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Level 1

58 points

Setting margins in Pages [Page Layout view]

I am trying to set up an A5 book. The page area is no problem in Page Setup. I have facing pages on and set the margins as
Inside 1.8cm
Outside 3cm
Top 1.8cm
Bottom 2cm.

What I have (with headers and footers off, as I am placing scans to print a facsimile of an old book) seems to be a greyed out area of roughly
Inside 0.75cm
Outside 0.7cm
Top 0.75cm
Bottom 1.5cm.

I can't see why this should be - it makes no sense - and is of no use to me either!

Incidentally, is there any way of saying you want, say, a 96 pp document to start with?

Cheers, Colin

iMac Core 2 Extreme 2.8GHz, 3Gb, 24"; iBook G4, 1.33Ghz, 512Mb RAM, Mac OS X (10.5.5), Palm with TomTom

Posted on Nov 6, 2008 9:28 AM

41 replies

Colin Cohen Author

Level 1

58 points

Nov 6, 2008 1:58 PM in response to PeterBreis0807

Hey, I went out for 2 hours and this has got out of hand. Why do people have to be so rude?

I have started over again.

Open new page layout document (defaulted to A4 as expected), change it to A5 in the expected way, my printer does nor know about A5, but so what, this is going as a pdf in due course to a commercial printer who will impose it to print 8-back-8 pp).

Got to the Inspector and set up up for facing pages and random margins of 6, 7, 8 and 8mm and all I get is the standard margins as mentioned in my first post. But at least in the new doc they show in grey. But then I save it, close it and open it - and the margins are invisible again ...

Cheers,

colin

Nov 7, 2008 9:23 AM in response to Colin Cohen

<Edited by Moderator>

Colin,

I don't know what else I can do to help. As I said I reproduced the problem but am scratching my head as to what I can do to fix it.

It seems like a bug and all we can do is report those to Apple. Not here, Apple doesn't pay any attention to us, but in the feedback forms.

C'est la Vie!

Colin Cohen Author

Level 1

58 points

Nov 6, 2008 2:17 PM in response to PeterBreis0807

Thanks again Peter,

I have no problem with the French, my late Godmother was French (my father's most important agent in the French Resistance!) and I have written to Yvan before in French, but he prefers English which may be a mistake ...

Are you saying that the margins can't be changed in A5, and that they always vanish? Surely this can't be true and if so I am stuffed as I'm committed to producing a book before Xmas and can't even think of doing it in PageMaker on a G4 iBook!

Cheers, Colin

Nov 6, 2008 4:03 PM in response to Colin Cohen

Well you could fiddle with different settings and see what happens. It looks screwed to me.

Try starting from a different template and/or flipping it from vertical to horizontal and back to see if something throws it off.

As a last resort you could do it scaled up on an A4 layout and print it at 70.1% scale.

See my previous tip in another thread for multiple ways to achieve this.

You don't have to use the margins to set where your text box lies. Have you tried creating a new template and simply drawing text boxes on that where you want them? You can tidy up their positions with the +Inspector > Metrics > Width, Height, X & Y fields+ .

I don't have problems with the French. Their government has been known to do the odd bit of terrorism, but I've met plenty of French I really like.

Yvan is of the old school, complete with bicycle, onions and attitude.

Colin Cohen Author

Level 1

58 points

Nov 7, 2008 2:04 AM in response to PeterBreis0807

Thanks again Peter.

During our night (unless you are an ex-pat) I did think of scaling A4, but it has horrible consequences on this job where I am trying to match scans of an old book's pages to new matter, so getting the font sizes right would be complicated to say the least.

I'm off to try your Template idea.

At the risk of getting very OT It is true that the 'Rainbow Warrior' was not a high in French diplomatic policy, but I don't know what I'd do if I could not sample different aspects of French life 2-3 times a year.

Back on topic I am astounded that an app as old as Pages can have this problem - and that you are the only other person on the list who can see it as a problem...

Cheers, Colin

Nov 7, 2008 2:56 AM in response to Colin Cohen

Colin,

Have a look at Swift Publisher US$44.95:

http://www.belightsoft.com/products/swiftpublisher/overview.php

Not quite as attractive as Pages but it is more capable whilst still being a very economic DTP package.

Don't bother with the ClipArt bundle which is really rubbish.

Colin Cohen Author

Level 1

58 points

Nov 7, 2008 4:56 AM in response to PeterBreis0807

Thanks again Peter,

I don't think I can face yet another app and converting templates again.

