Task Tools for Adobe InDesign

Wonderful as Adobe InDesign is there are many tasks the program doesn’t perform. Tasks that predictably soak up too many valuable hours each time you do them.

Rorohiko Workflow Resources has developed a whole range of task tools, so you can slash hours of mind numbing work down to minutes. The InDesign-compatible tools cover a variety of repetitive pre-press chores that we, or our customers have identified as missing from InDesign.

Check them out to discover where you can slash valuable time.

Workflow Automation – Custom Design and Build

Pre-press systems automation is all about achieving significant productivity efficiencies and ultimately profit improvement. The automation unites the multiple programs you are using, such as InDesign, InDesign Server, Acrobat, Photoshop, your web or FTP server, your output devices, WordPress, or a host of other software, into one logical workflow. Or it can streamline a single labour intensive task.

Having understood the various elements of your current process Rorohiko Workflow Resources designs your tailored workflow software. The customised automation then gives you a start-to-finish integrated system linking each step and stage to monitor tasks and manage progress.

The massive time and money saving potential is evident in these case studies of our custom automation work.

Developer Training

The Adobe range of products present a host of time saving opportunities – that’s why you have them. Rorohiko Workflow Resources can help you make the most of your Adobe products more rapidly with on-site, over your shoulder training. We cover ExtendScript, ActionScript, InDesign, Flex, C++ and many others.

We tailor training or mentoring programmes that suit your specific needs. The optimal group size is up to 10 people but we will fit with your circumstances.


News

InDesign CS5: TextStitch 1.0.5 with CS5 support released

June 16th, 2010

TextStitch is a popular tool which helps you with threading or separating text frames in InDesign CS, CS2, CS3, CS4, CS5 – all this without disturbing the look and feel of the page.

There are three main functions: auto-stitch, quick stitch and auto-unstitch.

TextStitch is distributed as a freebie, and we’ve just released a version with support for CS5:

http://www.rorohiko.com/textstitch

InDesign CS5: TextExporter 3.0 Introduces CS5 Support

June 6th, 2010

TextExporter is a US$ 19.00 plug-in for InDesign and InCopy CS, CS2, CS3, CS4 or CS5. It allows you to export all the text from an InDesign document concatenated into a single RTF file, grouped into a natural reading order. Even if text frames are not threaded together, the exported RTF file will have all the text in the proper order, which largely removes the need to manually clean it up before handing it over to a Microsoft Word user.

Read all about it at

http://www.rorohiko.com/wordpress/indesign-downloads/text-exporter/

InDesign CS5: Automatically Generate Sudoku-Puzzles

June 4th, 2010

Our Sudoku-puzzle generator enables you to create brand new, unique Sudoku puzzles directly into an InDesign document – for example, for your ‘Puzzle Page’, or for a complete book filled with Sudoku puzzles.

You’re in control of the look and feel of the generated Sudoku puzzles – and our generator takes care of actually building the puzzles for you, straight into the final page. No more copy-paste or error-prone retyping needed!

Our generator now also supports InDesign CS5. Click here for more info and to download a time-limited, fully functional demo!

TransformMaster (a.k.a EnslaveMaster) for InDesign CS5

May 21st, 2010

Take control of master pages and multiple page sizes.Today, just a few days after its first release, we released the first update for TransformMaster, bringing the version number to 1.0.5.

TransformMaster (formerly known as EnslaveMaster) is a free Extension for InDesign CS5, based on an idea from David Blatner of InDesignSecrets.

It enhances the functionality offered by InDesign CS5′s new Page Tool – in addition to ‘shifting’ the image of the master page behind a page, it adds master page rotation and scaling. Read all about it here.

FrameReporter Beta with CS5 Support Available.

May 18th, 2010

We’ve just released a beta version (1.0.9b0) of our popular FrameReporter plug-in with support for InDesign CS5.

We expect the beta-test period to last until the end of June 2010 – during that period, you can purchase a (per InDesign install) license for FrameReporter for US$29.00. After the official release of FrameReporter, the price of a license will increase to US$39.00 – so don’t delay, get your licenses today!

More information can be found here.

http://www.rorohiko.com/wordpress/indesign-downloads/framereporter/

Soxy 1.2.4 Beta With CS5 Support Available!

May 16th, 2010

Soxy 1.2.4 Beta released for Mac OS X and Windows.

There’s a common problem when there are multiple versions of applications like Adobe® InDesign®, QuarkXPress®, Adobe Illustrator®… installed on the same computer.

Double-clicking a file’s icon will often cause the wrong application version to launch. As a result, you might unwittingly re-save a document into a more recent file format, which could be a bad thing. Maybe it’s a customer file, and the customer might not be able to open the updated file when you e-mail it back to her.

