PDF Styling – Paligo

To control the look and feel of your PDF outputs, we recommend that you follow the PDF Styling Workflow. This involves creating or editing a PDF layout, which is where you define the style settings for your PDF. You can use the PDF layout to control a wide range of styles for your PDF, including font styles and colors, spacing, and page breaks, all without any programming knowledge.

Paligo comes with a built-in PDF layout that you can use. You can also Create a Layout and edit them to meet your own requirements. To find out about the various PDF styling and customization settings, see PDF Layout Editor Options.

For PDF, all of the styling is done through the layout (there is no CSS involved). When you publish, Paligo uses the underlying XSLT to take your content and transform it into PDF and applies your styling choices in the process.

Note

To make changes beyond what the Layout Editor provides, you will need a customization. Please contact your account manager or support for more information.

PDF Styling Workflow

The steps you should follow to style your PDF output are:

Create your content in Paligo topics and add it to a publication. Some parts of the content can be styled by using attributes, for example, you can set image sizes. But you will apply most of the styling in the PDF layout.
Create a Layout or Edit a Layout.

With PDFs, the majority of the styling settings are set in the PDF layout.
Use the PDF Layout Editor Options to control the style of the various elements in your PDF output, including headings, subheadings, font colors, font sizes, spacing and more.
Publish to PDF using the PDF layout you edited.

PDF Layout Editor Options

The tree of items you can choose to style in the Layout Editor is divided into a number of sections. Each section is described below, with the items you can style and the options available for them.

Note

Many of the items and options are self-explanatory, and have explanations right in the Layout Editor. So only the items that may not be immediately transparent are explained below.

General for PDF

Category	Description
Document	Use to set some of the page preferences for the PDF documents that Paligo will produce when you publish with the layout. For details on the page settings, see PDF Styling. To learn about the number divisible by 4 setting, which is often needed for printing, see Troubleshoot a PDF Booklet.
Languages	Specify if and how you want language names for a multilingual publication to appear. For details, see Set your Multi-Language Preferences (PDF).
Page	Here you can set the number of columns for your output, set some page preferences such as page numbering after the TOC, and also style header and footer rules. For details, see: Enable Multi-Columns (PDF) Numbering for PDFs Style Blank Pages (PDF) Header Rule for PDFs Footer Rule for PDFs
Page margins	Use to set the margins around the edge of each page and the body area of each page. Also set the start indent for body content. For details, see Adjust Page Margins (PDF).
Booklet	You can create multi-fold booklets for your PDF layout (3-fold, 4-fold, etc). For details, see Booklet.
Fonts	Use to set the default font settings for titles and body text. Paligo will use the default fonts unless you specify different font settings elsewhere, for example, if you set different styles for headings in the Section titles section. For details, see Set Default Fonts (PDF). Note It is possible to add additional fonts in your Paligo instance. Contact support and send us: Confirmation that you have proper licensing for the font The font files. Most new added fonts will work out-of-the-box. But if additional customization is needed for it to work, there is a fee for a customization service.
Images	If you set a default width for images, any images that have no specific width set on them in the topic itself will get this width.
	If you use inline images (the inlinemediaobject element), e.g for icons inline with the text, it defaults to fit the image in the normal line height. If you want to change this, you can do so here.
	You set it as a compound value: 0.25pt solid silver, e.g, setting border width, style, and color. You can also set a border radius if you want rounded corners. Either use padding to get it as a frame, or if you want to cut the corners of the image itself, experiment with values and a white color to match the page color. Usually a ratio of 3 gets a good result. Eg., border = 3pt solid white and border-radius = 9pt. You can override the default setting here on individual images by setting the `role` attribute to a value like border: 0.25pt solid silver; border-radius: 3pt; padding: 15pt;. Of course if you just want the border, just use the first part. Each part is delimited by a semicolon. The attribute should be set on the `imagedata` element. Note Note that there is one condition for this to work properly: every image that you set borders on must have a width attribute. Otherwise the border will be as wide as the page, which the image might not be. So if you set borders on images globally in the Layout Editor, you need to set the image "width" attribute on all images.
TOC	Use to control the styling of the table of contents for a publication. There are also options for adding a table of contents for each language and lists of titles, such as lists of figures, tables, and examples (see Enable Automatic TOC and LoT (PDF)). Besides various styling options, you can also decide if a TOC should be generated at all, and if so to which depth of nesting. Tip To exclude some topics from the TOC, give their `section`element a `role` attribute with the value `notintoc`. This is only for PDF. For HTML / HTML5 you can control it with Chunking.
Related Topics Section	Use to style the related topics section that appears if you set your PDF layout to use the Relationship taxonomy feature.
Glossary and index	Use to set up automatic titles and sorting for your glossary and index topics. You can also set the number of columns and the column gap for the index. For details, see Glossary Title and Index Title.
Bookmarks	Options for the use of bookmarks in PDF and down to which level of depth.
Misc	Options for setting: Hyphenation and alignment of the document body Line breaks in URLs Title topics for reused publications Round corners on badge labels Tagged PDFs Linearized PDFs.
Filtering and taxonomies	Options for using taxonomies for filtering. The options available are the same as for HTML5. To learn about taxonomy filtering, see Taxonomy Filters.
Bookmarks	Choose whether to generate PDF bookmarks
Prepress	If you need to set crop marks, bleed, etc, sometimes required for printing purposes, you can set them here.
Draft and Watermark	Use these parameters to set your PDF to drafts, add watermarks, and background images so that readers know they are looking at a draft copy. For more details, see Enable Drafts and Watermarks (PDF). To have your regular styling, create a new layout based on your custom style, and then add these parameters.
PDF Properties	Use to define the metadata for the PDF document, including title, subject, keywords, display title for accessibility, and initial settings for the PDF viewer. For more details, see PDF Document Properties and Metadata.

Admonitions for PDF

Category / Element

Styling parameters

Description

General

Graphics and font settings

Select whether your admonitions (warnings and the like) should use icons or not by setting the graphics option. By default the standard admonition icons in Paligo will be used, but this can be changed to use custom icons.

Customize the appearance of the admonitions, see Admonition Styles for PDF.

Graphical

Various options for styling admonitions with icons, including the possibility to upload your own icons to replace the default ones.

Use the settings in the General category and the Graphical category if you want admonitions with icons.

Which Admonition Parts Can You Style?.

Nongraphical

Various options for admonitions if you don't use icons.

Use the settings in the General category and the Nongraphical category if you want admonitions without icons.

Which Admonition Parts Can You Style?.

Back page

Category/Element	Styling parameters	Description
Back cover recto		Use to style various elements and content boxes on the "recto" side of back covers. For details, see Cover Pages and Front Matter.
Back cover verso		Use to style various elements and content boxes on the "verso" side of back covers. For details, see Cover Pages and Front Matter.

Cross-references for PDF

Category	Description
Enable cross-reference auto-title customization	When enabled, the cross-reference auto-title customizations below can be used. Otherwise legacy cross-reference auto-text is used, or any stylesheet customization you may have. Default: disabled.
Cross-reference auto-title	Determines the format of the generated text for cross-references. See Cross-Reference Styling for options available. Default: 'title page', which produces a format like 'My Topic Title (page x)'.
Cross-reference auto-title for formal elements	Determines the format of the generated text for cross-references for formal elements (like tables, figures, examples). See Cross-Reference Styling for options available. Default: 'default', which produces a format like 'Example 5, "My Title"'.
Cross-reference label/title separator	Punctuation or space separating label (if used) from title in cross-references, when the auto-title parameter above is set. Note For a space, use 's' (without the quotes). Default: ':s', which produces a format like 'Example 5: "My Title"'.

Formal Elements for PDF

The term Formal elements comes from the content model. It basically is an umbrella term for elements like lists, figures, tables, equations, examples. In this section you can make general settings applying to all such elements consistently if desired.

Note that any settings you make on a higher level (General) can be overridden if you set another value on a lower level (like "informalexample")

Most options are self-explanatory and not described here.

Front page

Category	Description
General	Set whether you want a front page generated for your PDF. See Set Paligo to Generate a Cover.
Title block	Positioning and spacing for the title block, including subtitle if used. See Cover Title and Subtitle.
Title	Specific styling for the title. See Cover Title and Subtitle.
Subtitle	Specific styling for the subtitle See Cover Title and Subtitle.
Info elements	Use the Info elements settings to control the styling of the info elements, including the alignment and order. There are various "info elements" that you can add to the publication topic for your publication. These include `pubdate`, `copyright`, and `legalnotice`. See Style the Info Elements.
Logotype	Use to upload a logo for the front cover and set its alignment, margins, height and width. See Logo on Cover.
Product image	Use to upload a foreground image, also known as a product image, on a front cover. See Cover Foreground Images.
Background image	Use to upload a background image for the front cover. See Cover Background.
Languages	Use to control how multiple languages are shown on the front cover. You can choose to: Display all languages (that are being published) Show a language bar on the outside edge Set the text for the language shown on the front cover. See Languages on Cover.
Front cover recto	Use to style various elements and content boxes on the "recto" side of front covers. For details, see Cover Pages and Front Matter.
Front cover verso	Use to style various elements and content boxes on the "verso" side of front covers. For details, see Cover Pages and Front Matter.

Header and footer

Inline Elements (PDF)

The inline elements include: filename, guilabel, guimenus, guibutton, guiicon, glossterm, computeroutput, productname, quote and more.

You can edit the PDF layout to define font family, font weight, font style, font size, font variant, color, border, usage of capitalization and more. For details, see Inline Elements for PDF.

Keep-together options

The keep-together options provide the possibility to control how elements are kept together on the same page or column, by default.

It is available for many of the most common elements, and each one has a dropdown where you select one of three values:

The default values often work very well, and usually you don't have to change these default settings, but if you do these are the options:

no - means the element will not be kept together by default.
yes - means the PDF processor will attempt to keep the element together. But the processor may in certain cases run into cases where it is not appropriate, and will then attempt to select the best keep option. This is usually the best choice if you want to keep a certain element together.
always - means the element will be kept together no matter what. This is the strictest rule, and may be ok, but could also cause some undesired keeps.

Note

Note that you can always override the default values for a particular element in a topic, using the xinfo:keep-together and xinfo:keep-with-next attributes.

Lists

Category/Element	Styling parameters	Description
General	Margin before/after lists.	Default value is used if the value here is "auto". Specify a value such as 15p, or 2em e.g t if you want a specific margin. There are also options for controlling the space after block elements inside lists and procedure steps (see Adjust List Spacing (PDF)).
Unordered Lists	Various options for the bullet formatting.	You can specify what symbol you want for bullets depending on their nesting level.
Ordered Lists	The width of the label (number).	Set this if you want to control how much space there is between the label and the text of the list item.
Procedures	Font and color options	Use these styling options to make your procedures stand out from regular ordered lists.

Section titles

Category/Element	Styling parameters	Description
All sections	Default font size, font weight, section numbering, and color for all titles.	The font size uses a reference notation so that you can set the size relative to the body font size. This can be useful to get a consistency in your styling. Only change the value of the factor number if you want to do this. If you want to hard code the value (for example 15pt) you can do this too. This is also the category to use if you want to set numbering for sections (topics). For instance if you want your section titles to have numbering like 1.2, 1.3.1 and so on. Learn how to Style Titles and Subtitles (PDF)
Level 1	Same parameters as all sections, and all other levels, and in addition background color.	Level 1 titles (topics on the highest level in a project / publication nesting structure) normally represents chapters or the equivalent. In the default style for PDF top-level topic titles ("chapters") get a blue banner background. You can change this color, or just use white to remove the banner. Then change the font color to fit this background.
Level 2, 3, 4, 5, 6	Same settings, but setting it separately for all lower levels.	You can set styling for titles down to level 6. Best practice in technical documentation is to aim for 4 levels, but that can sometimes be hard to accomplish, so up to 6 levels can be styled. Should you have deeper levels than 6, anything deeper than 6 levels will get the same styling as level 6.
Bridgehead	Same common properties as for section titles.	A bridgehead is an "intermediate" title that you can insert in the middle of a topic. Note In most cases, we recommend that you avoid using `bridgehead` for headings. Use nested sections instead and let the natural hierarchy create subheadings. To find out more, see Create Subsections.

Tables for PDF

Category	Sub-category	Description
Tabstyle1 - Tablstyle5	General	Use to set options for up to 5 different table styles. You can assign each table in your content to any 1 of the 5 styles. Tables use Tabstyle1 by default. When you publish, Paligo will apply the styles from the appropriate Tabstyle. See Style Tables (PDF).
	Header	Use to set up the header for a table style. See Style Table Header (PDF)
	Footer	Use to set up the footer for a table style. See Style Table Footer (PDF).
	Footnotes	Use to style footnotes for PDF. See Style Table Footnotes (PDF).

Verbatim (code and software)

Verbatim is a term for different kinds of elements that are to be output exactly as they are typed, i.e preserving white space and line breaks, such as elements for code samples, like programlisting.

Such elements can be particularly tricky in PDF output, because they can take up more space than the page allows. This section allows you to make a number of settings to deal with that problem:

Font-size: Set the default font-size for verbatim elements. You can override this on individual elements by using the role attribute, setting it to a value like font-size:8pt. You can also use the common size designators similar to CSS: small, smaller, etc.
Line-wrap: You can enable line wrapping by default for all verbatim elements. And if you do, you can choose to indicate that the line is really meant to continue from the previous line, as is a common convention when exemplifying code. You can choose which character to use as an indicator for this ("hyphenation character"). Note that your font must support the character you choose. This default setting can also be overriden by using the attribute role, set to a value of either wrap-option:wrap or wrap-option:no-wrap.
Color and border: You can also select whether you want your programlisting to have a background color and/or border.
Graphical rendering of keycap: Use this if you want the keycap elements to render as a keyboard key, like so: AltShiftV.
Syntax highlighting: you can turn syntax highlighting on for code snippets (programlisting, etc), choose a theme and also the default programming language. If you set the language attribute on a particular element, that will override the default setting here.

See this page for some samples of the styles available: Syntax highlighting styles. (Note that the plugin used is not the same as the one used in Paligo, but the styles are the same).
Note
- Note that syntax highlighting for PDF and HTML uses different highlighting mechanisms, so while both offer a number of themes, some similar, the exact look and feel will not be quite identical for each of these outputs.
- If syntax highlighting is enabled, this option will also control the background color of the programlisting. So even if you select a background color for verbatim elements, the syntax highlighting background will override it.
  
  However, if you select a syntax highlighting style with a background color other than white, there will be no padding. So you may still want to apply a background color (the same as the one used by the syntax highlighting), to apply padding.

Set Default Fonts (PDF)

For PDF outputs, you can define the settings for the "base" fonts. These are the fonts that are used by default, unless they are specifically overridden by other font settings.

Note

When you set the default fonts, you can choose the fonts from lists. The lists contain the fonts that are available on your Paligo instance. If you want to use a different font, contact customer support and provide the font files and the license for the font. We will then upload the fonts to your Paligo instance.

To choose your own default fonts:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Fonts in the sidebar.
Set the default fonts for titles:
1. Choose a Default font family for titles from the list.
  
  Your chosen font will be the default for content inside title elements.
2. Set the Fallback font families for titles. Fallback fonts are the fonts Paligo will use if your preferred font is unavailable.
  
  Enter the names of each fallback font in order of preference. Use commas to separate them. Paligo will use the fonts in the order you enter them, for example, if the fallback fonts are:
```
DejaVuSans, ArialUnicodeMS
```
  Paligo will use DejaVuSans as the first fallback font. If that is unavailable, it will use ArialUnicodeMS.
Set the default fonts for the document body text.

Document body text is content that is below the top title element in the main body of a topic.
1. Choose a Default font family for document body.
2. Set the Fallback font families for document body. These are the fallback fonts for content in the body of the document. As before, use commas to separate them and add the font names in order of preference.
3. Set the Default font weight for document body. The weight is the thickness of the font and there are various options to choose from, including thin, medium, bold, extra bold.
4. Set the Default font size for body text. Enter the value only, not the units of measurement. (This field is hard-coded to use points as the measurement).
5. Set the Line height for body text. This is the amount of space between lines in the same content block, such as a paragraph. Enter the value only, not the units of measurement. The spacing is relative to the font size.
Note

The "body text" settings are defaults that will apply unless they are overridden by font settings elsewhere. For example, the Admonitions settings have font options that will take precedence over the "body text" font settings.
Set the default spacing for "normal paragraphs". A "normal paragraph" is a para element that is not inside a complex structure such as a table, a list, or a procedure.

In both cases, enter the value only (for example 1.0). Do not include a unit of measurement as Paligo calculates the spacing in relation to the font size.
- Use Space-before (optimum) for normal paragraphs to define the ideal amount of space you would like above the para element.
- Use Space-after (optimum) for normal paragraphs to define the ideal amount of space you would like below the para element.
Set the default Document font color. This applies to all content in the document, unless it is overwritten by a color setting elsewhere.

Either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, Paligo will produce a PDF that applies your chosen settings.

Booklet

Booklets are documents with multiple pages arranged on sheets of paper that, when folded, present the correct page order. You create the booklet design (such as 2-fold, 3-fold, 4-fold), by setting a grid that decides the number of columns and rows for your PDF output.

A PDF page (numbered 1). It contains 4 scaled-down pages of Paligo content. These scaled-down pages are numbered 2, 3, 4, and 5 and they are shown in a 2 by 2 grid. Page 2 is in row 1, column 1. Page 3 is in row 1, column 2. Page 4 is in row 2 column 1, and page 5 is in row 2, column 2.

Above a customized booklet with 4 pages (2, 3, 4, and 5) on a sheet (1) achieved by using a grid with two columns and two rows.

Generating a booklet is a post-processing step that uses the regular PDF output file as input in the grid cells. All manipulations are performed on PDF level using pdfjam.

The page size (inside the grid cells) is set under General → Documents → Page size in the PDF layout. The print size is automatically adjusted to fit the grid and allow room for spacing. For example if you use a standard 2x1 booklet and each grid cell is set to:

A4 the print size will be A3 (without spacing added)
US Letter (half) the print size will be US Letter (without spacing added)

You should consider the readability when designing the grid and also consider font sizes and other appearance-related settings so that the booklet has an appealing design. Use your PDF-viewer and printer to review the result.

Two different ways of creating a booklet in Paligo:

Standard 2x1 Booklet gives you a fixed layout with two columns and one row on each sheet.
Customize a Booklet offers the possibility to design your own booklet, by defining the number of rows and columns.

Tip

To set up duplex printing needed for "mirroring" the header and footer, see Use Double-Sided Pages (PDF).

Standard 2x1 Booklet

The Standard 2x1 Booklet uses two columns and one row on each sheet. This fixed standard does not allow changes the number of rows and columns. By activating the setting "Make a booklet" the pages are automatically rearranged and rotated by pdfjam as needed to create a booklet with two columns and one row on each page.

This image shows the rotated and rearranged pages in a Standard 2x1 Booklet.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General and choose Booklet from the left menu.
Select Yes to activate the function Make a booklet.
Select Yes to get a thin black line (1) around each grid cell in Combine several pages per sheet: draw a frame (optional).

The frame is often used to verify the size and spacing of the paper printout and turned off for the final PDF.
Define the horizontal space (2) between the grid cells in Combine several pages per sheet: add horizontal space between pages (optional).
Provide an extra margin (3) between the outer edges of the grid and the PDF page in Add extra margins on page (optional).

Note

This can be useful when using print services, as they may require extra space that can be cut off during the printing process.

To the left no optional settings made. To the right: 1 = Frame added, 2 = Horizontal space added, 3 = Extra margin added
Select Save.

Customize a Booklet

To be able to set the grid that defines the number of rows and columns, you need to design your own booklet. When you publish a customized PDF layout, Paligo will create a booklet that uses your grid and spacing settings.

Note

The pages will not be rearranged and rotated by pdfjam.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General and choose Booklet from the left menu.
Enter the number of columns to be used in Combine several pages per sheet: number of columns.
Enter the number of rows to be used in Combine several pages per sheet: number of rows.

This will define the amount of grid cells on a single sided sheet.
Select Yes to get a thin black line (1) around each grid cell in Combine several pages per sheet: draw a frame (optional).

The frame is often used to verify the size and spacing of the paper printout and turned off for the final PDF.
Define the horizontal space between the grid cells in Combine several pages per sheet: add horizontal space between pages (optional).
Define the vertical space between the grid cells in Combine several pages per sheet: add vertical space between pages (optional).

The arrows show horizontal and vertical spacing.
Provide an extra margin between the outer edges of the grid and the PDF page in Add extra margins on page (optional).

Note

This can be useful when using print services, as they may require extra space that can be cut off during the printing process.

The arrows show extra margin.
Select Save.

Troubleshoot a PDF Booklet

Abstract

Use the preview feature to see how Paligo will prepare a document for printing as a PDF booklet. It is a good place to spot mistakes with the page count and divisible number for printing.

When you use the Booklet feature for PDFs, we recommend that you preview your booklet in the PDF layout.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General.
Select Booklet.

To learn about the Booklet settings, see Customize a Booklet.
Select Choose document and then choose the publication you want to preview.

Paligo loads the publication into the preview panel.

The preview shows how Paligo will rotate and organize the pages for printing as a booklet. For example, the preview below shows there will be 4 content pages printed out on 1 piece of paper.

There are two pages printed on each side of the paper:
- Side A has the front cover (recto) and back cover (verso). In the image, these are the top left and top right pages.
- Side B has the front cover (verso) and back cover (recto). In the image, these are the bottom left and bottom right pages.
This single piece of paper can be folded along the center line vertically to create the 4 cover pages.

If your preview looks incorrect, it is likely due to an incorrect value in the Set page count for print to a number divisible by 4 setting (in the General section, Document category. For details, see Set Page Count (PDF) ).

For example, the following preview shows a booklet with an incorrect page count. Here, Paligo is adding a blank page next to the front cover, where the back cover should be. The back cover is positioned incorrectly as it will be on the inside of the booklet, rather than the outside when the page is printed. This is all because the Set page count for print to a number divisible by 4 is incorrect (it is set to document 4 1, but it should be set to document 4 2).

Style Titles and Subtitles (PDF)

It is possible to style the Section titles and Section subtitles for PDF output via the Layout tab. You can edit the PDF layout to define font weight, font style, color, usage of capitalization and numbering.

If you use general settings for all sections, like font and section numbering, these can be overridden by settings made for each section level, for example font size or color.

Note

These instructions show how to style the section titles. It works the same way for section subtitles, except that you choose the Section subtitles category instead of Section titles.

Define Title Alignment (PDF)

Use the Layout editor to set the alignment for Section Title elements in your PDF output.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Section titles and choose title level to be styled from the left menu.
Scroll down to Alignment for the section level to be adjusted.
Choose an alignment option from the menu.

Choose from:
- Start - Left-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- End - Right-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- Center - Align the text centrally.
- Justify - Add space between the words so that the text is spaced out to fit the full width of the content area. The first word and last word of the text will be at the margin boundaries of the content area.
- Inside - Align the text to the "spine". The spine is where the pages would be bound if the document was printed out as a book. If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is right-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is left-aligned.
- Outside - Align the text to the outer edge of the page. This is the opposite edge to the "spine" (see Inside). If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is left-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is right-aligned.
Select Save.

Define Title Font Color (PDF)

The font color for the Section titles can be defined in the Layout editor.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Section titles and choose title level to be styled from the left menu.
Scroll down to Set color for the title level to be updated.
Clear the checkbox Use default color to be able to define a new color.
Enter a color code.
Select Save.

Rotate a Table (PDF)

Paligo has an orient attribute that you can use to rotate tables for PDF outputs. Depending on your requirements, you can rotate a table so that it is shown as Set a Table to Landscape Orientation or Set a Table to Portrait Orientation.

A PDF page showing a table presented in portrait mode. The table header is parallel to the top of the page.

A PDF page with a table set to landscape. The table header is parallel with the left edge of the page so that the table looks as though it has been rotated left minus 90 degrees.

Portrait table (left) and landscape table (right).

Tables are shown as portrait by default (and are always shown as portrait in the editor, even if they are set to be landscape when published). HTML outputs always use portrait orientation as wide tables get a scrollbar to allow users to view all cells in the table.

Set a Table to Landscape Orientation

To set a table to landscape orientation when published to PDF:

Note

The landscape orientation only appears in the published output. In the Paligo editor, the table remains in portrait orientation.

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Position the cursor inside the table.
Select the table element or informaltable element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the orient attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set its value to land.
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF, the table is shown in landscape orientation.

Note

If a landscape table is too large for the PDF page, it can extend beyond the boundary of the page. In this situation, we recommend that you redesign the table so that it contains less information. It may be better to create several smaller tables to contain the data.

Set a Table to Portrait Orientation

To set a table to portrait orientation when published to PDF:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Position the cursor inside the table.
Select the table element or informaltable element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the orient attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set its value to port.

Alternatively, you could remove the orient attribute completely, as Paligo uses portrait orientation by default.
Select Save.

Adjust List Spacing (PDF)

If you have lists in your content and you are publishing to PDF, you can control the list spacing. You can set the list spacing on the PDF layout that you use for publishing, and there are settings for controlling the spacing.

For some types of list spacing, you can have two different sets of spacing, depending on whether the list is "normal" or "compact". To find out more about "normal" and "compact" lists, see Normal Lists and Compact Lists.

Note

To apply spacing to lists for HTML outputs, use CSS.

Normal Lists and Compact Lists

You to have two different classes for styling lists: "normal" and "compact". By default, all lists are "normal". These both come from the Docbook standard that Paligo is based on.

The advantage of having two classes of list is that you can apply different spacing. For example, you can set your "normal" lists to use 1.5em spacing between each list item and have 1em spacing for "compact" lists.

To make a list a "compact" list:

Select the parent element for the list (for example orderedlist) in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the spacing attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set its value to compact.
Select Save.

When you publish, the list will use the spacing styles that are set for "compact" lists. These are used instead of the styles that are specifically for "normal" lists.

Tip

To find out how to set the styles for "compact" lists and "normal" lists, see Normal Lists and Compact Lists.

Spacing Above and Below Lists

Use the PDF layout settings to control the spacing above and below your lists. These settings apply to Normal Lists and Compact Lists.

Image shows a topic with a paragraph followed by a list. There is another paragraph after the list. There are arrows to indicate that this spacing setting applies to the gap above the list and below the list.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Lists in the sidebar.
Choose General in the sidebar.
Use the Margin before list blocks setting to change the amount of space above each list.

Enter a value that is relative to the font size of the text. For example, enter 2 to have a space that is double the font-size.
Use the Margin after list blocks setting to change the amount of space below each list.

Enter a value that is relative to the font size.
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, the spacing settings will be applied to your lists.

Spacing Above and Below List Items

Use the PDF layout settings to control the amount of space above and below each item in a list.

Image shows a paragraph followed by a list. There are arrows shown between each list item to show that this spacing setting controls the gap above and below each list item.

For this type of spacing, there are separate settings for Normal Lists and Compact Lists.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Lists in the sidebar.
Choose General in the sidebar.
To change the space above or below list items in a "normal" list.

Enter a value that is relative to the font size of the text. For example, enter 2 to have a space that is double the font-size.
- Space before list item in normal lists for spacing above the list item
- Space after list item in normal lists for spacing below the list item
To change the space above or below list items in a "compact" list.

Enter a value that is relative to the font size.
- Space before list item in compact lists for spacing above the list item
- Space after list item in compact lists for spacing below the list item
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, the spacing settings will be applied to your lists.

Spacing After Block Elements in Lists

Use the PDF layout settings to control the amount of space that is used after paragraphs and block items inside a list item or step.

For example, let's say you have a procedure and one of the steps contains two paragraphs as well as the step. You can use the "space after" settings to control the amount of space that appears after the second paragraph.

Image shows two steps in a procedure (step 3 and step 4). Step 4 has a line of text for the step and then another two paragraphs inside the step. There is a red box around the inner paragraphs to show that the spacing setting applies to these paragraphs.

Note

You can control the spacing between the list items by using the space before list items and space after list items settings, see Spacing Above and Below List Items.

To control the spacing after the last block element (for example tables, images, admonitions) in a list item:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Lists in the sidebar.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select to Enable in Apply selected space after property for last block child elements in lists.

This setting controls whether a "space after" value is used for spacing paragraphs when they are inside list items.
Use Space-after (optimum) for paragraphs inside list items or procedure steps to set the amount of space. This is the "space after" value and it applies to the space after para elements inside a list item or step.

Enter the amount of space as a value with units (for example, 0.7em).

Note

The "space after" amount is applied in addition to any other spacing you have set for the list items.
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, the spacing settings will be applied to your lists.

Left Margin Spacing for Lists

Use the PDF layout settings to control the amount of indentation on the left of a list.

Image shows a PDF page that has a list. The list is indented from the left margin of the regular body text. There are arrows to indicate that the spacing setting controls the gap for the left margin.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Lists in the sidebar.
Select General in the sidebar.
Use the Left margin for list blocks setting to set the amount of left margin for the list.

Enter the value and the units (for example 2em).
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, the spacing settings will be applied to your lists.

Level Text and Image

The element Sidebar has been specialized in Paligo to serve both as a separate component (called floating sidebar) and as a general-purpose reuse wrapper element, see Create an Informal Topic. Find out more about Supported Elements.

If you divide a sidebar in two columns, it is possible to level text and image for your PDF output. This can be used for step by step instruction, where the numbered steps needs to include an image.

Add a Two Column Sidebar

The default setting for a sidebar is one column with gray background, black frame and the text above the image.

By adding a role attribute that divides the sidebar in two columns, the image and text inside it, will be leveled with one another for PDF output. The role attribute will remove the frame, background color and divide the sidebar in two equally sized columns. There is no option to individually adjust the column width. Therefore it is necessary to adapt the text amount with the image size. If the text amount exceeds the image height, it will flow over to the image column. You need to add one sidebar for each text and image pair.

To the left the default sidebar setting. To the right a two column sidebar.

Note

To make this work in HTML output, you have to assign the sidebar a role, like "sidebar-css" and target that role with your CSS. Make sure to enable the role attribute as "class name" in the layout for the HTML / HTML5 configuration. Learn more about Role Attribute Values.

This example code will give the text 75 % of the sidebar width.

.sidebar-css {
  padding: 6pt;
  width: 75%;
  display: flex;
}

The instruction below shows how to level text and image for PDF output.

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Place the cursor where the sidebar element is to be inserted in the topic.
Press Alt + Enter ⏎ (Windows) or Command ⌘ + Enter ⏎ (Mac) to display the Element Context Menu.
Enter sidebar and select it from the menu.
Add a title (optional), a para and a mediaobject by using the Element Context Menu.
Select the sidebar in the Element Structure Menu below the toolbar.
Select Go to element.
Add the attribute role to the sidebar element.
Enter the value column-count: 2; column-gap: 10pt.

This results in two columns with 10 pt space between them.
Select Save.

Note

You have to publish the topic to be able to see the result.

Use Numbering in Sidebars

To level text and image in a step by step instruction, you can use sidebars with ordered lists for your PDF output. Let each step be represented by a new sidebar, because if you have several steps in the same sidebar, you will only be able to level one image.

Add a Two Column Sidebar for each step.
Select the para inside the first sidebar.
Select Ordered list in the toolbar.
Repeat for all sidebars in the step by step instruction.
Select the orderedlist in the Element Structure Menu for the sidebars representing step 2 and forward.
Add the element attribute Continuation.
Set the value to Continues.

This results in sidebars with a continued numbering.
Select Save.

Note

You have to publish the topic to be able to see the correct numbering.

Flow Text Around an Image

By using sidebars in combination with images, you can get columns that adjust around an image for your PDF output.

To the left a three column page. To the right a one column page.

Three Column Page

This instruction shows how to achieve a three column page where the text adjust around the image for your PDF output. By inserting a sidebar followed by an image and two more sidebars, you get an image next to a column with the following columns positioned below the image.

Tip

You can use sidebar borders when designing the page. After that you can remove the border setting from the role attribute.

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Place the cursor where the sidebar element is to be inserted in the topic.
Press Alt + Enter ⏎ (Windows) or Command ⌘ + Enter ⏎ (Mac) to display the Element Context Menu.
Enter sidebar and select it from the menu.
Add a title (optional), a para and a mediaobject by using the Element Context Menu.
Select the sidebar in the Element Structure Menu below the toolbar.
Select Go to element.
Add the attribute role to the sidebar element.
Enter the value float: start; width: 2in; padding: 2pt; border: thin solid black.

This gives a thin black border with 2 pt space between the sidebar border and text. The border is optional, but the spacing will be used even if the border is removed. Depending on the image size, you might have to adjust the width for both the sidebar and the image. If the image is large, try with 25% or 50%.

If you replace the value:
- Solid with Dotted to get a dotted border.
- Thin with Thick to get a thick border.
- 2pt with 6pt to get more space (padding) between the text and the border. The spacing will be used even if the border is removed.
- Black with Purple to get a purple border. You can replace it with any color.
Fill the sidebar with text.
Insert an image below the sidebar.
Tip

Add the element attribute:
- align to adjust the positioning of the image.
- width to set the image size.
Insert two more sidebars, with the same role as above, after each other and fill them with text.
To make the last sidebar end the page, change the value float: start to float: end

The result is an image next to a column with the following two columns positioned below the image.
Select Save.

Note

You have to publish or preview the topic to be able to see the result.

One Column Page

This instruction shows how to achieve a one column page where the text adjust around the image for your PDF output. By inserting a sidebar followed by an image and a para, you get an image next to a column with the text in the para positioned below the image.

Tip

This can also be done by using a two column sidebar, see Level Text and Image .

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Place the cursor where the sidebar element is to be inserted in the topic.
Press Alt + Enter ⏎ (Windows) or Command ⌘ + Enter ⏎ (Mac) to display the Element Context Menu.
Enter sidebar and select it from the menu.
Add a title (optional), a para and a mediaobject by using the Element Context Menu.
Select the sidebar in the Element Structure Menu below the toolbar.
Select Go to element.
Add the attribute role to the sidebar element.
Enter the value float: end; width: 250pt; padding: 2pt; border: thin solid black.

This gives a thin black border with 2 pt space between the sidebar border and text. The border is optional, but the spacing will be used even if the border is removed. Depending on the image size, you might have to adjust the width for both the sidebar and the image. If the image is large, try with 25% or 50%.

If you replace the value:
- Solid with Dotted to get a dotted border.
- Thin with Thick to get a thick border.
- 2pt with 6pt to get more space (padding) between the text and the border.
- Black with Purple to get a purple border. You can replace it with any color.
Fill the sidebar with text.
Insert an image below the sidebar.
Tip

Add the element attribute:
- align to adjust the positioning of the image.
- width to set the image size.
Press Alt + Enter ⏎ (Windows) or Command ⌘ + Enter ⏎ (Mac) to display the Element Context Menu.
Enter para and select it from the menu.
Fill the para with text.

The result is an image on the left side of the column with the para text below it.
Select Save.

Note

You have to publish or preview the topic to be able to see the result.

The PDF layout has several options for managing tables of contents (TOC) and lists of titles (LOT) for PDF output.

To help your readers find the information they need, you might want to include a table of contents inside a "parent" topic. The reader can then use the table of contents to quickly see what is covered in that section of your PDF and to find the specific section of interest.

To generate automatic TOCs to "parent" topics, use the Generate topic TOC setting in the Layout Editor.

PDF Layout editor. The Generate topic TOC setting, which you can use to enable or disable a table of contents at the start of a "parent" topic.

To find out how to use this setting as well as other features for tables of contents and lists of titles, see Enable Automatic TOC and LoT (PDF).

Enable Automatic TOC and LoT (PDF)

For PDF outputs, you can set Paligo to generate a table of contents (TOC) at the start of publications, topics (that has "children" or subsections) and appendices.

When you publish documents with multiple languages, you can combine the languages, see Publish a Combined Language PDF. This creates a single PDF that includes all of the languages.You can have a separate table of contents for each language.

You also have the option to add a List of Titles (LoT) at the start of a publication or appendix. There are several different types of LoT that you can add:

List of figures
List of tables
List of examples
List of procedures

PDF table of contents showing the table of contents followed by a list of figures, list of tables, list of examples, and list of procedures.

The image shows a TOC with different LoTs shown for one language only and has a link and refrence to the page number.

Note

The lists only include figures, tables, examples, and procedures that have a title element.

To enable automatic TOC and LoT:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select TOC in the sidebar.
Use Generate TOC and list of titles - global setting to control whether Paligo can generate a table of contents:
- Yes - Paligo can generate one or more table of contents and lists of titles.
- No - Paligo cannot generate any table of contents or lists of titles, even if the other settings define terms for those.

Use Generate publication TOC and list of titles to control the table of contents and any lists of titles at the start of the PDF.

Enter any combination of the following terms, separated by commas. Make sure there are no spaces (for example toc,title,figure,table,example,procedure.
Enter nop to exclude TOC and LoT.

Term	Description
toc	Add a table of contents
title	Add a title for the table of contents
figure	Add a list of figures
table	Add a list of tables
example	Add a list of examples
procedure	Add a list of procedures
nop	No table of contents or lists of titles

Define the element terms to include at the start of each language section in Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF.
- Enter any combination of the terms, separated by commas. Make sure there are no spaces (for example toc,title,figure,table,example,procedure. Use any of the terms shown in the earlier step.
- Or enter nop to exclude TOC and LoT from combined language documents.
Note

Only enter terms in this setting if you are publishing a combined language document.

If you are not publishing a combined language document, you may get duplicate tables of contents if there are ToC and LoT settings in both of these fields:
- Generate publication TOC and list of titles
- Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF
Use the Generate appendix TOC and list of titles to control the table of contents and lists of titles at the start of an appendix topic.
- Enter any combination of the terms, separated by commas. Make sure there are no spaces (for example toc,title,figure,table,example,procedure. Use any of the terms shown in the earlier step.
- Enter nop to exclude TOC or LoT from the appendices.
Use the Generate topic TOC to set which topics in the structure that gets a table of contents.

It does not define the depth of the entries included in the table of contents. The depth is set to 3 by default.
- Select TOC level to have a table of contents at the top of any topic that has "child" topics (subsections) that shows the hierarchy of sections in the topic.
- Disable to exclude the tables of contents from topics.
The table of contents inside topics (and any lower-level topics) shows up to three levels of headings.

Level 1 is the most commonly used setting as this adds a table of contents at the top of any topic that has "child" topics (subsections). If you select other levels, such as Levels 1-2, you will also get a table of contents at the top of the topic and a table of contents at the top of the second-level "child" topics, (as long as those "child" topics also have their own "child" topics).
Use the other TOC settings to style of the table of contents.
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, Paligo will generate tables of contents and lists of titles for your PDF, based on your choices.

Tip

If the PDF output produces unexpected results, go to the settings in the layout and check that there are no spaces in the entries, for example, no spaces between toc and title. If there are spaces, the ToC and LoT will not work.

Example 56. Table of contents for publication, no lists of titles, no topic ToCs

Let's say you want a PDF user guide with these characteristics:

One language
Table of contents with the title at the start
No lists of titles
No table of contents inside topics
No table of contents or lists of titles for appendices

For this, you would use these layout settings:

Setting	Value
Generate TOC and lists of titles - global setting	Yes
Generate publication TOC and lists of titles	toc,title
Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF	nop
Generate appendix TOC and lists of titles	nop
Generate topic TOC	Disabled

Example 57. Table of contents for publication, list of titles included

Let's say you want a PDF user guide with these characteristics:

One language
Table of contents with the title at the start of the publication
Lists of titles for figures and tables at the start of the publication
No table of contents inside topics
No table of contents or list of titles for the appendix

For this, you would use these layout settings:

Setting	Value
Generate TOC and lists of titles - global setting	Yes
Generate publication TOC and lists of titles	toc,title,figure,table
Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF	nop
Generate appendix TOC and lists of titles	nop
Generate topic TOC	Disabled

Example 58. Table of contents for publication, list of titles included, ToC and LoT for appendix

Let's say you want a PDF user guide with these characteristics:

One language
Table of contents and list of titles at the start of the publication
Table of contents and list of figures and tables at the start of the appendix
Tables of contents at the top of top-level topics that have subsections

For this, you would use these layout settings:

Setting	Value
Generate TOC and lists of titles - global setting	Yes
Generate publication TOC and lists of titles	toc,title,figure,table,example,procedure
Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF	nop
Generate appendix TOC and lists of titles	toc,title,figure,table
Generate topic TOC	Level 1

Note that for Generate appendix TOC and content lists, we have only included those lists that we want to use. We have left out example and procedure.

Example 59. Separate table of contents and list of titles for each language, combined language PDF

Let's say you want a PDF user guide with these characteristics:

Multiple languages all in one PDF

This is set by choosing to combine languages on the Publish Document dialog when publishing.
Table of contents and list of figures and tables at the start of the publication (combined language)
Separate tables of contents and lists of figures for each different language
Tables of contents inside top-level topics that have subsections
Table of contents and lists of figures and tables for the appendix.

For this, you would use these layout settings:

Setting	Value
Generate TOC and lists of titles - global setting	Yes
Generate publication TOC and lists of titles	toc,title,figure
Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF	toc,title,figure
Generate appendix TOC and lists of titles	toc,title,figure,table
Generate topic TOC	Level 1

Note that Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF is set to toc,title,figure. This tells Paligo to create a table of contents and list of figures at the start of each language in the PDF. There will be separate tables of contents and lists of figures for each language, rather than having them all mixed together at the start of the publication.

Example 60. Publication has no table of contents or list of titles, but the appendix does have them

This is an unlikely example, but we have included it to show you that it is possible to include or exclude any table of contents or list of titles.

Let's say that you wanted a PDF with these characteristics:

One language
No table of contents or list of titles at the start of the publication
No table of contents inside a topic
Table of content and list of figures, tables, and examples for appendices.

For this, you would use these layout settings:

Setting	Value
Generate TOC and lists of titles - global setting	Yes
Generate publication TOC and lists of titles	nop
Generate separate TOCs and lists of titles in a combined language PDF	nop
Generate appendix TOC and lists of titles	toc,title,figure,table,example
Generate topic TOC	Disabled

Note that Generate TOC and lists of titles - global setting is set to Yes and Generate publication TOC and lists of titles is set to nop. This allows Paligo to generate tables of contents and content lists in general, but prevents it from creating a TOC at the start of the publication.

Use Title Abbreviations

Abstract

Use the titleabbrev element to give your topics a shorter, alternative title.

The titleabbrev element is useful if you have long titles, but would prefer a shorter title in the table of contents (PDF), contents bar (HTML5) and for cross-references.

When you publish content with titleabbrev elements, the table of contents (PDF), contents bar (HTML5) and cross-references will use the titleabbrev text as the title, but the main topic will continue to use the topic's title.

Example 61. Alternative title - Title abbreviations

For example, if you have a topic called "Configure the Wifi Connections for your ACME 100". The title is quite long and can make the HTML5 content bar appear cluttered. For a neater look, you can use the titleabbrev element to add the alternative title "Wifi".

Published HTML5 page showing the table of contents has "WiFi" as the title. But in the main topic, the title is the longer title of "Configure the WiFi Connections for your ACME 100".

To add an alternative title to a topic:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Position the cursor between the title element and the first para element.
Press Alt + Enter ⏎ (Windows) or Command ⌘ + Enter ⏎ (Mac) to display the Element Context Menu.
Enter titleabbrev and select it from the menu.
Position the cursor inside the titleabbrev element.
Enter the text for the alternative title.
Select Save.

Set Page Preferences (PDF)

When you publish to PDF, Paligo uses the settings in the PDF layout to determine the page size, orientation, and other page-related properties.

Set Page Size (PDF)

To set the page size for a PDF output:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Document in the sidebar.
Choose the Page Size from the list, for example, US letter.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will create a PDF that uses your chosen page size.

Set Page Orientation (PDF)

By default, Paligo publishes PDFs with a portrait orientation (long edges on left and right, shorter edges on top and bottom), but you can change it to use landscape instead.

Tip

If you only want to rotate individual pages rather than all pages in the PDF, see Rotate a Page (PDF).

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Document in the sidebar.
Set Orientation to:
- Portrait for pages with long edges on the left and right, shorter edges on the top and bottom.
- Landscape for pages with short edges on the left and right, longer edges on the top and bottom.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will produce a PDF that has its pages set to your choice of orientation.

Use Double-Sided Pages (PDF)

If you are going to print your content, consider using the double-sided pages feature. With this feature enabled, Paligo applies a slightly wider margin on the binding edge of the page. It also "mirrors" the headers and footers, for example, if you have set the page number to appear in the left cell, it will alternate between the left cell and right cell on the left and right pages.

Note

If you are using Paligo's PDF booklet feature, the "mirror" applies to the pages that are positioned inside the grid as well as the individual PDF pages.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Document in the sidebar.
Set Double sided to:
- Enabled - To turn on the double-sided feature, giving pages a wider margin and mirrored headers and footers.
- Disabled - To turn off the double-sided feature.
If you have enabled double-sided pages, use the Force blank pages setting to control how page sequences end. Choose either:
- Choose Enabled if you want Paligo to insert blank pages to "pad out" the document so that each "chapter" of your content ends on an even-numbered page.
- Choose Disabled if you want Paligo to end each "chapter" wherever the content ends, irrespective of whether the page is an even number or odd number.
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF using this layout, Paligo applies the double-sided pages and force blank pages settings you have chosen.

Include or Exclude Blank Pages (PDF)

Double-sided documents are typically set up so that each "chapter" ends on an even page, and each new "chapter" starts on an odd page. To make this possible, Paligo may need to insert blank pages at the end of a "chapter". This is because it is unlikely that all of your "chapters" will contain the right amount of content to end on even pages through the natural flow of the document.

By default, Paligo is set to add blank pages if needed. You may prefer to disable this feature if blank pages are not needed, for example, if the PDF is only going to be used online.

To set a PDF to include or exclude blank pages:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Document in the sidebar.
Set Force blank pages to:
- Enabled to get Paligo to add blank pages where necessary.
- Disabled to prevent Paligo from adding blank pages.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo applies your choices.

Set Page Count (PDF)

Abstract

Learn how to manage the page count and set up PDFs for printing services.

Professional print services may require PDFs that have a page count that is divisible by a certain number, usually 4. This is because they print the pages on large sheets, which are then folded, cut, and bound to make the finished book.

For example, if a printer produces 4 pages per sheet, then the front cover, back cover, inside front cover, and inside back cover will all be printed on the same sheet.

To make sure your content has a suitable page count, you can set Paligo to automatically add extra "empty" pages at the end of your document:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Document in the sidebar.
In the Set page count for print to a number divisible by 4 field, enter the word document followed by two values:
- First value Page count divisible by - This is a number that defines what the total page count should be divisible by. It is usually 4, but could be 16 or 32.
- Second value Back cover pages - For the page count, Paligo does not include a back cover or the inside of the back cover. So for the second number, enter either:
  - 0 if your document does not have back cover pages
  - Page count divisible by number minus the Back cover pages number.
    
    Example 62. Page count divisible by 4 with two back covers
    
    If your document needs a page count that is divisible by 4 and it has back cover recto and verso components, enter: document 4 2
    
    This is because 4 is the "page count divisible by" number. You have 2 back cover components (recto and verso), so 4 - 2 = 2.
    
    Example 63. Page count divisible by 16 with two back covers
    
    If your document needs a page count that is divisible by 16 and you have back cover recto and verso components, enter: document 16 14
    
    As the page count has to be divisible by 16 and you have two back cover components, so 16 - 2 = 14.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the page count control you have set.

Tip

You can Troubleshoot a PDF Booklet.

If the page organization looks incorrect in the preview, it is likely that it is because the Set page count for print to a number divisible by 4 setting is incorrect.

Style Blank Pages (PDF)

If you Use Double-Sided Pages (PDF), Paligo can Include or Exclude Blank Pages (PDF). The blank pages are needed to make sure that:

New chapters start on a certain page (usually the right-hand page in a left-to-right document)
A certain page count is reached.

Depending on your requirements, you can set the blank pages to be empty or:

Include or Exclude Header on Blank Pages (PDF) (same header as shown on pages with content)
Include or Exclude Footer on Blank Pages (PDF) (same footer as shown on pages with content)
Add Intentionally Blank Message (PDF). This can be a requirement in some industries, where the user needs to be told that the page is blank by design so that they know it is not missing any information.

Include or Exclude Header on Blank Pages (PDF)

You can choose to include or exclude the header section on the blank pages that appear in your PDF. Traditionally, the header is shown on all pages inside the document and is only excluded from the front and back cover, and sometimes the "front matter" pages.

To include or exclude the header on blank pages:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Page in the sidebar.
Set Headers on blank pages to:
- Yes to include the header on blank pages.
- No to exclude the header on blank pages. The top section of the page will be blank.
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, Paligo will produce a PDF that applies your chosen settings.

Include or Exclude Footer on Blank Pages (PDF)

You can choose to include or exclude the footer section on the blank pages that appear in your PDF. Traditionally, the footer is shown on all pages inside the document and is only excluded from the front and back cover, and sometimes the "front matter" pages.

To include or exclude the footer on blank pages:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Page in the sidebar.
Set Footers on blank pages to:
- Yes to include the footer on blank pages.
- No to exclude the footer on blank pages. The bottom section of the page will be blank.
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, Paligo will produce a PDF that applies your chosen settings.

Add Intentionally Blank Message (PDF)

You can add a message to blank pages to let users know that the page is empty by design. If you enable this feature, Paligo adds the following message to blank pages:

This page is intentionally left blank.

If you publish in multiple languages, Paligo translates the message automatically.

To add or remove the message:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Page in the sidebar.
Set Display 'This page is intentionally left blank' message on blank pages to:
- Yes to include the message
- No to exclude the message.
Select Save.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will create a PDF that uses the settings you have chosen.

Enable Multi-Columns (PDF)

For PDF outputs, you can set your pages to have multiple columns. You can either enable it for all topics or or create multi-columns in individual topics, see Create Multi-Columns in Topic (PDF).

For example, you can use multiple sidebar elements in the same topic to create a page that starts as one column, then has three columns, and then switches back to one column.

A sample Paligo PDF page with a sidebar used to create a 3-column layout.

Important

Only use the sidebar element to create multiple columns in a topic. Do not use it for single-column, full-width content as this structure is unnecessary.

For single-column, full-width content, you can add the elements you need without using a sidebar.

To enable multi-columns for all pages in a PDF:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Page in the sidebar.
Set the number of Columns. You can choose 1, 2, 3, or 4.
Set the Columns gap for the document body.

This is the amount of space between each column. Make sure you include the value and the units of measurement, for example, 12pt.
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, Paligo creates a PDF that uses your chosen column settings for all of the body content.

Tip

To set up multi-columns for a specific page, or sequence of pages, see Create Multi-Columns in Topic (PDF).

Create Multi-Columns in Topic (PDF)

For PDF outputs, you can set your pages to have multiple columns. You can either enable it for all topics (Enable Multi-Columns (PDF)) or create multi-columns in individual topics.

Tip

Also see Flow Text Around an Image and Level Text and Image.

To create a multi-column in individual topics:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Position the cursor where you want the multiple columns to begin.

