For graphical highlights, the layered mini-calendar examples below can be replaced by the simpler mini-calendar text framing and shading options when using QuarkXPress 2017-2026 or InDesign 2020-2027.
The layered graphical-highlight technique below is mainly useful for maintaining existing, pre-2018 diaries, or when using QuarkXPress 8-2016.
The Show only on Current Day mini-calendar modifier, denoted by :cd, can be used to specify that only those dates corresponding to the current date(s) should be displayed (where each date is determined to be current or not, based on the current day settings of the mini-calendar Options).
Used alone, :cd displays only current-day dates, as determined by the Current Day settings. All other dates are left blank. The displayed dates retain the formatting they would normally receive. Add -alt1 or -alt2 to use the corresponding Alternate Format instead. Using these modifiers simply to show only current-day dates or holiday dates does not require the two overlapping mini-calendars used in the examples below.
To obtain the result shown above (white text on a black oval), you would use 2 mini-calendar textboxes, one on top of the other (the 2 textboxes are shown side-by-side, below, to make the picture more legible).
The mini-calendar textbox on the left uses a normal mini-calendar token [1mc+00] and the following current day font formatting:
The mini-calendar textbox on the right [1mc+00:cd-alt1] uses a mini-calendar token that uses a Show only on Current Day mini-calendar Modifier and the indication that on those dates the dates should be displayed using the following alternate font formatting (the -alt2 modifier is also available) :
In this example, the alternate format replaces each matching date number with a fixed character in a symbol font. Without -alt1 or -alt2, the modifier retains the dates and their normal formatting.
See also: ignore current day options, show only on holidays.
Topic 176975, last updated on 06-Oct-2026
