CS3/OSX 10.5 - data merge directly to PDF

g'day there
i'll ask this question anyway despite expecting the answer "no, use CS5".
in InDesign CS3, when using the data merge feature, is there any way to export the merged data directly to PDF like one would in CS4/CS5, as opposed to merging to a new indesign file and making the PDF from there? i use CS3/CS4/CS5 in my workplace and export data merges directly to PDF when using CS4/CS5, but the machine that i am on 90% of the time has CS3 and my workload has an increasing amount of VDP art which is not just in the hundreds of results, but in the tens of thousands.
to me, the obvious answer is of course to swap machines, install CS4/CS5 on my machine, give the artwork to another operator who has CS4/CS5... but for the sake of this post imagine that these solutions could not be used.
in my situation, i'd imagine that this answer would either lie in a scripted solution or a third party plug-in such as XMPie. Maybe the solution lies outside of indesign and with VDP software which may be available on the EFI Fiery RIP maybe?
any ideas, or should i plead my case to management to pony up the cash for an upgrade? I figure whatever answer there is, money will have to change hands at some point.

Tell management they're going to pay one way or the other.
Bob

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In Design Data merge into separate pdf files with variable data name

Hi all, thank you for taking the time to read this.
Here's what I have.
I've created a file in indesign using a 65 page document.
With this document I've set it up to have specific data in certain areas with data merge. I have that part setup and it works fine.
When I go to export PDF it creates one massive pdf document with all the variable data in it. However here is the scenario I would like.
1. Indesign to create a separate pdf file for each record. So in this example it would be 100 different 65 page pdfs since it should have different pdfs for each record and there are 100 records in the csv.
2. The pdf should be named after each variable record. For example record one says name "Joe", record 2 name "Frank". So it should create joe.pdf, frank.pdf etc.
How can I accomplish this?

I don't know if this script works in CS4 or not:
http://indesignsecrets.com/page-exporter-utility-peu-5-script-updated-for-cs3.php

Data merge & creating separate PDF docs

I am using the data merge functionality to create targeted registration announcements for training. For example, a letter that says dear (Name), you are confirmed for (Course Name) on (Date).
Within InDesign it works great, however when it exports to PDF it creates one big document with all of the names, albeit one per page. Is there any way to create a break so that if 5 names are added via data merge, then 5 separate PDF documents are created? It seems that otherwise the only other option is to manually create 1 page at a time which will sort of defeat the purpose.
Thanks,
FG

I don't know if this script works in CS4 or not:
http://indesignsecrets.com/page-exporter-utility-peu-5-script-updated-for-cs3.php

Data merge into a PDF

Can you have a data merge that will allow 1 designed PDF to be automatically updated with names addresses and signatures?
The name and address is a .csv file and the signature is a .jpg
Any help would be great

will this work if the PDF pages are already created?
we are going to be provided about 300 already made PDF pages in which I need to do something like , put JSP or Java tags in a form field that will fill the form field with data that the tag queries for....

Data Merge to Multiple PDF's?

Hi folks:
I'm using Data Merge to assemble the artwork for hundreds of greeting cards. It works wonderfully! The only problem is that the resulting merged document is one long inDesign file, not one file per record, and the printer needs individual PDF's for each card so that he can access them individually on demand.
Any ideas as to how to achieve this easily? I'd really rather not go thru and save each PDF manually, as that kind of defeats the whole Data Merge workflow!
Thanks!
Adam

Open the PDF in Acrobat and use the extract pages command.
Bob

200+ files Data Merge automation to PDF

I have many (200+) inDesign files in the folder that I would want to export to PDFs with the same name as inDesign files but,
these inDesign files has Data Merge text fields that would not export to PDFs and would be empty in the final PDFs.
My question is, is there any chance someone can help me with creating a script that would:
1. open the window to select inDesign files (that has data merge text fields lnked to csv) that needed to be converted
2. has option to autoutomatically update links that has been changed/updated
3. automatically data merge records from linked csv when exporting to PDF files
I would greatly appreciate your help,
Thank you,
Alex

I have many (200+) inDesign files in the folder that I would want to export to PDFs with the same name as inDesign files but,
these inDesign files has Data Merge text fields that would not export to PDFs and would be empty in the final PDFs.
My question is, is there any chance someone can help me with creating a script that would:
1. open the window to select inDesign files (that has data merge text fields lnked to csv) that needed to be converted
2. has option to autoutomatically update links that has been changed/updated
3. automatically data merge records from linked csv when exporting to PDF files
I would greatly appreciate your help,
Thank you,
Alex

Data Merge naming for PDF files

I have an Indesign document with data merge information on it.
I can successfully get it to create either a multipage document or multipage PDF.
I now want to name each PDF page with one of my field names and create single named PDF files from the original multipage PDF.
I am using a mac, but unfortunately know nothing about scripting.
I have searched the forums for a script but can't seem to find what I may need.
Could anyone possibly help please.
Many Thanks.
Message was edited by: prelinmonkey

Hi Pete,
Unfortunately it is not possible to stop these quotes coming out, unless you remove the DataFile object (but if you do that you will also lose the SIZE, REUSE and AUTOEXTEND clauses).
I have logged a bug on this. Thanks for letting us know about this problem.
David

Data Merge: Direct output to PDF

I'm using CS3 Design Premium, Mac Pro, and I have a single page letter that uses variable images and text from a CSV file. I routinely have 4000+ records with about 10 different variables each. Normally, I break it up into about 250 chunks, export to a PDF, and then combine all of the PDF into one file.
Is there a cheap (under $100 or FREE) plug-in, script, or something else that takes the original document and outputs the merged PDF?
Thanks in advance!

