Issue in saving multi-page PDF as IDML

[SVIDdev]

Hi,

I placed multipage PDF in InDesign and embedded the links.

Then I haved the document as IDML, so all the pages are getting replaced with the first page of PDF.

For example I have a PDF (test.pdf) having 4 pages, then links will be : test.pdf, test.pdf:2, test.pdf:3, test.pdf:4

But after saving it to IDML, links are getting converted to test.pdf, test.pdf, test.pdf, test.pdf. Means page number is getting lost from the link.

And all the pages will have content of 1st page only.

Please let me know if there is any solution or if this is a limitation of IDML format.

[Laubender]

Is there a specific reason for embedding the linked PDF pages?

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[SVIDdev]

I have a requirement of placing multi-page PDF and uploading INDD/IDML to server.

And later on, some other user will be downloading the corresponding INDD/IDML file so PDF file links should be embedded because another user won't be having the original PDF

And I need to use IDML not INDD because the server is slow and file size of INDD is greater.

[BobLevine]

This workflow is a potential disaster. All I can do is wish you luck because it makes no sense whatsoever.

Why not just supply the PDF and be done with it?

[SVIDdev]

I am opening that PDF in InDesign because on top of that I want to use InDesign formatting, inserting text box etc.

[BobLevine]

You cannot edit a PDF in InDesign without the use of a third party plugin. Get the original document and edit that.

[Geоrge]

As says another guys - you are have strange requirements and crazy workflow. Why don't you need to have idml instead indd?

>> links should be embedded because another user won't be having the original PDF

Why don't you use it emberdded images instead package folder?

[BobLevine]

Why are you doing this?

[Laubender]

What's the version of InDesign of your client or user who has to open the IDML file?

Maybe you need no IDML at all if you can provide the right version of an InDesign document with embeded PDF pages.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Laubender]

Hi SVIDdev,

how did you embed the PDFs?

Just tested this:

If I place a multipage PDF the option to embed the placed and linked graphic is not available.

It is grayed-out. Not so for placed single-page PDFs.

Scratch this.

Obviously I did not have enough coffee today and placed InDesign pages of a multipage InDesign document.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Laubender]

Now that I did test your workflow with a multipage PDF, embeded the linked and placed PDF, exported to IDML, opened the IDML file in InDesign, I can see your issue.

Tested with InDesign 17.0.1.105 on Windows 10.

Could be a bug with IDML export or IDML interpretation.

I think the bug is with IDML interpretation, because the right preview of the graphic is visible in the Links panel, but the wrong page, always the first one, is rendered on the page.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

I just tried it and it worked perfectly. 

[Laubender]

"I just tried it and it worked perfectly. "

Interesting.

I will make my test documents available later.

Did you test with InDesign on Mac or Windows?

Which version of InDesign did you use?

Hi SVIDdev,

a solution could be:

[1] Split the multipage document in single page PDFs with e.g. Acrobat Pro DC.

[2] Place the single page PDFs.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[SVIDdev]

Thanks Laubender

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

Windows 10 Home v21H1

InDesign 17.01

[Laubender]

Hi Creamer Training,

here my test documents to download from my Dropbox account:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/oyaloblb0mwltf8/211129-1-MultiPage-PDF-Embedded-IDML-Issues.zip?dl=1

Inspect this InDesign document:

PDF-from-SourceDoc-placed-17.0.1.105.idml-OPENED.indd

That's the one I saved from the opened IDML file that contains the embedded PDF pages from my minimal multipage-PDF.

Source InDesign document of the exported multipage PDF:

Multipage PDF placed and every PDF page embedded.

PDF-from-SourceDoc-placed-17.0.1.105-WIN.indd

IDML document exported from that document:

PDF-from-SourceDoc-placed-17.0.1.105-WIN.idml

Result document showing the bug below. IDML file opened and saved as new document:

PDF-from-SourceDoc-placed-17.0.1.105.idml-OPENED.indd

The icons in the Pages panel are alright and showing the contents of the placed PDF pages 1 to 4.

The contents of the document pages 2 to 4 is wrong. Always the first page.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Laubender]

FWIW: I can see this issue already with InDesign CS6 version 8.1.0.420 on Windows 10.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Peter Spier]

can this be fixed by editing the .idml file?

[Laubender]

Hi Peter,

I don't think that this can be fixed inside the IDML file.

There is an encoded <![CDATA[ range for every embedded PDF page.

It seems that all <![CDATA[ ranges of all my spread xml files contain the same data.

They should be different when the PDF pages are different.

To do this comparison I opened:

Spread_uc6.xml

Spread_ucc.xml

in Notepad++, isolated the data in <![CDATA[  for both files, printed them to PDF and compared the two PDFs with Acrobat Pro DC. Acrobat found no difference.

InDesign is writing the wrong data when exporting or saving the IDML file.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Laubender]

Creamer Training said:

"Windows 10 Home v21H1

InDesign 17.01"

Same for me.

David,

can you make your InDesign test document available with embeded PDF pages?

Plus the IDML file you exported from that.

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Laubender]

InDesign 17.01"

Same for me.

David,

can you make your InDesign test document available with embeded PDF pages?

Plus the IDML file you exported from that.

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Laubender]

Or David,

could you do some tests with my documents?

Export my PDF-from-SourceDoc-placed-17.0.1.105-WIN.indd to IDML and open that in InDesign to see if all the four placed PDF pages are different in the result document.

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

I opened this file: PDF-from-SourceDoc-placed-17.0.1.105-WIN.indd

Saved as IDML and opened the IDML

Worked properly. 

[Laubender]

"Worked properly."

Not for me, David.

Opened your attached InDesign document and I see that page 1 is placed four times.

In the original document page 1 is only placed one time.

Page 1 of the PDF should be on page 1 of the opened IDML file. That worked.

Page 2 of the PDF should be on page 2 of the opened IDML file. Not the case. BUG.

Page 3 of the PDF should be on page 3 of the opened IDML file. Not the case. BUG.

Page 4 of the PDF should be on page 4 of the opened IDML file. Not the case. BUG.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

My results:

[Laubender]

Wow. I mean, wow!!??!! That is disturbing me…

Your screenshot is from your DC.indd file that you attached before? Yes?

What kind of bug on my side is this?

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )