How to Use Liquid Layout When Creating an Alternate Layout in Adobe InDesign

Liquid Layout is used when creating Alternate Layouts, where one file contains multiple versions of each page at various sizes and orientation. The feature was originally developed to cut down the massive production time required for publishing to tablet devices. It can also be applied to any project where multiple sizes are needed: for instance, an ad that's placed in magazines and journals with different ad sizes.

This feature works the same in Adobe InDesign CS6 and CC versions.

1. Go to the Layout menu and choose Liquid Layout.
2. When the Liquid Layout Panel is opened, the Page Tool is automatically activated and a bounding box will appear around your current page. Pulling at handles of the bounding box lets you preview how the content would be redistributed. The page returns to its original size when you release the mouse. Holding down Alt (PC)/Option (Mac) while dragging applies the size change to the page.
3. The Liquid Layout Panel has a Liquid Page Rule menu with options for how objects will resize:
   • Scale: Content is scaled proportionally and space is added around content as needed.
   • Re-center: Content is centered in the new page area without scaling.
   • Guide-Based: When a guide is created that touches an object on the page, the guide sets the direction that the object on the page can resize. A horizontal guide lets an object it intersects scale vertically; a vertical guide allows resizing horizontally.
   • Object-Based: Individual frames can be anchored to specific sides of the page and will scale from that anchored position.
4. Choose Object-Based from the Liquid Page Rule menu, then, still using the Page Tool, click a frame on the page. The Liquid Layout Panel shows resizing options under Object Constraints and also gives options for pinning the object to specific page sides. There are pin handles on the frame itself, as well.
5. When applying an object-based Liquid Page Rule to a text frame there are additional column options to be considered. Switch to the Selection Tool and open the Text Frame Options [Ctrl+B (PC) / Command+B (Mac)]. Click the Columns menu and Select Flexible Width. This option also lets you define the maximum width allowed when the frame is resized.
6. After setting the Text Frame Options, go to the Liquid Layout Panel to set the Object Constraints and Pin options. Using the Page Tool, pull at the handles to resize the page and watch how the columns in the text frame reflow.
7. Now that the Liquid Page Rules and Text Frame Options have been set, an alternate layout can be created. Go to the Pages Panel menu and select Create Alternate Layout.
8. Specify the alternate page size and choose Object-Based from the Liquid Page Rule menu, then click OK.
9. The Pages Panel now has a column for the pages at the alternate size.
10. To see the two layouts side-by-side, click the Split Layout View button at the lower-right of the document window.