A valid position for a sidebar is after a paragraph, image, list, table, or admonition (note, warning, caution).
Press Alt + Enter ⏎ (Windows) or Command ⌘ + Enter ⏎ (Mac) to display the Element Context Menu.
Enter sidebar and select it from the menu.

Paligo adds a sidebar to your topic. It has a box around it to show that it is a sidebar rather than the regular topic content.
Position the cursor inside the sidebar box.
Select the sidebar element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the role attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set the value to the number of columns and spacing between them.

In this example, the number of columns to 3 and the column spacing to 10pt.
```
column-count: 3; column-gap: 10pt
```
Note

The Paligo editor does not show the multiple columns. You can see them if you Preview a Topic as PDF or Publish as PDF.
In the sidebar, add the content that you want to appear in the columns.
- You can add many types of content here, but you will need to allow enough space for scaling the content. Text will flow into the columns automatically, but images and tables will scale to fit as best as possible.
- Images scale down proportionally, but at smaller sizes may be less useful to readers.
- Tables scale down too, but can only scale down so far. If the table columns and spacing are too large for the available space, the table will break across the columns.
Note

The content in a topic will flow automatically into the space available in the columns.

The flow of content has to be automatic as this is part of the "content is separate from formatting" idea with XML. If you were able to add a manual column break, it may look correct for one language but could be completely inappropriate when a different language is used.
To add content without columns, place the cursor after the sidebar box. This content will use the full width of the topic.
Select Save.

Enable Drafts and Watermarks (PDF)

Abstract

Learn how to add the word "draft" or a watermark or background image to PDF pages in Paligo.

There are settings in the Layout Editor to add the word draft, a watermark and background images for PDF output.

To enable drafts and watermarks:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Draft and watermark in the sidebar.
Select Yes in Draft mode.

PDFs that you publish using this layout will use the draft and watermark settings. They will also have the word "draft" in the header.

Select No to disable the draft and watermark settings..

Tip

We recommend that you have a "main" layout with all features you need.

Create a separate "draft" layout, based on the "main" layout, for the draft options, see Copy a Layout (Duplicate).
Use the Draft watermark setting to add the word "Draft" as a diagonal water mark across the pages.
- Yes to add the watermark
- No to exclude the watermark
Use the Show Comments to include or exclude comments in the remark element added by Paligo authors (or contributors) in the PDF:
- Yes to include remark element comments.
- No to exlude remark element comments.
Note

It has no effect on the comments that are added for reviews or contributions.
Select Upload to add an image to the background of your PDF pages in Background PDF for all pages.

The image must be saved as a PDF. It will appear in the background on all pages except the cover page.

Tip

Try to use an image that gives good contrast with the text on the page, otherwise the text may become difficult to read.

For example, if you have dark text, then a light-colored image will work best.
Select Upload to add a watermark image to your PDF pages in Watermark PDF for all pages.

The image must be saved as a PDF. The image will appear on all pages.

Tip

This setting works best for images that only show the contours (outline) or are partly transparent. You will need to add the translucent effect in an image editor before saving it as a PDF.
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, Paligo will create a PDF that uses the draft and watermark settings you have applied.

Example 64. Outputs with draft and watermarks

Here are some examples of outputs with draft and watermark settings in place.

PDF cover page. It has the title of the publication. At the top, the word draft appears in the header on the left and right sides of the page.

Draft mode = yes, Draft watermark = no, no background or watermark images

Table of contents page in a PDF. It has a red stop sign behind the text and the word draft written diagonally as a watermark.

Draft mode = yes, Draft watermark = yes, background image = red stop sign, no watermark image

Table of contents page for a PDF. It has draft in the header and "internal use only" shown as outlined letters running diagonally across the page

Draft mode = yes, Draft watermark = no, no background image, watermark image = contour 'internal use only'

Rotate a Page (PDF)

There are two ways to rotate pages for PDF outputs. You can rotate:

All pages in a PDF, see Set Page Orientation (PDF).
A sequence of pages in a PDF for:
1. Regular topics and index topics, a sequence is all of the content nested inside a top-level section element. A top-level topic is a topic that is at the top level of a publication's "table of contents" structure and is not a descendant of another topic.
2. Appendix topics, the sequence is all content nested inside the appendix element.

Important

You can only use the rotate feature with top-level topics. If you set the role attribute to rotate on a lower-level section element, it will have no effect.

In the following image, page 3 of the document is set to portrait orientation (default) and page 4 is landscape. The topic for page 4 has a role attribute on the section element with the value set to rotate.

Two PDF pages side-by-side. The left page is page 3 and it has portrait orientation. The right page is page 4 and it has landscape orientation so that the page can show a wide table.

To rotate the content in a section or appendix in a top-level topic:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Select the the top level element (either the section or the appendix element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.

To the left - For regular topics and index topics, select the section element. To the right - For appendix topics, select the appendix element.
Add the role attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set the value to rotate.

To the left - The role attribute added to a section element. To the right - The role attribute added to an appendix element.
Select Save.

When you publish the topic as part of a publication, Paligo will rotate the page(s) that contain the content of that topic.

Adjust Page Margins (PDF)

Each page for PDFs consists of various margins and regions that you can adjust to meet your requirements.

A page divided into sections. The outer section is for margins. Inside that, there is a section for the content of a page. This section has region before area for the header and a region after area for the footer.

Margin top is the space between the top of the header and the top of the physical page.
Margin left is the space between the left edge of the page and the region start area.
Margin right is the space between the right edge of the page and the region end area.
Margin bottom is the space between the bottom of the physical page and the bottom of the footer.
Region before is the space above the body content. Paligo uses this area for the header.
Region body is the body content.
Region after is an area below the body content. Paligo uses this area for the footer.

Set the page margins and spacing. There are settings for each of the margins and regions. When you define a margin, enter the value and the units of measurement (for example 24mm)

Tip

To learn more about the margins and regions, which use XSL-FO, see w3schools.com. But note that Paligo does not use region-start or region-end.

To change the page margins for a PDF output:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General in the sidebar.
Select Page Margins in the sidebar.
Adjust the page margins for top and bottom:
- Page margin top - Set the space between the top of the physical page and the top of the header ("region before" area).
- Page margin bottom - Set the space between the bottom of the physical page and the bottom of the footer ("region after" area).
Adjust the page margins for outer and inner:
- Page margin outer - Set the margin on the outer edge of the page.
- Page margin inner - Set the margin on the inner edge of the page. This is the binding edge where the pages would be connected to the spine of the book if they were printed as a physical document.
Adjust the body margin for top and bottom:
- Body margin top - Set the distance from the top of the "region body" section to the top of the "region before" section (the header section).
- Body margin bottom - Set the distance from the bottom of the "region body" section to the bottom of the "region after" section (the footer section).
Set an additional left margin for the body content in The start-indent for the body text.

This has the effect of indenting your content from the start of the title, by an amount of your choice.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo applies your choices.

Page Breaks

Note

This section only applies to techniques used for publishing PDF/print output. Page breaks do not apply to other outputs such as HTML or HTML5.

Paligo handles page breaks automatically during the publishing process. It uses a set of default rules for page breaks, which make sure that certain elements are kept together. For example, titles are always kept on the same page as the next element, which is usually the first paragraph in a topic.

But there may be times where you want page breaks to be handled differently, and so you will need to use soft page breaks or hard page breaks.

A soft page break is a break that is only used when the content is too large to fit on a single page. During the publication process, Paligo will automatically determine whether the soft page breaks are needed and will use them appropriately.
A hard page break is a fixed break that is always applied, even if there is enough space on the page for the content.

Tip

We recommend that you use soft page breaks instead of hard page breaks. This is because soft page breaks tend to work better if content is reused or translated, as they are only applied if content flows over a page. Hard page breaks are always in place, so may not be in the correct place if a topic is translated into another language or reused in another publication.

Soft Page Breaks

If you need to take manual control of your page breaks, we recommend that you use "soft" page breaks. These allow you to define how content will flow from one page to the next.

You can add soft page breaks by setting attributes on the element that flows over a page. There are two attributes that you can use:

xinfo:keep-together
xinfo:keep-with-next

xinfo:keep-together

You can use the xinfo:keep-together attribute to control whether an element can split across two pages.

Example 65. Numbered list flowing over a page

Let's say you have a numbered list (orderedlist) on page 4 and it flows on to page 5.

If you set the xinfo:keep-together attribute to yes for the orderedlist element, the list will start on page 5 (if it is too long to fit on page 5, it will flow to page 6).

If you set the xinfo:keep-together attribute to no, the list will start on page 4 and flow to page 5.

xinfo:keep-together set to no for the orderedlist element

xinfo:keep-together set to yes for the orderedlist element

If the list is too large to fit on a single page, it will flow across as many pages as needed. But its starting position depends on whether the orderedlist element's xinfo:keep-together attribute is set to yes or no.

Note

You can apply the xinfo:keep-together to the upper elements in a list, such as the itemizedlist element or the orderedlist element. This applies the keep-together to the list as a whole.

To change the value of the xinfo:keep-together element:

Select the element that you want to control.
Use the Element attributes to choose xinfo:keep-together and set it to yes or no.
- Set the xinfo:keep-together attribute to yes if you want Paligo to start the element on a new page (if the element does not fit on the current page).
- Set the xinfo:keep-together attribute to no to allow the element to break across pages. This is the default setting.

xinfo:keep-with-next

To control whether an element stays with the next element, use the xinfo:keep-with-next attribute.

For example, let's say you have an image followed by another image (the images are mediaobject elements). In the published PDF, the first image is on page 4 and the second image is on page 5, but you want both images to display on the same page. To do this, you set the xinfo:keep-with-next attribute for the first mediaobject element to yes. This tells Paligo to keep the first mediaobject element with the element that follows it.

xinfo:keep-with-next attribute set to no.

xinfo:keep-with-next attribute set to yes.

Note

If you use the xinfo:keep-with-next attribute on a paragraph element, Paligo will keep the last two lines of the paragraph on the same page as the next element. (This is because the default setting for orphans is 2 lines).

To change the value of the xinfo:keep-with-next element:

Select the element that you want to control.

Note

If content consists of several nested elements, you should select the outermost element. For example, an image has mediaobject > imageobject > imagedata and you should apply the attribute setting to the mediaobject element.
Use the Element attributes to choose xinfo:keep-with-next and set it to yes or no.
- Set the xinfo:keep-with-next attribute to yes if you want to display the element on the same page as the next element.
- Set the xinfo:keep-with-next attribute to no if you want Paligo to display the element in a normal flow, with no association with the next element. This is the default setting.

Hard Page Breaks

The hard page break forces the content to appear on a new page, even if there is enough space to allow the next elements to fit on the page. This is a break that always occurs at that specific point in the content.

You achieve a hard page break by adding the xinfo:pagebreak attribute to the topic or subsection that is to appear on a new page. Hard page breaks are only suitable for section elements. You can use them on the root section element of a topic or on any internal section element in a topic.

Paligo recommends that you avoid "hard" page breaks and rely on automatic page breaks or use Soft Page Breaks. The soft page break occurs in relation to the content, not at a fixed position. This is more suitable for translated and reused content.

However, there are situations where you might prefer to use a hard page break. For instance, you might have a topic that should always start on a new page, no matter where it is used.

Example 66. When a hard page break is a bad solution

Imagine you have many products and you have created a publication for each product. There is some information that is common to all products, so you create a topic for the information and reuse it in all publications.

In one publication, you add a hard page break in the topic and it looks fine. But in one of the other publications, the same page break is in an awkward place, resulting in a lot of white space on a page.

With Soft Page Breaks, this can be avoided, as the break occurs in relation to the content, not at a fixed position.

To add hard page break:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Select the section element in the Element Structure Menu.
Select Go to element.
Add the xinfo:pagebreak attribute in the Element Attributes Panel.
Set the value to before. This will add a hard page break before the selected section.

There are other options for the attribute, but "before" is the most commonly used.
Select Save.
Repeat this procedure for every topic that is to have a hard break before it.

Note

The xinfo:pagebreak attribute exists on other elements, but only to allow potential customization.

We do not recommend this, as it is best practice Soft Page Breaks.

Style Tables (PDF)

To style tables for PDF, you can use a combination of:

The table editor in the main topic editor
Attributes that you can set in the main topic editor
The default table settings that you can set in PDF layouts.

Note

Paligo will only use the default settings in the PDF layouts if those settings are not already defined in the main editor. For example, if you set the width in the main editor, Paligo will use that width and ignore the default width settings in the PDF layout.

How Default Table Settings Work

For PDF outputs, Paligo has table settings that you can set in the PDF layout. There are five sets of table settings, named Tabstyle1 to Tabstyle5, so you can apply up to 5 different styles of tables to the same document. For example, you may have some tables that you want to use settings from Tabstyle1 and other tables that you want to use the settings from Tabstyle4.

Note

Paligo uses Tabstyle1 for all tables that do not have a tabstyle set already. So if you have tables in your documents, but have not assigned them a tabstyle, then Tabstyle1 is applied to them.

To leave those tables styled as they are currently, leave the Tabstyle1 settings in place. If you want to add any different table styles, use Tabstyle2 to Tabstyle5 instead.

If you change Tabstyle1, it will affect all tables that do not have a tabstyle set.

PDF layout settings. The tables setting has 5 subsections, labelled Tabstyle1, Tabstyle2, Tabstyle3, Tabstyle4, and Tabstyle5.

Each Tabstyle has 4 categories of settings: General (for styling the table frame and body), Header, Footer, and Footnotes. You can use these to define the default settings for each part of your tables.

PDF Layout. Tables settings have categories for 5 Tabstyles. In each tabstyle, there is a General section, a Header section, a Footer section and a Footnotes section.

Paligo will apply the settings in the layout to any table that:

Is set to use the relevant table style, see Apply a Table Style.
Does not have the equivalent settings and attributes applied in the topic. For example, if you open a topic and use the table editor to set a table width, Paligo will use that width. It will ignore any width that is set in the PDF layout.

The table settings in the topic take priority over those in the PDF layout.

Tip

To learn how to style the table header, body, footer, and footnotes for each tablestyle, see:

Style Table Body (PDF)
Style Table Header (PDF)
Style Table Footer (PDF)
Style Table Footnotes (PDF).

Apply a Table Style

Paligo's PDF layouts allow you to define up to five different table styles. You can then set the tables in your document to use any of the five styles, depending on your requirements. By default, all tables use the styles in Tabstyle1. But you can use the tabstyle attribute to set your tables to use a different style.

For example, you could have a specifications table that uses the styles from Tabstyle1 and then set tables in your instruction topics to use styles from Tabstyle2.

To apply a table style to a specific table:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Position the cursor inside the table
Select the table element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the tablestyle attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set the value to match the name of the table styles you want to use (tabstyle1, tabstyle2, tabstyle3, tabstyle4, or tabstyle5).
Select Save.

Tip

To learn how to style the table header, body, footer, and footnotes for each tablestyle, see:

Style Table Body (PDF)
Style Table Header (PDF)
Style Table Footer (PDF)
Style Table Footnotes (PDF).

When you publish, the table you have edited will use the settings from the table style you set as the attribute value.

Note

Note that some table settings will only apply if the table does not already have that attribute. For example, if your table has a width attribute in a topic, the width setting in the layout editor is ignored.

Style Table Body (PDF)

For PDF outputs, use the PDF layout to set the default styling for tables. There are 5 Tabstyle categories to choose from, and each of those has General settings for styling the table body. (To learn about the different Tabstyle categories, see Apply a Table Style).

Note

The Tabstyle categories also have settings for Headers, Footers, and Footnotes.

Set Default Table Width

For PDF outputs, use the Layout Editor to set the default width of tables. Paligo will use the default width for any tables that do not have a width attribute.

The PDF layout editor has settings for up to 5 table styles, named Tabstyle1 to Tabstyle5. All tables use the settings in Tabstyle1 by default, but you can set each table to use the styles from Tabstyle2 to Tabstyle5 instead.

For example, the following image shows two tables. Table 1 is set to use the styles from Tabstyle1 and that has default width of tables set to 100%. Table 2 is set to use the styles from Tabstyle 2 and that has default width of tables set to 50%.

PDF output showing a topic that contains two tables, labelled Table 1 and Table 2. Table 1 is using the full width of the body area of the page. Table 2 is only using half of the body area.

To set the default table width:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Set The default width of tables.

You can enter:
- Auto - This sets Paligo to adjust the width according to the content in the table.
- A percentage - For example, 70% will size the table at 70% of the body area of the page. 100% sets the table at full width of the body.
Select Save.

Note

The style you have set will only apply to a table that has:

A tabstyle attribute with a value that matches the tabstyle set, for example, tabstyle2
No width attribute. If there is a width attribute and value, Paligo will use that instead of the default table width that is set in a PDF layout.

Set Table Background Color

Use the PDF layout editor to set the background color for tables. Depending on your requirements, you can set the background color for:

The entire background of a table body
The background of each row in tables that use alternating rows.

For example, the following image shows a table that uses alternating rows. It has a blue background for the odd-numbered rows and a gray background for the even-numbered rows.

A table with alternate rows. The odd numbered rows have a blue background and the even numbered rows have a gray background.

To set the background color for tables:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Use the Background color for table body setting to choose the main background color for the table. If a table is set to use alternate table rows, this color is used for the odd numbered rows.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
This step only applies if you have Set Alternate Table Row Shading.

