New Desktop Publishing App?

[Oval]

FYI:  

 

In FAQs Serif told us: "We are going to focus on completing the full suite (including Affinity Publisher) on the Mac over the next 12 months. After that we will look into other platforms.“

 

And MEB: “There will be an Affinity Designer app for iPad/iPad Pro. It's currently under development but it may still take a little until it's ready.“ (14 December 2015) and "Affinity is also developing an iPad version of Affinity Designer, however it will only come after the Mac line have been developed/established“ (06 January 2015)

[MikeW]

And it is all just vaporware until any of them are released.

 

It's really easy to solve. Just use something else that has layout capabilities until such time as APub is released. Well, and until it has the capabilities one needs for their work...

[R C-R]

In the German language there is the word "Mäusekino" (cinema for mice). It describes a very small device with a very small display. Just for mice and not for humans ;)

As I understand it, Affinity is interested in targeting iPad Pro users, particularly pro users who pair it with the Apple pencil. That hardware combination seems to be getting a lot of attention from what I consider to be very "serious" graphic artists like I-Wei Huang, who explains why he uses it in this YouTube video.

 

It is not all about how large the display is. I think most pro users are well aware of that.

[Michail]

@R C-R

 

Then I hope that Serif has an extra team for it, so that the overall development is not delayed.

[Paul Martin]

I have completely avoided Apple products for decades, but I think they have a hold on the mentality of people in publishing which goes beyond rationality and is now very entrenched.

My guess is that Affinity/Serif knows that an outsider needs to win friends and advocates to get seen/heard and, sadly, us Windows-using folk just aren't heard in those quarters. Look on the bright side "early isn't necessarily good". The Brits pretty much invented rail but everyone else learnt from our (expensive) mistakes.

[samasher]

Will Affinity Publisher open InDesign files directly?

[Oval]

Will Affinity Publisher open InDesign files directly?

 

Answered here. But perhaps has changed, Serif?

[samasher]

Thanks.  I had seen both of those answers before asking.  Let me rephrase – how will I get my existing InDesign documents/files into Affinity Publisher?

[Oval]

Thanks.  I had seen both of those answers before asking.  Let me rephrase – how will I get my existing InDesign documents/files into Affinity Publisher?

 

Try it again next year.

[Petar Petrenko]

Thanks.  I had seen both of those answers before asking.  Let me rephrase – how will I get my existing InDesign documents/files into Affinity Publisher?

 

By converting into PDF and importing to Designer or Publisher when it comes out.

[MikeW]

Hello Sam,

 

Are you still using CS5.5? I downloaded a single PDF from your web site and that was the creator. If you are, keep using it for revising the former work done in ID (assuming your OS still runs it) and use APub for new work. As mentioned, for moving work from ID to APub, use a PDF. Unless Serif does include at least an IDML importer initially. But there will be reconstruction needed using a PDF, such as text frame linking, redoing, that sort of thing.

 

I generally only move former work on an as needed basis, creating new work in the application of my choice. I have had only X number of ID clients use any of the CC versions and for those I chose to just rent it for the duration of the job. Most all my ID clients are using CS6 and a few still use CS5.5--both of which I still have (and older). A couple of the IDCC clients have moved on to QXP, for which I gladly convert the work to for a nominal fee (which isn't much, I use a plug-in).

 

Mike

[Oval]

By converting into PDF and importing to Designer or Publisher when it comes out.

 

Makes sense if you want to lose the easy editability.

[samasher]

I have exported from InDesign as InDesign Markup (IDML) with extension .idml.  These files open directly in Scribus version 1.5.2.  What I am losing, however, is the ability to make fractions with OpenType fonts since Scribus appears NOT to do this.  This is something I need to do since I work with a lot of dimensions such as: 5/16", 15/32", 61/64", etc. Where I see that I AM able to do this is in Affinity Designer!  It works wonderfully – one page at a time…  I wonder if Affinity Publisher will be able to open these InDesign Markup (IDML) files directly (as the open source Scribus can do) since I assume Affinity Publisher will include Affinity Designer's ability to work with OpenType fonts to make fractions.

