I work with packaging design and many times I need to create PDF files from INDD, and often I need to create many files at one time. Let's say 50-75 files. Being able to use Actions like in Illustrator would then be very helpful so Indesign can do the job in the background by exporting the INDD files to PDF.

Please simply take over the functionality and usability of the Photoshop action panel.
In technical documention area i have recurring sets of actions - many !! .
Using scripts is not an option as on one hand i have no coding skills and secondly no skripts are allowed due to safty regulations.

To 'clean up' manuscript files, I go through a series of text search and replaces, often in a specific order. Running these with a single Action would save so much time. My searches vary depending on the content, so I could set up various Actions accordingly. This may also include attaching a character style, e.g. if the character is a maths symbol requiring a font change, or italics for common Latin abbreviations in academic work.

6 years later, still nothing. Use AI guys! You introduced it in Photoshop, how about InDesign??

It's especially surprising that this doesn't already exist because TRANSFORM SEQUENCE AGAIN (as well as Transform Sequence Again Individually) are already part of InDesign, so it's already kind of doing this. Please make it a formal feature, and yes make it like Illustrator and Photoshop.

I need 1700 pdf's, each generated from 1 indesign file in which 1 link has to be replaced by another. An action that can replace the link for me (by simply choosing the next one in the link folder) & save the pdf (according to a certain adobe pdf preset) would be a lifesaver, but only if the output filenames could have the same number as the link that has been used.

Example: printable.indd + linked file inside called '0023.eps' > 0023-printable.pdf or printable-0023.pdf

Hi Abhinav,
It's extraordinary that more than four years later we have no news about this FR. There are so many use cases for being able to quickly record a sequence of actions so they can be executed repetitively. There are few production workflows that wouldn't benefit from an Actions panel.

It should function like the Actions panel in Photoshop and Illustrator.

The ability to record menu items and values entered into dialogs, as well as user interface items (layers selected in Layers panel, etc.)

We regularly have repetitive tasks that need to be performed on long-form documents, and batches of documents, and having to rely on developers to write code as scripts and plug-ins is a *really* huge hurdle to optimizing workflows.

It's 2022--we need an actions panel. I do hundreds of repetitive tasks a week in InDesign--Photoshop and Illustrator have it already.

Hey Abhinav - thank you for asking!
I love how the photoshop actions do the following:
- record/stop/edit (I'm not a coder so this helps me to have a baseline I can copy)
- assign hotkeys, so I can run it from my streamdeck/keyboard maestro
- have a macro which calls another macro. Although PS not having an option to call the same macro more than once for an if then loop incredibly frustrating)

For me personally I use the photoshop acrions for:
1. Changing colours (this would be infinitely useful to be able to modify swatches - or better yet please include swatches in datamerge also).
2. running exports with all the details preset so I'm literally just hotkeyings one thing
3. showing and hiding layers

I agree with others that being able to call on actions like apply styles, outline, colour, etc would be infinitely useful

I too am baffled there's no Action Tool.

I'd use it for any repetitive task that does not already have a short-cut such as:
(begin recording) Object/Object Export Options/Alt Text/Custom (stop recording)

My use case at the moment: A (buggy) script has nudged ever text frame away from the spine by a fixed number of units. I'd like to create an action to nudge them back. It's quicker for me to nudge 180 frames than to write a script, since I have no experience writing IDD scripts, but if were able to record a nudge and then play it back 180 times, it would save me a lot of time right now.

Okay, I'm going to add my input on this. I am constantly creating a caption from an image. After doing so, I have to change the font, change the background, put a stroke on it, change the inset spacing and change the corner. This would REALLY be nice to have in an action.

I would like to create an action so that I can use a keyboard shortcut that automates the following (updates/relinks all links that have been broken due to files/folders being moved):
Open preflight panel and select top picture in missing link list
Click on relink
In the locate window: search for *.* (which gives a list of all files in the current folder and subfolders (here I want to, if need be, before running the action, select folder)
Click enter (as long as there are not multiple files with the same name as the broken file this will automatically relink the picture to where the file i now saved).
click ok in the information window.
relinks a broken link to any file (in a given/may last used folder with subfolder) with the same name. As it is now I

That would be great to have actions. I'm currently typesetting lots of text in tables and I need to change the case of just certain parts of the text to 'Title Case' but it feels very laborious, if there was an action set up I'm sure that would make things quicker.

Making it work as Photoshop or Illustrator, pls.

It baffles me that this does not exist yet.
I use the Actions panel to create custom registration marks around any selection in Illustrator, please incorporate this in InDesign.
Following is an excerpt of my (recorded!) action:

1. group current selection and name the grouped object via Object Description (i.e. "tempObject")
2. paste predefined registration mark and name it ("regOne")
3. select all
4. align to top and to left
5. select objects with the name "regOne"
6. transform 15 mm to the left
7. duplicate the object and name the result "regTwo"

etcetera etcetera...

Just making it work as photoshop or illustrator would be great.
For me any action which let me "record" few steps and then apply them automatically would be AMAZING!

Also if you could add the "batch" script for actions as Photoshop does it, then this would be the BEST OF THE BEST!

How is this not already a thing? This is part of my day to day in photoshop and illustrator. For me, hiding and showing layers. Basically anything that I can do in the app should be actionable - like photoshop.

I create a bunch of template files and update colours and a few graphics every month. I wish I could have the option for an input box which can then change the value of an item (for example changing "SWATCH COLOUR 1", Change the month to "February". I already have one data merge in my indesign file, so a second data merge would be helpful too.

Image manipulations such as:

Moving along X and Y axis
Width and Height
Effects (shadow, etc)