Table of Contents:
- Tools
- Selecting and moving objects
- Transforming Objects
- Editing Paths and Frames
- Working with Tables
- Managing Text
- Working with Type
- Navigating Through and Editing Text
- Viewing documents and document workspaces
- Working with XML
- Indexing
- Panels
- Control Panel
- Type panels and dialog boxes
- Character and paragraph styles
- Tabs Panel
- Layers Panel
- Pages Panel
- Color Panel
- Separations Preview panel
- Swatches Panel
- Transform Panels
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V, Escape | Selection Tool |
a | Direct Selection tool |
Ctrl+Tab | Toggle Selection and Direct Selection tool |
Shift+p | Page tool |
u | Gap tool |
p | Pen tool |
= | Add Anchor Point tool |
- | Delete Anchor Point tool |
Shift+c | Convert Direction Point tool |
t | Type tool |
Shift+t | Type On A Path tool |
n | Pencil tool (Note tool) |
\ | Line tool |
f | Rectangle Frame tool |
m | Rectangle tool |
l | Ellipse tool |
r | Rotate tool |
s | Scale tool |
o | Shear tool |
e | Free Transform tool |
i | Eyedropper tool |
k | Measure tool |
g | Gradient tool |
c | Scissors tool |
h | Hand tool |
Spacebar (Layout mode), Alt (Text mode), /Alt+Spacebar (both) | Temporarily select Hand tool |
z | Zoom tool |
Ctrl+Space | Temporarily select Zoom In tool |
x | Toggle Fill and Stroke |
Shift+x | Swap Fill and Stroke |
j | Toggle between Formatting Affects Container and Formatting Affects Text |
, (comma) | Apply Color |
. (period) | Apply Gradient |
/ | Apply No Color |
w | Switch between Normal View and Preview Mode |
Shift+g | Gradient Feather tool |
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Any tool (except selection tools)+Ctrl | Temporarily select Selection or Direct Selection tool (last used) |
Direct Selection tool+Alt; / Pen, Add Anchor Point, / Delete Anchor Point tool+Alt+Ctrl | Temporarily select Group Selection tool |
Esc/ double-click | Select container of selected content |
Shift+Esc/ double-click | Select content of selected container |
Selection, Direct Selection, / Group Selection tool+Shift-click (to deselect, click center point) | Add to or subtract from a selection of multiple objects |
Selection, Direct Selection, / Group Selection tool+Alt-drag* | Duplicate selection |
Alt+Arrow Keys | Duplicate and offset selection |
Alt+Shift+Arrow Keys | Duplicate and offset selection by 10 times** |
Arrow Keys | Move selection** |
Ctrl+Shift+Arrow Keys | Move selection by 10th** |
Shift+Arrow Keys | Move selection by 10 times** |
Selection / Direct Selection tool+Ctrl+Shift-click | Select master page item from document page |
Selection tool+Ctrl-click, / Selection tool+Alt+Ctrl-click | Select next object behind or in front |
Alt+Ctrl+ Page Down/Page Up | Select next or previous frame in story |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+ Page Down/Page Up | Select first or last frame in story |
Ctrl+[ | Send object backward |
Shift+Ctrl+[ | Send object to back |
Ctrl+] | Bring object forward |
Shift+Ctrl+] | Bring object to front |
*Press Shift to constrain movement to 45° angles. **Amount is set in Edit > Preferences > Units & Increments |
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Transformation tool+Alt-drag | Duplicate and transform selection |
Select object+double-click Scale tool, Rotate tool, / Shear tool in Toolbox | Display Transform tool dialog box |
Ctrl+, (comma) | Decrease scale by 1% |
Ctrl+. (period) | Increase scale by 1% |
Ctrl+Alt+. (period) | Increase scale by 5% |
Selection tool+Ctrl-drag | Resize frame and content |
Selection tool+Shift+Ctrl-drag | Resize frame and content proportionately |
Ellipse tool, Polygon tool, / Rectangle tool+Shift-drag | Constrain proportion |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+z | Switch image from High Quality Display to Fast Display |
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Direct Selection tool+Alt+Ctrl, / Pen tool+Alt | Temporarily select Convert Direction Point tool |
Alt | Temporarily switch between Add Anchor Point and Delete Anchor Point tool |
Scissors tool+Alt | Temporarily select Add Anchor Point tool |
Pen tool+Shift | Keep Pen tool selected when pointer is over path or anchor point |
Pen tool+Space | Move anchor point and handles while drawing |
