Translation and Localization in Publisher

[Glyphs]

I am a French Comic Book writer and publisher, and I am creating each issue of my comic in French and in English. Before Publisher, I created each final page in Designer, then compiled the pages into a PDF using Apple PDF Services. In each of these Designer files, there was an FR layer group for the French version, and an US layer group for the US version, so each time I needed to create a book, I had to check the right language layers group for each page in the Designer files, export each page to JPG, and compile the book in PDF, then check the other language layers group in each Designer file, and compile another book the same way. Not the easiest way of doing things. 

Now that I'm using Publisher, I am transferring all these pages into Publisher documents, and many things are now easier, but not the creation of localized versions. Now, for each page in Publisher, I have to create FR and US layers groups (to avoid confusion in case I have to add a page between two pages of a book). Which means when I want to export an US version of the book for example, I have to check all the US layers and uncheck all the FR layers on each page. It can still take a long time, and of course, it's prone to errors.

I do need to optimize this workflow, and I think the best way to do this would be to create some kind of "Localization Layers" in all the Affinity Apps. Let's say I create pages of a book in French and in English in Designer or Photo. In each of these files, I put the French version of the design into a French Localization Layer, and the English version into an English Localization Layer. When I place the files into Publisher Pages, all the Localization Layers are recognized by Publisher (instead of the pages being updated when I uncheck a layer group in the original file), and all I have to do is check the US option in a Localization palette for example, to have all the US Localization Layers displayed, and all the other language Localization Layers hidden. Same thing for all the other languages.

I think this kind of option would be a great time saver, but I'm open to any other idea to save time for these kinds of workflows, which can be quite exhausting.

[Old Bruce]

Is the only difference the language or are there other elements being localized, US wearing Stetsons and FR having Berets? 

If it is just language I think you could use a master page for that but I will need some more coffee and a think before I offer up anything useful.

Do you have 24 designer documents for a 24 page book?

[Glyphs]

27 minutes ago, Old Bruce said:

Is the only difference the language or are there other elements being localized, US wearing Stetsons and FR having Berets? 

If it is just language I think you could use a master page for that but I will need some more coffee and a think before I offer up anything useful.

Do you have 24 designer documents for a 24 page book?

Actually, there can be many other differences than just text: All the localized layers contain graphic elements, meaning all the balloons and some sound effects. This is what makes it difficult.

And yes, I do have 24 Designer or Photo documents for a 24 page book.

[Glyphs]

Better if I send you a page. I have rasterized the layers so that you can read the text without having the fonts, but I usually have a group of layers called FR and US with vector shapes for the balloons and text on top of it. If I need an US version for a 24 page comic, I would need to show the US group and hide the FR group in each Designer file. 

For now, the fastest way to have an FR and US version of a particular page would be to click the US group, merge all layers so that I have an image of the US version, then hide the merged layer and the US group, show the FR group and merge all layers again to create an image of the FR version, select both merged layers, cut it and paste it in the Publisher page. If I just place the image on the page, I would have one version of the file only, and it might be updated in the Publisher file with each correction to the Designer file. As you can guess, the fastest way isn't fast at all, but it's still the fastest way. The other way would be to have two versions of the same Designer file, but I would then loose time when I make corrections to the file.

Rage #3 Sample.afdesign

[Old Bruce]

2 hours ago, Glyphs said:

The other way would be to have two versions of the same Designer file, but I would then loose time when I make corrections to the file.

No, too easy to make mistakes when you double the number of files.

2 hours ago, Glyphs said:

... click the US group, merge all layers so that I have an image of the US version, then hide the merged layer and the US group, show the FR group and merge all layers again to create an image of the FR version ...

I wouldn't bother with merging the layers in Designer I would just tick the different language layer and then Export as TIFF. That gives you a merged file to place in Publisher.

I would set up two 24 page Publisher files named France and US. I would start the pages (Page_01) in Designer and export "US_Page_01.tiff" and  "France_Page_01.tiff" as I worked on the pages. These would be placed in the Publisher files as linked files and then as I continue to work in Designer I just export, overwriting the original files and the Publisher file would wait for me to update using the Resource Manager.

Any change means One Designer file is changed, you export it twice (overwriting) and the two Publisher files get updated almost automatically.

[Glyphs]

1 hour ago, Old Bruce said:

No, too easy to make mistakes when you double the number of files.

I wouldn't bother with merging the layers in Designer I would just tick the different language layer and then Export as TIFF. That gives you a merged file to place in Publisher.

I would set up two 24 page Publisher files named France and US. I would start the pages (Page_01) in Designer and export "US_Page_01.tiff" and  "France_Page_01.tiff" as I worked on the pages. These would be placed in the Publisher files as linked files and then as I continue to work in Designer I just export, overwriting the original files and the Publisher file would wait for me to update using the Resource Manager.

Any change means One Designer file is changed, you export it twice (overwriting) and the two Publisher files get updated almost automatically.

I actually find it faster to just right-click a layer and choose Merge Visible in Photo than exporting to TIFF. And it's easier to manage too, since all I have to do when I have my FR and US merged layers is copy and paste it into a Publisher Page, then delete only these two temporary layers in the original Designer or Photo document.

Exporting TIFFs into a pages-layout software is how DTP is usually done, and we always end up creating a file for each language, but it's still too slow, and prone to errors. I find my way better (even though it's mostly subjective), but it's still too much work.

That is why having in every Affinity app a special layers palette exclusively dedicated to Localization would be useful to me. The goal here would be to import a Designer or Photo document into Publisher, and have it appear in the layers palette along with its localization layers (one layer for each language). When all the pages are imported, you check one option in Publisher, and all the French layers are displayed exclusively. You check a second option, and all the US layers are displayed the same way. And every time the original Designer or Photo file is updated, it refreshes in Publisher without loosing it's Localization layers. I am not sure how such an option could be implemented in future versions, but I am pretty sure it would be a great time saver for all of us. 

[Old Bruce]

1 hour ago, Glyphs said:

I find my way better (even though it's mostly subjective), but it's still too much work.

Then do not take my advice. If it works don't fix it. I think what you are describing would have more uses than just a language change. I shall continue to ponder your problem for an easy solution.

[Wosven]

A suitable option would be to have a new option in the Export persona permitting to select the layers we want to export in a slice.

It would help designer that need different background or other option, instead of having to dupplicate layers to create groups that'll be exported as slices (problems: huger file with those dupplicated layers, and if one of the dupplicated layers need changes, it should be done in each copy in the groups).

Example of linked icons for layers needing to be visible and exported in a new type of slices:

 

[Wosven]

Another option for you, is to dupplicate the elements in 2 groups, keeping only FR layer in one and US layer in the other, and using the Export persona to create slices of those groupes that you'll export.

But the file's size will double.

[lacerto]

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