Use the Background color for alternate table body rows setting to choose a background color for the even numbered rows.
Select Save.

When you publish, Paligo will apply the background colors to any tables that are set to use the table style you updated.

Control Height of Empty Table Rows

By default, Paligo will display empty table rows as narrow (less height) rows in PDF outputs, like this:

A table with 6 rows that contain content and 2 that are empty. The empty rows have less height than the rows that contain content.

If you prefer, you can set tables in PDFs to display empty rows at the same height as other rows, like this:

A table with 6 rows that contain content and 2 that are empty. The empty rows are the same height as the rows that contain content.

Note

An empty row is a table row that contains no elements other than the <tr> and <td> that define the table row and cell structure. If a table row contains a para, it is not an empty row, even if the para contains no text.

To control the height of empty table rows:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Set Ensure empty rows have normal height to:
- Enable - For empty rows that are the same height as rows that contain content.
- Disable - For empty rows that are narrower (less height) than rows that contain content.
Select Save.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the empty row height setting to any tables that are set to use the table style you updated.

Set Alternate Table Row Shading

You can set tables to use alternate shading for rows. By default, Paligo will set the odd numbered rows to use a white background and the even numbered rows a gray background, like this:

A table with the default alternate row shading. Odd rows have a white background and even rows have a gray background.

But you can choose your own background colors if you prefer (see Set Table Background Color).

To enable or disable alternate row shading:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Set Alternate table rows to:
- True - To enable alternate table row shading.
- False - To disable alternate table row shading. The table will use the same background color for all of the cells.
Select Save.

When you publish, Paligo will apply the background colors to any tables that are set to use the table style you updated.

Set Table Cell Background Color

If you are publishing to PDF and need individual table cells to have a different background color, you can set them up as "special" cells. You can then style those cells differently, by using one of the three "special cell" background color settings for PDF output.

For example, in the following image, one cell is set to have a yellow background so that it is more prominent.

A table with a gray header and white background. All the cells have a white background apart from one special cell. The background of the special cell is yellow.

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Click inside the table cell that you want to style differently. Dot not click on any content in the cell.
Check that the td element is selected (or th element if you selected a cell in a table header) in the Element Attributes Panel.

It should also be the rightmost entry on the Element Structure Menu
In the Element Attributes Panel, add the style attribute to the td or th element and give it one of these values:
- background-color:bg1
- background-color:bg2
- background-color:bg3
Select Save.
Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Use the Special cell background color settings to choose a background color for "special" cells.

There are three settings, one for each of the values you can enter in the Element Attributes Panel. For example, if you entered background-color:bg2 in step 4, then the settings in Special cell background color 2 will affect that table cell.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter an rgba value in the field
- Select the color box to reveal a color selector to choose a color and set the opacity.
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, any "special" table cells in your content will use the background color you have set.

Note

If the color is not showing, make sure that you have set the style value correctly. Also, check that you have chosen the color in the matching special cell background color setting in the PDF layout.

Set Default Table Alignment

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to define the default alignment for tables. Paligo will apply the default alignment to tables that do not already have the alignment set locally (in the topic).

For example, you can set tables to use centered text by default.

Note

To learn how to set the alignment for columns for individual tables, see Edit a Table.

To set the default alignment for tables:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Set the Default alignment for text in tables.

You can choose from:
- Start
  
  Left-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- End
  
  Right-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- Center
  
  Align the text centrally.
- Justify
  
  Add space between the words so that the text is spaced out to fit the full width of a table cell. The first word and last word of the text will be at the margin boundaries inside the cell.
- Inside
  
  Align the text to the "spine". The spine is where the pages would be bound if the document was printed out as a book. If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is right-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is left-aligned.
- Outside
  
  Align the text to the outer edge of the page. This is the opposite edge to the "spine" (see Inside). If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is left-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is right-aligned.
- From-table-column()
  
  Tells Paligo to use the column alignment that you can set on the table in the main editor (see Edit a Table). This is the default setting. If you have a table that has no column alignment in place, Paligo will use the Start alignment instead.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the default settings you have chosen. The settings only apply to tables that use the tablestyle you updated.

Style Table Text

For publishing to PDF, use the PDF layout to set the size, style, and typeface for the text in tables. The settings in the General category are for styling the main body of the table.

Note

There are also Header, Footer, and Footnotes categories for styling the fonts in those parts of your tables.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Choose the default font settings:
- Default font family for text in tables
  
  Choose the typeface that Paligo will use for tables that use this table style.
- Default font size for text in tables
  
  Set the default typeface size. You can enter:
  - Auto
    
    Table will use same typeface size as body text in the topic.
  - Percentage
    
    Table will use a typeface size that is a percentage of the body text in the topic. For example, 50% would be half the topic text size.
  - Value and units of measurement
    
    Any measurement with the units, for example, 12pt or 1.3em.
- Default font stretch for text in tables.
  
  Use to choose the amount of space each character takes up. You can choose normal for regular lettering or from a range of condensed and stretched options. The condensed options, such as narrower and ultra-condensed make the characters smaller horizontally. The stretched options, such as expanded and ultra-expanded make the characters wider horizontally.
  
  Tip
  
  When changing the font stretch, consider the readability of the information in your table. The stretch features can make it more difficult to read a table, and so should only be used in special circumstances where regular text is inappropriate.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply your changes to any tables that use the tablestyle you selected in step 2.

Set Default Table Border

To set the default outer and inner borders for tables in your PDF outputs, use the settings on the PDF layout. There are settings for controlling which borders are shown and what style and color they use.

For table borders, we use the following terms:

Frame

The frame is the outer edge of the table (top, left, right, and bottom) and also the border around the table header.
Rules

These are the inner lines of the table that form the row, column, and cell borders.

To choose your preferences for the the default frame and rules:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Use Default frame for tables to choose which parts of the frame get a border line. Choose from:
- void - No frame border.
  
  No frame border.
- above - The top edge of the table frame will have a border.
  
  The top edge of the table frame will have a border.
- below - The bottom edge of the table frame will have a border.
  
  The bottom edge of the table frame will have a border.
- hsides - The horizontal sides of the table frame will have a border (top/above and bottom/below).
  
  The horizontal sides of the table frame will have a border (top/above and bottom/below).
- vsides - The vertical sides of the table frame will have a border (left and right edges of the table).
  
  The vertical sides of the table frame will have a border (left and right edges of the table).
- lhs - The left edge of the table frame will have a border.
  
  The left edge of the table frame will have a border.
- rhs - The right edge of the table frame will have a border.
  
  The right edge of the table frame will have a border.
- box - All 4 edges of the table frame will have a border. This does the same as the border option.
  
  All 4 edges of the table frame will have a border. This does the same as the border option.
- border - All 4 edges of the table frame will have a border. This does the same as the box option.
  
  All 4 edges of the table frame will have a border. This does the same as the box option.
Use Default rules for tables to choose which inner lines get a border. Choose from:
- none - No inner borders.
  
  No inner borders.
- groups - There will be a border line between each group. The groups are the table header, the table body and the table footer.
  
  There will be a border line between each group. The groups are the table header, the table body, and the table footer.
- rows - There will be a border line for each row.
  
  There will be a border line for each row.
- cols - There will be a border line for each column.
  
  There will be a border line for each column.
- all - All groups, rows, and columns will have a border.
  
  All groups, rows, and columns will have a border.
Use Table frame and rules width to set the thickness of the border lines. Enter a value and its units of measurement, for example, 3pt.
Use Table frame and rules style to choose set the appearance of the border lines. Choose from:
- none - There is no border.
  
  There is no border.
- hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
  
  There is a border but it cannot be seen.
- dotted - The border is a dotted line.
  
  The border is a dotted line.
- dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
  
  The border is made up of short lines.
- solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
  
  The border is a single line with no breaks.
- double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
  
  The border is two lines with no breaks.
- groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
- ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
- inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
Set the Table frame and rules color.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF using the layout you edited, Paligo will apply the table borders. They will apply to any tables that are set to use the table styles you changed.

Set Table Cell Padding

When you are setting up tables, "padding" is the amount of space between the content area of a cell and the edges of the cell. For example, the following image shows a single cell of a table. The outer black edges are the outer sides of the cell. The white area in the middle of the cell is the content area (where content can go), and the shaded area is the "padding".

A rectangle representing a table cell. In the middle of the rectangle is a smaller white rectangle that represents the content area. The space between the content area and the edges of the cell is shaded blue and represents the padding.

In this image the light blue area represents the padding. The outer edges are the sides of the cell and the inner rectangle is the content area.

For PDF outputs, you can set the default amount of padding in the PDF layout.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Use the following settings to set the amount of padding for each side of a table cell. For each setting, enter the amount of space as a value followed by the units of measurement, for example, 2pt.
- padding-start of table cells
  
  Use to set the amount of space between the left-side of the content and the left edge of all table cells.
- padding-end of table cells
  
  Use to set the amount of space between the right-side of the content and the right edge of all table cells.
- padding-top of table cells
  
  Use to set the amount of space between the content and the top edge all table cells.
- padding-bottom of table cells
  
  Use to set the amount of space between the content and the bottom edge of all table cells.
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF using the layout you edited, Paligo will apply the rule and frame settings. They will only affect tables that use the tabstyle you updated.

Set Table Cell Paragraph Spacing

If you are publishing to PDF, you can control the amount of spacing between the paragraphs in a cell.

A table in a PDF output. One of the cells has two paragraphs and there is a large amount of space between the paragraphs. A double-headed callout arrow highlights the space between the paragraphs.

For each of the Tabstyle groups of settings (Tabstyle 1-5), you can set two different paragraph spacing values:

Paragraph spacing in normal tables

This spacing applies to all tables except those that are set to be "compact" tables.
Paragraph spacing in compact tables

This spacing only applies to tables that are set to be "compact" tables, see Set Up a Compact Table.

So for each table style, you can have two different paragraph spacing rules (normal and compact).

To set the paragraph spacing for normal and compact tables, edit a PDF layout:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Set the Paragraph spacing in normal tables.

Enter a value and the units of measurement. For example, you could use em, point, or centimeter measurements such as 1em, 15pt, 0.5cm.

The default value is 1em.
Set the Paragraph spacing in compact tables.

Again, enter a value and the units of measurement. This setting will only apply to cells in tables where the table element has the tabstyle attribute with a value of: compact.

The default is 0.1em.
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF with this layout, Paligo will apply the paragraph spacing to your normal tables and compact tables (if you have any).

Set Up a Compact Table

To set a table to use the 'compact' paragraph spacing instead of the normal paragraph spacing:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Click inside the table.
Select the table element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the tabstyle attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set its value to compact.

Note

If the table already has a tabstyle and value, add a semi-colon after the existing value and then add the compact value.

For example, if a table has tabstyle with tabstyle2 as a value already, set the value to: tabstyle2; compact.
Select Save.
Edit a PDF layout and apply the paragraph spacing for the table, see Set Table Cell Paragraph Spacing.

When you publish to PDF using the layout you edited, Paligo will apply the paragraph spacing to your compact table.

Set Table Rules

You can set Paligo to show the table lines by default for PDF outputs. Each table can have lines for:

Rules - These are the horizontal lines for rows and the vertical lines for columns.
Frame - The frame is the outer sides of the table.

To control which lines are shown, use the table frame and rules settings in the PDF layout:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Use the Default rules for tables option to choose which rule lines will be shown on tables by default.
- All - To include all of the rule lines for cells and the outer frame of the table.
- None - To exclude all of the rule lines for cells and the outer frame of the table.
- Groups - To include rule lines for each group. The groups are: the table header, the table body, and the table footer.
- Rows - To add a horizontal rule for each row.
- Cols - To add a vertical rule for each column.
Set the Table frame and rules width.

Enter the line thickness as a value and units of measurement, for example, 1pt, or 1.5em.
Choose the Table frame and rules style:
- none - There is no border.
- hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
- dotted - The border is a dotted line.
- dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
- solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
- double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
- groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
- ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
- inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
Set the Table frame and rules color.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF using the layout you edited, Paligo will apply the rule and frame settings. They will only affect tables that use the tabstyle you updated.

Control Table Hyphenation

To control the hyphenation in tables for PDF outputs, use the Allow hyphenation in tables setting in the PDF layout.

When hyphenation is enabled, Paligo will automatically hyphenate words that cannot fit on a line in a table cell.

A table with hyphenation allowed. There is a paragraph in a cell and where a word cannot fit on the line, it is hyphenated.

When it is disabled, Paligo will move the word to the next line.

A table with hyphenation not allowed. There is a paragraph in a cell and where a word cannot fit on the line, the word is moved to the next line.

To set the default hyphenation rules for tables in PDFs:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Use the Allow hyphenation in tables setting to set your preference:
- True
  
  Paligo will use hyphenation when a word cannot fit on a line in a table cell.
- False
  
  If a word in a table cell cannot fit on a line, Paligo will move it to the next line. It will not use hyphenation.
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF using the layout you edited, Paligo will apply the hyphenation rules. They will apply to any tables that are set to use the table settings you changed.

Reset Table Sorting on Publish

If you use the Sort feature when you edit your tables, Paligo reorders the table so that it is in ascending or descending alphabetical order. By default, when you publish to PDF, Paligo applies the sort order again as part of the processing. This is useful when:

You publish to multiple languages (and so the order may be different in some languages)
You have added content to a table in an update and forgotten to reapply the sort order.

You can use the PDF layout to control whether Paligo reapplies the sort order when you publish:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select General.
Use the Re-sort sorted tables automatically on publish setting to set your preference:
- Enable - Paligo will re-sort the tables each time you publish with this PDF layout. It will also re-sort for each language that you publish.
- Disable - Paligo will publish to PDF without re-sorting. It will use the order that is set for the table in the main editor (even if that order is now incorrect). It will not re-sort for each language.
Select Save.

Your re-sort preference will apply whenever you publish to PDF with this layout. It will only affect tables that are set to use the table style you updated and that also have sort orders applied to them in the main editor.

Style Table Header (PDF)

The PDF layout has settings for styling the table header for PDFs. You can use it to change various properties of the header, including the background color, alignment, and text color.

For example, the following image shows a table with a header that has been set to have a blue background, white text, with a different font and font size to the rest of the table.

Table for PDF output. Its header has a blue background with white text. The text is larger than the text in the rest of the table and is in a different typeface.

Note

As with the table body, table footer, and table footnotes settings, there are 5 Tabstyle categories to choose from. Each of those has its own header settings. To learn about the different Tabstyle categories, see Apply a Table Style

Set Table Header Background Color

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to set the default background color for table headers. For example, in the following image, the table header has been set to have a blue background.

To set the default background color for table headers:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Header.
Set the Background color for table header rows. This is the "fill" color of the header row.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the header styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Style Table Header Text

For PDF outputs, you can use a PDF layout to set the default style of text in table headers. The PDF layout has settings for controlling the typeface, color, and size of the text. For example, the following image shows header text that is set to use a serif font, and the text is white and larger than the text in the rest of the table.

To set the default style for text in table headers:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Header.
Set the Font color for table header rows. This is the color of the text in the header row.
Either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Set the Default font family for text in table header. This is the typeface for the text in the header and you can choose any of the available fonts from the list.
Set the Default font size for text in table header. You can enter:
- Auto
  
  The table header will use same typeface size as body text in the topic.
- Percentage
  
  The table header will use a typeface size that is a percentage of the body text in the topic. For example, 50% would be half the topic text size.
- Value and units of measurement
  
  Any measurement with the units, for example, 12pt or 1.3em.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the header styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Note

To control the position of the text in the header, see Set Table Header Alignment.

To control what happens if a word cannot fit on a line in the header, see Control Table Header Hyphenation.

Set Table Header Alignment

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to set the default alignment for text in table headers. For example, in the following image, the table header text is set to be aligned to the center.

To set the alignment for table headers:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Header.
Set the Default alignment for text in table header.

You can choose from:
- Start
  
  Left-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- End
  
  Right-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- Center
  
  Align the text centrally.
- Justify
  
  Add space between the words so that the text is spaced out to fit the full width of a table cell. The first word and last word of the text will be at the margin boundaries inside the cell.
- Inside
  
  Align the text to the "spine". The spine is where the pages would be bound if the document was printed out as a book. If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is right-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is left-aligned.
- Outside
  
  Align the text to the outer edge of the page. This is the opposite edge to the "spine" (see Inside). If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is left-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is right-aligned.
- From-table-column()
  
  Tells Paligo to use the column alignment that you can set on the table in the main editor (see Edit a Table). This is the default setting. If you have a table that has no column alignment in place, Paligo will use the Start alignment instead.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the header styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Control Table Header Hyphenation

To control the hyphenation in table headers for PDF outputs, use the Allow hyphenation in table header setting in the PDF layout.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Header.
Use Allow hyphenation in table headers to control whether words are hyphenated when they cannot fit on a line. Choose either:
- True
  
  Paligo will use hyphenation when a word cannot fit on a line in the table header.
- False
  
  If a word in a table header cannot fit on a line, Paligo will move it to the next line. It will not use hyphenation.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the header styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Style Table Footer (PDF)

The PDF layout has settings for styling the table footer for PDFs. You can use it to change various properties of the footer, including the background color, alignment, and text color.