F10 | Display the Stroke panel |
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Begin dragging row / column border, and then hold down Alt as you drag | Insert or delete rows or columns while dragging |
Shift-drag interior row / column border | Resize rows or columns without changing the size of the table |
Shift-drag right / bottom table border | Resize rows or columns proportionally |
Tab/Shift+Tab | Move to next/previous cell |
Alt+Page Up/Alt+Page Down | Move to first/last cell in column |
Alt+Home/Alt+End | Move to first/last cell in row |
Page Up/Page Down | Move to first/last row in frame |
Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Move up/down one cell |
Arrow Left/Arrow Right | Move left/right one cell |
Shift+Arrow Up/+Arrow Down | Select cell above/below the current cell |
Shift+Arrow Right/Arrow Left | Select cell to the right/left of the current cell |
Enter on numeric keypad | Start row on next column |
Shift+Enter on numeric keypad | Start row on next frame |
Esc | Toggle between text selection and cell selection |
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Ctrl+F1 | Insert selected text into Find What box |
Shift+F1 | Insert selected text into Find What box and finds next |
Shift+F2/Alt+Ctrl+f | Find next occurrence of Find What text |
Ctrl+F2 | Insert selected text into Change To box |
Ctrl+F3 | Replace selection with Change To text |
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Shift+Ctrl+b | Bold |
Shift+Ctrl+i | Italic |
Shift+Ctrl+y | Normal |
Shift+Ctrl+u | Underline |
Shift+Ctrl+/ | Strikethrough |
Shift+Ctrl+k | All caps (on/off) |
Shift+Ctrl+h | Small caps (on/off) |
Shift+Ctrl+[+] | Superscript |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+[+] | Subscript |
Shift+Ctrl+x/ Shift+Alt+Ctrl+x | Reset horizontal or vertical scale to 100% |
Shift+Ctrl+L, R, /c | Align left, right, or center |
Shift+Ctrl+F (all lines) / J (all but last line) | Justify all lines |
Shift+Ctrl+>/< | Increase or decrease point size* |
Shift+Ctrl+Alt+ >/< | Increase or decrease point size by five times* |
Alt+Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Increase or decrease leading (horizontal text)* |
Alt+Ctrl+ Arrow Up/+Arrow Down | Increase or decrease leading by five times (horizontal text)* |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+a | Auto leading |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+g | Align to grid (on/off) |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+h | Auto-hyphenate (on/off) |
Alt+ Arrow Left/Arrow Right | Increase or decrease kerning and tracking (horizontal text) |
Alt+Ctrl+ Arrow Left/Arrow Right | Increase or decrease kerning and tracking by five times (horizontal text) |
Alt+Ctrl+\ | Increase kerning between words* |
Alt+Ctrl+Backspace | Decrease kerning between words* |
Alt+Ctrl+q | Clear all manual kerning and reset tracking to 0 |
Shift+Alt+ Arrow Up/+Arrow Down | Increase or decrease baseline shift** (horizontal text) |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+ Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Increase or decrease baseline shift by five times (horizontal text) |
Shift-click loaded text icon | Automatically flow story |
Alt-click loaded text icon | Semi-automatically flow story |
Alt+Ctrl+/ | Recompose all stories |
Alt+Ctrl+n | Insert current page number |
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Arrow Right/Arrow Left | Move to right or left one character |
Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Move up or down one line |
Ctrl+ Arrow Right/Arrow Left | Move to right or left one word |
Home/End | Move to start or end of line |
Ctrl+Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Move to previous or next paragraph |
Ctrl+Home/Ctrl+End | Move to start or end of story |
Double-click word | Select one word |
Shift+ Arrow Right/Arrow Left | Select one character right or left |
Shift+ Arrow Up/+Arrow Down | Select one line above or below |
Shift+Home/+End | Select start or end of line |
Triple-click / quadruple-click paragraph, depending on Text Preferences setting | Select one paragraph |
Shift+Ctrl+ Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Select one paragraph before or after |
Shift+Ctrl+\ | Select current line |
