Re: [libreoffice-users] Printing "Brochure" with Writer -- margins

Hi :)
This question is less about technical issues and more about psychology.
I'm certain that Marc has no trouble with the technical aspects of this.
He's a long-term contributor to TDF and has set-up some pretty amazing
resources on the wiki and website fronts.

The problem with setting things up to make it easy to produce a
booklet/brochure is in getting new users to use them.

New users will often start off not even realising they need to create a
brochure.  So they will open some old letter or normal document and delete
out the words to get the page blank and then start typing stuff in.  Maybe
after putting all the content in THAT's when they start thinking about
printing out as a brochure.

One way i sometimes try to handle that is to take the work off them.  Then
copy&paste-special as "unformatted text" and then try to get the images
either from one document to another or get the original images.

Another approach that also runs into problems is to be 'helpful' by
suggesting this or that the person could do to get to a brochure.

Another approach that fails is to kinda train them how to convert their
document, or how to start the right way from scratch.

I've tried lots of ways and all of them seem to cause different problems
with people.  I'm sure that's the problem that Marc is anticipating too.
Regards from
Tom :)




On 21 September 2014 13:26, Brian Barker <b.m.barker@btinternet.com> wrote:

> At 15:17 19/09/2014 -0400, Marc Paré wrote:
>
> > I am just trying to make the routine of publishing music concert programs
> > as easy for new office staff as possible (I am director for an early music
> > group). One way to print the concert programs in booklet format is to have
> > the office staff type up the concert program in Writer and at the point of
> > printing, choose the "brochure layout" option in the Printer window tab
> > "Page Layout". This method works perfectly and allows for any new person to
> > the music office to just step in and print concert programs in very few
> > steps that require practically no brochure layout knowledge -- extremely
> > user friendly to use.
> >
> > My question is, when the printed brochure comes out, there is a lot of
> > wasted space at the top and bottom of the brochure pages. Is there a way to
> > make use of this space? ... For example, have the printed words start
> > higher up the page and also down the page?
>
> Yes.
>
>  Is this something that could be suggested as a bug or put on a wishlist?
> >
>
> No need.
>
> At 05:44 20/09/2014 -0400, Marc Paré wrote:
>
> > The "brochure" option prints a Writer doc automatically in booklet form
> > and figures out the pagination automatically -- so, a user can easily print
> > out "booklets" by doing practically no setup at all ... no styling needed.
>
> Actually, page format is *only* controlled by a page style, so you always
> have a page style or styles in every document, even if you only ever use
> the default Default page style. (Don't be frightened of styles!)
>
>  As far as I can tell, even if I change the body length ... for example
> > set the 8.5X11 inch page to a top and bottom margin of "0.00 inches" ...
> > the brochure (booklet) will still be printed with the same top/bottom gaps
> > of spaces at the top/bottom of the booklet.
>
> The problem - as already suggested by Mark Bourne - is that you are not
> using the brochure facility in the best way. (I think this is an example of
> where Microsoft Word does things differently; are you perhaps guilty of
> Wordthink?) If you rely on Writer to scale your text to the brochure size,
> you will need to choose font sizes and picture sizes and so on which come
> right in the brochure when printed - instead of using the actually sizes
> you want, as you would do normally.
>
> To create brochures most conveniently, set your original document page
> size to the actual size of the page as printed - in your case 5.5 by 8.5
> inches in portrait orientation. Set the font sizes as you actually want to
> see them in the brochure. As you create the text, you will see the
> pagination as it will actually appear. When you print, using the Brochure
> option, ensure that the printer settings are 8.5 by 11 inches and landscape
> orientation. You will find this much easier and the margin settings in your
> page style(s) should be reflected in what you get.
>
>  It would be very useful, if there were a way to make use of the white
> > space through the initial Writer document before going to the
> > "Print->Brochure" option. This would allow ALL Writer users to print out
> > brochure-booklets without any prepping of styles.
>
> Why not prepare the page style (half-size, portrait, margins, possibly
> including page numbers, ... whatever) yourself and save this as a template?
> This can include the printer settings, so that Letter, landscape, and even
> Brochure will all be set without your users having to think about them.
>
> I trust this helps.
>
> Brian Barker
>
>
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