This version has the following changes:

  • Added support for Adobe CS5.
  • Fixed a bug where Soxy wouldn’t position on an external screen.
  • Fixed a bug on Windows where Soxy wouldn’t recognise Illustrator files.
  • Improved Soxy startup speed on Windows.
  • Added support for Windows to open multiple files in Soxy.
  • [Windows] List selections now have a blue background.
  • Bug fixes.
  • [Mac OS X] Added support for InDesign documents without extensions.
  • [Mac OS X] Added support for InCopy documents without extensions.
  • [Mac OS X] Added support for JavaScript files without extensions.
  • [Mac OS X] Added support for PDF documents without extensions.
  • [Mac OS X] Added support for RTF documents without extensions.
  • [Mac OS X] Added support for Web documents without extensions.
  • Added support for QuarkXPress documents without extensions.

For more info and to download a 20-day fully functional demo click here:

http://www.rorohiko.com/soxy

StoryTweaker 1.2.0b Released!

May 10th, 2010

Download it from here

StoryTweaker is a tool that allows for text edits of a master Adobe® InDesign® file by multiple users, without needing a copy of InDesign for the text edits.

StoryTweaker’s users include
• editors who want a document translated to another language, ie, English to Spanish
• designers who hand off a finished layout to writers that will provide the content
• writers/editors collaborating on a project

StoryTweaker is not meant as a replacement Adobe InCopy®. Even though there is some functional overlap between StoryTweaker and InCopy, StoryTweaker has a markedly different approach.

Changes since 1.1.1 include:

  • Upgraded edit field.
    • Speed improvements.
    • Option to style text similar to the Document.
    • Tags around the text have been replaced by style information below the text.
    • No longer need to edit paragraph by paragraph.
  • Upgraded User interface.
    • Re-organised Preferences.
    • New icons.
    • New Application icon.
  • Improved performance.
  • Improved stability.
  • Added support for InDesign CS5.
  • Added opacity option to notes.
  • Many Script bug fixes.
  • Bug fixes.

Visit the StoryTweaker page to download the latest Release.

http://www.storytweaker.com

Improvements to FrameReporter and APID ToolAssistant

April 11th, 2010

We’ve just released a new version of APID ToolAssistant – 1.0.48; click here for more info and the download links.

By itself, APID ToolAssistant does not ‘do’ anything apparent. Instead it assists other plug-ins to do their job.

You have this plug-in installed when you use most of the InDesign tools you can find on this web site.

As a result, this new 1.0.48 upgrade is a recommended download for all users of any of our tools (like TextExporter, TextStitch, MagnetoGuidesFrameReporter, Color2Gray…). Simply replace the older APID ToolAssistant plug-in in your plug-ins folder with the latest one.

This new version has a direct impact on FrameReporter: it fixes an issue with the frame labels shown by FrameReporter when a frame has a drop shadow applied. If you’re using FrameReporter, please upgrade your APID ToolAssistant!

Workshop – Getting started with the InDesign SDK.

March 30th, 2010

Registration has officially closed, but we still have some seats available. If you still would like to enroll please contact training@rorohiko.com as soon as possible to check whether we can still accommodate you.

If you’re involved in automation around the Adobe Creative Suite, you need to mark the week of May 3 to May 7, 2010 on your calendar – there’s another Adobe Creative Suite Developer Summit (aka CSBU Developer Summit) coming up in Seattle, at the Adobe Fremont Campus.

For the third year in a row, we’ll be running our acclaimed Getting Started With The InDesign SDK workshop during the summit – click this link for more info:

http://www.rorohiko.com/wordpress/workshop-getting-started-with-the-indesign-sdk/

(Photo courtesy of Mark Niemann-Ross)

Familiarizing yourself with the InDesign SDK takes many months of hard work and study. This workshop will slash a substantial amount from the time it takes to gain a good understanding and get properly started. Make sure you enroll as soon as possible – there is only room for 12 participants!

More about the Adobe Creative Suite Developer Summit can be found here:

http://www.adobe.com/go/2010csbuDevSummit/

Soxy 1.1.3 released for Mac OS X and Windows.

March 15th, 2010

There’s a common problem when there are multiple versions of applications like Adobe® InDesign®, QuarkXPress®, Adobe Illustrator®… installed on the same computer.

Double-clicking a file’s icon will often cause the wrong application version to launch. As a result, you might unwittingly re-save a document into a more recent file format, which could be a bad thing. Maybe it’s a customer file, and the customer might not be able to open the updated file when you e-mail it back to her.

This version has bug fixes:

  • Fixed a bug where files on a networked drive wouldn’t open.
  • Fixed a bug where some PDF files weren’t recognised.
  • Fixed a bug where not being an administrator crashed the program.

For more info and to download a 20-day fully functional demo here:

http://www.rorohiko.com/soxy