For example, the following image shows a table with a footer that has been set to have a blue background, white text, and right-aligned text.

Table with styled footer. The footer has a blue background and the text is shown in white. It has a different font to the text in the body of the table and is a different size. It is also aligned to the right.

Note

As with the table body, table header, and table footnotes settings, there are 5 Tabstyle categories to choose from. Each of those has its own footer settings. To learn about the different Tabstyle categories, see Apply a Table Style

Set Table Footer Background Color

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to set the default background color for table footers. For example, in the following image, the table footer has been set to have a blue background.

To set the default background color for table footers:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Footer.
Set the Background color for table footer rows. This is the "fill" color of the footer row.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the footer styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you selected in step 2.

Style Table Footer Text

For PDF outputs, you can use a PDF layout to set the default style of text in table footers. The PDF layout has settings for controlling the typeface, color, and size of the text. For example, the following image shows footer text that is set to use a different font, and the text is white and smaller than the text in the rest of the table.

To set the default style for text in table footers:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Footer.
Set the Font color for table footer rows. This is the color of the text in the footer row.
Either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Set the Default font family for text in table footer. This is the typeface for the text in the footer and you can choose any of the available fonts from the list.
Set the Default font size for text in table footer. You can enter:
- Auto
  
  The table footer will use same typeface size as body text in the topic.
- Percentage
  
  The table footer will use a typeface size that is a percentage of the body text in the topic. For example, 50% would be half the topic text size.
- Value and units of measurement
  
  Any measurement with the units, for example, 12pt or 1.3em.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the footer styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you selected in step 2.

Note

To control the position of the text in the footer, see Set Table Footer Alignment.

To control what happens if a word cannot fit on a line in the footer, see Control Table Footer Hyphenation.

Set Table Footer Alignment

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to set the default alignment for text in table footers. For example, in the following image, the table footer text is set to be aligned to the right.

To set the alignment for table footers:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Footer.
Set the Default alignment for text in table footer.

You can choose from:
- Start
  
  Left-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- End
  
  Right-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- Center
  
  Align the text centrally.
- Justify
  
  Add space between the words so that the text is spaced out to fit the full width of a table cell. The first word and last word of the text will be at the margin boundaries inside the cell.
- Inside
  
  Align the text to the "spine". The spine is where the pages would be bound if the document was printed out as a book. If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is right-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is left-aligned.
- Outside
  
  Align the text to the outer edge of the page. This is the opposite edge to the "spine" (see Inside). If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is left-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is right-aligned.
- From-table-column()
  
  Tells Paligo to use the column alignment that you can set on the table in the main editor (see Edit a Table). This is the default setting. If you have a table that has no column alignment in place, Paligo will use the Start alignment instead.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the footer styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you selected in step 2.

Control Table Footer Hyphenation

To control the hyphenation in table footers for PDF outputs, use the Allow hyphenation in table footer setting in the PDF layout.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Footer.
Use Allow hyphenation in table footers to control whether words are hyphenated when they cannot fit on a line. Choose either:
- True
  
  Paligo will use hyphenation when a word cannot fit on a line in the table footer.
- False
  
  If a word in a table footer cannot fit on a line, Paligo will move it to the next line. It will not use hyphenation.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the header styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Style Table Footnotes (PDF)

The PDF layout has settings for styling footnotes in tables. The footnotes appear as a label in the table cell, with the footnote text listed below the table.

Note

As with the table body, table header, and table footer settings, there are 5 Tabstyle categories to choose from. Each of those has its own footnotes settings. To learn about the different Tabstyle categories, see Apply a Table Style

Tip

To learn how to add footnotes, see Footnotes.

Set Table Footnote Format

If a table cell contains a footnote, Paligo will add a footnote label, such as a number, to the cell. It will also add the full text of the footnote in a list after the table. For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to set the default style of the label.

A table with footnotes. The footnote label is shown as a small number next to the content in the table cell. There is a zoomed-in close-up of content with a footnote label for illustration purposes.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Footnotes.
Set the Number format for table footnotes. This defines the appearance of the footnote label that appears inside the table.

Choose from:
- a
  
  For a lower case letter, used in alphabetical order.
- A
  
  For an upper case letter, used in alphabetical order.
- 1
  
  For a number, with no 0 prefix for numbers below 10.
- 01
  
  For a number, with a 0 prefix for numbers below 10.
- i
  
  For lower case roman numerals, for example, iii
- I
  
  For upper case roman numerals, for example, III
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the footnote styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Style Table Footnote Text

For PDF outputs, use the PDF layout to define the style, size, and color of the text for footnotes. For example, in the following image, the text has been styled so that it is blue, has a thin weight, and has a back slant.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Footnotes.
Set the Font family for table footnotes. This is the typeface for the text in the footnotes below the table. You can choose any of the available fonts from the list.
Set the Font size for table footnotes. You can enter:
- Percentage
  
  The table footer will use a typeface size that is a percentage of the body text in the topic. For example, 50% would be half the topic text size.
- Value and units of measurement
  
  Any measurement with the units, for example, 12pt or 1.3em.
Or leave the field blank to reset to the default sizing.
Set the Font weight for table footnotes. The font weight defines the thickness of the characters, and there are options ranging from Thin (for the narrowest lines) to Extra bold and Black for the thickest lines.
Set the Font style for table footnotes. You can choose from:
- Normal
  
  Regular text, no slant.
- Italic
  
  Forward leaning text.
- Backslant
  
  Backwards-leaning text.
Set the Color for table footnotes. This is the color of the footnote text below the table.
Either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the footnote styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Set Table Footnote Spacing

When publishing to PDF, you can use a PDF layout to control the amount of spacing above each footnote under a table.

A table with footnotes listed underneath. There is a large space above each footnote and callout arrows highlight the space.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Tables in the sidebar.
Select the Table style that you want to change in the sidebar.

There are 5 table styles that you can use. By default, tables will use the Tabstyle1 settings, but you can set them up to use any of the other four settings instead, see Apply a Table Style.
Select Footnotes.
Set the Space-before for table footnotes. This is an amount of space that Paligo will add above each footnote that appears after the table. Enter a value and a unit of measurement, for example, 3pt or 1.5em.
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the footnote styles to any tables that are set to use the tabstyle you updated.

Set your Multi-Language Preferences (PDF)

If you are going to publish content in multiple languages to PDF, you can use the PDF layout to:

Set the Title to Appear in One Language (PDF)
Set the Subtitle to Appear in One Language (PDF)
Set the Order of Languages in PDF
Set Up a Language Sidebar (PDF)
Include or Exclude Missing Translations (PDF)
Color Mark Unapproved Translations for PDF.

We also explain what it means if you have:

Blue Text in PDF Output
Red Highlighted Text in PDF Output.

Set the Title to Appear in One Language (PDF)

By default, when you publish a combined-language PDF, the front cover includes the title in each language. For example, if you publish a single PDF to include English, German, and French, the title will be shown on the front cover in all three languages. If you prefer, you can set Paligo to include the title only once, in the first language included in the PDF.

To set the title to appear on the front cover once, in the first language of the document:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > Languages.
Set the Display single language title on the front cover in combined language PDF to:
- Enabled
  
  Sets the PDF to have one title on the front cover. It will be in the first language for the document.
- Disabled
  
  Sets the PDF to have multiple titles on the front cover (one for each language).
Tip

You can control the order of the languages in a PDF, see Set the Order of Languages in PDF.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish a multi-language document using this layout, the resulting PDF will use the title settings you have chosen.

Note

You can also Set the Subtitle to Appear in One Language (PDF).

Set the Subtitle to Appear in One Language (PDF)

By default, when you publish a combined-language PDF, the front cover includes the subtitle in each language. For example, if you publish a single PDF to include English, German, and French, the subtitle will be shown on the front cover in all three languages. If you prefer, you can set Paligo to include the subtitle only once, in the first language included in the PDF.

To set the subtitle to appear on the front cover once, in the first language of the document:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > Languages.
Set the Display single language subtitle on the front cover in combined language PDF to:
- Enabled
  
  Sets the PDF to have one subtitle on the front cover. It will be in the first language for the document.
- Disabled
  
  Sets the PDF to have multiple subtitles on the front cover (one for each language).
Tip

You can control the order of the languages in a PDF, see Set the Order of Languages in PDF.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish a multi-language document using this layout, the resulting PDF will use the subtitle settings you have chosen.

Note

You can also Set the Title to Appear in One Language (PDF).

Set the Order of Languages in PDF

Use the PDF layout's Language order setting to control the order of languages in a PDF output. The language order applies to:

The order of the languages in a multi-language PDF
The order of the named languages and translated elements such as subtitles on the front cover.

To set the language order:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > Languages.
Define the Language order. Enter the ISO code letters for each language and use spaces to separate the languages. For example, de en es fr will result in German first, English second, Spanish third, and French fourth.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish a combined language output with this layout, the resulting PDF will have the languages in the order you specified.

Set Up a Language Sidebar (PDF)

If you are going to publish a combined language PDF, it can be a good idea to set up a language sidebar. The sidebar is a block that appears at the side edge of the page and it shows the name of the language used in that part of the PDF. For example, let's say you have a combined language PDF for English, German, French, and Italian. When you publish, the English pages will have a tab marked "English", the German pages will have a tab marked "Deutsch" and so on. The main benefit of language sidebars is that they make it easier for users to find the section of the document that is in their language.

Note

The sidebar is also referred to as the language tab.

To set up a language sidebar:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > Languages.
Use the Display language name on sidebar setting to add or remove a language sidebar.
- Select Enabled to add a language sidebar.
- Select Disabled to remove a language sidebar.
Note

For double-sided PDFs, you also need to add the language sidebar to the reverse side of the pages, see step 4.
Use the Display language name on sidebar on verso (left) pages setting to add a language sidebar to the reverse side of pages (left side). This applies for double-sided PDFs.
- Select Enabled to add a language sidebar.
- Select Disabled to remove a language sidebar.
Set the Letter case for language names. You can choose from:
- Upper case
  
  The language name is shown in capital letters in the language sidebar, for example, DEUTSCH.
- Lower case
  
  The language name is shown in lower case letters in the language sidebar, for example, deutsch.
- Capitalize first letter
  
  The first letter of the language name is shown in capital letters and the other letters are shown in lower case, for example, Deutsch.
Use the Distance from the top of the topmost language tab to the top of the page setting to control the vertical position of the sidebar. Enter the amount in inches and do not include the units of measurement, for example, 1.85.
Set the Height of a language tab amount to define the vertical size of the language sidebar. Enter the amount in inches and do not include the units of measurement.
Set the Gap between language tabs amount in inches to stagger the position of the language sidebar for each language.

For example, let's say you have a document that contains German, English, Spanish, and French. You set the gap to 1 inch. In the output, the German section has a German sidebar and it appears near the top. In the English section, there is an English language sidebar and it appears 1 inch lower than the German language sidebar. Similarly, the Spanish sidebar appears 1 inch lower than the English sidebar, and the French sidebar is 1 inch lower than the Spanish sidebar. In a printed version of the content, this "cascading" effect makes it easier for users to find the language they need.
Use the Width of a language tab setting to define the horizontal size of the language tabs. Enter an amount in inches, for example, 0.45. Do not enter the units of measurement.
Use the Rounded corners for language tabs: radius setting to control the inner corners of the language sidebar. By default, the inner corners are straight-edged but you can set them to be rounded instead.

To use rounded corners, enter an amount and include the units of measurement, for example, 10pt.

To disable rounded corners, clear the field so that it uses the default of 0pt.
Use the Background color for language tabs setting to set the background color. The default is black. To choose a different color, clear the Use default color checkbox. You can then either enter an rgba value in the field or select the color block to display a color selector and use that to choose the color.

Tip

The text that is shown in the language sidebar is white, so choose a darker background color so that there is a suitable amount of contrast.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish multi-language content with this PDF layout, the resulting PDF will use the language sidebar settings you have chosen.

Include or Exclude Missing Translations (PDF)

By default, if you publish a document to PDF and that document has missing translations, those parts are included in the source language. If you prefer, you can set Paligo to exclude the missing translations so that readers only see the content that has been translated.

For example, let's say you have a document that is written in English and translated to German. You write the content, get it translated and then publish to both languages. Later you decide to add a "Customer support" topic to the document, so you write that in English, and publish to both languages, even though it has not been translated. This results in the German version containing the "Customer support" topic in English, and the elements on that page are prefixed with [en] and are shown in red with a pale red highlight.

A page from a PDF output. It has German text in the header and Deutsch in a language sidebar. The title and content on the page is in English and each element has an [en] prefix. The English content is shown as red text with a light red background.

If you prefer to hide untranslated content, you can choose to exclude it in the PDF layout settings:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > Languages.
Set Hide missing translations to Enabled if you want Paligo to exclude the missing translations from the PDF. Set it to Disabled if you want Paligo to include the missing translations, so that they appear in the source language. If you select Disabled, missing translations will have the source language ISO code in square brackets as a prefix and the untranslated content is in red with a light red background.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish a document with this PDF layout, Paligo will include or exclude the missing translations, depending on your choice in the layout.

Color Mark Unapproved Translations for PDF

Paligo has a color-marking feature for PDF outputs that shows unapproved translations as blue text. This is useful for spotting unapproved translations that may be out-of-date as the source language content has been updated.

Note

Typically, blue text in a translation means that the translation is out-of-date and needs to be re-translated. But it could also be that the translation is up-to-date but has not been approved before publishing. We recommend that you approve translations when they are complete and then publish after they are approved (see Workflow for Translation Service).

To set your PDFs to show unapproved translations as blue text:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > Languages.
If you want to color mark the non-approved translations, set Color mark non-approved transitions to Enabled. To turn off the blue text color marking, set it to Disabled.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish a document with this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the color marking, if you enabled it in the layout.

Example 67. Mark unapproved translations

Let's say you have content that is written in English and you publish to German. For the first release, you fully translate the content, enable color marking in the PDF layout, and then publish the content in both languages.

After the release, you make some updates to the English content. You do not translate the changes to German. You then publish to English and German without translating the changed content.

Result:

English version contains the old unchanged content + the new changed content.
German version contains translations of the old content. There are no translations for the new changes, so it uses the German translation for the old version of that content instead. At this point, the information in the English version is different to the information in the German version.

In the PDF, content that is different in the German version compared to the English version is shown with blue text.

So if you see blue text in a translation, it means that the translation is unapproved or is out-of-date. You need to either approve the translation or get the content re-translated to include the updates.

Blue Text in PDF Output

If you see blue text in your PDF output, it may be because you have the color mark non-approved translations setting enabled in your PDF layout. This feature sets Paligo to use blue text for translated content that has not been approved. For more details, see Color Mark Unapproved Translations for PDF.

Red Highlighted Text in PDF Output

If you see red text with a pale red background in your PDF outputs, it may be due to the Hide missing translations setting in the PDF layout. If you have it disabled, Paligo will insert the source language content in place of any missing translations. The source language content is red with a pale red background and has the ISO language code in square brackets as a prefix.

For more details, see Include or Exclude Missing Translations (PDF).

Cover Pages and Front Matter

For PDF outputs, you can create front covers and back covers so that your documents can be printed out as a complete "book".

For example, the following images show designs for the front cover of two different user guides.

To set up your covers for PDF, you can use a combination of:

Cover components

Cover components are special containers that you can associate with each side of a front or back cover. You can add content to them and that content appears in a "content box" on the relevant cover. For example, you could use cover components to add images to the inside of the front cover and both sides of the back cover.

You can use the PDF layout settings to style the box and control its position.
Content in the publication topic

You can add "info elements" to the publication topic and Paligo will display these on the front cover, the reverse side of the front cover, and potentially the pages that follow it. These are shown in addition to any content boxes from the cover components.
PDF layout settings

The PDF layout has settings for controlling and styling the "info elements" from the publication topic and also the cover components.

We recommend that you use cover components as they allow you to add a back cover and add extra content to any cover. But if you have set up publications without cover components previously, they will continue to work as before.

To see examples of what type of content you can show on each cover, see Design Covers for PDFs. That article also explains where you can find information on setting up the various parts of front covers, front matter pages, and back covers.

Note

You can choose to include the content from publication topics in HTML5 outputs too. To style those, use CSS (see Style with CSS).

Covers: Recto and Verso

The terms we use to describe the different sides of the front cover and the back cover are traditional terms used in print publishing.

Front cover recto

This is the cover you see at the start of the document. It is the front cover, right-hand page.
Front cover verso

This is the reverse side of the front cover. It is the front cover, left-hand page.
Back cover recto

This is the inner side of the back cover. It is the page you see next to the final page of your document and is the back cover, right-hand page.
Back cover verso

This is the outer side of the back cover. It is the back cover, left-hand page.

When you are designing your front and back covers, you will need to know which side is the "recto" and which side is the "verso".

Design Covers for PDFs

We recommend that you use cover components to set up covers for PDF outputs (as explained in Cover Pages and Front Matter). This is because cover components allow you to add content to back covers as well as front covers.

The following sections show examples of each type of cover and explain what type of content you can add.

Note

If you have set up publications without cover components previously, they will continue to work as before. Depending on the settings you have in place in the PDF layout, Paligo will either create no cover at all or will generate a front cover and "front matter" pages. The front cover and front matter pages contain the "info elements" from the publication topic.