I just set up a simple test file with 8000 records of three fields each. 21 records per page.
I didn't use a stopwatch but direct-export to PDF seemed slightly faster than the creation of the merged document.
And since the export of the merged document failed I would say that the direct route to PDF is rather a good feature, don't you know.

Can i use data merge with pdf images in indesign?

Hi need to do a data merge but with pdf's not jpg or tifs. I am having the result with jpgs but not with pdf's.
Can i do it with pdf's?

in fact that is not a problem because i have both pdfs same size and orientated, the only thing is that i cannot use the pdf docs for some reason.
eg. in the csv file i have (this is not working)
Field 1                                      Field2
'@background                          '@page
Machintosh HD:bg1.pdf           Machintosh HD:page1.pdf
eg. in the csv file i have (this works)
Field 1                                      Field2
'@background                          '@page
Machintosh HD:bg1.psd           Machintosh HD:page1.psd
I would like to use the pdf file is there a different way to do so?

CS3 Data Merge - Missing Fileds in Data Merge Dialog Box

Indesign CS3 5.0.1, XP SP2
Hi all,
I have a document that I have applied a Data Merge to.
I use a table in Excel 2003 with contact details, name, address etc...
When I open the Automation> Data Merge Dialog box I no longer see the list off all the fields as in Excel.
However, I can preview and create the mail merged document and place items using tags e.g <<Field 1>>.
When I try to remove the Data Source InDesign always crashes But I can relink to a new Data Source, this does not solve the problem.
Thank-you all for your time and help!
Alu

>>Did you perform the merge? Once you do, ID creates a new document. Which document are you looking at?
I am using the original document, not the product of the mail merge.
>>I assume it's a CSV file. ID can't use and Excel file for data merge.
Correct.
I have tried saving the document as an .inx file and then re-opening, but I still cannot view the .csv data merge fields from the Automation> Data Merge dialog box.
Any Ideas? - thx for the response Bob & K

Indesign CS3 Data Merge "Merge Records" Command. Help?

I'm looking to automate the merging of a mountain of records. I have 587 tab-delimited text files with 40 records each. I want to process these via Data Merge using a single pre-designed template with built-in placeholders and variable data fields, including a variable barcode graphic. In the end, I want to create 704 multi-page, 6-up per page, indesign files with merged data, and 704 multi-page PDFs.
Here's where I am at. Using a combination of AppleScript, TextWrangler and InDesign CS3, I am able to set up a loop where I can open the single template, save it to a new file with a new name, change its data source to the appropriate text file, and as a test, make a PDF of the template using the correct export preset. What I cannot seem to do is get the template to perform a "Create Merged Document...".
In InDesign CS3's AppleScript dictionary there is a command called "Merge Records" under the Data Merge section. It appears to do exactly what I am after. But when I try to use it (and the good Lord knows I have tried numerous permutations), it only returns errors like "Adobe InDesign CS3 got an error: active document doesn't understand the merge records message."
Anyone know what I am doing wrong? I have set up a separate AppleScript for testing purposes that opens up the template, saves it under a new name, and attempts a "merge records" command. Here it is. Maybe someone smart out there can tell me what I am doing wrong.
set templatePath to "Welch_Jobs:0_JOBS:280019_Churchill:WPC FILES:Workup:280019_6up_master template.indt" as text -- the main template file that will be modified, saved with a new name, then merged with its data to create a new merge file
set newTemppath to "Welch_Jobs:0_JOBS:280019_Churchill:WPC FILES:Workup:goody.indd" as text
tell application "Adobe InDesign CS3"
open file templatePath
tell active document
save to newTemppath
merge records
end tell
end tell
I have this feeling that this is a command that is actually unsupported. Google searches have been fruitless except for one poor soul who can't get it to work either. I have, however, seen that a similar JavaScript command exists called "DataMerge.mergeRecords". If it is impossible to do this via AppleScript, is it possible to make a JavaScript that will do it, and access the JavaScript with a "do script" command in the main AppleScript? If so, how would I accomplish this? What whould the JavaScript look like, and where do i need to put it?
I would greatly appreciate any help you, dear reader, can give me on this.

Well, did you look at the dictionary?:
merge recordsv : Merges records and produces an optional overset report.
merge records
data merge
output overset report file alias or
text] : The path to the file in which to store the overset report.
Note also that it's part of the Preferences Suite, not the Datamerge suite. Do you see differently?
Anyhow, you're clearly not calling it with a data merge parameter.
I also have a suspicion that it needs to not be inside a "tell active document" but it probably doesn't matter.
But my AppleScript is rusty.

