Unlinking Text Frames

[Godsgirl]

Hello everyone. If you remember, I have had a terrible problem with one of my footers suddenly containing wording that should be exclusive to the regular text frames I've put into place. I think the problem I have with my footer being included in the text frame linking sequence lies with unlinking this footer (or the text frame it's linked from) from the sequence. I am trying to understand exactly what I need to do in order to make this happen. If someone could assume that I know absolutely nothing about text frames and linking (which is absolutely true), and please clarify the wording of the enclosed instructions from the Help Menu within Affinity Publisher 2.

To unlink a text frame from the frame sequence:

1. From the Tools panel, select the Move Tool. (This part is easy.)
2. Select the text frame to be unlinked, then click the 'previous' and/or 'next' Text Flow buttons (top left or bottom right, respectively). (Exactly how do you select the text frame to be unlinked? In your mind? Click inside the frame? Highlight it? I know that you select the text frame you want to detach it from after it's selected.)
3. Click within the frame when the unlink cursor () appears. (Click within which frame? The one you're trying to disconnect or the one you're trying to disconnect from?)

When unlinking a frame in a populated frame sequence, all text after the unlink point will be placed in the previous frame, and will overflow that frame. (I don't understand this either. "all text after the unlink point", does this mean all text after the text frame you are unlinking or the text frame you are unlinking from? My problem is that this "footer" which is full of text & linked to another frame, is linked to a frame several pages up above this frame. So, I have no idea what will happen when I "unlink" the footer text frame from the other text frame.)

The text frame in question is the small one at the bottom here. It is actually a footer & should not have wording in it that belongs in the regular-sized text frames. Somehow it got linked to a regular-sized text frame.

[bbrother]

Hi @Godsgirl unlinking text frame form the frame sequence is easy. Check out the video bellow.

There is also a second, simpler hack, but it requires deleting and re-creating the footer text frame.
However, text flow between the text frame before and after the footer text frame is automatically maintained.

To do this:

• Simply select the footer text frame by clicking on it and press Backspace to delete it (the text will be moved to other frames, it will not be deleted)
• The footer text frame will be removed, but the text flow between the frame before and after the footer will remain.
• Re-create the text frame for the footer

Watch the video below to learn about the Backspace method.

 

 

 

 

 

[MikeTO]

This happens all the time when inserting or deleting a single page in a facing-pages document. I can't remember if it happens with inserting or deleting, but it's one of them. Publisher will frequently link the body text frame to a header or footer text frame.

You should also re-apply the master page to the entire spread in addition to fixing the links between frames.

I try to avoid the issue by inserting or deleting only full spreads.

Good luck

[Godsgirl]

44 minutes ago, bbrother said:

Hi @Godsgirl unlinking text frame form the frame sequence is easy. Check out the video bellow.

 

There is also a second, simpler hack, but it requires deleting and re-creating the footer text frame.
However, text flow between the text frame before and after the footer text frame is automatically maintained.

To do this:

• Simply select the footer text frame by clicking on it and press Backspace to delete it (the text will be moved to other frames, it will not be deleted)
• The footer text frame will be removed, but the text flow between the frame before and after the footer will remain.
• Re-create the text frame for the footer

Watch the video below to learn about the Backspace method.

 

Thank you so much for this info. I will definitely try one of these methods. Only thing is, my footer text box has x's around it and not circles. Now what?

 

 

 

 

 

[Godsgirl]

21 minutes ago, MikeTO said:

This happens all the time when inserting or deleting a single page in a facing-pages document. I can't remember if it happens with inserting or deleting, but it's one of them. Publisher will frequently link the body text frame to a header or footer text frame.

You should also re-apply the master page to the entire spread in addition to fixing the links between frames.

I try to avoid the issue by inserting or deleting only full spreads.

Good luck

You are absolutely right! I have added single pages. Lesson learned. IF I can get these links figured out. Tysm!

[Old Bruce]

In addition to what MikeTO has said I would add that we should always name everything on our Master Pages. Example names are Footer Left, Footer Right, Main Text Left, and Main Text Right.

[Godsgirl]

18 minutes ago, Old Bruce said:

In addition to what MikeTO has said I would add that we should always name everything on our Master Pages. Example names are Footer Left, Footer Right, Main Text Left, and Main Text Right.

I agree; I do that. Ty

[thomaso]

1 hour ago, MikeTO said:

I try to avoid the issue by inserting or deleting only full spreads.

45 minutes ago, Godsgirl said:

right! I have added single pages.

To avoid that confusion I prefer not to insert a page or spread anywhere within a page range but at its end only. Instead of inserting pages I just insert additional content (text) at the wanted position in the story and then I add the required page via shift-click at the end or the last page of the text flow chain or document.

[bbrother]

4 hours ago, Godsgirl said:

Thank you so much for this info. I will definitely try one of these methods. Only thing is, my footer text box has x's around it and not circles. Now what?

So it's either:

• an text frame that is coming from an aplied master page,
• or it's a regular (non master page) text frame but locked for edit in the Layers panel.

In case it is a text frame that's coming from a master page i wouldn't recommend to try to remove it from the frame sequence.

If it does not coming from the master page and is locked for edit in The Layers panel, it is simple, just unlock the text frame and remove it from the sequence.

I could say more, but I have little information on how you created and arranged the text frames in the document that shows the screenshot you posted.

Quote

The text frame in question is the small one at the bottom here. It is actually a footer & should not have wording in it that belongs in the regular-sized text frames. Somehow it got linked to a regular-sized text frame.

Not somehow but by someone 🤫

[MikeTO]

Here's a crude example of how this happens. Sorry, this is a 2.4 beta doc, I forgot to make it in 2.3.1.

test.afpub

1. Open the doc and apply master Basic to page 3 - leave it on the default Migrate option.
2. Basic doesn't have a body frame. You might apply a master like this if you want a page without body text for an illustration. But since you didn't select Clear instead of Migrate, Publisher links the frame from the previous page to the closest frame on the new master, in this case the header frame.

The easiest workaround is to choose Undo and re-apply the master with Clear selected. But sometimes this can happen when inserting or deleting single pages and you don't notice it for a while. So you might have to re-apply the master or unlink and relink the frames.

Be careful when fixing this because you will lose the content in the header or footer frame, such as a page number or chapter name. You'll need to re-apply the master to fix that.

[thomaso]

21 minutes ago, MikeTO said:

• Open the doc and apply master Basic to page 3 - leave it on the default Migrate option.
• Basic doesn't have a body frame. You might apply a master like this if you want a page without body text for an illustration. But since you didn't select Clear instead of Migrate, Publisher links the frame from the previous page to the closest frame on the new master, in this case the header frame.

In case of this Godsgirl's issue the situation seems to be not that simple. Apparently there is a master story text frame above the bottom/header frame. Remember how the discussion started, like in this thread also in the previous thread it shows linked text in both frames (main story and bottom):