I have been playing about with your earlier suggestion and as far as I can see nothing I do in the Document inspector to the Document Margins, either as A4 or A5, landscape or Portrait, makes any difference - even if I set them to zero!

Cheers, Colin

Nov 7, 2008 5:01 AM in response to Colin Cohen

Ignore the margins.

Create text boxes where you want them and use those.

Colin Cohen Author

Level 1

58 points

Nov 7, 2008 6:42 AM in response to PeterBreis0807

I thought of that Peter, but I may be missing something.

It is very difficult to get text boxes in the same place on each page (oh for the Master pages of PageMaker) as even if i set up a template with a text box there is no way that i can see of repeating it on every page (other than to place it manually.

What I need is 96 pp of an identical area in which to place a scan of the old book, and then 16 pp with a box of the same are in which to place type for the new prelims/end matter.

I am really thrashing about over this.

Cheers, Colin

KOENIG Yvan

Level 8

41,807 points

Nov 7, 2008 8:31 AM in response to PeterBreis0807

PeterBreis0807 wrote:

Colin Cohen wrote:
Hey, I went out for 2 hours and this has got out of hand. Why do people have to be so rude?

In Yvan's case because he is French, and in my case because Yvan is French. 🙂

You know the Yvan's response ? It's the Cambronne one.

I repeat:

When I define a custom page format, this one is registered but, given the datas sent by the printer (Dell 3100cn) the custom format remains gray.
I repeat that in French we say: "Quand on sait pas on ferme sa g.....".

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE vendredi 7 novembre 2008 17:31:31)

KOENIG Yvan

Level 8

41,807 points

Nov 7, 2008 8:40 AM in response to Colin Cohen

Colin Cohen wrote:
Thanks again Peter,

I have no problem with the French, my late Godmother was French (my father's most important agent in the French Resistance!) and I have written to Yvan before in French, but he prefers English which may be a mistake ...

In personal correspondance there is no problem to use French.
But on this forum, there are some short-brains which send me insults in my mail box because I'm using French from time to time.
So, I made a choice: I uses French when the correspondant is French.
Given what you wrote about your Godmother, I think that I may treat you as a French guy. So, next time, add a few words so I will remember which you are and I will respond in French.

Je suis désolé,
je ne peux tester le comportement de Pages en présence d'un format A5 parce que lorsque je crée un format personnalisé, il est bien enregistré mais le pilote d'impression le propose en gris c'est à dire qu'il est inaccessible.

Monsieur "Je sais tout" semble incapable de comprendre cela (et bien d'autres choses). Il commence à sérieusement me gonfler.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE vendredi 7 novembre 2008 17:40:06)

Colin Cohen Author

Level 1

58 points

Nov 7, 2008 8:56 AM in response to KOENIG Yvan

Yvan,

I really do not think you have grasped my problem and there is simply no need to abuse other users in any language.

I already had A5 in my page set up, and that's fine as Pages honours it. I simply can't get Pages to accept any change of margin in ANY page size or orientation that I put into the Inspector, so I feel I may be doing something wrong.

Cheers, Colin

KOENIG Yvan

Level 8

41,807 points

Nov 7, 2008 9:46 AM in response to Colin Cohen

Alas, as I am unable to test the behaviour, I can't help you.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE vendredi 7 novembre 2008 18:46:34)

Nov 7, 2008 12:44 PM in response to Colin Cohen

Colin,

All you need to do is make one for each instance. One with a placeholder box for the scans onto which you can drag and drop the scans in turn and another for the text.

This is quite doable. You make templates for both left and right text pages and left and right picture pages and insert each page as you need it. Then manually link the text pages if you have them flowing from page to page.

I have just done a sample document using your specs and it works. We just have to forget about the margins and work with unique layouts in the templates.

Do you need me to walk you through making template pages? It won't take long and you can even flesh out your document by creating the sequence of picture and text pages for all 96pp.

Just remember Pages is not PageMaker and as such it has some good things like the drag and drop positionals but is quite clumsy on multiple page production and of course has this quirk with the A5 size.

Colin Cohen Author

Level 1

58 points

Nov 7, 2008 2:20 PM in response to PeterBreis0807

Thanks so much Peter.

Just been out to see the 1951 Hitchcock 'Strangers on a train' and am still shaking!

So can we perhaps do this off-line tomorrow? I should repeat that the sticking margins now seem to apply to A4 and both orientations. I have quit and re-launched several times ...

Cheers, Colin

Setting margins in Pages [Page Layout view]