I too experienced your dilemma. However, if you installed PM7 and Acrobat Distiller 6 but cannot export to PDF because no suitable Postscript Driver is found, then install MS Publisher Imagesetter found in Vista's Printer setup. Go to Printers -> Add Printer -> Add a Local Printer -> Dialogue Box:(left pane Manufacturer) choose Generic, (right pane Printers) choose MS Publisher Imagesetter.

I installed this printer on LP1 port.

Go to PM7

Open a document

File menu: Document Setup -> Compose to Printer (choose MS Publisher Imagesetter)

File menu: Export-> Adobe PDF

(PDF Options now appear)

Export

Result: PDF document.

The experts here will attest or argue. But this worked for me. Good luck.

-mtb

You know, some people can't afford to rebuy all their software.

InDesign is very expensive. I am just a poor home user.

I need PageMaker 7 to work on Windows7 64bit. I have no choice.

So, what does someone like me do?

If poverty is the key factor, you can run PM7 very effectively on an old Win2K PC with 256 or 512Mb of RAM.

Otherwise, move to InDesign using your PM licence to get a very big discount.

EDIT:  Oops, I see Bob said something similar.

You can try and let us know.

There's no advice or experience on this issue, AFAIK - see here.

michael_bucci wrote:

. The agenda here (for me) has been to convert ALL previous files created in PageMaker (Mac versions 2-7) and InDesign 2 (Mac) to the latest Adobe program (InDesign CS4) and look to the FUTURE.

For the life of me I will never understand this. Why convert all of your files? Do you really need to update all of your files?

Counting ad files, I have thousands of old pagemaker files archived, It's been so long that I haven't had to pull up a pagemaker file in years. When I was starting out with indesign I converted my three current magazine templates, and left the other files, updating them as needed.

Jay

22 years of projects still in print, now that's job security!

Jay

I know these posts are a bit dated, but I'm here to say that in 2012 I've got a reliable version of PageMaker 7.01a installed and working efficiently on the Windows 7 Ultimate OS platform. Of course I took advantage of installing it with the help of the Virtual PC XP Mode, but after working out a few bugs, it is doing what it was doing on my old XP Professional OS, which is mainly magazine page layout and design, and producing press ready pdf files via the export function. I've already been through one publication and everything went through the printer's prepress and rip without any hiccups. As a bonus, Win 7 seems to hold fonts much better than XP. With XP, I occassionally would see quite a few dropped fonts in the pdf creation process. Nothing so far with Win 7 Ultimate. So, out of the ashes like a phoenix (with quite a bit of soot covering it) PM rises again! Woo Hoo! Just to clarify, I am running PM on the Windows 7 interface, NOT in XP mode!

I most certainly will give an update (if necessary)…

But the “if and when” although it may seem possible, isn’t quite probable. Call me an optimist.

My sole purpose of posting to this forum was not to toot my own horn, but simply let people know that before moving on to the upgrade option and completely giving up on PM, they should at least try. There were quite a bit of improvements from Vista to Win 7.

If all else fails, then PM should work fine in XP Mode, though this is not my preference.

And making sure I didn’t speak too soon, I just ran a 10 page test export out of PM…the pdfs that were created are a thing of beauty.

What more could I ask?

What turned out to be a simple ‘healthy discussion’ almost seemed like a debate in the end. That was not my intention. I apologize.

Shalom!

Okay, I will address this to both Bob Caused This and Michael Bucci.

Bob: You say that you installed on Windows 7 Ultimate edition with the help of Virtual PC XP Mode. But at the end of your post you say that you are not running it in XP Mode, but in Windows 7 mode. How did you do that? Also, I have Windows 7 Professional. Will it work for me?

Michael: You say that you have been running PM7 on Win7 Home but at the end of your post you say... "thank goodness for virtual boxes" ... so does that mean that you installed and are running PM7 in Virtual PC XP Mode on Windows 7?

