To link titles in InDesign, you can turn any selected title text into a clickable hyperlink that directs readers to an external website, a specific file, or another page or text anchor within your InDesign document.
Making a Title a Clickable Hyperlink
Turning your document titles into interactive elements is a straightforward process in InDesign. This allows readers to click on a title to navigate directly to relevant content, whether it's an external resource or another section of your document.
Here's how to create a hyperlink from your title text:
- Select your text and right-click it. This text can be any title, heading, or specific phrase you wish to make interactive.
- In the dropdown menu, click Hyperlink, then New Hyperlink. This action will open the New Hyperlink dialog box, where you can define the destination of your link.
Once the New Hyperlink dialog box appears, you have several options for the type of link you want to create:
Hyperlink Type | Description | Practical Use for Titles |
---|---|---|
URL | Links to a web address (e.g., https://www.example.com ). |
Perfect for linking a product title to its online store page, a news article title to its source, or a chapter title to related online resources. |
File | Links to an external document (e.g., a PDF, Word document). | Useful for linking a report title to the full report PDF, or a technical specification title to its corresponding detailed document. |
Page | Links to a specific page number within the current InDesign document. | Ideal for linking a table of contents entry (which is often a title) to the actual page where that chapter or section begins. |
Text Anchor | Links to a specific point (a previously defined "text anchor") within the current InDesign document. This is highly precise for internal navigation. | Essential for creating cross-references. You can link a reference like "See Product Features on page X" directly to the 'Product Features' title, even if the page number changes later. |
Shared Destination | Allows you to reuse a previously defined hyperlink destination, ensuring consistency. | If you have multiple instances of the same title or phrase that should link to the same destination, you can create one shared destination and apply it wherever needed. |
Links to an email address, opening the user's default email client with a pre-filled recipient. | Less common for main titles, but could be used in a "Contact Us" section title to initiate an email. |
Practical Applications for Linking Titles
Linking titles enhances the interactivity and usability of your InDesign documents, especially for digital outputs like interactive PDFs or eBooks.
- Table of Contents (TOC): A common application is to make each entry in your TOC (which typically lists chapter titles) clickable, guiding the reader directly to the corresponding section.
- Navigation: In complex documents, titles can serve as navigation buttons, linking to different sections or appendices.
- External Resources: If a title refers to a concept, product, or source, you can link it directly to a webpage with more information or a supporting document.
- Interactive Guides: In an interactive user manual, a troubleshooting section title could link directly to an external support page.
Linking to Titles for Internal Navigation (Cross-References)
Beyond making titles themselves clickable, InDesign also excels at creating links to titles or other text elements within the same document using Text Anchors and Cross-References. This is crucial for dynamic internal navigation, especially when page numbers might change during the editing process.
To link to a title:
- Create a Text Anchor: First, place your text cursor at the beginning of the title you want to link to. Go to Type > Hyperlinks & Cross-References > New Hyperlink Destination and choose Text Anchor. Give it a descriptive name (e.g., "Chapter 1 Title").
- Create a Cross-Reference: Now, wherever you want to link to this title (e.g., from a table of contents entry or a "See also..." note), select the text you want to become the link. Go to Type > Hyperlinks & Cross-References > New Cross-Reference. In the dialog box, choose the document and the Text Anchor you just created. InDesign can automatically insert the page number, paragraph text, or other details related to the anchored title.
This method ensures that if your title moves to a different page, the cross-reference automatically updates, maintaining accurate navigation.