Page Layout for 4.25" X 5.5" Booklet-- How to Make Easy to Collate

[Bo_Jack]

I would like to do the following with WORD (or any other appropriate OFFICE
product):

Set up a document with page size 4.25†X 5.5†in landscape orientation.
Type up the document and get the lay-out of the 4.25†X 5.5†pages looking
right.
THEN – When I print the document, I want to feed 8.5†X 11†paper into the
printer and have the booklet’s "page 1" printed 4 times on the first sheet
(one time in each of the four quadrants of an evenly divided sheet, have the
booklet's "page 2" printed 4 times on the second sheet (one time in each
quadrant), etc.

The reason that I want to do this is that I need to produce a “booklet†with
page dimensions of 4.25†X 5.5â€, and I want (a) to minimize the amount of
paper stock used and (b) to have the booklet come out of the printer collated
correctly. If I can get the sheets printed in the way described, then after
one set of paper sheets has been printed in the correct order, I can cut the
sheets along the quadrant lines and have four complete, collated booklets.

I have been able to accomplish what I want using a “brute force†method of
setting up table cells of the correct size (4-cells per sheet), typing the
wording for each page in the upper left hand cell of each sheet, then
manually copy-and-pasting the words from the first cell into the other three
cells on that sheet. However, this is a really awkward way to accomplish my
goal. It also is very error prone if some of the text needs later to be
changed.

Can anyone provide me with guidance on how to do this more efficiently?

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

If this is Word 2000 or above, set up the pages as full-size sheets, then
use the "4 pages per sheet option in the Print dialog. This would require
some experimentation to get the proportions right (it's much easier with
European A sizes), and you would have to enter the page numbers as
1,1,1,1,2,2,2,2,3,3,3,3, etc.; so this would not be a trivial operation, but
it might still be easier than replicating the pages in table cells
(especially since it allows you to have true headers/footers/page numbers,
etc.).

 

[Bo_Jack]

Suzanne--
Thank you VERY MUCH. Exactly the "hint" that I needed. I had been trying
to get there using the "4 pages per sheet" option together with "collate" not
checked and
"Number of Copies" = 4. But that approach (which seems reasonable) was not
working.
After your post, I entered "1, 1, 1, 1" into the "Page Range, Pages" box and
got the first sheet to print as I wanted. I then tried
"1,1,1,1,2,2,2,2,3,3,3,3" and got an error message. However, I was then
smart enough to create a macro that would work for one page number and edit
the visual basic code to work for multiple page numbers.
THANKS VERY MUCH.

If this is Word 2000 or above, set up the pages as full-size sheets, then
use the "4 pages per sheet option in the Print dialog. This would require
some experimentation to get the proportions right (it's much easier with
European A sizes), and you would have to enter the page numbers as
1,1,1,1,2,2,2,2,3,3,3,3, etc.; so this would not be a trivial operation, but
it might still be easier than replicating the pages in table cells
(especially since it allows you to have true headers/footers/page numbers,
etc.).

 

[Bo_Jack]

Suzanne --

I need a little more help. As my message below describes, I was able to
follow up on you suggestion and create a macro that does provide the results
that I want. And, I was able to successfully run that macro several times to
produce the desired results.

However, after closing and saving the word document in which the macro is
stored, I am now unable to run the macro again. I get a message that says
"The macros in this project are disabled. Please refer to the online help or
the documentation of the host application to determine to determine how to
enable the macros."

Well, OK. I've found the HELP section that supposedly tells me how to
enable macros. It has me ultimately selecting "Visual Basic for
Applications" and clicking "Run from My Computer." However, this does not
enable the macros. I have also tried changing the settings in Options,
Security, Macro Security to no avail. Do you have any other suggestions.
PS. I have WORD 2002 and Windows XP Professional; and I have no idea what I
may have done after the macro successfully ran several times to cause it to
become "not enabled."

