On the software side, Flipbook ends with preparing the pages and sending them to the printer; the work that turns the cards into a booklet, that is cutting and binding, is left to the person at the booth. The order in which the cards are printed on the pages decides how fast this work goes. This article explains how printing starts, which of the three layout rules suits which cutting method, and how the cards are bound.
- Printing is started by the Print Flipbook button on the sharing screen; if Print automatically is on, it starts by itself.
- Every card has a sequence number on its edge. The numbers are always printed correctly; what changes is where the card lands on the page.
- Choose Print index order according to how you cut: with the right rule, the strip or stack you cut comes out in order by itself.
- Before the event, print one booklet from start to finish, cut it and stack it.
Starting the print
When the pages are ready, the Print Flipbook button appears on the sharing screen. When you press the button, the pages are sent to the printer queue and the button is locked for a few seconds. If Flipbook Output → Print automatically is on, the button is not needed; printing starts as soon as the pages are ready.
- The printer is the one you chose on the Print page; the paper size comes from the Flipbook Output → Print paper field. The two must match each other.
- If Copies per session is 2, the booklet is sent as two separate print jobs.
- The button puts the job in the queue; the paper coming out depends on the printer. If the printer is busy or out of paper, the job waits in the queue.
- You can print a booklet that has already been printed again with the same button. You can also open an old session from the gallery and print the booklet of that session.
Layout rule
The examples below are for a 2 × 2 layout; the digits are the sequence numbers of the cards.
| Rule | First page | How to cut |
|---|---|---|
| Down each column (guillotine strips) | 1 and 3 on top, 2 and 4 below | First cut the paper into vertical strips; each strip is in order from top to bottom |
| Across each row | 1 and 2 on top, 3 and 4 below | First cut the paper into horizontal strips; each strip is in order from left to right |
| Stack the sheets (same cell runs in sequence) | 1 at the top left; 2 at the top left of the second page, 3 at the top left of the third | Put all the pages on top of each other and cut in one go; each stack is in order on its own |
In a new event, Down each column (guillotine strips) is selected.
In the third rule the numbers depend on the number of pages: the same cell gets consecutive numbers across the pages. In a 9-page booklet the top-left cells go from 1 to 9, and the next cells from 10 to 18. So when you change the number of frames or the layout, the arrangement changes completely; look at the preview again after a change.
Whichever rule you choose, the numbers are printed correctly. A wrong rule does not break the booklet; you only have to stack the cards one by one by looking at their numbers after cutting.
2-inch cut
On 6 x 4 or 4 x 6 paper, if 2 inch cut is on and your printer supports it, the printer itself cuts the paper into 2-inch strips. Check in which direction the strips come out in a test print and choose the layout rule accordingly: if the strips come out horizontal, Across each row; if vertical, Down each column (guillotine strips) gives the strips in order. Set the Cards per sheet layout accordingly too, so that the cards match the strip width.
Cutting and binding
- Take the pages in the order they come out of the printer; do not change the order.
- Cut the cards along the black lines between them. If you use a guillotine, first separate into strips and then into cards, according to the rule you chose.
- Stack the cards by sequence number: number 1 on top. If there is a cover, put the cover on top; the cover has no number.
- Align the cards on the left edge where the number is, and staple or clip along this edge. This way the number strip stays in the binding and the image stays exposed.
- Hold the booklet by its right edge and flip the pages quickly.
The thickness of the paper decides how easy it is to flip; with thin paper the cards stick to each other. Try it beforehand with the paper you will use.
Leaving the layout rule as it is without looking at the cutting method: the cards come out mixed up and you have to stack every booklet by looking at the numbers.
Cutting the pages one by one with the rule Stack the sheets (same cell runs in sequence): this rule gives an ordered stack when all pages are cut together.
Pulling Index strip to zero: the cards have no numbers.
Pressing the Print Flipbook button repeatedly: every press is a new print job.
The paper in the printer being different from the Print paper setting: the cards shift and the cutting lines do not match.
