About Page Layouts

Each page layout that you create can consist of one page or several pages. Why would you want more than one page? If you want different content or settings to be applied to the various pages in your final output—depending on their position in the document—you will want multiple pages. In this way, page layouts are different from master pages, where you designate first, left, or right page content on the same master page.

For each page in a page layout, you can designate one of the following types, which determines the behavior of the page:

• Normal Select this type if you do not want a right-left type of page flow, but instead just want the same layout on every page, perhaps like a screenplay. Unlike "First," "Right," or "Left," if you elect to begin a chapter with the "Normal" page, that page will be used throughout that chapter.
• First Select this type if you want the settings to be applied to a page in the output when it appears on the first page of a new chapter (or designated section).

• Empty Select this type if you want the settings to be applied to an "empty" page in the output. When creating a printed manual, there may be times when you want a page in the document to purposely be left blank (or mostly blank). If you create an Empty page in a page layout, it will automatically be used in the output if necessary, based on the page types in your layout. For example, if you also have a Title page in the layout, the Empty page will be inserted immediately after the title page in the output. Or let's say you have a First page type in your layout, with the intention of using it to start each new chapter on a right page in the output. If you also have an Empty page type in the layout, it will automatically be inserted before the first page of a new chapter, if necessary, to ensure that it starts on a right (odd) page. For more information see Using Empty Pages.

  Note: The empty page type is not supported in Microsoft Word output.

• Left Select this type if you want the settings to be applied to a page in the output when it appears on a left (or even) page (e.g., page 42).
• Right Select this type if you want the settings to be applied to a page in the output when it appears on a right (or odd) page (e.g., page 43).
• Title Select this type if you want the settings to be applied to the first page in your output, which typically displays the manual title. If you include an Empty page in your page layout, the title page in the output will immediately be followed by the empty page.

example

Let's say that you are creating a page layout to be used only for the title page that occurs at the very first page of your manual. In that case, your page layout might have one page that uses the Title page type. In addition, you can add an Empty page type to that layout. In the output, the Title page will automatically be followed by an empty page.

Now let's say that you are creating a second page layout to be used for the chapters in your document. Suppose that on the first page of each chapter, you do not want any header, but you want a page number at the bottom-right of the page. Therefore, you create one page with a page type of First.

Next, suppose you want the pages that appear on the left side of the document to have the name of the manual in the upper-left corner and a page number in the lower-left corner. Therefore, you create another page with a page type of Left.

Perhaps you want the pages that appear on the right side of the document to have the chapter name of the manual in the upper-right corner and a page number in the lower-right corner. Therefore, you create another page with a page type of Right.

Finally, let's say you want to ensure that the first page of each chapter starts on the right side of the manual. In that case, you can create a fourth page with a page type of Empty. This allows an empty page to be forced (if necessary) on the left side immediately before the beginning of the next chapter.

Each page in a layout can contain multiple frames, which are used to hold content (such as page numbers and chapter titles) and determine where that content is positioned. By default, certain frames will already be included in a page, depending on the template you select when adding a page layout. Frames are typically displayed as large gray rectangles or squares on a page.

• Body frame This frame, usually the largest on the page, is basically a placeholder for the content that you add to topics. You cannot add content directly to a body frame. If necessary, you can have multiple body frames on a page. This lets you customize the flow of text from one frame to another on a page.

  example

  Let's say you want the body text be displayed in one column on the top quarter of each page, but then you want the text to continue below in two columns. In order to accomplish this, you can create two body frames on a page—one with a single column and the other with two columns.

  

• Header frame This frame is designed to hold content from the topic (e.g., chapter title, page number) or text that you add. The frame is usually positioned at the top of a page, above the body text.
• Footer frame This frame is designed to hold content from the topic (e.g., chapter title, page number) or text that you add. The frame is usually positioned at the bottom of a page, below the body text.

• Decoration frame This frame can be used to display a bar for aesthetic purposes on a page. You can add color, a border, text, and images to a decoration frame.

  Note: Decoration frames are not supported in Microsoft Word or Adobe FrameMaker output.

• Image frame This frame opens the Insert Picture dialog, prompting you to provide an image file. The picture is added to a frame of the same size, which you can place on the page as necessary.

  Note: Image frames are not supported in Microsoft Word or Adobe FrameMaker output.

To position frames on a page, you can simply click on the edge and drag to resize. You can also click in the middle of a frame and drag to move it. In addition, there are various options available from the Layout drop-down button for aligning and positioning frames, as well as for rotating text within a frame.

When you add a new page layout to your project, you select a page layout template as the basis for the new layout. Flare lets you choose from various factory templates, each of which is useful for different circumstances. After adding a new page layout based on a template, you are free to change it in any way you see fit. See Adding Page Layouts and Editing Pages and Frames.

Following are the factory page layout templates provided by Flare. Many of these layouts already contain multiple page types. And many of the pages already contain content or variables in header or footer frames (e.g., page numbers, Chapter Number variables, Heading variables).

