Mapsoft
MediaSizer
Version 1.5

 

A Publishing Tool for use with Adobe Acrobat
(Version X upwards)

Running under WindowsTM Operating Systems

Issue 3
March 2021

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Mapsoft Computer Services Limited assumes no responsibility or liability for
any errors or inaccuracies that may appear herein.

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rights reserved in all countries.

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United
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Tel:
+44 (0) 2032
900473

email: support@mapsoft.com

www.mapsoft.com

 

Introduction

The MediaSizer tool allows you to
change the physical media size of a PDF document. Typically standard media
sizes (such as A4, A5 etc) are used. For example, you might want to change a
Letter size document to A4 for distribution in the European market, or an A4
sized document to Letter size for the North American market. However, this tool
will also work with non-standard (customized) media sizes.

MediaSizer works differently from the
page clipping facility in Acrobat as it allows you to specify a standard page
size, such as A4 or Letter, and unlike the Clipping facility it also allows the
page size to be increased as well as reduced. It can also be used to optionally
scale content at the same time as changing media size.

You can also combine MediaSizer with Mapsoft
ContentScaler
giving you more control over the re-scaling of the contents
than you can achieve just by using MediaSizer alone. ContentScaler is available
for purchase from the Mapsoft website: www.mapsoft.com. Using MediaSizer and ContentScaler together you can change the media
size of a document without altering its pagination or layout. For example, you
could use the ContentScaler tool to reduce the contents of the pages within a
PDF file by 50% and then use MediaSizer to change the media size from A4 to A5
(provided the page orientation is the same for both files) all within one
automated process.

Before
you use MediaSizer it is a good idea to make a copy of the original file.

Media Sizes

Several standard
media sizes are available in MediaSizer. These include:

q  Letter

q  Legal

q  Tabloid

q  Letter-Half

q  Legal-Half

q  A4

q  A3

q  A5

q  B5

q  Compact
Disc

These fixed media sizes enable
configurations to be derived that are based on these dimensions. However, once
a configuration has been saved, only the final dimensions are retained, and not
the original fixed media size on which they are based.

In addition you
can also specify your own customized page sizes.

Changing the Media Size

Before you can use MediaSizer you
must first open the PDF document whose media size you want to change. You can
choose to change to/from a standard media size (such as letter or A4) or you
can define your own customized sizes. Both these procedures are described
below.

Standardized Sizes

To change the media size to a standard size:

1.        Open the PDF document whose media size you want to
change.

2.        Select Plug-Ins > Mapsoft > MediaSizer from
Acrobats main menu.

3.        The MediaSizer dialog box now displays:

 

change the media size of a pdf file for example A4 to Letter

4.        Select the media type from the drop-down list of standard
media sizes in the Fixed Media field.

5.        Select the units for the new media from the drop down
list in the Units field.

6.        Select either Preserve Left/Right Margins or Preserve
Top/Bottom Margins
from the Content Scaling field if you want the
contents to be scaled at the same time as the media size is changed.

7.        Now select the required Orientation of the page
(either Portrait or Landscape).

The
width and height measurements become transposed: it is important to understand
that there is no rotational element or information being created or passed into
the document.

8.        Then select the required Page Spread.

9.        Optionally enter a name for your media configuration
into the Name Configuration field and then click Save. This
particular media configuration will then be available for later re-use or for
use with the Mapsofts unique macro buider, Automator, which is available for
purchase from the Mapsoft website: www.mapsoft.com.
This plug-in allows you to use MediaSizer in batch mode across multiple files
and to use MediaSizer in conjunction with other Mapsoft publishing tools such
as ContentScaler.

10.     Click the OK button to change the media size. Alternatively, click Cancel to quit the MediaSizer dialog box without changing the PDF file.

Customised Options

In addition
to changing the media size to a standard size, you can also set customised
media sizes
.

To change the media size to a customised size:

1.  Open the PDF document whose media size you want to change.

2.  Select Plug-Ins > Mapsoft > MediaSizer from Acrobats main
menu.

3.  The MediaSizer dialog box now displays:

mediasizer plugin for Adobe Acrobat to change the size of pages in a pdf file

4.     Select the button in the next to the Named Media field to
display the following dialog box:

create a new customised media size

5.     Type in the name of the new media type into the Named Media field,
for example Custom.

6.     Select the Units of measurement to be used for the width and
height of the new media in the Units drop down list, for example Centimeters.

