Save as PDF (right-click or File menu) output settings

[AthensSlim]

If I export a topic as a PDF (either by right-clicking on the topic and selecting "Save as PDF" or choosing the same in the File menu), is there a setting that will allow me to change the page size of the PDF? '

My audience and I are in the US, so my desired size is Letter (8.5" x 11"), but the output in this way is always A4. 

I know I can create an output preset and do it that way, but being able to use the single-click method to preview my output would be so much more convenient. 

I asked this question about three and a half years ago, but never got a solution. Hoping with the additional development that's happened since then, this may have changed.

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

I suspect it's using your default Acrobat joboptions file to set that A4 page size. I don't believe there's any tinkering you can do within RH to affect this - you'll need to launch Acrobat outside of RH to change it.

[AthensSlim]

This makes sense, but alas I couldn't find any settings in Acrobat itself that would appear to be related to this. I did also check the Adobe PDF printer driver, thinking that perhaps this is the engine used to perform this conversion. It was already set to default to Letter, so it doesn't appear to be the solution either. 

For now, the idea of using an @page rule in the stylesheet seems to be doing the trick. 

[Peter Grainge]

CORRECTION

This is where you change it in 2022.3.

You will need to do it for each layout used in the template.

________________________________________________________

My site www.grainge.org includes many free Authoring and RoboHelp resources that may be of help.

[AthensSlim]

To complicate matters, the Page Properties pane is showing nothing when I select it for template page layouts:

I looked at the raw files, and these all appear to be configured for "Letter". Evidently the editor did work once upon a time, and I must have changed it when I created these.

To be clear, when I do a Publish job, the PDF does export to the desired page size. It's only when I use the File > Save to PDF command that it goes to A4. 

[AthensSlim · Accepted solution]

Neither Jeff nor Peter's suggestions seemed to lead to a solution, but what I did find that seemed to do the trick was to add an @page at-rule to the CSS file applied to the topic. 

@page {
  size: 8.5in 11in;
}

This seems to be giving me the desired result now. 

[Peter Grainge]

Something is wrong as what I showed you is the official answer. Check it in a new template.

The UI I showed probably does the same thing.

________________________________________________________

My site www.grainge.org includes many free Authoring and RoboHelp resources that may be of help.

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Isn't that solution only to do with the PDF template? How would it work with a right-click Save As PDF if you're not involving a template?

[AthensSlim]

Exactly. 

[Peter Grainge]

A simple misread of the question.

I just opened an A4 PDF and sent it to the printer choosing PDF as the printer. The properties for the PDF allowed me to change it it letter.

Not ideal but still quicker.

________________________________________________________

My site www.grainge.org includes many free Authoring and RoboHelp resources that may be of help.

[Peter Grainge]

Not in Acrobat. Open the PDF and choose Print. When the print dialog opens choose PDF. When that dialog opens is where you choose Letter. It's the print dialog where the change is made, that might be Acrobat's print dialog (rather than settings) or it might be some other PDF program. 

________________________________________________________
My site www.grainge.org includes many free Authoring and RoboHelp resources that may be of help.

[Peter Grainge]

Just for completeness as your solution is easier, if you choose to print the PDF to say Microsoft Print to PDF you would change the page size here.

Then you would have a second PDF but with the correct page size by choosing Letter.

________________________________________________________

My site www.grainge.org includes many free Authoring and RoboHelp resources that may be of help.

[AthensSlim]

To close this topic - Adobe TC support confirmed there is no solution within the current release and advise me to create an enhancement request. 

This was created as request 12277.

[Peter Grainge]

See my Private Message to you.

________________________________________________________

My site www.grainge.org includes many free Authoring and RoboHelp resources that may be of help.