How do I put 4 A5 pages on A3 page?

[daggett]

How do I write a document so that I can produce 4 A5 pages on a single A3 page?

I expect that this would require columns, but it is not obvious to me, on the LibreOffice application window before, me how to do this. I would like to be able to create from this a PDF file (or, just possibly, a Postscript file if commercial printers here will print it) which I can use use to create 4 printed double-sided A5 documents.

I had wanted to do put 2 A5 documents on a single A4 document, but I suspect that rotating by 90 degrees, the orientation of the two A5 documents, would be beyond the capabilies of PDF (or even postscript?).

[Grantler]

You may print into a pdf file of A3 size, there are some choices given in the print-out dialog.

See attached documents. Please notice: The ppt file has to be renamed into .pdf
This forum software does not allow to upload pdf files but e.g. ppt files.

A5-to-A3.odt

A5-to-A3.pdf.ppt

For more details specify your query.

Cheers

PS: For print out into pdf there are some programs you could use; depends on your operating system.

[daggett]

Thank you Grantler.

I trust if I use LibreOffice Impress(?) I can have less space outside the borders? For now I am calling it a night. I will check it out some more tomorrow.

I use Manjaro Linux. Manjaro is currently the most popular of the 309 Linux distributions listed at DistroWatch.com: Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux, BSD. . Personally, I don’t think 309 is nearly enough. If anyone wants to help me produce another Linux distribution after I have sorted this out, please let me know.

[bush46]

Thank you. Printing A5 size pages on A3 size sheet is not that difficult. But before we print we must consider a very important factor: the paper GRAIN! I discovered that after printing and binding my A5 size book that I created using A4 size sheets. I discovered that the commercially available A4 sheets are long grain. That is, its grain (think of it as paper ribs) is parallel to its long edge. When folded in half to get A5 book, the A5 size page grain is short grain (parallel to short side) and hence much stiffer to turn pages. It also leads to the book binding wearing out faster. The only way I could get a long grain page book was to format my book using A4 sheet and defining larger margins on two sides (outer and bottom) to allow trimming paper off before binding. That wastes a LOT of paper. So if I want to print and bind my book smaller than A4 size, it wastes lots of paper to get the right grain (easy turn pages). I am therefore forced to print either on A4 sheet paper, trim two sides, bind closer to spine (the book doesn’t open fully)
or on A3 sheet, double sided, 16 pages to 4 A3 sheets, fold these 4 sheets in half to create folios (or signatures), trim extra paper, puncture holes in each folio of 16 pages then hard hand bind. The book opens fully.

[petermau]

You may find the LibreOffice Help of use. For example printing;multiple pages per sheet. Also the LibreOffice Writer Guide: Chapter 7 on Printing.

When I create an A5 book to be printed by the Publisher I produce the draft by using a Page Size of A5 and printing 2 pages per A4 sheet. LibreOffice/Printer manage the rotation for you.

Do you actually want to print A5 pages on A4 sheets or A3 sheets? Normally the printer will take the A5 pdf output and do the pagination for you.

[daggett]

Thank you, petermau.

When I viewed it from within Libreoffice Writer I only saw 2 consecutive pages, but when I viewed it with Gimp, it looked good. Unfortunately my partner’s Canon Pixma printer, attached to her Micro$oft desktop computer, printed out my trial pdf document as two consecutive A4 pages! As a safeguard I should be able produce an A3 document with four pages as well as the A4 pdf document. (It would require less work to cut a number of A4’s into two pages each,)

[Wanderer]

@daggett

but I suspect that rotating by 90 degrees, the orientation of the two A5 documents, would be beyond the capabilies of PDF (or even postscript?).

One of the two reasons I still have Acrobat reader is the ability to print multiple pages per sheet - so this is possible to do with the pdf. The only (artificial) condition is: It has to be one pdf, so sometimes one needs to merge single pages before.
.
No problem in Postscript too, as I remember - but that was really long time ago…