Some people hate drag and drop text, some love it; I’m in the love camp. I love that I can select some text in a frame, then drag it elsewhere in the same frame or a different one (even in a different InDesign doc) and see exactly where it’s going to “drop” (paste). I suppose I could do the same with cutting/pasting but it’s just not as much fun.
By default, the drag and drop text feature only works in the Story Editor (Edit > Edit in Story Editor). To enable it in Layout as well, go to Preferences > Type > Drag and Drop Text Editing and turn on Enable in Layout View.
You’ll know it’s working when your Type tool cursor changes to an arrow and a tiny “T” icon whenever you hover over a text selection. Start dragging when you see that cursor. As you drag, you’ll see a tall insertion bar follow the tip of the arrow. The insertion bar tells you where the type will be dropped when you release the mouse button. It’s a smart drag/drop, too (InDesign takes care of leading/trailing spaces), just like regular cutting and pasting is in CS2.
To drag/drop a *copy* of a text selection (instead of the cutting the original), hold down the Option/Alt key after you start dragging.
This article was last modified on December 18, 2021
This article was first published on May 12, 2006
Commenting is easier and faster when you're logged in!
Recommended for you
InDesign How-to Video: Create a Photo Grid
In this week’s InDesignSecrets video, David Blatner shows how to create a layout...
World-Renowned Photographer Kevin Ames Set to Teach Nationwide
Still trying to strike the balance of efficient digital photography workflow and...
Changing the Language with Find/Change
Paul wrote us, Well I am still fairly new to using InDesign, but after listening...