Skip to main content
I
Inélsòre
Inspiring
June 7, 2021
Answered

Footnotes at end of page (not end of frame)

  • June 7, 2021
  • 4 replies
  • 4700 views

Dear all,

in a quite complex document (~300pages, 700+ images) I have a page where there are 3 connected text frames (with text flowing between them). 

Now, the author wants to add a footnote in the first text frame.

ISSUE: the footnotes gets created at the end of the first frame instead of at the end of the page as I would like it to. 

Is there any way around this? Or should I simply make a single text frame for pages where there are footnotes and position text accordingly with forced carriage returns? 

Thank you

    Correct answer FRIdNGE

    Very nice! Trying to reverse engineer your screenshots:

    1. Make a horizontal guide line to fix where we want the first frame to end.
    2. Expand the first frame to the bottom of the page to get the footnote where we want it to be
    3. Add a graphic frame to the left half of the page spanning in height from the horizontal guide to the bottom of the page.
    4. Add another graphic frame to the right half of the page from that same guide to a bit higher than the footnote rule. 
    5. Select the first text frame and shift-select the two graphic frames 
    6. Object > Pathfinder > Subtract

    Brilliant! The only issue I see here is that the footnote goes to the right instead of to the left. 

    Any idea on how to fix this?


     

     

    … Just select the 4 Text Frames then PathFinder!

     

    But now we have 1 single Text Frame in 4 parts!!!  =D

     

    (^/)

    4 replies

    L
    Community Expert
    LaubenderCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    June 8, 2021

    Just added the special character for Frame Break after the last blank in the top text frame.

    https://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/using/editing-text.html#add_column_frame_and_page_breaks

     

    Then I changed the height of the frame towards the bottom. The footnote text will follow to the bottom of the text frame. If it will collide with the text of the fourth text frame you still need a text wrap object to shift it to the right.

     

     

    Regards,
    Uwe Laubender

    ( ACP )

      L
      Community Expert
      LaubenderCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      June 8, 2021

      "For solution [2], where would I insert that character?"

       

      Just try some things.

      Your sample document is not a real-world-sample, so only you can tell where exactly what is working for you.

       

      Regards,
      Uwe Laubender

      ( ACP )

      I
      InélsòreAuthor
      Inspiring
      June 8, 2021

      This is as real an example as it can be without sending the full indd document.

      The page in question looks exactly as this just with other text and a few pictures aligned and grouped with the lower frames. 

      I simply wanted to know where to insert that Frame Break character as by breaking the text in multiple frames this would have not brought the desired placement of the footnote. Your graphic frame with text wrap looks great, so thank you for that, but since you mentioned two other methods I was just curious on how you would have realised them.

      Thank you for your time anyway.

      L
      Community Expert
      LaubenderCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      June 8, 2021

      "Is there any way around this?"

       

      There are several ways to force text from one frame to another.

      [1] Text wrapping objects.

      [2] Insert a special character for Frame Break

      [3] Paragraph formatting: Begin Paragraph > Next Frame

       

      In your case with the dummy text it could be solution [1] because the text is flowing without interruption of an end of paragraph character or an end of line character from frame to frame.

       

      So I changed the height of the first frame with the footnote and added two rectangles with text wrap applied to the page.

      Important: I also changed the text frame options of the three other text frames to ignore text wrap.

       

       

      Download the result from my Dropbox account:

      https://www.dropbox.com/s/0p0r6cvfsanhegh/Footnote%20test-EDITED-2021.indd?dl=1

       

      Regards,
      Uwe Laubender

      ( ACP )

        I
        InélsòreAuthor
        Inspiring
        June 8, 2021

        Thank you!

        Not what I would define the most elegant solution ever but if it works ...

        For solution [2], where would I insert that character? 

         

        FRIdNGE
        FRIdNGE
        June 8, 2021

        … Something I use sometimes using, e.g. as here, only the 4 text frames we have!

         

        So, no wrapping, no blank frame …

         

         

         

         

         

        Just select the first text frame (at the top) and the 2 graphic frames and "Pathfinder them"!

         

         

        … and we get what we could call "a Text Trame in 2 Parts" (in red)!  😉

         

        (^/)  The Jedi

          L
          Community Expert
          LaubenderCommunity Expert
          Community Expert
          June 7, 2021

          Hi Inélsòre,

          please show the layout of the page with all frames selected and frame edges showing.

           

          Thanks,
          Uwe Laubender

          ( ACP )

          I
          InélsòreAuthor
          Inspiring
          June 7, 2021

          I'm going to do even better!

          I've attached below an INDD which reproduces that page. 

          I've now worked around it by breaking the link between those frames, made a big first frame and multiple other connected frames atop of the first one, then grouped all of them to ensure that, should they move, they would sink together 🙂

          Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
          Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices