AfPublisher inserting section from another file and managing layout

[AllanP]

Using Affinity Publisher v2

I have two documents created with AsPub. They both use the same master page set up (facing p[ages), both starting on the right hand page. The layout od the pages in both documents has a wider inner margin to allow for binding when printed. so the text frames are positioned accordingly.

I want to insert the second document after page 7 (i.e. a right hand page) of the first document. I use Document -> Add pages from file...   The pages from the second document are inserted in the correct place starting  on the left hand page 8. However, the text frames on those inserted pages remain aligned as they were in the document they came from which started on a left hand page, so the margins are wrong.

Is there a way to insert pages from one document into another so that the inserted text frames are automatically aligned to the margins of the receiving document, rather than retaining the text frame position of the source?

[walt.farrell]

7 minutes ago, AllanP said:

Is there a way to insert pages from one document into another so that the inserted text frames are automatically aligned to the margins of the receiving document, rather than retaining the text frame position of the source?

If you're using Add Pages From you need to make sure that you add them at the proper place, e.g., at an odd or even page as appropriate for the pages you're adding.

You might consider the Books feature in Publisher 2, though, as an alternative with more flexibility. For example, if we consider that you have doc1 and doc2, you could:

1. Save pages 1-7 of doc1 as a new document (doc1a)
2. If it has additional pages, save those as another new document (doc1b)
3. Use the Books panel to create a new book.
4. Add doc1a as a chapter.
5. Add doc2 as a chapter.
6. Add doc1b as a chapter.

You will still need to adjust the Book settings so that doc2 starts on the appropriate left/right page, but I think the defaults will do that for you. But you will end up with an automatically added blank page, to keep the layout correct.

[AllanP]

Thanks for the response, Walt.

I'll try that technique out in the morning.

Basically 'm trying to merge two documents, both set up with wide inner margins (to allow fir binding) and I want the pages to run continuously with no blank page between sections/chapters, si that means the text frames need to adjust to the inner/outer margins.
I had hoped the Section functionality would do this, but I'll take a look at the Book function and see if that solves my problem.

[walt.farrell]

1 hour ago, AllanP said:

I had hoped the Section functionality would do this, but I'll take a look at the Book function and see if that solves my problem.

As far as I know, neither will handle that. You will need to accept a blank page, or manually adjust the layout of each of the added pages.

[AllanP]

12 hours ago, walt.farrell said:

As far as I know, neither will handle that. You will need to accept a blank page, or manually adjust the layout of each of the added pages.

So I see, Walt.
That's a pity. As a long-time user of Serif's legacy PagePlus DTP software, I had got used to the ability of deleting pages from a publication, and the text frames on the subsequent pages automatically realigning with the margins of a document where the inner and outer margins were different to allow die binding.
I will have to raise it as a suggestion doer a future update.