Desktop publishing used to be the primary reason for owning a PC—it was a business in and of itself. I know I am dating myself, but I remember when someone with a PC, a printer, and a desktop publishing application could actually make decent money producing flyers, menus, and other simple publications for others. Those days are long gone, but the concept of desktop publishing has also evolved over time, and software like Adobe InDesign has managed somehow to keep up and remain relevant.
It would be anomalous today to find someone so Luddite that they don’t have access to a PC, printer, and basic page editing tools to produce their own flyers and such. However, once popular applications like PrintMaster, The Print Shop, or Microsoft Publisher have all but faded out of existence. That is partly a function of the fact that the basic page editing tools are available in most word processing software as well—so there is no need for a specialized tool, and it is partly a reflection of how technology—and how we use it—has evolved over time. Simply put, we have apps and websites, and people are much less likely to need dedicated software to create a flyer today.
I had a chance to spend some time talking to Chris Kitchener, a product manager for Adobe InDesign. It was evident from his respect for the history and evolution from desktop publishing to Web design, apps, and eBooks that he is passionate about the topic. Kitchener was also very excited about Adobe Creative Cloud, and how the cloud-based subscription model compresses the development lifecycle and enables Adobe to roll out changes and updates more frequently.
Adobe demonstrated that fact a couple months ago with the launch of InDesign CC 2014. The latest version of InDesign includes a variety of new and enhanced features: simplified tables, enhanced search, enhanced footnotes, scaling of effects, and more. Adobe also introduced seamless updates, so your presets, preferences, and shortcuts are not affected when a new update is applied.
It shouldn’t be any surprise that the Adobe InDesign product manager loves the product. It’s sort of part of the job description. To get some real-world perspective, I also spoke with an Adobe InDesign user—Kelly Vaughn of Verity Yacht Publications.
Vaughn started off her desktop publishing career in 2001 using PageMaker. Eventually, she decided to fly solo as a one-woman publishing company catering to a very unique market segment. Verity Yacht Publications creates owner’s manuals for custom yachts—providing detailed documentation for marine craft that are unique and specialized so there is no mass produced manual.
“Adobe InDesign is the most powerful page publishing program on the planet,” explained Vaughn. She told me that she loves the seamless integration with the rest of the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, and TypeKit integration.
Vaughn is also a fan of the frequent updates across the Creative Cloud portfolio. One of the primary reasons she loves InDesign, though, is that it makes her job easier. The combination of power and simplicity in Adobe InDesign enable her to be more effective and more efficient in producing professional finished documents for her clients.
The world may have evolved beyond the need for specialized software to produce flyers for a party, but it hasn’t evolved beyond the need for page publishing tools like Adobe InDesign. On the contrary, it seems that Adobe has managed to adapt to changing demand, and evolve InDesign in ways that make it just as necessary, and just as relevant—perhaps even more so—than it ever was.
Adobe InDesign is available as a part of the Creative Cloud suite for as little as $20 per month.
