Creating Tables - Adobe InDesign CC - page 425

3. To add a new column by dragging, position the Type tool over the right edge of
one of the columns in your table so that the pointer becomes a double-arrow icon (
) and begin dragging to the right. Hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac
OS) and drag a short distance to the right, perhaps half an inch or so. When you re-
lease the mouse button, a new column appears. (The column has the same width as
the distance you dragged.)
4. To convert the table to text, choose Table > Convert Table To Text. Tabs can separ-
ate what were previously columns, and paragraph breaks can separate rows. You
can also modify these options. Similarly, you can convert tabbed text to a table by
selecting the text and choosing Table > Convert Text To Table.
5. To rotate text within a cell, click with the Type tool to place an insertion point in a
cell. Choose Window > Type & Tables > Table. In the Table panel, select the
Rotate Text 270° ( ) option. Then type the text you want in this cell. Increase the
size of the cell as necessary to see the text.
Review questions
1 . What are the advantages of using tables rather than just typing text and using tabs
to separate the columns?
2 . When might you get an overset cell?
3 . What tool is used most frequently when you work with tables?
Review answers
1 . Tables give you much more flexibility and are far easier to format. In a table, text
can wrap within a cell, so you don't have to add extra lines to accommodate cells
that contain a lot of text. Also, you can assign styles to selected cells, rows, and
columns—including character styles and even paragraph styles—because each cell
functions like a separate text frame.
2 . Overset cells occur when the contents don't fit inside the cell's current dimensions.
This overset might occur if you have defined the exact height of a row and inserted
too much text or rotated the text. Otherwise, when you place text in the cell, the
text wraps within the cell, which then expands vertically to accommodate the text.
When you place a graphic in a cell that does not have a fixed row height, the cell
expands vertically but not horizontally, so the column keeps its original width.
3 . TheTypetoolmustbeselected toworkwithatable. Youcanuseothertoolstowork
with the graphics within table cells, but to work with the table itself, such as select-