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Can we get a true leading in the character studio?


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I am a designer that has grown up with Pagemaker, Quark, and InDesign. All of these apps had type size and leading next to each other. I've always wondered why the leading in your apps were always set solid by default (12pt type on 12pt leading, 13pt type on 13pt leading, etc.) Most true design applications create text with two or three point leading automatically  (12 on 15 for example).

I recently discovered that this leading setting is an override feature and that to have a default leading one must preset all the headings and body text using the paragraph feature. You have adapted many functions that operate like MS Word. This is not a good thing as MS Word is a typing program that pretends to be a page layout program.

I do a lot of different magazine and catalogs and until I get into working solidly into the project I am constantly changing headers based on experiencing the project. As I develop hierarchy via spacing and text size I reach a point where I will create my presets for each to rapidly create the project.

Is there anyway to restore ta REAL leading function to replace the leading override in the character studio window?

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You mean the Leading field in the Paragraph > Spacing subpanel?  That sets the style value, for which the Character > Positioning and Transform subpanel's Leading Override is in fact a local override.

In other words, don't set the paragraph style leading in the Character panel.  Set it in the Paragraph panel.  Apply the leading override in the Character panel only to "clown shoe" characters that don't fit the body font without adjustment.

I agree that having font size and leading not immediately adjacent to one another can be annoying when you are used to it.  But when I have the Paragraph panel at the top of the studio stack, and one of the text tools selected, the font size on the context toolbar and the leading on the Paragraph > Spacing subpanel are only about 1.5" apart on my screen.

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Adopting MS Word type practices is bad. It is a letter writing program not a professional page layout program although they try to make it one. If Serif would just automatically set type when created according to traditional type software practices this discussion would be moot. That means when you select a 12pt type size it is automatically created at 12 on 14 or 12 on 15. Whether Serif uses 14 or 15 pt leading is immaterial. By default it is "set solid", equivalent to using no leading at all in metal typesetting, that is the leading is automatically set to the type size (12/12, 15/15, etc). This crowds lines and makes it difficult to read while still in the design phase (not production)

I come from a typesetting background and would prefer that the leading override be replaced with leading. When I start documents I do not preset all my styles. I work in the document for a bit to find the natural rhythm and hierarchy. Only then do I create my styles from the text I have already set in order to complete the document faster. InDesign can create the styles from highlighting the text to define the style. It takes the current settings of the text to create the style. I do not have to recreate the style from scratch by entering numbers  in the paragraph panel.

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I just realised this myself last night. I found myself constantly changing 12pt type with default 12pt leading to 14 pt leading so the type is displayed with a semblance of how it would be set manually by a professional in the real world.

One of the first lessons you learn when you study typography is always set leading at least 2pt above the type size for legibility reasons. If you are purposely going for a style where legibility is not the priority then obviously set it accordingly. But as a default for legibility no less than 2pt. Typefaces and fonts are generally but not always designed with this in mind. 

Over compact leading leads to heavy looking boxes of type, the visual weight of which will break a design quite easily while also making type hard to read. The same is true of too wide leading. This can lead to text being read as individual lines and the story feeling broken and hard to follow as you have to consciously try harder to follow each line.

I too work similar to kanihoncho whereby you try to get a feel of the design first before you start creating styles. This is why i have an issue with how the current colour palettes work whereby its implementation requires you to set your colours first before you even start anything (as they are not added automatically) which is impossible if you are 'creating' because creating is by its very nature making something from nothing. You can't choose colours from nothing to start your project but I digress.

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