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-   -   Correctly subdividing the page for paper cuts (http://forums.omnigroup.com/showthread.php?t=942)

FloatingBones 2006-07-05 01:38 PM

Correctly subdividing the page for paper cuts
 
Hello. I create tickets with OmniGraffle -- multiple copies of the same image on a page. I would like to be able to space out those images such that the spacing above and below the tickets is uniform and that the minimal number of cuts is used. For example, if I create 5 wide tickets on a portrait-oriented page -- each ticket 2.2 inches by 8.5 inches -- I'd like to be able to cut the pages with 4 cuts and have all the tickets look exactly the same.

So far, I haven't been successful at doing this. I suspect the problem is that I don't know how OmniGraffle maps the canvas to the physical page to accomodate physical printing margins. FWIW, I output to a PDF file before printing.

Does anyone have the correct mathematical formula for this? Does the FM (the manual) discuss such things?

Thanks.

--phil

Zoolok 2006-07-11 09:38 AM

[QUOTE=FloatingBones]Hello. I create tickets with OmniGraffle -- multiple copies of the same image on a page. [/QUOTE]
Do you do this by copy and paste or is there some magic automation for repeating them?
[QUOTE] I would like to be able to space out those images such that the spacing above and below the tickets is uniform and that the minimal number of cuts is used.[/QUOTE]

When I laid out something for the filofax in 'graffle I made the place holders by using boxes of the exact size required (in the "Geometry Inspector")
Then I nudged them together and laid them out in a sort of "page view" using "Zoom Out"

I also tried something similar using sticky labels. Here the pack had a sheet with a dummy layout and margin etc marked. Again I used the Inspector to layout everything precisely. Then I printed a "blank" and compared it with the "dummy"... just to be sure.

Not elegant, I know. But it looks like a ruler is your best friend. And if you have the Pro version you can save this as a template. Otherwise save as "blank" and make it read-only in the FInder (that _may_ work!)

FloatingBones 2006-07-14 12:39 PM

[QUOTE=Zoolok]Do you do this by copy and paste or is there some magic automation for repeating them?
[/QUOTE]

I create each ticket within a rectangle. After I like the ticket, I delete the rectangle, create a single group with all the items in the ticket, copy and paste the group, and use the Canvas -> Alignment inspector with the "align to canvas" checkbox on to spread the items out on the page.

If points on the canvas mapped to an exact point on the page, this should work. It does not -- there is excessive spacing at the top and bottom of the printed page.

[QUOTE]
Not elegant, I know. But it looks like a ruler is your best friend. And if you have the Pro version you can save this as a template. Otherwise save as "blank" and make it read-only in the FInder (that _may_ work!)[/QUOTE]

Since OmniGraffle knows how much margin it puts on a page, why not just have an option within it? Why force the user to reverse-engineer the margins?

--phil

JKT 2006-07-17 12:24 PM

Have you taken a look at the Canvas: Size inspector - you are probably using the Printer margins option (all printers have margin settings by default - mainly because they can't print right up to the edge of the page):

[img]http://homepage.mac.com/jtyzack/.Pictures/screenshots/OGcanvsize.jpg[/img]

If you pick your own settings for the printer margins (just make sure you use values that mean the image will not extend into the region of the paper your printer can't actually print to) you can use equal values for all edges and the space will be the same around each ticket.

FloatingBones 2006-07-19 07:25 PM

[QUOTE=JKT]Have you taken a look at the Canvas: Size inspector - you are probably using the Printer margins option (all printers have margin settings by default - mainly because they can't print right up to the edge of the page):
[...]
[/QUOTE]

No. I didn't have a clue. I should have looked.

What I want to do is create a PDF file that will work correctly on any printer. I will set the top/bottom margins to ZERO and then vertically distribute my tickets on the page. If I have sufficient space between the images, the top/bottom tickets should be in the printable area on the page -- and I should use N-1 cuts in order to get N equally-sized tickets.

I'll try this next week and report back my results. Thank you.

--phil

FloatingBones 2006-08-01 05:01 PM

[QUOTE=FloatingBones]No. I didn't have a clue. I should have looked.

What I want to do is create a PDF file that will work correctly on any printer. I will set the top/bottom margins to ZERO and then vertically distribute my tickets on the page. If I have sufficient space between the images, the top/bottom tickets should be in the printable area on the page -- and I should use N-1 cuts in order to get N equally-sized tickets.

I'll try this next week and report back my results. Thank you.[/QUOTE]

Nope. This still isn't the right thing.

In order to be correct spacing for cuts, the gaps at the top/bottom of the page should be half what they are for the space between the objects. In other words, if I had two horizontal lines, they should be placed at 25% and 75% down on the page. Omnigraffle spaces them out at 33% and 66% down on the page. I want one cut to create two "tickets" that have equal whitespace above and below them.

I guess this has turned into an enhancement request to create an option in Canvas:alignment to have a means to change the behavior for distributing objects on a page such that they are tiled correctly for cutting.

Is this an appropriate place for an RFE?

--phil

Len Case 2006-08-01 08:06 PM

The proper channel for enhancement requests is Send Feedback from the Help menu.

It certainly ok to discuss them here and get feedback from other users--but if you want to make sure they are tracked appropriately, use Send Feedback.

FloatingBones 2006-08-03 05:13 AM

1 Attachment(s)
[QUOTE=FloatingBones]
In order to be correct spacing for cuts, the gaps at the top/bottom of the page should be half what they are for the space between the objects. In other words, if I had two horizontal lines, they should be placed at 25% and 75% down on the page. Omnigraffle spaces them out at 33% and 66% down on the page. I want one cut to create two "tickets" that have equal whitespace above and below them.
[/QUOTE]

I discovered an easy workaround: adding little tic marks between the tickets, and including the tic marks in the group of objects to distribute:


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