I would love to think that I can actually install PM7 on my Windows7 Professional laptop without having to run in Virtual Mode. As it is, I only use my old XP desktop when I want to use PM7.

Thanks for any help,

Steven

Ah the resurrection of old posts. Pagemaker itself had a reputation for blowing up for no reason. This didn't happen to most users, but it happened often enough to get noticed. Some people were able to just reinstall pagemaker, others had to redo their whole system. Backup your files often (incremental backups were the only way to insure against corruption), and be prepared for a "system reinstall" (this could be a simple as a new virtual winxp machine)
Jay

Okay, so now we get the vague accusations and critical comments from those who either never used Pagemaker in real world situations or just want us all to move on to the overbloated and VERY expensive alternatives. It's the same old story as with Aldus Freehand and WordPerfect. We have great programs that work exquisitely and are user friendly, then along comes some giant company like Microsoft or Adobe, who, in their desire to control the market, buys up the quality programs and proceeds to put them out of business. Well, I have news for you guys, no matter what you think, PageMaker, Freehand and WordPerfect are all good programs, were good then, are still good now, and many of us who believed in them do not have the megabucks to shell out to the big companies who just want to do them in!

Steven, I mentioned virtual boxes because I need Oracle's VirtualBox for XP, Win 2000 and even Win 98 in order to launch the very old PM software (versions 3-5) and also need SheepShaver to launch the very old MAC versions of the PM software. The finished conversions to PM7 are then compared to the original files opened in the virtual box and run in the version that created the file.

Steven, to see if PM7 works on your Win7 Pro machine download the trial version (http://www.adobe.com/products/pagemaker ). Adobe still offers Trial and sells Full versions of PM7 for Win and Mac.

Insofar as other comments, no one needs to defend or justify what programs they use and which ones they don't. The subject here was: "Will PM7 work on Vista or Win7", my answer is YES.

Shalom

Hello Bob,

This is a PageMaker Forum so it continues to exist for a reason - for those who need help and "support" in the choices of apps they made for themselves.

Yes, I stand corrected. Pagemaker 7 on Win7 "works for me". Bob, you won't mind if I call on you to proof all my writings? I need a good editor and critic.

I promise I'll supply the drafts in ID CS4, not PM7.

Jay, I don't disagree. I waited for InDesign 2 to begin transferring workflow to that version from PM7 (Mac & Win). I graduated to CS4 (Mac and Win) in 2009.

PM7 has at least two audiences that come to mind: 1) Those who use it for light-weight design for in-house laser/ink jet printers in small businesses, for example; 2) and those who want to upgrade to InDesign 5.5 via the PM7 route and save many hundreds of dollars in the process (providing they have PM5, 6 or 6.5; the cost is $79 for PM7 upgrade and $199 for ID 5.5 upgrade from PM7).

Adobe introduced the "Elements" platform (e.g., Photoshop Elements, Premier Elements) with good results from the consumer/semi-pro market. Maybe it is time to consider this for ID.

While I don't want to waste space here or people's time, I must say that Aldus PM5 works on the 32-bit versions of Win 7 Basic and Home, even though it is an app from the Win 3.1 era. But I must qualify that statement with: "It works for me!"

Cheers to all.

PS: now I must go back to my books on learning DOS and Quirk Xpress 1.06.

All regular helpers here are old time PM users who come back mainly for sentimental reasons. I started with PM 2 and, as I am a Mac user, I was forced to stop using it with the advent of Mac OS X. Afterwars I bouth a Win portable and was able to use it for some more time. I gave up when I was no longer able to install it in that machine either.

I have not read anything here that has not been already posted dozens of times in many previous threads on the subject, except for some new people who say they are happily and faultessly using PM 5, 6 or 7 under Windows 7. I am glad for them although personally I think it's playing with fire, so I wish them luck. However, their claims do not help in any way those many, many others who keep on posting that they cannot get PM to work properly -or even install- in the newer OSs.