Thanks again for the earlier help. Since I got it to work as I wanted it
once, I am sure I will eventually get it to work that way again. But I am
hoping to make "eventually" sooner, rather than later

Best Regards

Suzanne--
Thank you VERY MUCH. Exactly the "hint" that I needed. I had been trying
to get there using the "4 pages per sheet" option together with "collate" not
checked and
"Number of Copies" = 4. But that approach (which seems reasonable) was not
working.
After your post, I entered "1, 1, 1, 1" into the "Page Range, Pages" box and
got the first sheet to print as I wanted. I then tried
"1,1,1,1,2,2,2,2,3,3,3,3" and got an error message. However, I was then
smart enough to create a macro that would work for one page number and edit
the visual basic code to work for multiple page numbers.
THANKS VERY MUCH.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

I think you found the wrong Help topic, and I can see why. If you search for
"enable macros," the first Help topic presented is "Macro language support
is disabled." That's not your problem. The topic you want is the second one,
"Change the security level for macro virus protection."

There are several ways you can go here:

1. You can change the macro security level to medium. At this setting, you
will get a message box when you try to open a document containing macros,
giving you the choice of enabling or disabling them. I would advise that you
change the macro security level even if you go with suggestion 2 or 3
because it just makes sense to be able to have a choice in this matter.

2. You can save the macro in Normal.dot instead of in your document.
Provided you have checked the box for "Trust all installed templates and
add-ins," as instructed in the Help topic, you will not get a macro warning
from any macros in Normal.dot.

3. You can save your booklet layout as a template, in the User Templates
folder (the same one where Normal.dot is stored). Again, if the macro is in
a template, you will not get a warning when you create or open a new
document based on that template. If you're going to be reusing this layout,
this is the best way to go.

 

[Bo_Jack]

Thank you, Suzanne. Once again you provided the help that I needed.

I actually had already been trying to fix the "problem" by changing the
security level of macro protection. What I was doing wrong, however, was not
totally closing out WORD after going to the medium security level. (I had
been changing the security, trying the macro again, then going back to the
original, high security setting when the macro still did not work.) Your
input was enough for me to realize that I needed to change the security
level, completely close out WORD (saving the new security setting), then
reopen WORD getting the message box about allowing macros to be enabled, then
enabling and running the macro.

Your input has been a great time saver to me. Thanks.

 

[Jordi Comas]

Well, I'm printing two DIN A4 on a single DIN A3, with a zoom parameter.
But my printer puts a line to separate them.

Can I print several A4 pages on A3 sheets (2 by 2) without this line?

Thanks

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

What version of Word?

 

[Jason]

Suzanne,
I'm using Word 2000 and trying to do about the same thing.
While I would like my booklet to be 4.25 x 5.5, I would like to print
back-to-back, collated pages so that I may then fold the pages, staple them
in the middle and be able to flip through the booklet with page numbers
inserted. Is this possible in Word 2000?

Jason


Jason

If this is Word 2000 or above, set up the pages as full-size sheets, then
use the "4 pages per sheet option in the Print dialog. This would require
some experimentation to get the proportions right (it's much easier with
European A sizes), and you would have to enter the page numbers as
1,1,1,1,2,2,2,2,3,3,3,3, etc.; so this would not be a trivial operation, but
it might still be easier than replicating the pages in table cells
(especially since it allows you to have true headers/footers/page numbers,
etc.).

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

I think you would find this far more difficult than it is worth because some
of the pages would have to be printed upside-down, and this is absolutely
non-trivial in Word. You might have better success with Publisher, which is
better set up to handle this type of layout (in four-panel greeting cards,
for example).

Suzanne,
I'm using Word 2000 and trying to do about the same thing.
While I would like my booklet to be 4.25 x 5.5, I would like to print
back-to-back, collated pages so that I may then fold the pages, staple them
in the middle and be able to flip through the booklet with page numbers
inserted. Is this possible in Word 2000?

Jason


Jason

 

[Jason]

Okay, Suzanne. I appreciate it. I think I will just type it up, print two
pages per sheet and do some cutting, pasting, then copying at Staples. Thank
you for your help.

Jason
Owings Mills, Maryland

Owings Mills, Maryland