Converting PageMaker to InDesign

Carl Shank • January 15, 2021

How to Convert PageMaker Files to InDesign Files

To some users with  legacy PageMaker files, converting  them  to Adobe InDesign files has been a challenge. Adobe Systems Incorporated stopped shipping or updating PageMaker files for a number of years. They moved on to InDesign programming and layout. Aldus PageMaker 3 for Macintosh and Windows was shipped in 1988. Aldus PageMaker 4 for Macintosh was released in 1990, with the Windows version in 1991, and offered new word-processing capabilities, expanded typographic controls, and enhanced features for handling long documents.


Aldus PageMaker 5.0 was released in January 1993. Aldus was purchased by Adobe Systems who took over the upgrades and further enhancements. Adobe PageMaker 6.0 was released in 1995, and Adobe PageMaker 6.5 was released in 1996.


Support for versions 4.0, 5.0, 6.0, and 6.5 is no longer offered through the official Adobe support system. This poses substantial problems for users who have works authored in these legacy versions.


The final version made available is PageMaker 7.0, released in 2001, though updates have been released for the two supported platforms since.


The Macintosh version runs only in Mac OS 9 or earlier; there is no native support for Mac OS X, and it does not run at all on Intel-based Macs. It does not run well under Classic, and Adobe recommends that customers use an older Macintosh capable of booting into Mac OS 9. The Windows version supports Windows XP and a few other Windows versions.


As Adobe migrated users to its new InDesign format released in 2001, versions 1 through CS6 had their fair share of adoption issues and compatibility problems. Newer versions of InDesign can read older InDesign versions, but they are not backwards compatible. InDesign CS6 can read only PageMaker 6.5 files. Consequently, users who now have InDesign CC series cannot read older PageMaker files at all. Thus, the need for this service.


What We Can Do For You

PageMaker 3 – 5 to InDesign ($15 per file) (Macintosh)

Specify the InDesign format to what you want to transfer your files. We offer InDesign CS – CS6 and InDesign CC. To transfer these older PM files to newer InDesign files (InDesign CS6 and beyond) requires first transferring them to PageMaker 6.5 files. Our goal is to keep your formatting and fonts in place. If we cannot do this, we will let you know before the transfer takes place.


PageMaker 6.x to InDesign ($15 per file) (Macintosh)

Specify the InDesign format to what you want to transfer your files. We offer InDesign CS – CS6 and InDesign CC. Our goal is to keep your formatting and fonts in place. If we cannot do this, we will let you know before the transfer takes place.


PageMaker 6.5 or 7 to InDesign CS ($15 per file) (Windows)

We also offer a Windows based transfer system for PageMaker 6 or later files to InDesign CS. 


We own the legal rights to the use of this software. All of the software used has a valid Adobe serial number. We have been using this software since its inception to the Macintosh or Windows platforms.

Successful Layout & Design

Typeface Characteristics: Which Type Where?

By Carl Shank • September 9, 2026
Typeface characteristics are the visual and structural features that distinguish one typeface from another. They determine a typeface’s historical appearance, readability, personality, and appropriate use. Useful Ways to Analyze Any Typeface. When examining an unfamiliar typeface, ask these questions in order (provided by ChatGPT) — Does it have serifs? What kind of serifs? How much thick/thin contrast is present? What is the stress angle? What is the x-height? How wide or narrow are the letters? How are the counters constructed? What do the terminals look like? What are distinctive letters such as a, g, e, R, and Q doing? How does the typeface behave in a paragraph—open, dark, dense, airy, mechanical, or calligraphic? What historical or technological process does its construction suggest? What personality does the combination of these characteristics produce? There are a number of online sources to help identify typefaces ( See Feb. 6, 2022 Blog for more explanation and use.) Sources include — MyFonts ( www.myfonts.com/WhatTheFont ), FontSquirrel ( www.fontsquirrel.com/matcherator ) WhtFontIs ( www.whatfontis.com ) Identifont ( www.identifont.com ) is one of the best. Here are the questions it will ask you — Does it have feet (serifs) or not (sans-serifs)? What style is the tail on uppercase Q? What style is the ampersand (the &)? Is the numeral “4” open or closed? What style of vertical line does the Dollar sign ($) have? How high is the center vertex of the uppercase M? Sit on the line or not? What type of bar does the uppercase G have? How far below the baseline does the uppercase J extend? What about the uppercase R? How far does the center bar extend? Is there a gap with the vertical part of the letter? Does it meet or cross the vertical? What about the question mark (?) What shape is the dot at the bottom? Is it circular, square, triangular, rectangular or even missing? The important point is that a typeface should not be identified by a single characteristic. Its identity comes from the interaction of serifs, contrast, stress, proportions, counters, terminals, spacing, and letterform construction.

More on Variable Fonts (2)

By Carl Shank • September 5, 2026
Google’s variable font selection includes IBM Plex Sans, Inter, Newsreader, Open Sans, Playfair Display, Express Fraunces and Roboto. FF Meta Variable is now a licensed font from Monotype (myFonts.com). Formata Variable is a demonstration only font from CARE Typography. We consider two Google Variable typefaces here — Playfair Display and Express Fraunces. Playfair Display Playfair Display is a high-contrast transitional/display serif typeface designed by Claus Eggers Sørensen and released through Google Fonts in 2011. It was designed primarily for large display sizes, especially headlines, titles, and editorial typography. Its appearance draws inspiration from the late eighteenth-century transition from traditional broad-nib writing toward pointed steel pens, as well as from the elegant typefaces associated with the European Enlightenment and neoclassical period. Playfair Display is a contemporary high-contrast serif designed primarily for display typography. Its visual ancestry lies in the 18th-century transitional period, particularly the movement from broad-nib calligraphic forms toward the sharper, more vertical forms that ultimately produced Didot and Bodoni.
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