the keyboard in Photoshop • Stripping out local formatting while applying styles in InDesign • Printing full size pages in Acrobat • Font identification Web site

October 2001 Tips & Techniques
Using nonbreaking spaces in InDesign, Quark, and PageMaker • Quick painting and erasing in Photoshop • Online reference works • Printing noncontiguous pages in Acrobat • Illustrator type tool trick

August 2001 Tips & Techniques
Using right-align tabs in InDesign and Quark • Improving the appearance of vector artwork in PDF files • Creating high-res text in Photoshop • Hiding the text selection in Photoshop • Selection tool shortcut in Illustrator and InDesign • Removing unnecessary elements from Illustrator files

April 2001 Tips & Techniques
Viewing style sheet differences in Quark • Copying pages from one InDesign file to another • Using the appearance palette to improve stroked text in Illustrator • Brushes palette shortcut in Photoshop

February 2001 Tips & Techniques
Using Illustrator's smart guides • Proper use of en and em dashes • Using Photoshop's "warped text" in Illustrator

August 2000 Tips & Techniques
Selecting overset text in Quark • Nudging boxes in Quark • Using Illustrator files in Photoshop • Online symbol encyclopedia • Quick Photoshop fill shortcuts • Finding missing fonts in ATM Deluxe

June 2000 Tips & Techniques
Copyfitting techniques in Quark • Adding new text to a PDF file • Free hi-res stock photography • Photoshop's Extract Image command

April 2000 Tips & Techniques
Quark copy and paste trick • Free frame effects • Accessing PANTONE colors by number in Illustrator • Optimizing the opening view of PDF files

March 2000 Tips & Techniques
Creating grids of boxes in Illustrator • Quark ruler guide tips • Photoshop cropping tool tip • Using multiple undoes in InDesign • PageMaker's "power paste" feature

February 2000 Tips & Techniques
Changing brush size in Photoshop • Using context menus in palettes in Photoshop • Contentless boxes in Quark • InDesign's promise

All articles are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format. Acrobat Reader version 5 is needed to view the files.