incx files, they can add styles to that story as well. So if the editor had bypassed a story’s “parent” layout or assignment, and instead went straight to the Content folder on the server and opened one of the linked. incx file the editor opened is part of an existing layout or not. As soon as the designer saves changes, anyone else working on checked-out stories from that layout can update their design and thus see and use the new styles too. incx file into an InDesign layout, any new paragraph or character styles it contains are immediately added to the InDesign layout file. incx file itself) they can create new text styles in the document. So if an editor creates a new InCopy document, or opens an existing one (the. Part 1 of the rule is this: Any new paragraph or character styles that the InCopy user managed to add to the story are added to the InDesign document (when the story is brought in or updated) and become available for anyone working on that layout or its workflow stories. incx file will appear in an InDesign layout at some point as a managed workflow story, what happens when the twains meet? Will InDesign ignore the custom InCopy styles, leaving an editor gnashing his teeth at all the wasted time? In that way, it works just like Microsoft Word.īut assuming that standalone. The only time that an InCopy user can create their own styles, import them, or modify existing ones is when they’re working in standalone mode that is, when they’ve opened a native InCopy. If the designer’s not available or for whatever reason, can’t make the requested change, all the InCopy user can do is to apply the desired formatting manually, from commands in the Paragraph or Character panels. Then the editor can choose Update Design from the File menu, and the new style appears in their panel. The designer adds the new style to the InDesign layout and saves the document. If an editor needs a new text style (“Caption-small”), or wants to modify an existing one, they have to contact the designer and request it. When an InCopy user opens a layout or assignment and checks out a story, virtually all of the Styles commands (from their panel menus) are grayed out and inaccessible. In fact, even if they wanted to, they couldn’t.

They’re not mucking around in there to modify the styles, delete them, or create new ones. You see, in most InCopy/InDesign workflows, editors only open InCopy’s Paragraph Styles or Character Styles panels to apply an existing style that came with the layout - ones like Body Text, Caption, AHead - to some text in a story they checked out. (Of course if you’re not one of those hundred, feel free to skip to the next story.) At least that’s what their managing editors have told me.įollowing the maxim that if one client sends you a question, there are a hundred others who have the same question but didn’t have time to write, I thought I’d spell it all out for you here. It was a surprise to me, since I thought editors didn’t want to have to bother with formatting text, only writing it and correcting it. Recently I’ve received a number of e-mails from InCopy users with questions about creating paragraph and character styles (such as, “Why can’t I” and “How do I”).

Incopy