Shift-click | Select characters from insertion point |
Shift+Ctrl+ Home/Ctrl+End | Select start or end of story |
Ctrl+a | Select all in story |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+ Page Up/Page Down | Select first/last frame |
Alt+Ctrl+ Page Up/Page Down | Select previous/next frame |
Ctrl+Backspace/Delete | Delete word in front of insertion point (Story Editor) |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+/ | Update missing font list |
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Spacebar (with no text insertion point), Alt-drag (with text insertion point), /Alt+Spacebar (in both text and non-text modes) | Temporarily select Hand tool |
Ctrl+Space | Temporarily select Zoom In tool |
Alt+Ctrl+Space/ Alt+Zoom In tool | Temporarily select Zoom Out tool |
Ctrl+5, 2, 4 | Zoom to 50%, 200%, or 400% |
Shift+F5 | Redraw screen |
Ctrl+Alt+n | Open new default document |
Alt+Ctrl+2 | Switch between current and previous zoom levels |
Ctrl+~/ Shift+Ctrl+F6/ Ctrl+Shift+~ | Switch to next/previous document window |
Page Up/Page Down | Scroll up/down one screen |
Ctrl+ Page Up/Page Down | Go back/forward to last-viewed page |
Alt+ Page Up/Page Down | Go to previous/next spread |
Double-click Hand tool | Fit spread in window |
Ctrl+j | Activate the Go To command |
Ctrl+Alt++ (plus) | Fit selection in window |
Ctrl+J, type prefix of master, press Enter | Go to master page while panel is closed |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl+u | Cycle through units of measurement |
Shift-drag guide | Snap guide to ruler increments |
Ctrl-drag guide | Switch between page and spread guides (creation only) |
Ctrl-drag from zero point | Create vertical and horizontal ruler guides for the spread |
Alt+Ctrl+g | Select all guides |
Right-click zero point and choose an option | Lock or unlock zero point |
Alt-drag guide | Use current magnification for view threshold of new guide |
Press first letter of button name, if underlined | Select buttons in alert dialog boxes |
Ctrl+Help > About Design | Show information on installed plugins and InDesign components |
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Arrow Right/Arrow Left | Expand/Collapse element |
Alt+ Arrow Right/Arrow Left | Expand/Collapse element and child elements |
Shift+ Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Extend XML selection up/down |
Arrow Up/Arrow Down | Move XML selection up/down |
Page Up/Page Down | Scroll structure pane up/down one screen |
Home/End | Select first/last XML node |
Shift+ Home/Shift+End | Extend selection to first/last XML node |
Ctrl+ Arrow Left/Arrow Right | Go to previous/next validation error |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F7 | Automatically tag text frames and tables |
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Shift+Ctrl+Alt+[ | Create index entry without dialog box |
Ctrl+7 | Open index entry dialog box |
Shift+Ctrl+Alt+] | Create proper name index entry (last name, first name) |
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alt-click Delete icon | Delete without confirmation |
alt-click New button | Create item and set options |
Shift+Enter | Apply value and keep focus on option |
Ctrl+Alt+~ | Activate last-used option in last-used panel |
Shift-click | Select range of styles, layers, links, swatches, or library objects in a panel |
Ctrl-click | Select nonadjacent styles, layers, links, swatches, or library objects in a panel |
Tab | Apply value and select next value |
Esc | Move focus to selected object, text, or window |
Tab | Show/Hide all panels, Toolbox, and Control panel (with no insertion point) |
Shift+Tab | Show/Hide all panels except the Toolbox and Control panel (docked or not) |
Ctrl+Alt+Tab | Open or close all stashed panels |
Alt+drag any panel tab (in the group) to edge of screen | Stash a panel group |
Alt+Ctrl-click in list, and then use keyboard to select item by name | Select item by name |
Alt+Ctrl+m | Open the Drop Shadow panel |
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Ctrl+6 | Toggle focus to/from Control panel |
Ctrl+Alt+7 | Toggle Character/Paragraph text attributes mode |
Any key on the numeric keypad / keyboard numbers | Change reference point when proxy has focus |
Alt+Arrow Down | Display the pop-up menu that has focus |