7.     Type in the width and height measurements for the new media size into the Width and Height fields.

8.     Select the Save button to save the new media type, or Cancel to return to the MediaSizer dialog box without saving this new type.

Do
not confuse this step with saving the entire MediaSizer configuration. Here you
are saving a new media type, not a new configuration.

Previously saved media types can be
removed by clicking the Remove button in this dialog box.

9.     Click the OK button to return to the MediaSizer dialog box. Your
newly defined media type will now be available for selection from the Named
Media
field.

Select the required Orientation,
Content Scaling, Page Range
and Page Spread and save your new
configuration if required.

10.  Finally,
click OK to reduce/increase the media size as desired.

Saving a MediaSizer Configuration

 

 

To save a particular MediaSizer configuration
for later re-use, simply enter a name for it into the Configuration Name field,
then click the Save button. This makes configuration available for
re-use in another session of MediaSizer. It also makes it available for use
with Automator, Mapsofts unique automation tool which allows you to work with
multiple files in batch mode.

Once saved, you can delete any existing MediaSizer
configurations you no longer require simply by selecting the appropriate one
from the drop-down list in the Configuration Name field and then
clicking the Delete button.

MediaSizer Options

The following
options are available in the MediaSizer dialog box:

Fixed Media

The media type. A drop down list of
standard media sizes displays when you click the arrow at the end of this
field. To define your own customized media size, select the button
to the right of this field. See the following section for details on defining
customized media sizes.

Units

The units in which the new media
size is to be measured. To display a list of standard units supported by
MediaSizer click the small arrow next to this field

Height

The height of the new media.

Width

The width of the new media.

Content
Scaling

Controls
any scaling of the contents that is to be performed when the media size is
changed. Choose from three options:
None (the default)
Documents contents are not scaled.
Preserve Left/Right Margins
The documents relative right and left margins are preserved.
Preserve Top/Bottom Margins
The documents relative top and bottom margins are preserved.

Orientation

Controls the orientation of the
selected media size. The orientation can be one of the following:
Portrait 
(the default)
The media dimension is taller than it is wide.
Landscape
The media dimension is wider than it is tall.

Page Range

Specifies
those pages to which you wish the change in media size to apply:
All Pages
Applies the size change to all the pages within the PDF file.
Specified Pages Only
Specifies the range of pages to which the size change is to be applied.
If you select this option, type the actual page range into the box beneathSee below for details.
Current
Applies the size change to the currently open page only.

Page
Spread

Specifies
the page spread, (of pages lying within the specified page range), of those
pages whose media size is to be changed:
Odd and Even Pages (the default).
The size change applies to all pages within the specified range.
Odd pages only
The size change applies to only odd pages within the specified range.
Even pages only
The size change applies to only even pages within the specified range.

Name
Configuration

The
name under which your new configuration is to be saved. Saving a
configuration ensures you can use it again, or you can use it in conjunction
with the Mapsoft Automator plug-in.

 

Specifying Page Ranges

When changing the media
size you can choose those pages to which this change should be applied: the
media size of the whole PDF document can be changed, or just selected pages
within that document. If you want a new media size to apply to only selected
pages choose the Specified Pages Only option from the Page Range field in the MediaSizer dialog box. You can then type the numbers of
the pages you want this media size to be applied to, into the text box at the
foot of this field.

You can apply a media
size to non-contiguous pages, and/or ranges of pages. To apply a media size to
individual non-contiguous pages type the page numbers of the relevant pages,
separating each by a comma. For example to add a graphic to pages 6, 12 and 15
type:

6, 12, 15

Any spaces are ignored,
so you can enter them or not as you prefer.

You can also specify a
range of pages to be changed to the new media size. To do this type the
starting and ending numbers in the range, separated by a hyphen. For example to
apply a new media size to pages 3 through 19 of your document type:

3-19

If you omit the first
number in the range, the first page of the document is assumed. Similarly if
you omit the last number the final page of the document is assumed. Thus if you
were to enter:

3-

the new media size
would be applied to all pages from page 3 onwards.

 

If you
enter:

-28

the media size would be
changed for pages 1 through 28 of your document.

You can specify both
non-contiguous pages and ranges of pages at the same time. For example to change
the media size of pages 3, 8, 9, 10, 14, and 18 type:

3, 8-10, 14,
18

Specified ranges can
overlap if you so wish. For example it is perfectly possible to enter two
overlapping ranges such as:

5-10, 7-12

Once you’ve typed in a
page range definition, if you subsequently click the All Pages button
the page range definition is retained so making it easy to go back to it should
this be required.