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Cooroo
Cooroo
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Adding pages and flowing text

Jan 2, 2013 3:10 AM

Bear with me, as I need to state my problem in Quark terms. (A long-term Quark user and lover, I'm now at the tipping point and actually prefer ID for most things, but this is still foxing me.)

 

I am working with XTags to place text and images on a page. There is a complicated arrangement of linked text frames (24 of them) to enable this to happen. If I have a single page document and import the text, it all flows perfectly. But if I am importing more products than there is room for on a single page, I want InDesign to insert a new page with the same frames.

 

If I put the frames onto a master page (which is what I'd do in Quark) they become 'locked'.  I know how to Override Master Page Items, but I don't want to do that. I want a new page to appear and the text to flow onto it without intervention. This was so easy to do in Quark. I know I'm probably approaching it the wrong way, but I need some help!

 

To summarise, I have 24 linked text frames on a page (to accommodate 12 products and images). If I have 48 products, I want the next 24 to appear on a second page. I don't want to create a multi page document - this is a template and will be re-used over and over, sometimes for a single page, sometimes for many pages. If I need to adjust the positions of the text, I want to do that in a single place and know it will happen throughout the document.

 

Is there any way of doing this?

 

Thanks

Emma

495 Views   7 Replies   Latest reply: Peter Spier, Jan 2, 2013 7:27 AM
 
Replies
  • Peter Spier
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    1. Peter Spier,
    Jan 2, 2013 5:29 AM   in reply to Cooroo
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    As you already know, there are major differences between Quark and ID. In order to help you I think we need to know what the source data looks like -- waht sort of file does it come from?

     
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  • Cooroo
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    2. Cooroo,
    Jan 2, 2013 5:41 AM   in reply to Peter Spier
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    The source is a text file, imported using Emsoftware's XTags plug-in (correct terminology?) - text, styling and images are all embedded in it. So it can't be imported via 'Place' but must use the 'Import text with XTags' command.

     

    Master Text Frame seems to do what I want for a basic layout, but not for the complex one I need. Not sure if this will help...

    links.jpg

    - this is the 'simplest' version with 4 products per page. The images go at the top of the page and the description at the bottom.

     
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  • Peter Spier
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    3. Peter Spier,
    Jan 2, 2013 6:26 AM   in reply to Cooroo
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    I think you probably need to consult with tech support at Em....

     
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  • Cooroo
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    4. Cooroo,
    Jan 2, 2013 6:32 AM   in reply to Peter Spier
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    I will try, they are very helpful! But it seems like a pretty basic functionality - to be able to specify the layout of text frames on the master page and ask ID to create a new page with the same layout when required??

     
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  • Peter Spier
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    5. Peter Spier,
    Jan 2, 2013 6:38 AM   in reply to Cooroo
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    It is, when autoflowing text during a normal "Place" operation, but once you start using third-party plugins you need to talk to the plugin developer.

     
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  • Cooroo
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    6. Cooroo,
    Jan 2, 2013 6:42 AM   in reply to Peter Spier
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    Oh well. ID still wins because of enhanced search and replace, powerful scriptability and auto-captions! But I'm glad I'm not doing a lot of book work. Thanks for your help!

     
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  • Peter Spier
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    7. Peter Spier,
    Jan 2, 2013 7:27 AM   in reply to Cooroo
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    I wouldn't go back to Quark for anything if I had a choice, but that's me. I do books in ID about once a year, no problem, and without benefit of any third-party plugins. It sounds to me like your project is more of a catalog, and there are dedicated third-party solutions for that, including one from Em.

     

    I'm pretty sure that waht you want to do is straight-forward, but I have no experience with your plugin so I can't begin to tell you what more you need to do.

     
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