Three frames or one for multi-language side-by-side text?

[Inélsòre]

Hello there,

I wonder if I am using columns wrong or expecting them to do something that I should achieve with three separate, yet connected, text frames. Here's what I have:

The lower text frame contains the same text in three languages and I would like them to start all vertically aligned on three columns. Right now I have only a single frame, with column rules, and the text continues on the following page with another similar frame. I would like the text in English to flow through the first column of both frames, then the Italian text to flow through the middle column of both frames, and, finally, the Portuguese text flow in the last column of both frames.

Is it possible with a single text frame or should I draw three frames and use perhaps the line tool to draw the column rules? 

Thanks!

[James Gifford—NitroPress]

If this is just one or two pages in all, almost any method will work. If it's multiple pages or to be repeated, there are a couple of approaches.

Create the top frame and make it two-column. Create the bottom frame and make it three-column. Set it all up with spacing and inter-rules and such. You could just use one text flow, breaking it with Paragraph Styles to flow top-col 1-col2-col3 and then as needed to the next page, or use two text flows, or even four. As always, you can use quick and simple for a one-shot layout, but put more time into making a tidy, well managed layout for repeated use.

[Inélsòre]

You could just use one text flow, breaking it with Paragraph Styles to flow top-col 1-col2-col3 and then as needed to the next page, or use two text flows, or even four. As always, you can use quick and simple for a one-shot layout, but put more time into making a tidy, well managed layout for repeated use.

By @James Gifford—NitroPress

How do I do this in InDesign? 

I would like to create a reusable method for the future. In my external word process I write all text as a single flow, so all English, all Italian, all Portuguese. How do I tell InDesign to have each language, or each part of text, occupy only a specific column of the flow?

Thanks!

[James Gifford—NitroPress · Accepted solution]

Okay. Here's a simple list of steps, ask if any of them aren't clear:

• Create a new document with the page margins you want and no primary text frames (whether you create it as facing pages or not is up to how you plan to use these pages; I will assume you're using only one page format without a facing equivalent.)
• On the (blank) Parent page, create a text frame across the top half of the page. Use Text Frame Options to give it two columns and the gutter width you want.
• Create a text frame across the lower half of the page, and repeat the first step to give it three columns, probably somewhat wider gutters, the gutter (inter-column) rule, etc.
• Click on the text flow connector icon at the lower right of the top frame. Click in the lower frame to connecting them into one text flow.
• On a doc page, Ctrl-Shift-click both top and bottom to place both frames on the page.
• Dump your text into the upper frame. It should flow through the columns (top1 , top 2, bottom 1, bottom 2, bottom 3).

That's the page setup. For styles:

• Create a new Body Text Eng style and configure it the way you want the text to appear.
• Duplicate it for each of the other languages: Body Text Por, Body Text Ita. The main reason to do this is so that you can assign the correct language for spell checking and hyphenation. Use any naming system that's consistent and works for you.
• After you flow the text in (or if you want to be sophisticated, use the same style names in Word) tag all the paragraphs with the right language body style.
• To get the text to break into columns, you will need another style, probably one for each language again, that includes a "break to next column" setting in Keep Options. So you would have Body Text Eng brk, etc. If you're going to use headings to separate the material, you can use those styles instead (Heading Ita, etc.) and give them the column-break setting.

That should get you started and will work for one-page layouts. If the three-column material may extend over more than one page, a different approach will be needed. You will also need four separate source text files, which you can do by cutting sections from a single source doc. (Cut the English, paste it in place, cut the Portuguese, paste it, etc.)

• On the first page, create the top two-column frame, but then create three separate frames on the bottom. You will have to manually draw in the column rules.
• On a second Parent page, draw just the three separate columns, top to bottom.
• DON'T connect any of these frames. You'll need to flow them manually in the document.
• When you pull either of these layouts to a doc page, Ctrl-Shift-Click in each space to place an independent text frame there.
• Place your top text into the 2-column frame.
• Place each separate language below into its own frame.
• With both pages visible, click the text flow icon on the first column, then click in the corresponding column on the next page. You want to connect the first column on page 1 to the first on page 2, and so forth. If you have more than two pages of material, add a third page with three columns and repeat.

There are some tricks and refinements, but that's the process to manage the three languages as you wish.

[Inélsòre]

Thanks for this very thorough explanation.

From what I read, it is not possible to have a:

1. single flow spanning multiple three-column frames that
2. automatically starts on column 2 of frame-chain 1 with the new language (chosen paragraph style)

In the attached document, built before you replied, I created three separate frames, of equal width and equally spaced, then connected the last frame of column 1 with the first frame of column 2, adding a frame break at the end of column 1. Is it similar to what you suggested?

[James Gifford—NitroPress]

You can have a single flow and use paragraph-style breaks to get each section of text to start in its own new column, yes. But if the text is going to exceed the space in any one column, the much more complex individual-frames method, or something like it, has to be used. You could make it one flow so that the content is:

• The top two-column material
• The first lower column content
• The second lower column content
• The third lower column content
• Continuation of the first column (as needed)
• Continuation of the second column
• Continuation of the third column

...etc,. but that leaves the flow completely to cutting and pasting the single flow into the right order and "chunks." Not the way I'd go.