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.

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

It's from the IDML that I made from that file. (I can't upload the IDML file and doing this during breaks from my FrameMaker class, so don't have time to share...)

I chalk it up to good living...😁

[Laubender]

Would you please show a screenshot of the Links panel as well, please?

With all four placed and embedded PDF pages visible.

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

[Laubender]

Hi David,

I solved this riddle with your DC.indd document and the paradox view of the embedded PDF pages.

If I turn on "Normal View" I see what you are seeing. Four different PDF pages placed and embedded:

A switch to "High Quality View" reveals the bug.

Only the embedded PDF page 1 is there four times:

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Gusgsm]

That workflow seems to be imagined by somebody that does not have to deal with it and wants to reinvent the wheel for some unspecified reason but...

What if instead of placing a multipage PDF, you break it first in individual pages (Acrobat can do that very easily if your version of InDesign is too old to generate individual PDF by itself)? So, you could place the batch of PDF and all of them would be just the first page.

Best regards

[Laubender]

Hi Gusgsm,

yes, of course, placing one page PDFs only is the solution.

Already told that our OP here in a reply before.

FWIW: Personally I never work in Normal View, always in High Quality View.

And I never embed any placed graphics or images.

And as we can see in the sample above: Never trust the Normal View.

Even more: Always work in High Quality View and turn on Overprint Preview as well now and then.

Thanks,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Gusgsm]

Hi, Uwe

I thought that could be the case but the thread is long and I was in between tasks at my workplace. So sorry 🙂

Gustavo

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

Regardless of workflow, this shouldn't happen. It's a bug.

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

In Overprint Preview, I see the bug. 

I usually work in Normal but proof with the following settings:

• Bleed Screen Mode
• Overprint Preview
• Proof Colors (with Color Settings correct)

I didn't do this preview check for this document, obviously. 

[Laubender]

Hm. Also tested the following:

Exported IDMS snippet files from the frames with the embedded PDF pages. Together with the caption text frame.

Same issue. In all four cases you only write the first pdf page embedded to a snippet. The preview thumbnails of the snippets for the frames with pages 2 to 4 are misleading. And also after placing the snippets, if you do not use High Quality View or Overprint Preview you see the wrong contents on the page.

This time I used four placed PDF pages with four distinct color frames in the background.

Snippet files placed.
Layout in Normal View:

Snippet files placed.
Layout in High Quality View of the same document:

Download the four snippet files and the document where I placed them from my Dropbox account:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/br2fcplxk2eg9d1/211130-1-MultiPage-PDF-SnippetFilesPlaced.zip?dl=1

Of course the same will happen if you store an embedded pdf page as asset in an InDesign library file or in a CC Library.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

I would write this down as one of those bugs that will probably never get fixed due to its low-level of importance. Adobe gets distracted by "shinny things"* and never seems to get around to fixing some of these minor, but annoying, issues. 

*Whatever is popular at the time...

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

Uwe--do you know how to read the IDML file? I tried opening it with Notepad++ but it did not display in plain text. (I always thought it was some type of XML file...)

[Laubender]

David,

first open the IDML file with 7-Zip. Simply use the Open command from the list of the context menu in the file system. You see all of the contents of the IDML file in a "plain" or "flat"* view, means, all folders inside the IDML and all files inside the IDML are in one list like that:

When the IDML file is opened by the 7-Zip application it is NOT unpacked.

It's just opened so you can see into it and can do things to its contents. Like dragging files and folders out. Or even editing XML files inside the IDML package file.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

* EDITED. "flat" view of files and folders is perhaps more appropriate to say.

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

Thanks--I should have guessed it was a glorified .zip file. I change the file extensions to .zip all the time for Word and PowerPoint files. (On a copy, of course.)

I was wondering if one could add the "#page=2" (etc.) to the PDF link code. Not that it would fix the bug, but it might point to the origin of the problem.

[Laubender]

How would one do this if exporting to IDMS for example yields the same result?

Even if you select all four frames with embedded pages 1 to 4 and write them to one single IDMS snippet file, the result is the same. Always page 1 of the multipage PDF in the export data. Never page 2 to 4 of the original embedded data.

Perhaps a plug-in written in C++ is able to extract the right data from the InDesign document?

For now the only solution is to get rid of the multipageness of the placed PDF. Splitting the original multipage PDF to single page PDFs and placing the one-page PDFs is the answer if one needs embedded graphics of PDF pages in IDML or IDMS files or library assets for whatever reason.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender

( ACP )

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

>>How would one do this if exporting to IDMS for example yields the same result?

>>Perhaps a plug-in written in C++ is able to extract the right data from the InDesign document?

No idea--that's above my pay grade. I'm just a simple user. I was just poking around out of curiosity. 

[Laubender]

Tested on a bit. Now it gets funny:

[1] This time we place only page 2 and page 3 of a multipage PDF and embed both placed and linked graphics.
[2] Rename the originally placed multipage PDF ( optional )

Then export to IDML and open the IDML file in InDesign.
Also in this case the first page of that multipage PDF will be exported two times to IDML.

Repeat [1], change [2] to:
Delete the originally placed multipage PDF ( optional )

Same result:
The first page of that multipage PDF will be exported two times to IDML.

Regards,
Uwe Laubender
( ACP )

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS]

There is a fine line between curiosity and obsession... 🤣