Tip

It is also a good idea to read the Tips for Designing a Cover.

Design a Front Cover (Recto)

The front cover recto is the outside of the front cover. Traditionally, this is where you have the title of the document and you may have images and other information too.

An illustration of a user guide's front cover. It has "user guide" in text and an image in the bottom corner. The binding for the user guide is on the left-hand edge.

The front cover recto can contain text and images from a:

PDF layout

You can add certain types of content, such as logos and background images, to the PDF layout.
Publication topic

This is the topic that represents the publication as a whole and you can add info elements and other content to it. Paligo displays the info elements in a publication topic on the front cover recto or its reverse side (the front cover verso).
Front cover recto component

You can create and set up a cover component to represent the front cover. Any text or images that you add to it will appear in a content box on the front cover.

Note

When designing a front cover recto, be aware that the front cover contains content from the publication topic and the cover component. You will need to allow space for them both. If there is insufficient space, their content may overlap.

The following example shows a front cover with content that comes from a PDF layout, publication topic, and a front cover recto component.

Logo

You can add a logo and position it in the PDF layout settings (see Logo on Cover).
Content box

This is a box that is absolutely positioned on the cover. Its content comes from a cover component, which is a special type of "container", similar to a topic. You can add many types of content to a cover component, including paragraphs and images.

To learn how to set up a front cover content box, see Create a Cover Component, Add Content for the Cover Content Box, and Style a Cover Content Box.
Foreground image or "product image"

You can have one foreground image (also referred to as a "product image") on the front cover. In the example shown, the drone image is the foreground image.

To add the foreground image, you can insert it into the publication topic or cover component and give it a role attribute with a value of titleimage. Alternatively, you can set a product image in the PDF layout.

To learn more, see Cover Foreground Images.
Background image or color

A background image for the page. In the example shown, the background image is A4 sized and is a single image made up of a white band in the upper section, an image of sky, and a white band in the lower section.

You can set the background image in a PDF layout, a publication topic, or a cover component. You can also set a background color for the entire cover and a content box. To learn how to set up backgrounds, see Cover Background.
Title block

The title block is a container for the title and subtitle. The subtitle is optional. You define the content for the title and the subtitle in a publication topic. Use the PDF layout to style and position the title block.

To learn how to set up the title block, title, and subtitle, see Cover Title and Subtitle.
Info elements from the publication topic

There are various "info elements" that you can include in a publication topic. Paligo can display them on the front cover recto or front cover verso and you can choose which side in the PDF layout settings. Note that if there is not enough space for the info elements to fit on the preferred side, they will overflow on to the next page.

To learn about adding, styling and positioning info elements, see Info Elements for Covers.

When you have set up your cover, Set Paligo to Generate a Cover. You can then publish to PDF, using the PDF layout you configured. Paligo will generate the PDF output and it will include the covers you have set up.

If the cover does not appear as expected, see Troubleshooting PDF Covers.

Design a Front Cover (Verso)

We call the reverse side of a front cover "front cover verso".

An illustration of a user guide. It is opened so that on the left we can see the reverse side (inside) of the front cover. On the right we can see the contents page.

Note

To add a back cover to a PDF output, use cover components. Paligo will not include a back cover unless there are back cover components in place in your publication topic.

The front cover verso can contain content that comes from a:

PDF layout

You can add certain types of content, such as background images, to the PDF layout.
Publication topic

This is the topic that represents the publication as a whole and you can add info elements and other content to it. Paligo displays the info elements in a publication topic on the front cover recto or its reverse side (the front cover verso).
Front cover verso component

You can create and set up a cover component to represent the reverse side of the front cover. Any text or images that you add to it will appear in a content box on the front cover verso.

Note

When designing a front cover verso, be aware that the front cover may contain content from the publication topic and the cover component. You will need to allow space for them both. If there is insufficient space, their content may overlap.

For example, the following front cover verso contains:

An example of the inside of a front cover. The background of the page has an image of an abstract pattern, labelled 1. There is some copyright text, labelled 2. Part way down the page, there is a content box that has a dark background and white text and it is labelled 3.

Background image or color

A background image for the page. In the example shown, the background image is A4 sized and is an abstract pattern.

You can set the background image in a PDF layout, a publication topic, or a cover component. You can also set a background color for the entire cover and a content box. To learn how to set up backgrounds, see Cover Background.
Info elements from the publication topic

There are various "info elements" that you can include in a publication topic. Paligo can display them on the front cover recto or front cover verso and you can choose which side in the PDF layout settings. Note that if there is not enough space for the info elements to fit on the preferred side, they will overflow on to the next page.

To learn about adding, styling and positioning info elements, see Info Elements for Covers.
Content box

This is a box that is absolutely positioned on the cover. Its content comes from a cover component, which is a special type of "container", similar to a topic. You can add many types of content to a cover component, including paragraphs and images.

To learn how to set up a front cover content box, see Create a Cover Component, Add Content for the Cover Content Box, and Style a Cover Content Box.

If the cover does not appear as expected, see Troubleshooting PDF Covers.

Design a Back Cover (Recto)

The inside of the back cover - the page that faces the last page of your document - is called the back cover recto.

Illustration of a user guide. It is opened so that we can see the inside of the back cover on the left. On the right, we can see the Index page (representing the last page of the user guide's content).

Note

To add a back cover to a PDF output, use cover components. Paligo will not include a back cover unless there are back cover components in place in your publication topic.

The back cover recto can contain content from a:

PDF layout

You can add certain types of content, such as background images, to the PDF layout.
Back cover recto component

You can create and set up a cover component to represent the inside of the back cover. Any text or images that you add to it will appear in a content box on the back cover recto.

For example, the following back cover recto has:

Background image or color

A background image for the page. In the example shown, the background image is A4 sized and is an abstract pattern.

You can set the background image in a PDF layout or a cover component. You can also set a background color for the entire cover and a content box. To learn how to set up backgrounds, see Cover Background.
Content box

This is a box that is absolutely positioned on the cover. Its content comes from a cover component, which is a special type of "container", similar to a topic. You can add many types of content to a cover component, including paragraphs and images.

To learn how to set up a front cover content box, see Create a Cover Component, Add Content for the Cover Content Box, and Style a Cover Content Box.

If the cover does not appear as expected, see Troubleshooting PDF Covers.

Design a Back Cover (Verso)

We call the outer side of the back cover the "back cover verso".

Note

To add a back cover to a PDF output, use cover components. Paligo will not include a back cover unless there are back cover components in place in your publication topic.

The back cover verso content can come from a:

PDF layout

You can add certain types of content, such as background images, to the PDF layout.
Back cover verso component

You can create and set up a cover component to represent the outside of the back cover. Any text or images that you add to it will appear in a content box on the back cover verso.

For example, the following back cover verso has:

Content box

This is a box that is absolutely positioned on the cover. Its content comes from a cover component, which is a special type of "container", similar to a topic. You can add many types of content to a cover component, including paragraphs and images.

To learn how to set up a front cover content box, see Create a Cover Component, Add Content for the Cover Content Box, and Style a Cover Content Box.
Background image or color

A background image for the page. In the example shown, the background image is A4 sized and is an abstract pattern.

You can set the background image in a PDF layout or a cover component. You can also set a background color for the entire cover and a content box. To learn how to set up backgrounds, see Cover Background.

If the cover does not appear as expected, see Troubleshooting PDF Covers.

Tips for Designing a Cover

Be aware that the front cover can contain content from the publication topic, a cover component, and the PDF layout. If there is insufficient space, some elements may overlap or be pushed on to the next page.
Look at the various info elements that are available and decide which ones you need and on what side they should appear. Use the PDF layout settings to control which side of the front cover the elements appear on (see Set an Info Element to be on the Front Side or Reverse Side).
Use Cover Components if you need to add any content to the back cover recto or back cover verso.
Allow extra space for translations. The text for titles and info elements may be longer in different languages
Preview a Publication to see what your cover design looks like. If you use the PDF editor settings to make changes, refresh the preview to see the effect of those changes.
Be aware that Paligo will only generate a front cover if you enable the Generate front cover page for publications option in the PDF layout (see Set Paligo to Generate a Cover). It is set to enabled by default.

Cover Components

To design front and back covers for your PDFs, we recommend that you use cover components. These are special types of "containers" designed specifically for covers and they allow you to add content to any side of a cover. When you set up a cover component, you can add content inside it, and then Paligo will insert that content into a box on the relevant cover.

For example, let's say you want your back cover to have your company logo and your web address. For that, you could set up a back cover recto cover component. You then edit the component and add the image and a paragraph for your business website address. When you publish, Paligo gets the content from the cover component and inserts it into a box on the back cover.

We recommend that you use cover components for your PDF publications as they give you more control over your front and back covers. The most common way to use them is to set up four cover components to your publication, one for each side of the front and back cover.

Note

It is possible to set up a front cover without using cover components. For that, you add the content into the publication topic and Paligo inserts that into the front cover recto. If there is too much content to fit on the front recto, the content will overflow on to the front verso.

This is how Paligo supported front covers in earlier versions. If you have publications set up to work in this way, they will continue to work as expected. But we recommend that you use cover components for new publications.

To set up a cover component:

Read Design Covers for PDFs so that you understand what Paligo can show on each cover.
Create a Cover Component.
Set the cover component to represent a specific side of the cover (front recto, front verso, back recto, or back verso).
Add content to the cover component.
Add the cover component to a publication.
Repeat this process for each cover component.

Note

To control the position of a cover content box and its styling, use the PDF layout settings (see Style a Cover Content Box).

Create a Cover Component

Cover components are special types of container, similar to a topic, that you can use to represent each side of a front cover and back cover. For example, if you are publishing a PDF user guide, you could have 4 cover components:

Front cover (front recto)
Inner side of front cover (front verso)
Inner side of back cover (back recto)
Back cover (back verso)

Note

It is possible to create a front cover without using cover components. With this approach, you add content to a publication topic and then use the PDF layout to set the content to appear on the front or reverse side. This is how front covers were supported in earlier versions of Paligo. If you have set up your publications to work this way previously, they will continue to work.

However, we now recommend that you use cover components when creating front covers and back covers for PDF. They offer more functionality, such as the ability to use content boxes on the covers.

To create a cover component:

In the Content Manager, select the options menu ( ... ) for the folder that will contain your cover component.

If you do not have a suitable folder, you can create one. For details, see Organize Components in the Content Manager.
Select Create Content.
Enter a suitable name for your new component and set the Custom element option to cover.

In the following image, we have called the cover "Front Cover Recto - Content Box".
If you are going to publish the cover in multiple languages, use the Language section to add the languages you need.
Select OK.

Paligo creates a new cover component.

Next, you should edit the cover component so that you can add content to it. You will also need to set it to be a front cover or back cover and recto or verso.

Add Content for the Cover Content Box

When you have created a cover component, you can edit it to define content that will appear in a cover content box. The content you add or change will appear in the appropriate content box, for example, if you edit a cover that is set to be the back verso, then the changes you make will affect the back cover.

To add content to a cover component:

In the Content Manager, find the cover component you want to edit and then click on it to open it in the editor.

The cover is different to a regular topic, as instead of having a section element at the top-level, it has a cover element. By default, all cover components also contain one para element.
To add content, position the cursor where you want to add the content, and then use the element context menu to add an element. You can add any elements that are valid inside a cover element, for example, para. (The element context menu only shows elements that are valid at the currently selected position. For details of the valid elements, see the DocBook standard).

To access the element context menu, press Alt and Enter (Windows) or Option ⌥ and Enter (Mac).

Note

To insert images, select the Insert menu and then one of the Image options. Paligo will add the image structure and you can choose the image from the Media dialog.

Tip

When you add content to a cover component, consider the amount of space available in the content box. If you add text and images that cannot fit into the content box, the content will overlap other content that is on the same page. You should also allow extra space for translated versions, which may be longer.

You can use the preview in the PDF layout to see how Paligo will render your cover content in the content box.
Enter content inside the element, as required.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 to add the content that you want to appear in the cover's content box.
Select Save.

Note

When you edit a cover component, the changes you make will only go into the publication if:

You give the cover element a role attribute set to front, front recto, front verso, back, back recto, or back verso.

For details, see Set a Cover to be Front, Back, Recto, Verso.
You add the cover component to the publication topic as a component.

For details, see Add a Cover to a Publication.

Set a Cover to be Front, Back, Recto, Verso

When you add cover components to your projects, it is important that you specify which side of the cover they are for. You can set a cover to be:

Front cover recto

This is the cover you see at the start of the document. It is the front cover, right-hand page.
Front cover verso

This is the reverse side of the front cover. It is the front cover, left-hand page.
Back cover recto

This is the inner side of the back cover. It is the page you see next to the final page of your document and is the back cover, right-hand page.
Back cover verso

This is the outer side of the back cover. It is the back cover, left-hand page.

To set a cover to be front recto, front verso, back recto, or back verso:

Select the cover component in the Content Manager.

Paligo displays the cover component in the editor.
Select the cover element in the Element Structure Menu and then select Go to element.
In the Element attributes panel, give the cover element a role attribute and set the value to one of the following:
- front recto
  
  Note
  
  Alternatively, you can set the value to front. The values front and front recto both set the cover to be a front recto.
- front verso
- back recto
- back verso
  
  Note
  
  Alternatively, you can set the value to back. The values back and back verso both set the cover to be a back verso.
Select Save.

Next, add your cover component to a publication topic. Paligo will only include the cover if it is a component in a publication topic.

Add a Cover to a Publication

To include a cover component in a PDF, you must first add it to the publication topic for your publication.

Note

The cover component must also have a suitable role attribute (see Set a Cover to be Front, Back, Recto, Verso).

When you have added your covers to a publication topic, you will be able to:

Use the PDF layout preview to see how your covers will look when published.

This is useful when you are designing the covers and using the PDF layout to change colors, fonts, and spacing.
Publish a PDF that includes your covers.

To add a cover to a publication:

Display the publication topic:
1. In the Content Manager, find the publication and select its options menu ( ... ).
2. Select Edit and then Open in editor.
  
  Note
  
  If you do not have a suitable publication yet, you can create one (see Create a Publication).
Paligo displays the publication topic in the editor.
Position the cursor at a valid position for an inserted component, for example, inside the info element after the title.
Select the Insert menu and then select Component.

Paligo displays the Import content dialog.
Find your cover component in the Import content dialog and then select it.

Paligo inserts your cover component into the publication topic. In the structure, it is an import element.
Repeat this process for the other cover components. You can add up to 4 cover components (front recto, front verso, back recto, back verso).
Select Save.

When you have added your cover components to the publication topic, use the PDF layout to style the content boxes for the cover components. You will also need to set up the "info elements" in the publication topic (see Info Elements for Covers).

Style a Cover Content Box

Use the PDF layout to control the positioning and appearance of a cover content box (and the content inside it). There are settings for each cover (Front page or Back page) and inside those, settings for each side of the cover (Front cover recto, Front cover verso, Back cover recto, and Back cover verso).

For each side of the cover, you can set the position of the content box, its size, padding, font style and color, and alignment.

Note

The front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto and back cover verso settings also have options that affect the entire cover page:

Background image (see Methods for Adding a Background Image to a Cover)
Background color (see Set the Background Color of a Cover).

Position a Content Box on a Cover

Use the PDF layout settings to define the absolute position of the content box on a cover.

Note

The position of the content box is measured from the edges of the body region of the page. It is not measured from the edges of the page. To learn about the body region, see Adjust Page Margins (PDF).

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Use the margin settings to control the position of the text box on the page:
- Left margin for the content box
  
  Set the distance from the left edge of the body region to the left edge of the content box.
- Right margin for the content box
  
  Set the distance from the right edge of the body region to the right edge of the content box.
- Top margin for the content box
  
  Set the distance from the top edge of the body region to the top edge of the content box.
- Bottom margin for the content box
  
  Set the distance from the bottom edge of the body region to the bottom edge of the content box.
You must include the units of measurement, for example, 2cm, 50px, 20pt.
Select Save.
Repeat this process for each of the covers, if required.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the margins to the content box on the appropriate cover(s).

Set the Size of a Cover Content Box

You can use the PDF layout to define the height of a cover content box. For example, you could set a back cover recto content box to be 5cm so that it could fit in a logo and a link to your website.

If the content in your cover component is too large for the content box, it will overspill. The text and images will either break out beyond the edge of the box and will overlap any other content on the cover. For this reason, you should consider the size of the content that will go into the box, and also allow extra space for translated versions which may be longer.

Note

When setting the size and position of a content box, you should only use two of the following settings:

Top margin for the content box
Bottom margin for the content box
Height of the content box.

If you use all three, the bottom margin is ignored.

If you do not specify a height, Paligo calculates the height based on the space available below the top margin and above the bottom margin.

To set the height:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Set the Height of the content box.

You must include the units of measurement, for example, 5cm.
Select Save.
Repeat this process for each of the covers, if required.

Set the Padding of a Cover Content Box

Use the PDF layout settings to define the internal margins, also known as "padding", for a cover content box. The internal margins set the amount of space between the edges of a content box and the content inside the box.

