Please fix some things in Publisher - wish list

[BLKay]

I love the idea of getting rid of adobe and Publisher is amazing, but when I've tried to switch, I have had nothing but frustration. I completely understand they are different tools and there will be learning curves and habits that need to adjust. Plus I understand that Affinity does not want to be sued by Adobe for being too much the same - perhaps.  I am no expert in what these laws are but there are so many things that are difficult to find in ... well... both Indesign and Publisher.  Going back in time, I didn't have nearly the difficulty learning Indesign when compared to Publisher. An example it the Character panel in Publisher. Why can it not be part of the top tool bar as it is in InDesign? (I hope I'm missing something)  I use the horizontal percentage on text quite often to fix the look of paragraphs or display ads. Just a percentage mark or two can really make a difference and yet go undetected.  Having fat side panels taking up so much space is just not great.  If in fact there are laws against making Publisher look and feel too much like InDesign then why not make Publisher so customizable we can make it look and feel like close ourselves? I'm sure Adobe has no patent on having the horizontal scale text tool in the top tool bar, among many other things. Yes, I realize this is asking a lot of Publisher coders and designers.  It's just a simply a suggestion to make the switch easier.  Same goes for Photoshop/Affinity Photos.  On a positive note, I do find some features in publisher to be better than InDesign. It's pretty amazing. 

[Old Bruce]

While it isn't in the toolbar (there are space constraints to take into consideration) you can access the Character Panel from the Context Toolbar (View > Show Context Toolbar) and that has the Horizontal Scale item in it. 

[CzarTechSupport]

Just noticed when opening Publisher New Document. It defaults to mm. I then head to the right to change to Inches but none of the A0-A10 update? are they all in mm? shouldn't it update? just my 2 cents. Keep up the great work! Love it All!

[walt.farrell]

9 hours ago, CzarTechSupport said:

Just noticed when opening Publisher New Document. It defaults to mm. I then head to the right to change to Inches but none of the A0-A10 update? are they all in mm? shouldn't it update? just my 2 cents. Keep up the great work! Love it All!

Welcome to the Serif Affinity forums.

No, they shouldn't update. The "A" sizes are international standard sizes that are defined in mm, and are used primarily in countries where mm make more sense than inches would

If you want an equivalent of one of them defined in inches you can create your own presets. While you have the File > New dialog open:

1. Select the standard preset that you want to modify.
2. Change the units to inches.
3. Create your own Preset by clicking the + sign at the top of the Layout pane:
   
    
4. Your new preset will be available under the My Presets tab in the File > New dialog. You can right-click on it to give it a better name.

 

[wonderings]

On 12/18/2020 at 2:49 AM, BLKay said:

I love the idea of getting rid of adobe and Publisher is amazing, but when I've tried to switch, I have had nothing but frustration. I completely understand they are different tools and there will be learning curves and habits that need to adjust. Plus I understand that Affinity does not want to be sued by Adobe for being too much the same - perhaps.  I am no expert in what these laws are but there are so many things that are difficult to find in ... well... both Indesign and Publisher.  Going back in time, I didn't have nearly the difficulty learning Indesign when compared to Publisher. An example it the Character panel in Publisher. Why can it not be part of the top tool bar as it is in InDesign? (I hope I'm missing something)  I use the horizontal percentage on text quite often to fix the look of paragraphs or display ads. Just a percentage mark or two can really make a difference and yet go undetected.  Having fat side panels taking up so much space is just not great.  If in fact there are laws against making Publisher look and feel too much like InDesign then why not make Publisher so customizable we can make it look and feel like close ourselves? I'm sure Adobe has no patent on having the horizontal scale text tool in the top tool bar, among many other things. Yes, I realize this is asking a lot of Publisher coders and designers.  It's just a simply a suggestion to make the switch easier.  Same goes for Photoshop/Affinity Photos.  On a positive note, I do find some features in publisher to be better than InDesign. It's pretty amazing. 

You think Publisher is amazing but have had nothing but frustration with it? I do not want to belittle the Affinity software but not sure why you would want to use software that has given you nothing but frustration.

There is definite room for improvement but I have found anytime I need to do anything I can generally figure it out using what I know from working with Adobe CC. If you are serious about switching over I would say the best solution would be to keep using it and learning it as you go. Yes there will probably be times where you shake your head in confusion but if you honestly want to replace Indesign you will need to think a little differently as that is really what you are after, something different then Indesign to do the same thing. 

[brantome]

I’m  a very new user of Publisher (yet to use it in anger for anything significant), but I found it very strange that if I enter values for margins , bleeds etc in mm on the New Document pane then decide I want the main units to be inches, those entries aren’t recalculated i.e 3mm becomes 3in rather than 0.12in. Very  frustrating...

[RNKLN]

On 12/21/2020 at 1:01 PM, walt.farrell said:

and are used primarily in countries where mm make more sense than inches would

Doesn't this basically mean 'all countries'? 😀

[Alfred]

On 12/29/2020 at 10:58 AM, brantome said:

I’m  a very new user of Publisher (yet to use it in anger for anything significant),

Welcome to the Serif Affinity Forums, @brantome.

On 12/29/2020 at 10:58 AM, brantome said:

but I found it very strange that if I enter values for margins , bleeds etc in mm on the New Document pane then decide I want the main units to be inches, those entries aren’t recalculated i.e 3mm becomes 3in rather than 0.12in. Very  frustrating...

I find that strange, too. It sounds like a bug.