How to make paragraphs line up between columns?

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4 total messages Started by tseguin Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:45

#158

Author: tseguin
Date: Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:45

39 lines
1849 bytes

I want to make a 2 column chapter, with the text in each column in its own flow. But then I want some of the paragraphs to line up between columns.

So, like this:

xxxxxxxxxx yyyyyyyyy
xxxxxxxxxx yyyyyyyyy
xxxxxxxxxx yyyyyyyyy
             yyyyyyyyy
             yyyyyyyyy
xxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx
xxxxxxxxxx

xxxxxxxxxx yyyyyyyyy
xxxxxxxxxx yyyyyyyyy

I'm assuming I can't use side heads to put the first column text in, because the info on the left goes on for multiple paragraphs, and I can't seem to line up a block of paragraphs with the baseline of the appropriate right column text.

I used to do this in tables, like this:

_______________________
xxxxxxxxxx ! yyyyyyyyy
xxxxxxxxxx ! yyyyyyyyy
xxxxxxxxxx ! yyyyyyyyy
           ! yyyyyyyyy
           ! yyyyyyyyy
_______________________
xxxxxxxxxx !
xxxxxxxxxx !
xxxxxxxxxx !
_______________________
xxxxxxxxxx ! yyyyyyyyy
xxxxxxxxxx ! yyyyyyyyy

...where the gridlines between rows and columns would be hidden. However, I sometimes need to print just the right column, which meant I had to remove the table. It's a 600-page document, I was looking for a more elegant solution.

Any suggestions?

I am using FM8.0(266) on Windows XP.

Re: How to make paragraphs line up between columns?

#161

Author: tseguin
Date: Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:02

8 lines
1788 bytes

Arnis,
Thanks for your reply. I hadn't intended to "span" the paragraphs across columns. I simply want the material in the "x" flow to line up with the material in the "y" flow as needed.

My colleagues are using empty lines to manually line up the text in the left column with the text in the right column. The result is sloppy. I've been using table grids to line the two sides up. This makes the baselines line up perfectly, but it is hard to manage when I need to print just the right column.

To understand what I'm trying to do, imagine a training manual: the left column represents the instructor's lecture. The right column represents the material in the student workbook. The lecture needs to line up with the material in the student workbook, although some topics have several pages of lecture lined up against just a few paragraphs of student workbook material, while other topics have the opposite situation. Eventually, I have to print just the student workbook without the instructor's lecture.

I'm open to suggestions about how to go about this: tables, columns, text frames, etc. The only design constraint I have is that there must be two columns with the material side-by-side.

Re: How to make paragraphs line up between columns?

#160

Author: Arnis_Gubins
Date: Thu, 02 Apr 2009 23:49

9 lines
1110 bytes

You're probably going to have to use separate text frames for the
columns on the master pages.

Then where you want the paragraphs to span (which flow are these in?),
you can use the MasterPage mapping tables to automatically pull in a
customized master page that has the columns split with the appropriate
text frame spanning both areas for that segment. There might be some
manual tweaking (i.e. overrides) required to adjust the height of the
spanned text frame.

Re: How to make paragraphs line up between columns?

#173

Author: N_P_Grundtvig_Nielsen
Date: Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:00

3 lines
1098 bytes

It's been so long since the project in question died I don't think I have the source files anywhere, but I seem to remember doing something like this for parallel texts in two languages, using sidebars, sideheads and the sidehead alignment property. Whether this involved two separate flows, I don't remember ... so probably not <g>

I'll have a hunt and see whether I can find any source files to check this vague recollections.

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