Object libraries help you organize the graphics, text, and pages you use most often. You can also add ruler guides, grids, drawn shapes, and grouped images to a library. You can create as many libraries as you need—for example, you can create different object libraries for varied projects or clients.

During a work session, you can open as many libraries as system memory will allow. Object libraries can be shared across servers, and across platforms, but only one person can have the library open at a time. If an object library includes text files, make sure that the file’s fonts are available and active on all systems that will access the library.

When you add a page element, such as a graphic, to an object library, InDesign preserves all attributes that were imported or applied. For example, if you add a graphic from an InDesign document to a library, the library copy will duplicate the original, including the original’s link information, so that you can update the graphic when the file on disk changes.

If you delete the object from the InDesign document, the object’s thumbnail will still appear in the Library panel, and all of the link information will remain intact. If you move or delete the original object, a missing link icon will appear next to the object’s name in the Links panel the next time you place it in your document from the Library panel.

Within each object library, you can identify and search for an item by title, by the date it was added to the library, or by keywords. You can also simplify the view of an object library by sorting the library items and displaying their subsets. For example, you can hide all items except EPS files.

Object library in Library panel

A.

Object thumbnail and name

B.

Library Item Information button

C.

Show Library Subset button

D.

New Library Item button

E.

Delete Library Item button

When adding an item to an object library, InDesign saves all page, text, and image attributes, and maintains interrelationships among library objects and other page elements in the following ways:

• Elements grouped in an InDesign document when dragged to the Library panel stay grouped when dragged out of the Library panel.

• Text retains its formatting.

• Paragraph styles, character styles, and object styles that have the same name as styles used in the destination document are converted to the destination document’s styles; those that have different names are added to the document.

• The original layers of an object are preserved when the Paste Remembers Layers option is selected in the Layers panel menu.