• ChapterA4 This template can be used for the main chapters in your manual. The pages in the template are already specified to use the international standard (ISO) A4 size (21 cm x 29.7 cm).
• ChapterLegal This template can be used for the main chapters in your manual. The pages in the template are already specified to use the legal size (8.5 inches x 14 inches).
• ChapterLetter This template can be used for the main chapters in your manual. The pages in the template are already specified to use the letter size (8.5 inches x 11 inches).
• ChapterResizable This template can be used for the main chapters in your manual. The pages in the template are already initially specified to use the letter size (8.5 inches x 11 inches). However, you can easily resize the pages in this layout without having to also resize the frames within them.
• Default This template is a very simple page layout consisting of only one "Normal" page, with a header frame, body frame, and footer frame. The page is already initially specified to use the letter size (8.5 inches x 11 inches).
• FrontMatterResizable This template can be used for pages that precede the main chapters in your manual. For example, if you include a generated table of contents at the beginning of your manual, you might use this template to display those pages. The pages in the template are already initially specified to use the letter size (8.5 inches x 11 inches). However, you can easily resize the pages in this layout without having to also resize the frames within them.
• GlossaryResizable This template can be used for pages that hold a generated glossary. The pages in the template are already initially specified to use the letter size (8.5 inches x 11 inches). However, you can easily resize the pages in this layout without having to also resize the frames within them.
• IndexResizable This template can be used for pages that hold a generated index. The pages in the template are already initially specified to use the letter size (8.5 inches x 11 inches). However, you can easily resize the pages in this layout without having to also resize the frames within them.
• NormalResizable This template is a very simple page layout consisting of only one "Normal" page, with a header frame, body frame, and footer frame. The page is already initially specified to use the letter size (8.5 inches x 11 inches). However, you can easily resize the pages in this layout without having to also resize the frames within them.

Why are some templates called "Resizable"? It's not because only those page layouts contain pages that can be resized. You can resize the pages in any of these templates. The difference is that the "Resizable" templates contain frames that have been "anchored" to the edges. This means that those frames maintain the same distance from the edges of the page if you choose to resize the page. The frames in other templates are not yet anchored (but they can be), which means that those frames will not automatically be resized if you decide to enlarge or reduce the page. See Setting Frame Anchors.

You can also create your own page layout templates, which can be used in the future when you create new page layouts. See About Templates.

Following are the main steps necessary for creating and using page layouts.

1. Add page layout After determining the number of page layouts that are needed to produce the kind of output you want, you can add the page layout files to the project (select Project>Add Page Layout). The best course of action is usually to use the factory templates provided by Flare and edit them as necessary. Another approach is to make copies of finished page layouts. After you configure a page layout as needed (adding pages, frames, page size settings, content), you can copy that page layout to create the additional ones that you need. That way, much of the work may already be completed in the subsequent page layouts, with only some tweaking necessary. See Adding Page Layouts and Copying and Renaming Page Layouts.
2. Add pages In each page layout, you need to decide how many pages you will need and add them to the layout. The number of pages that you add depends on the differences that may occur on the various pages. For example, you might add a First page to be used only for the first page of the chapter. You also might add a Left page for even pages (e.g., 12, 14, 16, 18) and a Right page for odd pages (e.g., 11, 13, 15, 17). Each of those page types might display header or footer content differently. You also might want to add an Empty page, which is useful for making sure that new chapters start on either a right or left page. In the Page Layout Editor, only one page will be visible at any one time, but you can navigate to the other pages quickly by using the small squares to the right of the editor (one for each page in the page layout). See Adding Pages.
3. Add or remove frames Each page in a layout can contain multiple frames, which are used to hold content (such as page numbers and chapter titles) and determine where that content is positioned. By default, certain frames will already be included in a page, depending on the template you select when adding a page layout. Frames are typically displayed as large gray rectangles or squares on a page. You can add more frames or remove existing frames as necessary. See Adding Page Layout Frames and Removing Page Layout Frames.
4. Edit pages and frames After you have the pages and frames that you need in a page layout, you can modify them to affect the content, as well as the look of the pages in the output. This might consist of various tasks, such as inserting page numbers or text, adding borders to frames, resizing frames, and more. See Editing Pages and Frames.
5. Specify chapter break and page layout After you create a page layout and configure its frames and settings as necessary, you need to associate the page layout with the appropriate content. In most cases, you will probably want to associate different page layouts with various entries in your "outline TOC" (so that different page layouts can be used for different parts or "chapters" in a manual). Otherwise, you would associate a single "master" page layout with an entire target or project; in that case, the same page layout will be applied to all topics in that target or project. Whenever you associate a page layout with a TOC entry, you must first create a chapter break in order to do so.

   • Associate page layout with outline TOC entry If you want different parts of a manual to use different page layouts (e.g., one layout for the front matter, another for chapters, another for the index), you would associate the appropriate page layouts with the outline TOC entries where you want those page layouts to start. See Specifying Chapter Breaks and Page Layouts. Also see About Tables of Contents.

     OR

   • Associate page layout with target and/or project If you want a page layout to be applied to all topics in the output or project, you would associate that page layout with the target that you are building or with the entire project. See Associating Master Page Layouts with Targets and Associating Master Page Layouts with Projects.