[Petar Petrenko]

Makes sense if you want to lose the easy editability.

 

By now, it is the only option.

[Petar Petrenko]

I have exported from InDesign as InDesign Markup (IDML) with extension .idml.  These files open directly in Scribus version 1.5.2.  What I am losing, however, is the ability to make fractions with OpenType fonts since Scribus appears NOT to do this.  This is something I need to do since I work with a lot of dimensions such as: 5/16", 15/32", 61/64", etc. Where I see that I AM able to do this is in Affinity Designer!  It works wonderfully – one page at a time…  I wonder if Affinity Publisher will be able to open these InDesign Markup (IDML) files directly (as the open source Scribus can do) since I assume Affinity Publisher will include Affinity Designer's ability to work with OpenType fonts to make fractions.

 

I know it will, but don't believe it will be in the v. 1.0.

[Oval]

By now, it is the only option.

 

No, because there is no Affinity Publisher and it seems there will be no launch the next ten months.

 

The PDF method results in a large amount of work if the layout, the tables of contents and/or the footnotes have to be changed.

 

But perhaps there will be a converter app.

[Petar Petrenko]

"Importing" from Quark, InDesign... is only possible via PDF. Never mentioned there is not additional work to finished it. By now, there is a need of extremelly hard work, strong nerves, and it is almost impossible if you need to produce TOC, tables, footnotes...

[Oval]

"Importing" from Quark, InDesign... is only possible via PDF.

 

No, not possible (without APu) and would be useless in many cases.

[SrPx]

As I understand it, Affinity is interested in targeting iPad Pro users, particularly pro users who pair it with the Apple pencil. That hardware combination seems to be getting a lot of attention from what I consider to be very "serious" graphic artists like I-Wei Huang, who explains why he uses it in this YouTube video.

 

It is not all about how large the display is. I think most pro users are well aware of that.

 

I was that convinced (and more) , too, after seeing a ton of user made videos (the promotional ones serves for close to nothing) . But... I tested the actual thing on a store for more than some initial minutes. I was there penciling and inking for 45 minutes or so. Not sold on it, now. Not as accurate as I thought, and the screen, 12.9 inches, for pro work, definitely is not the way. For some sketching? Yep, totally. But is not the price I'd be fine to pay for just an sketching device. You can do wonders with it, but I doubt is as comfortable in the long hours as a 23 -27 inches screen and a larger drawing tablet. (not my 65 cm wide one, lol, but an L or medium size, or even a Chinese tablet-monitor alternative of 22 inches would be much better. ) Still, Apple has this great capability to sell every product, and also, its devices tend to be very stable and solid. I don't deny that. But my real test case was quite revealing. To the point I even think that for serious work, despite being way less handy or portable (but still portable in a bag) , you are much better off with a 17" laptop and a wacom Intuos Medium.(or alternative brand, of the good ones) which still be below the cost of the iPad Pro + Pencil +keyboard (even in the lowest configuration of it). Not to speak if you already have a good laptop!. If one is really earning money with it, working more than 6 hours a day with it, drawing. For casual use, sketching, hobby, yep, IMO then is iPad Pro + Pencil all the way, in that niche is unbeatable. 

 

 

[R C-R]

Hey, SrPx, as I understand it, the accuracy & responsiveness of the iPad Pro & Apple Pencil combo is determined by the capabilities & feature support of the app running on the iPad Pro. One of the more interesting features of the combo is the ability to distinguish between touch gestures & Pencil input, using separate sampling rates for each, even when both are used simultaneously.

 

So, assuming the app supports this, it would be possible to draw with the Pencil & zoom in seamlessly as needed for precision  work on small details & back out again for large scale work that fills the canvas. It could take some time to get used to this.