Cannot apply pagelayouts to topics

[JenniferR]

Hi all,
I'm converting docs from FrameMaker to Flare. I'm trying to apply a specific page layout to one of the topics and it just isn't taking. I've applied page layouts in the past and everything has gone smoothly, but this time, the topic and the layout are not working together at all. Help!

Once my topics are in Flare, I go to the TOC, open the properties for the topic in question, check "start a new chapter document" and then select my page layout. I click okay. Save the project. And nothing changes in the topic in question.

Anyone know what I might be doing wrong?

Feeling frustrated,

[lacastle]

are you looking at the print medium version of the topic? it won't look different if you're still in online mode.

[Nita Beck]

You don't want to apply page layouts to individual topics. They are used only for print output and are applied to TOC items.

Say you've got a book called "Getting Started" on your TOC, under which are a bunch of TOC pages linked to the topics you want to go in the "Getting Started" chapter.

On your TOC, set the "Getting Started" book's properties so that it begins a new chapter, and tell it what page layout to use. (And if you DON'T want to force a blank left page at the end of that chapter, be sure to disabled the Auto-end on 'left-page' setting.) When Flare builds your print target, it will use the same page layout for everything that appears in that book.

Again, no need to ever (and I don't even think you can) assign a particular page layout to an individual topic (as in .htm file).

A reason you'd not want to assign a page layout to a topic is because a single topic might appear in many different print targets (say, an 8.5x11-inch doc, a 4.75x7.2-inch doc, and so forth). You want the topic to fit in whatever page layout is designated for your target.

Hope this helps.

[JenniferR]

Laura: I am looking at the Print Medium.

Nita: I actually need to apply a different page layout to this item (topic) in the TOC. The docs I'm working with are not all a part of a cohesive book. Some of these items will be a part of a book, while this one topic in question is just a Quick Reference Card that will never be printed with the book.

Originally, I drug everything from one folder in my Content Explorer into this TOC. Perhaps that was my first mistake. If I move that one topic/item into a different TOC and try to apply the page layout to it... nope. That didn't work either.

[NorthEast]

You can't change the page layout if you have applied a Master Page Layout on the project or target.

Check the project properties (Defaults tab) and target properties (General tab), and make sure the Master Page Layout is set to (default).

[JenniferR]

Hi Dave,
Checked for a master page layout... it is set to default.

[JenniferR]

Hi all,
I wanted to post the response I got from tech support.

Make the TOC containing the topic your "Master" TOC. Then, open the Target you are going to use to generate this TOC, set the TOC in the "Master TOC" in the "General" tab for the Target. Generate the output, the correct Pagelayout should be applied. Also, if you open the topic in Flare, it should show the correct pagelayout.

When editing topics in Flare, Flare will show you the Pagelayout that is set in the "Master TOC"

Solved the problem!

[TechnicalDisaster]

Jennifer,
Crazy - we both encountered the same problem, both contacted technical support to fix it, and both had different solutions.

I need to make specific topics print landscape page, so I created a specific "Chapter_Landscape" page layout, started a new chapter document for those topics, and chose my landscape page layout. As long as the Primary Target and Project Properties are using the Default Page layout, this should work.

In my situation, my landscape topics were imported from Frame, just like your project. When you import book files from frame, Flare builds your TOC by pointing the TOC items to Bookmarks inside your content - not the actual topic itself. Right Click on a topic in your TOC > Properties > General Tab.

In the link, I was seeing "\Content\Topic.htm#00023345." Since the TOC was pointed at a bookmark, it would not apply the selected Page Layout. When I removed the "#00023345" (bookmark), the topic displayed and built correctly. Kip from Madcap support logged that as a software bug.