Bug: Resize Pages Performs Differently Whether "Up" or "Down"

[PHK]

Let's say you have a set of pages where some of the pages have a greater width than 8.5" and some have a width that is less than 8.5" but you want to resize them all to have a single consistent width of 8.5". One would think it would be desirable to be able to use the Resize Pages tool, selecting a Custom width where you have selected in the width box (the one on the left) set to 8.5 inches and the height box (on the right) empty as below.

image.png

But that is not exactly what happens. Yes, it happens for those pages with widths that are greater than 8.5", but for those that are less it does not resize/rescale the content of the original, It sets the overall page width to 8.5" with blank white space on either side of the original content.

Therefore, if you want those 'smaller' pages to have the same width you must resize them so that they are larger than the desired width and then resize them as above.

I consider this to be a bug. The Resize Pages Custom selection to a specified page width should achieve that page width "up" or "down." Perhaps the easiest workaround is to resize all the pages so that all widths are greater than the target width before carrying out the Resize Pages operation.

I have not tried this on the height Custom selection so I don't know if the same issue is there.

Thoughts?

[TrackerSupp-Daniel]

Hello, PHK

You have the option to "keep aspect ratio" enabled, so it is expected that if the height of the page is not changing, and you are only adding width to it, that some whitespace will be added to the sides of the page. This does not seem to be a bug.

Kind regards,

[PHK]

Hello, PHK

You have the option to "keep aspect ratio" enabled, so it is expected that if the height of the page is not changing, and you are only adding width to it, that some whitespace will be added to the sides of the page. This does not seem to be a bug.

Kind regards,

As might be inferred from the screenshot in my post, KAR is enabled in all my scenarios. Accordingly, I find your post unresponsive and I am not deterred from the "bug" characterization.

[TrackerSupp-Daniel]

Hello, PHK

My apologies for not explaining in greater detail. The height field you show in your screenshot as "blank" cannot be left blank, exiting that field before you click okay will show that it still holds to the previous value (likely 11 inches, as per your example).
As an example to clarify what I was saying before:
If you are taking "larger" pages which are 11x9.5 and "smaller" pages which are 11x7.5

image.png

And have "keep aspect ratio" enabled, than resizing all of them to be 11x8.5 should, and in my tests does, correctly add white space. Both vertical blank space for the larger pages, and add horizontal white space for the smaller pages, is expected here:

image(1).png

If you do not want this white space to appear, you will need to disable the option to keep the aspect ratio, or, you will need to crop unwanted content from the edges of one of the pages before resizing, to ensure that they are already the same aspect ratio as a 8.5 sheet.

Kind regards,

[PHK]

Many thanks for your elaboration and useful examples.

...The height field you show in your screenshot as "blank" cannot be left blank, exiting that field before you click okay will show that it still holds to the previous value (likely 11 inches, as per your example).

(You actually can go right from clearing the secondary box to clicking "OK" but it will default as you say to the previous value.)

As an example to clarify what I was saying before:
If you are taking "larger" pages which are 11x9.5 and "smaller" pages which are 11x7.5
image.png
And have "keep aspect ratio" enabled, than resizing all of them to be 11x8.5 should, and in my tests does, correctly add white space.

This makes clear that KAR really refers to the overall shape of the page regardless of the content on that page. This is understandable but what I would like is that the aspect ratio of the content survives the Resize Pages process as well as having the preferred width/height parameter respected. This page versus content is an important distinction and perhaps this ambiguity could be avoided if it said "keep overall page aspect ratio" rather than just "keep aspect ratio."

So, I am happy to withdraw my characterization of this as a "bug" (not everything that performs in ways other than what I want are "bugs"). Perhaps it is more of a Feature Request to be able to use the Resize Pages tool to resize pages, whilst respecting aspect ratios, but with priority given to the content on the page rather than the overall page.

So, then one may ask what is the solution to the challenge of achieving a standard width before merging a stack of disparate-sized pages? For those pages that are wider than the desired standard, Resize Pages works with specifying the desired width in the Custom option for Page Size although it produces some empty white spaces that easily can be eliminated with the Crop Pages tool. But I don't know how to handle those pages that are 'smaller' in width than desired. Any suggestions would be appreciated. But, even better, it would be nice to have tool functionality that achieved that.

[TrackerSupp-Daniel]

Hello, PHK

I don't think I understand your distinction between the "page" and the "content" aspect ratio... In PDF, All content is coordinate based relative to the page and the pages size, this gives it a direct correlation to the location on the page, and so as you say, respecting the "content" aspect ratio, would translate to respecting the page aspect ratio that it is directly tied to.

In my interpretation, the only situation I can see this resulting in a difference, is if we selectively respect the "position" data of the items on the page, but do not change their "size" data (which defeats the purpose of this being part of the "resize pages" tool). That however, would give results that have the page content moving, separating, like:

• Comments positioned so that the right side of them touches the page, would have some blank space beside them, or would extend beyond the current page bounds.
• Base Content text would be altered to look like it has double line spacing, and that there is a space character added between each letter, or the characters would overlap.

I will ask the dev team to take a look, but I cannot say I am confident that this request will be accepted, if only because I am not confident I understand it well enough to offer an apt summary... My apologies.

Kind regards,

[PHK]

Daniel, your image examples in your earlier post illustrate the distinction between page, or "Paper" in the Resize Page tool context ("Paper"?? what's paper got to do with digital software??) and content when it comes to resizing pages.

If the User changes the size of the page by changing just one of the Custom "Paper" parameters in the Resize Page tool, they will get your example called image(1). So, yes, the aspect ratio of the content is preserved (if so elected) but limited to the more constraining dimension, width or height. Therefore, if as in your example the original dimensions were 8.5x11 and you changed the width to 9.5 the content was not increased at all, having been limited to the 11" height; all the User has done is to create some redundant white space again as your image shows.

What I am trying (ineffectively) to advocate is an ability to have only one dimension paramenter changed in such a way as to alter both the page size and the content on the page whilst preserving the aspect ratio of the content. See my later thread asking for a slightly new feature.

[TrackerSupp-Daniel]

Hello, PHK

I see now, yes, having an option to scale the page based on an increase/decrease of only one dimension could be helpful. Thank you for simplifying it here. I will pass the idea up the chain now that I understand better, and we will see what can be done.
Do note that I cannot promise this will be given a high priority.

Kind regards,

[PHK]

Many thanks!

[TrackerSupp-Daniel]