Publisher TOC questions on sorting and numbering

[max3.2]

Hi,

I'm trying to get a TOC right for a cookbook. I do get a basic version but have a few issues I could use some directions if possible and if yes, how. Currently, each page is a recipe with a heading, the recipe name, as a defined style.

1) I'm using sections where numbering starts at one again. If I insert my TOC based on the heading of each page, I get the page numbers as in the sections, e.g. restarting multiple times. I want the absolute document page number instead. Is this possible?

2) At the end, I would like an index, e.g. an alphabetically sorted TOC with the numbering above. Is this possible?

Best!

[MikeTO]

Hi Max, I assume if you're numbering each section from 1 then you're prefixing the relative page number with a section number in your footer. So section 2, page 3, might be shown as 2.3. Is this what you're trying to do? If so, the TOC feature lacks the ability to insert a section number prefix so that form of page numbering isn't compatible with Publisher's TOC feature. I recommend you switch to absolute page numbers unless you want to insert section numbers into your TOC page numbers as a final step before publication.

The same is true for the index feature - it uses the actual page number and can't automatically insert a section number prefix.

But you actually wrote that you want the absolute page number which confuses me. I can't imagine a scenario where you'd want section 2, page 3, which might be absolute page 77, to be listed as page 77 in the TOC and index if that's not the number you're printing on those pages.

Cheers

[max3.2]

Hi Mike,

my defining headers (paragraph styles) have no numbering in them, since they really just the recipe names. Then, there are sections, again with no numberings, eg. "meat", "veggies". At each recipe (always a single page) I have a footer with section name and number, which starts again each section, eg. "veggies #3" or "meat #2".

I need my TOC to point at the absolute page number, eg. when having 5 meat dishes and 4 veggies it should count up to 9. More clear now? But maybe thats just an odd thought and not really working...

I have to try the index feature, thanks for the hint!

[MikeTO]

2 hours ago, max3.2 said:

Hi Mike,

my defining headers (paragraph styles) have no numbering in them, since they really just the recipe names. Then, there are sections, again with no numberings, eg. "meat", "veggies". At each recipe (always a single page) I have a footer with section name and number, which starts again each section, eg. "veggies #3" or "meat #2".

I need my TOC to point at the absolute page number, eg. when having 5 meat dishes and 4 veggies it should count up to 9. More clear now? But maybe thats just an odd thought and not really working...

I have to try the index feature, thanks for the hint!

If the TOC needs to state Veggies 4 is on page 9, is there a 9 on that page? Wouldn't you be using absolute page numbering throughout the book if you're doing this?

[max3.2]

Well thats where I said this might be not a good idea for a TOC, so I will probably have to rethink the whole idea.

Im gravitating towards the TOC containing the section, even though I will need to fix this in manually then.

[Mark Daniel]

I'm not sure I fully follow what you want but here's a few suggestions

- I think you should let the section page numbering continue through the whole book. This is the only way you will get meaningful page numbers both on the page and in the TOC

- You can create numbered recipe headings with named global numbered lists (https://affinity.help/publisher2/English.lproj/pages/Text/text_bulletsAndNumbering.html). Use the 'Restart numbering now' option when you move to a new section

- Toc can copy and list numbering from the page headings into the TOC 

- If the exact text you want in the TOC doesn't appear on the page try creating an extra frame on the pasteboard with it in. This technique can also be used to create section dividing headings in the TOC. It can be helpful to put these extra frames on a master that you can just drop onto pages that use it. (Remember you can have more than one master per page)