alt-click Kerning icon | Open Units & Increments Preferences |
alt-click Number Of Columns icon | Open the Text Frame Options dialog box |
alt-click X / Y icon | Open the Move dialog box |
alt-click Angle icon | Open the Rotate dialog box |
alt-click X / Y Scale icon | Open the Scale dialog box |
alt-click Shear icon | Open the Shear dialog box |
alt-click Superscript, Subscript, / Small Caps button | Open Text Preferences |
alt-click Underline button | Open the Underline Options dialog box |
alt-click Strikethrough button | Open the Strikethrough Options dialog box |
alt-click Align To Baseline Grid, / Do Not Align To Baseline Grid button | Open the Grids Preferences |
alt-click Drop Cap Number Of Lines, / Drop Cap One Or More Characters icon | Open the Drop Caps & Nested Styles dialog box |
alt-click Leading icon | Open the Justification dialog box |
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Alt+Ctrl+Shift+j | Open Justification dialog box |
Alt+Ctrl+j | Open Paragraph Rules dialog box |
Alt+Ctrl+k | Open Keep Options dialog box |
Ctrl+t | Activate Character panel |
Ctrl+Alt+t | Activate Paragraph panel |
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Select text and press Shift+Alt+Ctrl+c | Make character style definition match text |
Select text and press Shift+Alt+Ctrl+r | Make paragraph style definition match text |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl-double-click style | Change options without applying style |
alt-click paragraph style name | Remove style and local formatting |
Alt+Shift-click paragraph style name | Clear overrides from paragraph style |
F11, Shift+F11 | Show/hide Paragraph and Character Styles panels, respectively |
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Shift+Ctrl+t | Activate Tabs panel |
alt-click tab | Switch between alignment options |
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alt-click layer | Select all objects on layer |
Alt-drag small square to new layer | Copy selection to new layer |
Ctrl-click Create New Layer | Add new layer below selected layer |
Shift+Ctrl-click Create New Layer | Add new layer to the top of the layer list |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl-click Create New Layer | Add new layer to the top of the layer list and open New Layer dialog box |
alt-click Create New Layer | Add new layer and open New Layer dialog box |
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alt-click master | Apply master to selected page |
alt-click the master you want to base the selected master on | Base another master page on selected master |
Ctrl-click Create New Page button | Create master page |
alt-click New Page button | Display Insert Pages dialog box |
Shift+Ctrl+p | Add new page after last page |
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Shift-drag slider | Move color sliders in tandem |
alt-click color bar | Select a color for the nonactive fill or stroke |
Shift-click color bar | Switch between color modes (CMYK, RGB, LAB) |
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Ctrl+Alt+Shift+y | Turn on Overprint preview |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+~ (tilde) | Show all plates |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+1 | Show Cyan plate |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+2 | Show Magenta plate |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+3 | Show Yellow plate |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+4 | Show Black plate |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+5 | Show 1st Spot plate |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+6 | Show 2nd Spot plate |
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+7 | Show 3rd Spot plate |
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alt-click New Swatch button | Create new swatch based on the current swatch |
Alt+Ctrl-click New Swatch button | Create spot color swatch based on the current swatch |
Shift+Alt+Ctrl-double-click swatch | Change options without applying swatch |
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Alt+Enter | Apply value and copy object |
Ctrl+Enter | Apply width, height, or scale value proportionally |
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Sources: Adobe Indesign CS5 Help