Adobe InDesign is a powerful layout and design tool used by graphic designers, publishers, and marketers worldwide. While using InDesign, you might have come across a scenario where some of your text gets highlighted in yellow, seemingly without any specific action on your part. This can be both puzzling and frustrating, especially if you don’t know why it’s happening or how to remove it. Fortunately, this behavior is actually a helpful feature built into InDesign to assist users, and it can be easily managed once you understand what it means. In this article, we will explore the various reasons why Adobe InDesign highlights text in yellow, what those highlights indicate, and how to fix or adjust them to maintain a smooth workflow.
Reasons Why Text is Highlighted in Yellow in InDesign
The yellow highlight in InDesign usually serves as an alert to indicate something that requires your attention. There are several common reasons why InDesign highlights text in yellow, and each serves a different purpose in helping you manage your text effectively.
1. Missing Font or Font Substitution
One of the most common reasons for yellow highlights in Adobe InDesign is missing fonts. If the font that is being used in your document is not available on your computer, InDesign will automatically substitute it with another available font. To help draw your attention to this issue, InDesign highlights the text in yellow, alerting you that the actual font used is different from the intended one.
How to Fix Missing Fonts
- Check for Missing Fonts: To check for missing fonts, go to Type > Find Font. This will open the Find Font dialog box, where you can see a list of fonts used in your document and determine which ones are missing.
- Replace or Install Fonts: You can either install the missing fonts or replace them with an available font. If you have access to Adobe Fonts through Creative Cloud, you may be able to activate the missing fonts directly from the Find Font dialog box.
- Update Your Document: Once you have resolved the missing fonts, the yellow highlight will automatically disappear, and your text will be displayed with the correct font.
2. Overset Text
Another reason for yellow highlights is overset text. Overset text occurs when there is more text than can fit inside the text frame, resulting in some content being hidden. InDesign uses a yellow highlight to indicate that you need to address the overflow to ensure all the text is visible.
How to Fix Overset Text
- Adjust the Text Frame Size: One simple way to resolve overset text is to resize the text frame so that all of the content fits within it. Click on the text frame and use the selection handles to expand it as needed.
- Link Text Frames: If expanding the text frame is not an option, you can link it to another text frame. This allows the overflow text to continue in a separate frame, maintaining the flow of your content. Click on the red + icon in the bottom-right corner of the text frame and then click on a new location to create a new text frame for the overflow text.
- Reduce Text Size or Edit Content: Alternatively, you can reduce the font size, adjust the spacing, or edit the content to make it fit within the existing frame.
3. Missing Glyphs
Sometimes, InDesign highlights text in yellow due to missing glyphs. Glyphs are special characters used in typefaces, such as ligatures, accents, or symbols. If a particular glyph is not available in the selected font, InDesign will highlight it in yellow to indicate that the character cannot be rendered correctly.
How to Fix Missing Glyphs
- Open the Glyphs Panel: Go to Type > Glyphs to open the Glyphs Panel. This panel allows you to view all available glyphs for the selected font and replace the missing character with an available one.
- Switch to a Compatible Font: If the font you are using does not include the desired glyph, you can change the font to one that supports the missing character. InDesign will automatically remove the yellow highlight once a suitable replacement is found.
- Use Adobe Fonts: Adobe Fonts provides a wide variety of fonts with extended character sets. If you are missing glyphs, consider using fonts from Adobe Fonts that include the characters you need.
4. Spelling and Grammar Issues
InDesign has built-in spelling and grammar check features that can also lead to text being highlighted. Depending on your settings, text with potential spelling or grammatical errors might be highlighted in different colors, including yellow.
How to Fix Spelling and Grammar Issues
- Enable Dynamic Spelling: Go to Edit > Spelling > Dynamic Spelling to enable the real-time spell-check feature. This will underline misspelled words, and depending on your settings, it might also highlight them in yellow.
- Correct Errors: Right-click on the highlighted text to view suggested corrections or go to Edit > Spelling > Check Spelling to run a comprehensive spell-check of your document.
How to Disable the Yellow Highlight in InDesign
If you find the yellow highlighting distracting, you can adjust the settings to turn it off. Here are some ways to control highlighting in Adobe InDesign:
1. Disable Missing Font Highlighting
If the yellow highlighting is related to missing fonts and you don’t want to see these highlights, you can turn off the font highlighting.
- Open Preferences: Go to Edit > Preferences > Composition (Windows) or InDesign > Preferences > Composition (Mac).
- Uncheck “Highlight Substituted Fonts”: In the Composition settings, uncheck the Highlight Substituted Fonts option. This will remove the yellow highlight for missing fonts.
2. Turn Off Paragraph Shading
If paragraph shading is causing the yellow highlighting, you can turn it off by:
- Select the Paragraph: Use the Type Tool to click inside the highlighted paragraph.
- Disable Shading: In the Paragraph Panel, click on the Paragraph Shading button to turn off the shading effect.
Best Practices to Avoid Yellow Highlighting
To minimize interruptions to your workflow caused by yellow highlights, consider the following best practices:
- Manage Fonts Properly: Keep your fonts organized and ensure that the required fonts are available on your system. Use Adobe Fonts to access and activate missing fonts when working on collaborative projects.
- Use Preflight Panel: The Preflight Panel in InDesign helps you catch potential errors, such as missing fonts, overset text, and missing links, before they become an issue. Go to Window > Output > Preflight to activate the Preflight Panel and address issues early in your workflow.
- Check Links and Assets: Make sure that all linked assets, such as fonts and images, are available and properly linked. This will reduce the likelihood of issues like missing fonts or missing glyphs, which can trigger yellow highlighting.
Conclusion
Adobe InDesign’s yellow text highlighting is a helpful feature designed to alert you to potential issues that need your attention, such as missing fonts, overset text, missing glyphs, or spelling errors. While these highlights can be puzzling at first, understanding what they mean and how to resolve them is key to maintaining a smooth workflow and ensuring your designs look polished and professional.
By managing your fonts, using paragraph shading effectively, and utilizing InDesign’s advanced features, you can easily avoid or resolve yellow highlights. If the highlighting becomes distracting, you can always adjust your settings to minimize its visibility. With a clear understanding of why InDesign highlights text in yellow, you can take full advantage of this feature and make your design process more efficient and effective.
