Placing PDF pages on every other page

[LGFN1]

Hello!

I would like to place pages from a PDF on every other page (I don't have empty pages set up for it, I would like InDesign to do it for me, too, if possible).

Is there any way I can do it automaticaly, maybe by script?

Thanks in advance!

[Peter Spier]

There are scripts for importing multipage PDFs. One of the best is here: InDesignSecrets » Blog Archive » Zanelli Releases MultiPageImporter for Importing both PDF and INDD ...

This won't skip pages, though, as far as I know, but it wouldn't, I think, be hard to write another script in insert a blank page between every pair of pages after placing the PDF.

[Colin Flashman]

as peter has written, follow the link and get the multipageimporter2.5.jsx link.

you will need another script to run afterwards which will insert a blank every second page.

var doc = app.documents[0];
var masterNames = doc.masterSpreads.everyItem().name;
var d = app.dialogs.add({name:"pick a master spread"});
d.dialogColumns.add().staticTexts.add({staticLabel:"Master Pages:"});
var dd = d.dialogColumns.add().dropdowns.add({stringList:masterNames});
if(d.show()){
     var index = dd.selectedIndex;
     d.destroy();
} else {
     d.destroy();exit();
}
var master = doc.masterSpreads.item(index);
for(var i=doc.pages.length-1;i>=0;i--){
     doc.pages.add(LocationOptions.AFTER,doc.pages,{appliedMaster:master});
}

highlight the above text, copy into textedit (mac) or notepad (pc) and save as a .jsx file and put into your scripts folder.

now, i did NOT write this script but i've unfortunately forgotten who wrote it, so can't credit the author for this script.

[LGFN1]

Thanks Peter and cdflash!

The story is that I have already a document with filled pages, I just want to import a PDF page between every InDesign page. What I did as of now is, I used the script that cdflash provided and now I have new empty every second page. What I would like now, is to be able to import a PDF to every other page, --and as extra credit, rotated 180º (which with the script that Peter linked to, is rotation possible).

Thanks for past and for future!

[Peter Spier]

See, that's sort of the backwards way to do it, in my opinion, becasue it's complicated to skip a page on the import.

Both the skipping and rotation might be possible via script, but I don't write them. What you can do, though, is make sure the doc is now set up as facing pages and has a two-page master. Put a frame on one side of the master where you want the PDF, then rotate it 180. Now File > Place... , pick the PDF and show import options, choose all pages and just click in the empty frames one page at a time until the whole thing is placed.

[LGFN1]

Yup! That's exactly what I did as a last resort...

[briank83163125]

Awesome, Thank you. Just what I needed.

[Davyne B]

Thank you - this is just the script I need after completing a 2-up mail merge to add the back side back in (since indd doesn't allow 2-page multi-up merges)

Looked like it intially was going to work to add my Master B  every other page. However, I am getting an error code on line 14. I'm not a coder, so 

Error unmber 30477: Invalid value for parameter 'referece' of method 'add'

Expected Page, Spread, MasterSpread or Document, but received (Page, Page.....Page). (and page repeates to many times to retype)

Line 14 is:

doc.pages.add(LocationOptions.AFTER,doc.pages,{appliedMaster:master});

FYI: I'm on Mac High Sierra running indd 2020 CC

It seems this comes up every now and then, but since it needs to be printed today, we'll probably run it through twice - once front side, then again back side. But would still love an easier long-term solution.

[AmandaVeronica]

I keep getting this same error when I run the script for every other page. Anyone know what the problem is here?

[David22430226j03g]

theres a missing [i] in the last line.  Script worked after I added it:

doc.pages.add(LocationOptions.AFTER,doc.pages[i],{appliedMaster:master});}

[Michael J. Griswold]

Thanks to Adobe for keeping this post up here. Even 4 years later, it offered a solution for my similar issue.

However, the part of  'click in the empty frames one page at a time' would be painfully slow with a large document. My answer was similar though:

• Run the multi-page import
• Create a new master and place my desired PDF on the B master in the correct position/orientation.
• Run the  cdflash script to add a page after each existing page; this asks which Master to use, specify the B master and let it run.

[lesw21646490]

OMG OMG OMG

Combining Colin's post with Multipage Importer just saved me 2000 clicks!

Thanks so much for the info, and glad it's still here almost 7 years later.

[deannarw]

This worked like a charm! Thank you so much!