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M
mpi_forum
Participant
May 27, 2019
Question

How do I configure to produce mixed page size (letter and tabloid) PDF?

  • May 27, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 817 views

Source book has mix of letter and tabloid files.  Distiller is configured to tabloid as default.  Cannot make any entries in page size fields in the Publish Settings window, so they remain blank. Use Acrobat Distiller is Checked.  Using either Save As PDF or Publish feature:  PDF is produced all Letter size.  FM 2019/Distiller DC-all updates.  This all worked as expected in FM 12.  Thanks for suggestions to resolve.

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3 replies

M
mpi_forumAuthor
Participant
June 11, 2019

The failure in FM 2019 64-bit to preserve mixed page sizes in PDF, when using Save As PDF with Distiller, has been logged as Bug 6663.  The bug does not exhibit without the Distiller.  For those who need to use Distiller, the traditional method of printing to PostScript then Distilling continues to work properly.

M
mpi_forumAuthor
Participant
June 5, 2019

Update by original poster, as of today.

1. Mixed pages are only possible in a book.  Yes, this has always been true.  Works just fine if Distiller is not selected.

2. Output must be done as batch (no post-production page manipulation) as this would be a massive job and would break all the links to/from the affected pages.

3. The reported failure ONLY occurs when PDF Settings Settings is set to use Distiller.

4. Distiller MUST be used to process pdfmarks (there are hundreds of these).

5. At this point, Adobe representative has reproduced the reported behavior but has not yet responded with either a workaround or an indication that this will be fixed as a bug.

An update will be posted when some final resolution is settled with Adobe.

Thank you all for your suggestions!

    W
    Community Expert
    Winfried RengCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    June 6, 2019

    Hi,

    When someone from Adobe had contacted you, I am confident that this will get fixed.

    Had you created an issue report in Adobe Tracker?

    https://tracker.adobe.com/#/home

    Then it's easier for Adobe to track your issue, and others can vote for it. Please post the issue number here.

    In my test different page sizes work, when you create a PostScript file and distill this to a PDF. This also works with pdfmarks. Therefore you have a work-around.

    Best regards

    Winfried

    Bob_Niland
    Community Expert
    Bob_NilandCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    May 27, 2019

    How were you doing it in FM12?

    Historically, it required a Book approach.

    W
    Community Expert
    Winfried RengCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    May 29, 2019

    Hi,

    FM 2019 (15.0.3.603)

    I tested this now with a new files (DIN A4 and DIN A3) in a book.

    What I noticed:

    • In the Print Setup dialog I set Adobe PDF as printer and the page size to A3. You can also set the page size in the properties of Adobe PDF in the Print Setup dialog, but at least here this had no effect.
    • In the Print Book dialog I checked the PDF Setup and set the page size to width 297 mm and height 420 mm (which is DIN A3). The Setup of the Adobe PDF printer is accessible here as well, This was the same as when I open the Print Setup dialog directly.
    • After these changes I created the PDF with these three methods:
    • FM's internal PDF creation: worked. Only the A3 file is A3. The A4 file is A4. Correct.
    • When I activate Use Acrobat Distiller for PDF generation in the Publish Settings dialog, then all pages in the PDF are A3.
    • When I print to a PostScript file via Print Book and distill this with the Distiller, then everything is correct. Only the A3 file is A3. The A4 file is A4. Correct.

    It could be that I have mixed up some of the settings as you can set the page size in different dialogs, but you can get it to work.

    Best regards

    Winfried

    A
    amys3546815
    Known Participant
    June 5, 2019

    FM 19 v. 15.0.3.603 (FM 17 as well)

    I use a different method that distills each FM size separately then replaces the relevant pages in the primary file. The process may be clumsier than forcing the software to obey commands, but when you're in a rush, it works like a charm, and if I need to fix a mistake, it doesn't take a lot of time to do it over.

    I typically have letter-sized as normal, and legal-sized as the inserted pages. That's how I wrote this instruction set.

    1. FM doesn't like mixing page sizes, so I make a file with the oversized (in your case, undersized) format first. I make sure the headers and footers match the primary document but appear in the correct positions in the secondary format.
    2. Then I create the primary file in the normal size. Since I already created the larger format, I know how many pages it runs, so I add that number of blank pages in the normal size.
    3. Back in the oversized-format FM file, I correct page numbering to match the blank pages in the normal file.  (Click Format=>document=>numbering and select the Page tab. Enter the correct page number in the First Page # box.)
    4. I distill each file separately.
    5. I open the primary PDF in Acrobat and use the Replace feature to replace the blank pages with pages from the file of larger pages.
    6. Check the bookmarks list for any that were deleted or new ones that need to be added. Add/modify them inside Acrobat.
    7. If every page is in sequence and all bookmarks are accurate, all is well.
      Otherwise, edit the PDF numbers to get the document out the door quickly
      or
      Start the process over where it failed (usually at number 3).. Either way, you'll need to redo the master FM pages to avoid the same problem next time.

    Hope this helps! (Meanwhile, I'm going to investigate using the previous method to see how that works.)

    Cheers!

    Amy

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