We want to do a course in Microsoft Publisher but have been told that the quality is no good for professional print due to lack of colour palettes. Why is this?

Microsoft Publisher

Basically I think you are referring to the fact that Microsoft Publisher actually defaults to an RGB colour model and not CMYK.  It is the latter required by the printers whilst the former is usually for the web or onscreen work.

In Microsoft Publisher 2003 to Microsoft Publisher 2007 simply go to the File >Info followed by Commercial Print Settings, choose the Colour Model then CMYK.  Take a look at this Microsoft Publisher Video for more visual information.

All our Microsoft Publisher courses can be run in any version and are full of hints and tips such as the CMYK one above to help you get the best out of the software.

Take a look at our Microsoft Publisher Courses.

Microsoft Publisher Introduction

Microsoft Publisher Advanced

After the ePubs course will we be able to easily electronically publish our company magazine?

After the ePubs course you will be able to publish the magazine to ereader or directly to an iTunes* account

How does the knife tool work in Illustrator CS5? I hold down Shift but cannot get it to cut in a straight line.

OK.........I can see the logic of using Shift. 

Unfortunately it doesn't work with this tool............ if you hold down the Shift + Alt keys and then draw out the line it will be perfectly straight..

If we book a DTP Training Course with you guys can you supply MACs for the course?

DTP Training Course
We can supply any kit needed including MAC's or PC with the software and additional files all preloaded.  We would need access to the room in the day prior to the DTP training course. If you would like us to supply kit just mention it at the time of booking.  *Unless mentioned during the booking process the computers (MAC or PC) will be loaded with the latest Operating Systems and software.

Our DTP Training Course /s can be viewed here. 

DTP Training Course Overviews

Are course manuals included in the course?

DTP Course Manuals
We provide books for the days training.  These are usually the Quick Start collection for most of Adobe Creative Suite Training courses and as such are  standard for the Photoshop Course, InDesign Course, Illustrator Course and Acrobat Course.

Adobe Training Course Overviews

Course Overviews

I cannot find any CMYK support in Photoshop Elements, which seems extremely odd. Am I missing something here?

Adobe Photoshop Elements

Photoshop Elements is quite a cool piece of software but its lack of CMYK support is well known.  To be honest its more of a nuisance than an issue,  any good print bureau should sort this out easily enough.  Do be aware though that when converting RGB to CMYK your image might lose quality.  Learn more about colour in Photoshop Elements in this colour management video.

Sounds a stupid question I know but where is the hash key on my MAC?

Quite simply there isn't one but press *Alt + 3 to insert the hash sign. 
*Make sure you are in English Keyboard Layout.

When I was on an InDesign course I was shown how to bring in dummy text into pages. It's been a while since I did the course and I can't remember where it is. Jog my memory please.

Draw out a text frame and position the text cursor inside then go to the Type menu and scroll to the bottom of the menu. Select 'Fill with Placeholder Text' and the box will now fill with dummy text.

Where is the word count function in Adobe InDesign?

Select a text frame then click anywhere in the frame with the Type Tool then go to the Info palette where you will find a count for words, line and paragraphs. Select a block of text and InDesign will give you a word count. Want more then install the TextCount.js script from the InDesign installation disc which is found in the Goodies folder

How do I change measurements permanently from imperial to metric in Adobe InDesign? Each time I do this they return to imperial whenever I open a new document.

This is under preferences (Edit >Preferences) and when you change a preference within an open document then the preference remains for that document. You need to change it to be application wide which is done by closing all InDesign documents then going to the Edit menu and selecting Preferences. 
Edit >Preferences >Units & Increments & select the measurement option you want to use.

The InDesign to Epubs course sounds interesting? What I need to know is that in addition to getting ebooks onto iPads etc do you also cover the process of transferring them to the kindle?

Yes we cover all aspects of eEpubs including the iPad and indeed the kindle. The course deals with all aspects of electronic publishing starting with creating and laying out a document through to get it on to the relevant device.

If enrolling on one of the courses it is possible to state exactly what we need to cover in Photoshop?

Contact us and we will put you in direct touch with a trainer who will advise you as to the best way forward. Depending on exactly what you / your company want to cover we can work through the best solution for you individually.

Even though I've been using Photoshop for some time I think some of my selection techniques could be improved. I assume that we could cover these on a Photoshop Intermediate course in addition to the set course outline

Photoshop Course

On any of our Adobe Training courses, including the Photoshop course we can work according to your specifications.  These Photoshop courses belong to the people that book them and can be tailored accordingly as individually as you.  If you wanted to include some Adobe Photoshop Course advanced elements there's no reason why not.  Or Photoshop Introduction or Photoshop Workshops...................it really is your decision as the content.

With regard to the Adobe Photoshop course outlines, these again are generic and given as guidance only.  We apply a mix and match attitude here, we know one size does not fit all so are happy to perform 'hack and slash' techniques on the Photoshop course outlines.

Drop us a line or ring on the number above to see how we can help further.

There are so many options in Photoshop for selecting items and it is difficult to know which one is best for which job. Could you advise as to the most suitable tool for selecting a colour / colours in a picture?

Selecting in Photoshop
There are a lot of options however for a colour or a range of colour then the colour range tool is probably the best one. 

It allows you to select a specific colour or a range of colours within an image. 

How do I change the endpoints on the measurements palette in QuarkXpress? I'm not exactly sure what the trainer did to change the defaults.

The default 'Endpoints' in QuarkXpress can be changed (giving you the X1, Y1, X2, Y2) in the measurements palette so lines are measured by the 'First Point' instead. That lets you choose the X1, Y1 co-ordinates for the angle and length of line.