Merge & position multipage PDF into Book Template

[streetfox]

Dear all

I am new to scripting and InDesign/Acrobat but my problem is quite old. I have attached a workflow that I am executing all manual and it is very cumbersome. And I cannot get away from the feeling doing something easy completely wrong here ;-) Please bear with me.

In text:
1. Take an existing multipage PDF
2. Either take page by page OR multipage (3 in 1)
3. Then take an odd and even page Book Template (PDF/Word).
4. Merge the template with the result from 1. by scaling, positioning and overlaying the source.
5. Print it out double sided.

I thought to ask you because maybe based on my lack of experience I am overcomplicating it.

Do you know how to do that easily? Up until a script which I could just run to do it for me? I am happy to read into more scripting but for this I definately need some good advice from somebody who already has done such a thing.

 

[apepp]

...not sure i fully understand what the goal is, but importing a multipage pdf into indesign can be done with this script:

http://indesignsecrets.com/placing-all-the-pages-of-a-pdf-inside-indesign.php

...as for printing on a desktop printer, usually you would have to print out all even pages then turn the stack over and print the odd pages, which can be achieved in the print settings, then collate...

...a duplex printer helps avoid this process though.

andrew

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http://www.apepp.info

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[spamjim]

Even Adobe Reader (free) offers the ability to directly print a book from the print dialog.

 

[streetfox]

Okay, thanks. "Printing a book" is not going to make it. As it is a little but more than just printing a booklet. Thanks for the response.

@apepp, I am going to try the script. I think I tried it once a year ago and I noticed, that I cannot place the imported pdf differently on odd and even pages. That means on even pages e.g. X=80, Y=10 and on odd pages X=10, Y=10. Then the page needs to be scaled to e.g. 80% also. If you look at the picture I have attached, the grey areas in the resulting book are actually filled with a logo and some text which I would create in inDesign or take as overlay. Thus the need to position them differently.

Printing doublesided would not be an issue if the resulting book is exactly as outlined above. Nice would be if I can also print a) multiple pages on odd and even or b) multiple pages on only odd pages. But that would be a goodie.

Could you understand better what I mean? I really do appreciate your response

 

[apepp]

...you can import the pdf using above script that will scale to 80%, it will also allow you to position relative to spine when imported to facing page documents (and various other options) via X and Y...

...if you need the imported PDF pages positioned in a more custom way then I can't see how without a degree of manual intervention, but would be a small time price to pay considering the script would do a lot of the heavy lifting, have the battle is often just getting data into indesign to ease the pain...

andrew

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http://www.apepp.info

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