Pages per sheet layout options

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Level 1

20 points

Pages per sheet layout options

Hi,

I am trying to print two pages on one 8.5x11 inch sheet of paper in OS X. I am using Pages 1.0. I'd like my page size that prints to be 5.5x8.5 portrait, which basically turns my document into a two-column landscape letter-sized page. The reason I want two separate pages is because I need page numbers on each page, something I cannot accomplish simply by using multiple columns.

When I try to print from Pages, I can never get my document to print correctly like I could on my PC. Usually the margins are huge, the text is tiny, and it is totally unusable. I've tried different settings, tried setting the destination paper size, tried changing the document paper size in page setup. I even called Apple for help, but the tech couldn't figure out how to get the multiple page layout option to do what I needed it to do!

Any help would be greatly appreciated! I enjoy using my new Mac, but I keep having to sit at my PC to prepare my sermons because I can't get them to print properly in Pages. Thanks!

iBook 12" G4, Mac OS X (10.4.5)

Posted on Feb 23, 2006 6:48 PM

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Answer 1

Feb 24, 2006 9:25 PM in response to Robb B.

Now that I think about it, this makes sense. When you use this printing option you're essentially telling the system to fit what was originally designed to fit in a whole sheet of paper into half that area, so it has to scale everything down accordingly.

I don't know whether there is a way to do what you want in Pages, but the following should work for any application, regardless of its capabilities:

1. In File > Page Setup... choose a paper size that's half the size of the sheets of paper you intend to print on (that would be A5 if your sheets were A4, for example; you may need to define a custom paper size if that's not the case).

2. In File > Page Setup... choose one of the landscape orientations.

3. Print the odd pages only.

4. Put the half-printed sheets of paper in the printer again upside down, so that this time the printer prints the other half.

5. In File > Page Setup... choose the landscape orientation that's a mirror of the orientation chosen in step 2.

6. Print the even pages.

This is a little cumbersome, but it (or something like that) should work until you find a better way.

iMac G5 17" (iSight) Mac OS X (10.4.4)

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Answer 2

Feb 24, 2006 9:54 PM in response to Robb B.

Now, wait, there might be a much easier solution. Just choose a scale of 200% or so in File > Page Setup... and try the procedure described in Printing several pages of a document on a single sheet of paper (you may need to adjust the margin settings).

iMac G5 17" (iSight) Mac OS X (10.4.4)

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Answer 3

Feb 24, 2006 3:40 PM in response to Robb B.

I think what you want is a great freeware application called CocoaBooklet. It is an application that makes a pdf booklet from anything that you want to print. This it the link to in on VersionTracker.
http://www.versiontracker.com/dyn/moreinfo/macosx/23215

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Answer 4

Robb B. Author

Level 1

20 points

Feb 24, 2006 5:21 PM in response to Bruce De Benedictis

Thanks for the idea. I tried installing that already, and unfortunately it did not work. It creates a booklet, which is not what I am after. I want to print two 5.5x8.5 sheets on one 8.5x11 sheet of paper. This could be accomplished by using landscape and two columns and setting all the margins to .5" but as I said, then I can't get page numbers on each page, which is a necessity for me.

Thanks,
Robb

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Answer 5

Robb B. Author

Level 1

20 points

Feb 24, 2006 8:05 PM in response to David Gimeno Gost

Yes, that is what is not working correctly. It will print both pages on one sheet of paper, but for some reason it seems large margins show up, my font gets real small, sometimes it only uses a portion of the sheet of paper. I can't get it to do what I would think it should do.

For example, when I use the article you referenced and I choose a thin border around each page, I can see both of my pages on the sheet, and outside the border that outlines each page is an inch or more margin, plus whatever margin is in my document to begin with. That gives me generally at least 1.5" margins all the way around, and the font is shrunk to make room for these new-found margins. Not to mention it puts that margin between the pages. I'm not sure why it needs to add that margin and shrink my fonts, and then not let me change the margin in preview, but that's what's happening. Thanks for the input. Any other ideas?

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Answer 6

Robb B. Author

Level 1

20 points

Feb 25, 2006 10:01 PM in response to David Gimeno Gost

Thanks to everyone for your input. I have tried the various solutions mentioned, and none of them have really solved my problem, though. OS X is still adding that 1" margin no matter what I do! Anyone know if Leopard will fix this problem? How about just 10.4.6? Mr. Jobs, if you're reading this, this is one area that needs to be enhanced! Unless, of course, me and Apple support and everyone who has given me suggestions is just missing something.

Enough with my rant. Any other ideas?

Soli Deo Gloria,
Robb

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Answer 7

Feb 28, 2006 12:19 AM in response to Robb B.

Well, the reason you are getting this result is because 2 pages per sheet option in the layout section of the print dialog box does exactly that. It takes your page and shrinks it so that it fits within half a page, or actually, within the margins in each half page. The print will be smaller, and the margins irregular. You can sort of compensate for this by using a larger font size and reducing the margins. In order to fit an 8.5 inch wide page into a 5.5 inch width, the page must be reduced to 65% of its original size, so you need to increase the font size 150%. You will have large margins at the top and bottom of the page, because you only need to shrink an 11 page 77% to fit in 8.5 inches.

I do not understand why this would work differently in Windows. Perhaps the word processor you are using on your PC can do this sort of imposition. It is an imposition problem, which is why I recommended CocoaBooklet. Other imposition software may be able to do a better job.

In Pages, you may be able to footnote and number each column, which would be an easier way to solve this problem. But I am not familiar with its capabilities.

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Answer 8

Robb B. Author

Level 1

20 points

Mar 30, 2006 1:25 PM in response to Bruce De Benedictis

I recently went to an Apple reseller and they helped me solve this problem. I found out that the problem is actually the way OS X is interacting with my printer! To fix this problem, I have to set up a page that is 5.5" wide by 8.5" tall, then select 2 pages per sheet and a destination size of letter. I have an HP InkJet and an HP LaserJet installed on my iBook. When HP InkJet is selected, I get all kinds of white space when I follow print two pages per sheet. BUT when I select the LaserJet and do a print preview before printing, then it formats it perfectly. Then from Preview I select my InkJet and print and voila! it comes out perfectly.

So for everyone having this problem who is using an InkJet, I recommend installing an HP LaserJet and running this through Preview like I had to do. Thanks for everyone's help!

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Answer 9

Feb 24, 2006 6:59 PM in response to Robb B.

Did you try Printing several pages of a document on a single sheet of paper?

iMac G5 17" (iSight) Mac OS X (10.4.4)

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