Sort spreads alphabetically INDD CS6 or CC

Hi,

Assuming you are merging 2 files (single spread):

- Angola, Benin

- Argentina, Barbados

What is your final goal? How your merged file should be sorted?

Jarek

Hi,

OK. I missed you wrote '2-page spreads with per-country', sorry.

Have you made any try with a code? How your files become merged?

Is the only way to find 'country' as a top page textFrame content?

What about page names? What about paragraphStyle name? Do your 'country' (and ONLY your 'country') use a specific style?

Jarek

Well as the world authority on that script does this one do what you want?

// Script to sort spreads according to alphabetical order of their top TextFrames contents  
// by Trevor (www.creative-scripts.com) custom and readymade scripts for InDesign  
// https://forums.adobe.com/thread/2354151
// http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1405293?tstart=0  
// see also http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1082984?tstart=0 for a better workflow  

app.doScript("aToZPageSort()", ScriptLanguage.javascript, undefined, UndoModes.FAST_ENTIRE_SCRIPT, "Sort Pages By top text contents");

function aToZPageSort() {
    var doc, myPageIndex, l, topFrameIndex, z, pageFramesTops, i, topFrameHeight, getSpread;
    doc = app.documents[0];
    myPageIndex = [];
    l = doc.spreads.length;
    topFrameIndex = z = 0;
    getSpread = function(f) {
        var saftey = 100;
        while ((f.constructor !== Spread) && saftey--) {
            f = f.parent;
        }
        return f;
    };
    while (l--) {
        pageFramesTops = doc.spreads[l].textFrames.everyItem().getElements().slice(0);
        n = i = pageFramesTops && pageFramesTops.length;
        if (!i) continue;
        while (n--) pageFramesTops[n] = pageFramesTops[n].geometricBounds[0]; // for some reason when one trys to get the geometricBounds[0] from teh everyItems without the elements it return y1, x1 and not just y1 ?-)  
        topFrameHeight = pageFramesTops[0];
        topFrame = doc.spreads[l].textFrames[0];
        for (var n = 0; n < i; n++) {
            if (pageFramesTops[n] < topFrameHeight) {
                topFrameHeight = pageFramesTops[n];
                topFrame = doc.spreads[l].textFrames[n];
            }
        }
        myPageIndex[z++] = {
            spread: getSpread(topFrame),
            contents: topFrame.contents.toLowerCase()
        };
    }
    myPageIndex.sort(function(a, b) {
        return (a.contents.toLowerCase() > b.contents.toLowerCase());
    });

    l = myPageIndex.length;
    while (l--) myPageIndex[l].spread.move(LocationOptions.AT_BEGINNING);
}

Trevor

I do prefer this workflow

/

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
// Script by Trevor to sort Spreads according to alphabetical order of Page Headers //
// http://creative-scripts.com                                                      //
// https://forums.adobe.com/message/9686292#9686292                                 //
// adapted from http://forums.adobe.com/thread/1082984?tstart=0                     //
// make sure to change to the write paragraphs style                                //
// This assumes that you use a Paragraph style for your header                      //
// AND THERE IS ONLY ONE HEADER ON EACH PAGE WHICH IS ONLY ONE PARAGRAPH LONG       //
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

app.doScript("aToZSpreadSort()", ScriptLanguage.javascript, undefined, UndoModes.FAST_ENTIRE_SCRIPT, "Sort Spreads text style contents");

function aToZSpreadSort() {
    var doc = app.documents[0],
        myHeaders, l, getSpread;
    getSpread = function(f) {
        var saftey = 100;
        while ((f.constructor !== Spread) && saftey--) {
            f = f.parent;
        }
        return f;
    };
    app.changeGrepPreferences = app.findGrepPreferences = null;
    app.findGrepPreferences.appliedParagraphStyle = "My Header";
    // Change above to the name of header style  
    myHeaders = doc.findGrep();
    myHeaders.sort(function(a, b) {
        if (a.contents.toLowerCase() > b.contents.toLowerCase()) return 1;
        else if (a.contents.toLowerCase() < b.contents.toLowerCase()) return -1;
        return 0;
    });
    l = myHeaders.length;
    while (l--) getSpread(myHeaders[l].parentTextFrames[0]).move(LocationOptions.AT_BEGINNING);
}

Hi,

I suggest something similar but different findText() target -- just to decrease count of moved Spreads:

var
     mDoc = app.activeDocument,
     mSpreads = mDoc.spreads.everyItem().getElements(),
     mSpreadsArray = [],
     mParaStyle = mDoc.paragraphStyles.item("Title"),
     cFind, cCountry, cSpread, step;
// ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
app.doScript( main, ScriptLanguage.JAVASCRIPT , [], UndoModes.ENTIRE_SCRIPT, "sortSpreads" );
function main () {
    app.findTextPreferences = null;
    app.findTextPreferences.appliedParagraphStyle = mParaStyle;
    while (cSpread = mSpreads.pop()) {
        cFind = cSpread.textFrames.everyItem().findText();
        step = cFind.length;
        cFind.sort();
        while (step--) {
            if (!cFind[step].length) continue;
            cCountry = cFind[step][0].contents;
            mSpreadsArray.push([cCountry, cSpread]);
            break;
            }
        }
    mSpreadSort(mSpreadsArray);
    app.findTextPreferences = null;
    // |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
    }
function mSpreadSort (cSpreadsArray) {
     cSpreadsArray.sort(sortDoubleArray);
     var cSpread;
     while (cSpread = cSpreadsArray.pop()) {
          cSpread = cSpread[1];
          cSpread.move(LocationOptions.AT_BEGINNING);
          }
     }
function sortDoubleArray(a,b) {
     return a[0] > b[0];
     }

Notice that var mParaStyle need to update a proper style name.

Jarek