How to print a multifile book in multiple signatures?

[David Wendelken]

How do I print a 448 page book, 2 pages per side of a sheet of paper, in 14 signatures of 32 pages?
I'll be printing using 11x17 paper in a duplex printer, each page would be 8 1/2x11.

know how to do it in MS Word, but can't figure out how to make it work with indesign or indesign + pdf.

I can make it work using a pdf if I specify the 4 pages on each sheet of paper and print each sheet of paper as a separate print run.  (Except my text block shrinks from 6" to about 5" in width when I do that.  If I just print the same pdf file as a plain-ole two sided 8 1/2x11 page, the margins print correctly.)  Being able to print a specific 4 pages is important in case one sheet gets jammed, I don't want to have to reprint a 448 page book just to get one sheet!

Thanks!!!

[David Wendelken]

It looks like the answer to the print the full document issue is to upgrade to Acrobat Pro.  😞

Hopefully the sizing issue where it's shrinking the width of the text area from 6 inches to 5 inches will go away?

[Eugene Tyson]

You should really use imposition software - and take your pdf that's linear pages 1-448 and impose them.

Your other alternative is to get the page imposition numbers for each signature and output your pdf in that order

So it goes 

32,1,2,31,30,3,4,29,28,5,6,27,26,7,8,25,24,9,10,23,22,11,12,21,20,13,14,19,18,15,16,17

That's your first signature

You can use Excel to generate the pattern and then copy and paste the page sequence

Select Spreads when making the PDF

If the signature for 1-32 works here - then replicate that sequence for the other signatures.

If there's a jam - you just have to output that signature again.

[David Wendelken]

Recommendations for imposition software?   

I got the impression from a video that acrobat pro had that feature?

[rob day]

Hi @David Wendelken , InDesign’s Print Booklet lets you print simple 2-up perfect bound and choose a signature size—Acrobat’s Print booklet does not support perfect bound signatures. Set your siganture size in Setup, and your Paper Size in Print Settings...

Also, you are welcome to try this imposition script, which exports a PDF as signatures:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/2wjwe13fsrw9iszebo15e/h?rlkey=nwt5o3uex31fgra7oj15qvs7z&dl=0

The dialog

[David Wendelken]

Thanks!  I'll look at the script.

It appears that InDesign's print booklet only works for one InDesign file, not for a multi-file Book. 😞   Either that, or I'm not smart enough to figure out how to make it work that way.

[rob day]

Sorry I missed the Book part. Unless your Book documents are 32 pages or multiples of 32, the script probably doesn’t work either.

[rob day]

Another option would be to export the Book to regular reader pages and look at the PlaceMultipagePDF.jsx script that ships with InDesign—see the Scripts panel’s Samples folder. The PlaceMultipagePDF script places a multi-page PDF as pages in a new ID doc. From there you could use Print Booklet or my script.

[Robert at ID-Tasker]

How do I print a 448 page book, 2 pages per side of a sheet of paper, in 14 signatures of 32 pages?
I'll be printing using 11x17 paper in a duplex printer, each page would be 8 1/2x11.

[...]

By @David Wendelken

What kind of printer?

If it's a modern one - there should be an option in the printer's driver to print booklets.

Of course, you would have to select page ranges - if you have everything in one PDF.

1-32, 33-64, ...

Or you can print 14x signatures from Acrobat:

https://helpx.adobe.com/uk/acrobat/kb/print-booklets-acrobat-reader.html

Then if it jams - you can reprint only one sheet.