Indesign over Quark

[missgiggles]

Anyone started using Indesign yet? i think it works really weel with illustrator as it is by Adobe and you can cross-wrk with vectors too so its gr8! what do u think?

[D-Frag]

you should stick around more, this topic is waaaaaay old. most everyone here uses both, but I will tell you the industry has shifted more towards ID.

[missgiggles]

sorry, i'm new to this forum. I wouldn;t have a clue lol :D but hey thanks for pointing that out. :)

[budafist]

Indesign is the business. Let us know any questions you have with it. We're a pretty helpful bunch around here.

[missgiggles]

awww thanks. I'm new to Indesign too so yup, i shall be asking loadsa questions lol :D

[Miss Perfect]

Funny, I've been led to believe that Quark is the name of the game and I shouldn't try for a job before I learn a bit about it. I only know Adobe. Not in the GD industry at the moment, but I like to keep my future options open.

[budafist]

Who led you to believe that Miss P? Could it be teachers that haven't been working in the industry for a few years? Currently most designers I know use Indesign over Quark.

[hewligan]

Certainly six months ago, when I was last looking for a job, very few people seemed to be asking for Quark experience.

Which is good, because if they want Quark experience, that means they expect you to work with Quark :(

[Ned]

Designers, as a rule, choose Indy 100 to 1 over Quark. It's only the companies who can't afford (or are too cheap) to change their software who still use Quark. In general, of course... There are always exceptions. :D

[budafist]

Perhaps, but Indesign is cheaper than Quark...isn't it?

[hewligan]

Designers, as a rule, choose Indy 100 to 1 over Quark. It's only the companies who can't afford (or are too cheap) to change their software who still use Quark. In general, of course... There are always exceptions. :D

Hey, I heard the new features in Quark 6.5 were gonna make Adobe cry (http://quarkvsindesign.com/articles/a1/features/2005/quarks-postcards-from-the-edge/) :D

[hewligan]

Perhaps, but Indesign is cheaper than Quark...isn't it?

Yes, but if you already have Quark...

Also, there are a lot of places - especially in things like newspaper publishing - where there is a big, complicated and expensive workflow built around Quark. For them it's a lot more complicated to change than for places where you just buy a copy of creative suite and send your designer off on a course for a couple of days.

[Ned]

Hey, I heard the new features in Quark 6.5 were gonna make Adobe cry (http://quarkvsindesign.com/articles/a1/features/2005/quarks-postcards-from-the-edge/) :D

Somehow I doubt that, Hewligan. :D

Perhaps, but Indesign is cheaper than Quark...isn't it?
Yes, it is. But I'm talking about companies who have been using Quark since the dark ages. Either they can't afford to buy new software, or all they can afford is a version upgrade (or at least, so say the bigwigs). For those just starting in business, or just opening an art department, InDesign is the better and more affordable investment, for sure.

[Ned]

Also, there are a lot of places - especially in things like newspaper publishing - where there is a big, complicated and expensive workflow built around Quark. For them it's a lot more complicated to change than for places where you just buy a copy of creative suite and send your designer off on a course for a couple of days.
Quark2Indesign Plugin. For just a few hundred bucks, you can open all your Quark files in Indy, and resave them, just like that.

I hear what you're saying, Hewligan, but I see that as just an excuse, personally. :) You'd be surprised just how quickly an entire server can change over from Quark, or even Pagemaker, to InDesign. I've been to work using Pagemaker or Quark, and come back the next week to all Indy files - that's without the plugin.

[Virgo Nightingale]

Some places also have many years' worth of projects archived in Quark, and have to go back to these files when a client needs changes. That's the situation where I am. We have InDesign as well and we do use it when a client provides us with files in that format. I try to use ID when I do non-work related projects at home to help me get more familiar with it though, since I do realize that ID will take over the world.

[budafist]

Thank goodness though that old Quark files can be opened with minimal fuss in Indesign. When I get an old Quark file, I open it in Indesign every time. It's just when I get new Quark files that I will open it in Quark.

[Ned]

Ver 5 I believe is when the cut-off was? Somebody mentioned before here that the code was changed to a new proprietory code which was unavailable to the public.

[hewligan]

Quark2Indesign Plugin. For just a few hundred bucks, you can open all your Quark files in Indy, and resave them, just like that.

I hear what you're saying, Hewligan, but I see that as just an excuse, personally. :) You'd be surprised just how quickly an entire server can change over from Quark, or even Pagemaker, to InDesign. I've been to work using Pagemaker or Quark, and come back the next week to all Indy files - that's without the plugin.

For the newspapers and the like it's not about file compatibility. The problem is with plugins that link together the systems you use for a hugely mutli-user system like a large newspaper. It's the kind of thing that stuff like inCopy tries to address - though if you imagine a large, custom system built on top of that, you're in the right ballpark.

Costs to switch can be huge for them. Plus, from some reviews I've read (I don't work in that area), the collaborative features in Quark are actually still better.

Me, I'm glad I don't have to worry about that stuff, and can just use Indy.

[balou]

Ver 5 I believe is when the cut-off was? Somebody mentioned before here that the code was changed to a new proprietory code which was unavailable to the public.


Here's an earlier thread about opening Quark files in Indesign
http://www.graphicdesignforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=26119

[Tsmalldon]

I used quark extensively at my last job....then I used it for a few months until I became more comfrotable in InDesign.........Havent used quark since.

[PrintDriver]

If you are new to the industry, knowing both is relatively important as pointed out above some work flows are Quark only and aren't likely to change.

If you are established you may be able to get by forgetting Quark.