Dose Indesign CS3's Data Merging List not surpport double byte language?

Please help?
Dose Indesign CS3's Data Merging List not surpport double byte language? But Indesign CS2 works well with Chinese Language!
Thanks
David

I just did a test, in IDCS3 with a mixed English/Traditional Chinese/Simplified Chinese/Korean tab-delimited text file, and after some coaxing, it worked like a charm.
1) I did it with a Unicode-encoded tab-delimited text file. When I went to "Select Data Source," I checked the "import options" box so that I could specify that the text file was Unicode. (What encoding is your data merge source file?)
2) When I hit Preview, I realized that I'd set the generic form letter in a font that had no Korean support, so I had to select an appropriate font with Korean glyphs. (Are you using a font in ID that has Chinese support? I assume so.)
So, yes, Data Merge works with Chinese characters. I didn't test it with csv, but I will if you're stuck using it. If you're starting with an Excel file, it's not hard to get it to spit out a tab-delimited Unicode text file.

ID.CS3: Make Data Merge more useful?

Data merge is a useful function of Indesign but its scriptability is limited. I've searched this forum and found some scripts that run a pre-linked ID document. I'm trying to script the linking of fields with known text strings.
Looking at the dictionary I see that the only thing that has read/write is properties.
My attempt to see what properties I can read/write seems to only point to its own reference.
Is this part of data merge (assignin fields to text strings) just not scriptable? thanx, sam

OK, here is my latest attempt to take what Olav's javascript uses and apply it to Applescript. I'm stuck on applying the myNamePlaceholder as notedby by myNamePlaceholder:
It yields no placeholder. But I believe I've done it right because I've followed the record generated when I manually make a placeholder and get the data merge text placeholders of document 1. What am I missing?
thanx, sam
set myTextFile to ("path:to:working:date.txt") as alias --I'm using a text file that works manually.
tell application "Adobe InDesign CS3"
set {find text preferences's find what, find change text options} to {"[Sample Name]", nothing}
tell document 1
tell data merge properties
select data source data source file myTextFile
set myDataMergeProperties to properties
end tell
set allObj to (find text)
set objCt to count of allObj
repeat with thisObj from 1 to objCt
set NameObj to item thisObj of allObj
set myStory to parent of NameObj
set myFrame to parent text frames of NameObj
set NameObjOffset to item -2 of insertion points of NameObj --of myFrame
set dmFcount to count of every data merge field of data merge 1
repeat with i from 1 to dmFcount
if field name of data merge field i of data merge 1 is "FirstName" then set myNamefield to object reference of data merge field i of data merge 1
end repeat --dmFcount
set myNamePlaceholder to {story offset:NameObjOffset, field:myNamefield}
set {myNamePlaceholder} to end of data merge text placeholders
return properties of data merge text placeholders
--yields {} if I have no placeholders manually made. If I have manually made a placeholder, it yields only the manually made placeholder. What am I missing?
tell myStory
end tell
end repeat -- iterate over each instance of obj
end tell --doc1
end tell --app

Automatization and data merge in CS3

Hi there,
Let me first sketch the problem. As an organization we publish a weekly booklet with a calendar and information about things about to happen, etc. This is all made in InDesign with a header on the first page (only on the first page), followed by the calendar and then a big text field on multiple pages with all the different subjects (and not in different text fields because it's the only way to be able to add an extra topic without having to move all the fields automatically). All the different topics are sent to us by mail, but it's a very time consuming job to sort them all out and some topics are easily forgotten.
So, our goal is to let people add topics on the server, which returns - when the deadline is due - us a txt file with all the information (title, text, author, email, calendar item yes or no, calendar information, ...) needed. We then tried to use Data Merge to do the job, but this messes the pages up (the header we only want on the first page comes on every other page as well), it's not so easy to make the calendar items separately and instead of putting all the topics in order in the big text field it creates a new page for every topic.
Is there an efficient way of doing this job, or are we overlooking some options to make it work with Data Merge? Thanks!

That sounds to be beyond the capabilities of DataMerge. Investigate setting up an XML structure and importing your data
as a tagged XML file.
k

Data Merging Preview Error CS3

I am attempting to merge the names and position of people into nametags through InDesign and Excel.
The excel file seems to work fine.
When I go through the steps to create a data merge I chose to preview the results before clicking ok.
My setting use Multiple records so I wanted to make sure everything was in the right order.
After I set the layout options and previewed I clicked ok and after a few minutes a new document was created with pages of the name tags and filled in information. However instead of using all of the different name and positions as it had shown in the preview it only repeated the same name and position for all 15 pages.
My question is what steps can I take to makes sure all the names are used instead of getting 60 tags with the same name?

I have done that with the same results.
If it is helpful to note, it always chooses the 8th row and repeats that data. If I ask it only to insert specified rows and there are more than 8 it will take the 8th from that number. For example if I want it to insert rows 11-29 it will choose row 18 and repeat.

CS3/OSX 10.5 - data merge directly to PDF

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