Is there a "Booklet" tutorial somewhere?

[Jim]

Well, here I go again; Suzanne, where are you? I'm trying to do a booklet
with Word 2003 and am wasting too much paper trying to figure out how to
format it. I dearly wish that Word would show the whole piece of paper,
rather than just the current half-page I'm working on, or I wish there were a
good F1 tutorial on formatting these useful-bug-difficult little projects.

Is the first half-sheet that comes up on the screen the left-hand side of
the page, looking from the front? Does Word figure you will fold this toward
or away from you? I can't figure where to put the cover copy, how to leave
the inside of the cover blank, and start page numbering on the next
right-hand page.

I thought that some MVP had addressed all this, but my search through this
Group and through the KB either finds only references to early
non-booklet-friendly versions of Word, or specific problems with page
overprinting and other bugs. Doesn't someone have a nice video? I've got
popcorn! Thanks, anyone.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Well, that's a tutorial I haven't written! My only article on booklets is
the one you've probably already seen at
http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/Formatting/BookletPrinting.htm

Sounds like you're using "Book fold"? If so, then the first page is page 1.
If your booklet is going to include the cover, then yes, page 1 is the
cover. If you want an inside page to be page 1, then you'll need to insert
section breaks and restart numbering. Sometimes it's easier in such cases to
create the cover as a separate document (especially if you'll be printing it
on heavier stock).

If you want to see two pages, you can certainly display two pages in either
Print Layout view or Print Preview, but you won't be able to see *facing*
pages except in Print Preview, and then only if you enable "Different odd
and even" headers/footers (even though "Book fold" automatically enables
"Mirror margins," which by itself is usually enough to force Print Preview
to show you facing pages). Of course, the facing pages are as they will
appear in the finished booklet, not the actual pages that will print on the
same sheet.

Be aware that if you have to reprint specific pages, results are highly
unpredictable. You may get a blank sheet, you may get the page you want,
along with its facing "mate" and the two pages that would print on the back
of that sheet (as advertised in Help), or you may get something entirely
different. At least in Word 2003 your graphics will probably be where you
want them (no guarantee of this in Word 2007 unless you save in Word 97-2003
format).

I've just today escalated these issues to the MS Product Group as bugs; the
printing issue has been a problem ever since "book fold" was introduced, and
AFAIK no attempt has been made to deal with it.

 

[BO]

You were right to be pining for Suzanne

http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/Formatting/BookletPrinting.htm

Cheers

 

[Jim]

Many thanks to both of you. I think I just about have it, having been
working continuously on this since morning and it's almost dinnertime here.
Anyhow, it appears that if I do the correct forward/reverse collation the
second time through the printer, it works! I have started a second section
after the first two pages (cover and inside cover) and start numbering there
with Page 1 (third page). For some reason the second page of that section
(fourth page) does not continue the numbering as Page 2, etc., but if I put
it in manually the remaining pages pick it up just fine.

I see what you mean about variable results when you print individual pages.
Setting the printer box to Print the Current Page doesn't work at all. At
least I can 'print' a .pdf and then hard-print from that for individual
pages. We'll get there; thanks again!

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Yes, I find printing to PDF and then going from there much more satisfactory
all round.

 

[Jim]

One last question, if someone's out there. I got the booklet to format and
print just fine, thanks very much for all the tips. NOW... is there a way to
make a .pdf with the pages in 'regular' order, as seen on the Word screen in
Print Preview mode? If not from that file, I suppose I could save it under
another name and turn off the booklet way of doing things, just make a
2-column, landscape .doc.

Thanks again!

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

It's even easier than that. Save a copy and change the setting from "Book
fold" to "2 pages per sheet." You'll get the exact same layout except with
the pages in numerical order as seen on screen. This is especially good for
making a PDF that people will view rather than print out.

 

[Jim]

Suzanne, in the short time it took for your lightning-fast reply, I was able
to figure that one out. (Hey, I'm getting better at this!) But thanks.
However, to make a more user-friendly "reading copy" .pdf, instead I reset
the paper size to 5.5W x 8.5H and pdf-printed it one page per sheet. Now
instead of having two facing pages show on the screen, they come up one at a
time. With Adobe Reader set to display the page height, it makes for easy
reading and navigating... all 8 pages!

This booklet project was a lot of fun and I am encouraged to do more of
them. Again, if it weren't for MVPs like your good self, I'd be years
behind, probably still cutting and pasting... literally!

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

I thought about that, too, but if users *do* want to print the pages, it may
be more difficult--not sure if Adobe Reader has a setting to double up on
the pages.

 

[Jim]

Right you are Suzanne. We will have two PDFs on our site, one for reading,
one for printing. Hey, server space is cheap.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Sounds like a good plan.