Magazine design - looking for an automated way to generate a thumbnail overview of a magazine

gemmo

New Member
Hello :) I currently use software called Content Station to see an overview of how the magazine I work on is coming together. Each of the magazine's pages are created as a separate InDesign files. This software then automatically generates thumbnails of each of the pages as they are designed/saved (and the thumbnails are updated as the designs are updated), and compiles them in order and as spreads. I'm not renewing the license for this software due to cost. Is anyone aware of similar products? Or does anyone have any tips on how they approach this without custom software?
 
InDesign has a very handy Book Feature. File>New Book

Then you can add the pages to the book in the order they are to appear. You can then use the Book Panel options to make a PDF of the entire document.

I would highly recommend not doing the entire magazine as single page InDesign files. But that's your call.
 
Thanks, I shall check that feature out.

We work on the pages as separate files so that multiple designers can be designing pages for the one edition at the same time. There's prob a better way though. Shall have a think about it.
 
Sure, that's no problem to have multiple people working on the designs. I use that same method. The book feature is good, and it means one person in the team takes control of the Book and the pagination. You can also have the pages auto number, which can be synchronised through the Book panel.

There's lots of features, and there's lots of things that can go wrong if you're not aware of them (like auto numbered lists/bullet points). Read up on it and try it out, once you have a few caveats out of the way it's a very efficient way of working.
 
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