Diagram shows a rectangle that represents a content box. In the middle of the content box is some text. Callout arrows point at the space between the edges of the callout box and the edges of the text inside it.

In this diagram, the black edges are the edges of the content box. The arrows represent the inner padding between the edges and the content.

To set the internal margins or "padding":

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Enter the amount of spacing you want into the Padding for the content box field.

You need to include the measurement and the units of measurement, for example, 10pt.
Select Save.
Repeat this process for each of the covers, if required.

When you preview your publication in the PDF layout, Paligo will show the borders of the content box. If you leave the border setting in place, Paligo will also include the borders when you publish.

Set the Border for a Cover Content Box

By default, cover content boxes do not have a visible border. You can add one in the PDF layout settings, if required. We recommend that you add visible borders when you are designing a cover, as it makes it easier to position and size the content boxes correctly.

To set the border for a cover content box:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Enter the border settings in the Border for the content box field.
You can use these values:
- Line thickness:
  thin
  
  medium
  
  thick
  
  Exact value (also known as "length")
  
  Enter a width measurement including the units of measurement, for example, 3pt.
- Line style:
  none - There is no border.
  
  hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
  
  dotted - The border is a dotted line.
  
  dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
  
  solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
  
  double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
  
  groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
  
  ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
  
  inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- Line color:
  
  Use any of these:
  Color name, such as silver
  
  RGB value, such as rgb(255,0,0)
  
  Hex number, such as #ff0000
For example, if you wanted a medium thickness, dashed line border and you wanted it blue, you would enter:
```
medium dashed blue
```
Select Save.
Repeat this process for each of the covers, if required.

When you preview your publication in the PDF layout, Paligo will show the borders of the content box. If you leave the border setting in place, Paligo will also include the borders when you publish.

Set the Font Styles for a Cover Content Box

Use the PDF layout settings to define the font styles for a cover content box. The font styles include the typeface, size, and color.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Use the Font family for the content box setting to choose the typeface. Paligo will apply this style of lettering to any text that is in the content box. The text comes from a cover component.
Use the Font size for the content box setting to set the size of the typeface.

You must include the units of measurement, for example, 14pt.
Use the Color for the content box section to choose the color of text (in the content box).

To use the default color, black, check the Use default color box.

To choose a different color, clear the Use default color box. You can then:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.
Repeat this process for each of the covers, if required.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the font settings to the content box on the appropriate cover(s).

Set the Alignment for a Cover Content Box

To control the horizontal and vertical alignment of the content in a cover content box:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Use the Alignment for the content box setting to control the horizontal alignment of the content in the box.
- Start
  
  Left-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- End
  
  Right-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- Center
  
  Align the text centrally.
- Justify
  
  Add space between the words so that the text is spaced out to fit the full width of the content box. The first word and last word of the text will be at the margin boundaries of the content box.
- Inside
  
  Align the text to the "spine". The spine is where the pages would be bound if the document was printed out as a book. If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is right-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is left-aligned.
- Outside
  
  Align the text to the outer edge of the page. This is the opposite edge to the "spine" (see Inside). If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is left-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is right-aligned.
Set the Vertical alignment for the content box. Choose from:
- Auto - Sets the content to have the same baseline. This looks similar to vertically aligning content to the bottom of the cells.
  
  Sets the content to have the same baseline. This looks similar to vertically aligning content to the bottom of the cells.
- Before - Vertically align the content to the top.
  
  Vertically align the content to the top.
- Center - Vertically align the content to the middle.
  
  Vertically align the content to the middle.
- After - Vertically align the content to the bottom.
  
  Vertically align the content to the bottom.
Select Save.
Repeat this process for each of the covers, if required.

Set the Background Color for a Cover Content Box

You can set a background color for a cover content box so that it stands out from the background. For example, in the following image, the background of the page is blue and the background of the cover content box is white.

Background color of content box is white.
Background color of page is blue (see Set the Background Color of a Cover).

To set the background color of the content box:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Use the Background color for the content box setting to choose the color.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

Info Elements for Covers

There are many useful elements that you can add inside a publication topic, including copyright, author, and pubdate. They are mostly designed for providing information about a document and we call them the "info elements" as you can only add them inside an info element.

Note

You can also add the address element inside a cover element (in a cover component).

To learn about adding "info elements" to publication topics, see Edit a Publication Topic.

To learn how to style the "info elements", see Style the Info Elements.

Style the Info Elements

The PDF layout has settings for styling the "info elements" that you can add to a publication topic. You can find them in the Front Page group under the Info elements category.

PDF layout editor. The Front Page settings are shown and the Info elements category is selected. There are various settings in the main panel, all relating to the info elements.

Set the Order of Info Elements

In a publication topic, you can have "info" elements, such as copyright and author. By default, Paligo displays these elements in a fixed order (see Order of Info Elements). But you can use the PDF layout settings to change the order to meet your own requirements.

To set the order of the info elements:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then Info elements.
Use the The order of additional info elements setting to control the order of the info elements in the PDF output. Choose from:
- Fixed
  
  Paligo will present the info elements in a pre-defined order, which may not match the order of the elements that you can see when you edit the publication topic. For more details on the fixed order, see Order of Info Elements.
- Free
  
  The info elements will be in the same order that they appear in the publication topic in the Paligo editor.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the info elements will be in the order that you have chosen.

Note

It is possible to make changes beyond those that are supported by the PDF layout. An XSLT developer can make changes by creating a customization. We can provide this as a professional service. For details, please contact customer support.

Set an Info Element to be on the Front Side or Reverse Side

Publication topics contain "info" elements and by default, Paligo will try to add them to the front side of the front cover (the front recto). If there is not enough space, Paligo will show them on the next page (the front verso). If you prefer, you can use the PDF layout settings to control which side of the front cover each "info" element will appear on.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then Info elements.
Use the Render element on this side of the front cover settings to choose which page the various additional info elements should appear on. There are render element on this side of the front cover options for most of the additional info elements, including authorgroup, author, volumenum, and pubdate.

For each info element, you can choose either recto (for the right page) or verso (for the left page). You can also choose none to prevent an info element from being shown on the page.

Note

Paligo will position the info elements on the sides you have chosen as long as there is enough space available. For example, if you set the publication date to appear on the front cover (recto), but there is insufficient space, it will push the content onto the next page instead.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the info elements will appear on the sides you have chosen, as long as there is enough space available.

Note

Set Auto-Labels for Info Elements

Paligo can generate labels for some elements, such as pubdate, edition and abstract. The labels are shown next to the element in the output and they give the reader extra context about the information. For example, the label for the publication date is "Publication date". Without the label, the date would appear on its own.

To set Paligo to use auto-labels for PDFs:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then Info elements.
Set up automatic labelling for the pubdate, edition, and abstract elements (if they exist in your publication topic). There is a separate setting for each of these elements.

For each of these elements, enable or disable auto-labelling.
- Enabled
  
  Adds the term "Publication date" or "Abstract" before the content or "Edition" after the content of those elements.
- Disabled
  
  Does not include the auto-label terms before the pubdate, edition, or abstract elements.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the elements will use the auto-label settings you have chosen.

Note

Set the Publication Date and Time Format

Use the PDF layout editor to control the format of the publication date. You can set the format for the source language and also for other languages.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then Info elements.
Set the date format for the pubdate element in the Today's date for publication date field.

To define the date format, use the JAVA format or the DocBook format, depending on whether you have the Use translatable publication date setting set to Enabled or Disabled (see next step).
- Use the JAVA format if Use translatable publication date setting is set to Disabled.
  
  For details of the JAVA format, see https://docs.oracle.com/javase/7/docs/api/java/text/SimpleDateFormat.html.
- Use the DocBook format if Use translatable publication date setting is set to Enabled.
  
  For details of the DocBook format, see http://www.sagehill.net/docbookxsl/Datetime.html.
If you add an empty pubdate element to your publication topic, Paligo will automatically insert the date when you publish, but only if you enter a date format here. If there is no date format, Paligo will exclude empty pubdate elements from the published output.
If you use a full-text format date for the pubdate element, you can set Paligo to convert it automatically into other languages. For example, you could have 28 March 2022 in English and Paligo would translate it to 28 mars 2022.

To turn on the auto-translation, set the Use translatable publication date setting to Enabled. Set it to Disabled to turn this feature off.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the title will use the publication date settings you have chosen.

Note

Set the Alignment for Additional Info Elements

Publication topics can contain info elements, such as copyright information and the name of the author. These elements are mostly left-aligned by default, but you can use the PDF layout to change the alignment. (For HTML, use CSS to adjust the alignment).

Select Layout and then either select an existing layout to open it in the Layout Editor or create a new layout.
Select Front Page and then Info elements.
Choose the alignment settings for the front page and other front matter pages:

Use these settings to set the alignment for the front cover, the reverse, and any further pages:
- Alignment for info element group (front cover)
  
  Use to set the alignment of info elements on the front cover page.
- Alignment for info element group (reverse side)
  
  Use to set the alignment of info elements on the reverse side of the cover page. This will also apply to any additional pages that appear before the table of contents, for example, if you have a legal notice that goes over two pages, they will both use the alignment for the reverse side.
With both of the alignment settings, you can choose from:
- Start
  
  Left-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- End
  
  Right-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
- Center
  
  Align the text centrally.
- Justify
  
  Add space between the words so that the text is spaced out to fit the full width of the content area. The first word and last word of the text will be at the margin boundaries of the content area.
- Inside
  
  Align the text to the "spine". The spine is where the pages would be bound if the document was printed out as a book. If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is right-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is left-aligned.
- Outside
  
  Align the text to the outer edge of the page. This is the opposite edge to the "spine" (see Inside). If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is left-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is right-aligned.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the title will use the style and positioning settings you have chosen.

Note

Set the Color of Info Elements

To change the color of the info elements, such as copyright and the author's name, on the front cover or "front matter" pages:

Select Layout and then either select an existing layout to open it in the Layout Editor or create a new layout.
Select Front Page and then Info elements.
Set the color of the info elements on the front cover and the reverse side.
- Color for additional info elements on front cover recto
  
  Use to set the color of info elements on the front cover.
- Color for additional info elements on front cover verso
  
  Use to set the color of info elements on the reverse side of the cover and any further pages.
For both color options, you can either use the default color (black) or clear the checkbox and then choose a different color. You can enter rgba values or use the color selector to choose a color.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the info elements will use the colors you have chosen.

Note

Cover Title and Subtitle

Paligo uses the title from the publication topic for the title on the front cover. You can also have an optional subtitle to use as a second-level title.

For example, you could have:

Title

ACME 100 Drone User Guide
Subtitle

A beginner's guide to the Acme drone

Add a Title or Subtitle to a Cover

The title and subtitle for a front cover come from the title and subtitle elements in the publication topic. Paligo adds these elements automatically when you create a publication.

A publication has to have a title, but the subtitle is optional.

If your publication has had its subtitle removed and you want to add one:

Select the Dotted Menu (...) for the publication in Content Manager.
Select Edit and choose Open in editor.

Paligo opens the publication topic.
Position the cursor where you want the subtitle to appear.
Press Alt + Enter ⏎ (Windows) or Command ⌘ + Enter ⏎ (Mac) to display the Element Context Menu.
Enter subtitle and select it.
Enter the text for the subtitle.
Select Save.

To set the position and appearance of the title and subtitle, see:

Style the Title for a Front Cover
Style the Subtitle for a Cover.

Note

You cannot add a title or subtitle to a cover component. They are not allowed as "children" of the cover element.

Style the Title for a Front Cover

The PDF layout editor has two groups of settings for styling the front cover title for PDF:

Title block

Use to style the positioning of the title and the color and appearance of the line beneath the title
Title

Use to style the appearance of the text in the title.

Note

We recommend that you read Understanding the Front Cover Margins before you set any title margins. There, you can learn how to calculate the margins for your front title content, taking into consideration any page margins and body margins that are already in place.

To style the title for a front cover:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then select Title block.
Choose the alignment settings for the front page and other front matter pages:

Note

For all settings that require a numerical value, you need to include the units of measurement as well. For example, enter 3.5cm rather than 3.5 with no units of measurement.
- Title block distance from top
  
  Use to set the distance from the top of the content area to the start of the title block.
- Title block margin left
  
  Use to set the distance from the left edge of the content area to the left edge of the title block.
- Title block margin right
  
  Use to set the distance from the right edge of the content area to the right edge of the title block.
- Border for title block
  
  Use to add a border for the title block. This can be useful when you want to see the block so that you can judge the distances for margins. Enter the line thickness followed by the line style and color, for example, 3pt dotted green
- Width of horizontal rule under title
  
  If you want a horizontal line under the title, enter the line thickness, for example, 3pt.
- Color of horizontal rule under title
  
  Set the color of the horizontal line under the title. Use the default color (gray) or clear the checkbox and then either:
  - Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
  - Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
    
    Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Front Page and then select Title.
Choose the settings you want for the title text:
- Font family for front cover title
  
  Choose the style of lettering for the title text.
- Font size for front cover title
  
  Enter the font size and measurement units, for example, 30pt or 300%. Note that percentage values are based on the font size of the main body text (set in General > Fonts).
- Font weight for front cover title
  
  Set the thickness of the text, for example, thin or bold.
- Font style for front cover title
  
  Choose the style for the text. This can be normal, italic (leaning forwards), or backslant (similar to italic, but leaning backwards).
- Font variant for front cover title
  
  Choose:
  - normal for regular text
  - small-caps for small upper case letters.
- Capitalization for front cover title
  
  Use to control the capitalization of the text. Choose from lower case (all letters lower case) upper case (all letters upper case) or capitalize
  - Lower case
    
    All letters are lower case.
  - Upper case
    
    All letters are upper case.
  - Capitalize
    
    The first letter in each word is upper case, the other letters are lower case.
    
    Note
    
    If the Font variant for front cover title is set to small-caps, and you choose Capitalize, the entire title will be in capital letters. The first letters of each word will be larger.
- Letter-spacing for front cover title
  
  Use to set the amount of space between each letter in the text. Enter the value and the measurement units, for example, 0.2em.
- Color for front cover title
  
  Set the color of the text. Either use the default color (black) or clear the checkbox and then choose a different color. You can enter rgba values or use the color selector to choose a color.
- Alignment for front cover title
  
  Choose the alignment for the title:
  - Start
    
    Left-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
  - End
    
    Right-align the text (in left-to-right languages).
  - Center
    
    Align the text centrally.
  - Justify
    
    Add space between the words so that the text is spaced out to fit the full width of the content area. The first word and last word of the text will be at the margin boundaries of the content area.
  - Inside
    
    Align the text to the "spine". The spine is where the pages would be bound if the document was printed out as a book. If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is right-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is left-aligned.
  - Outside
    
    Align the text to the outer edge of the page. This is the opposite edge to the "spine" (see Inside). If the text is on a left page ("verso"), the text is left-aligned and if it is on a right page ("recto") it is right-aligned.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the title will use the style and positioning settings you have chosen.

Note

Style the Subtitle for a Cover

By default, a publication topic contains a subtitle element that you can use to add a secondary title for a document. When the subtitle is in place, you can style it by using the settings in a PDF layout. There are various settings for margins, font style, size and color.

Note

If your publication does not have a subtitle element, you can add one (see Add a Title or Subtitle to a Cover).

To style the subtitle for a front cover:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then select Subtitle.
Choose the settings you want for the subtitle:

Note

For all settings that require a numerical value, you need to include the units of measurement as well. For example, enter 3.5cm rather than 3.5 with no units of measurement.
- Subtitle margin left
  
  Use to set the distance from the left edge of the content area to the left edge of the subtitle.
- Subtitle margin right
  
  Use to set the distance from the right edge of the content area to the right edge of the subtitle.
- Space-before front cover subtitle
  
  Use to set the amount of space above the subtitle.
- Space-after front cover subtitle
  
  Use to set the amount of space below the subtitle.
- Font family for front cover subtitle
  
  Choose the style of lettering for the subtitle.
- Font size for front cover subtitle
  
  Enter the font size and measurement units, for example, 16pt or 200%. Note that percentage values are based on the font size of the main body text (set in General > Fonts).
- Font weight for front cover subtitle
  
  Set the thickness of the text, for example, thin or bold.
- Font style for front cover subtitle
  
  Choose the style for the text. This can be normal, italic (leaning forwards), or backslant (similar to italic, but leaning backwards).
- Font variant for front cover subtitle
  
  Choose:
  - normal for regular text
  - small-caps for small upper case letters.
- Capitalization for front cover subtitle
  
  Use to control the capitalization of the text. Choose from lower case (all letters lower case) upper case (all letters upper case) or capitalize
  - Lower case
    
    All letters are lower case.
  - Upper case
    
    All letters are upper case.
  - Capitalize
    
    The first letter in each word is upper case, the other letters are lower case.
    
    Note
    
    If the Font variant for front cover subtitle is set to small-caps, and you choose Capitalize, the entire subtitle will be in capital letters. The first letters of each word will be larger.
- Letter-spacing for front cover subtitle
  
  Use to set the amount of space between each letter in the text. Enter the value and the measurement units, for example, 0.2em.
- Color for front cover subtitle
  
  Set the color of the text. Either use the default color (black) or clear the checkbox and then choose a different color. You can enter rgba values or use the color selector to choose a color.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this layout, the subtitle will use the styling and positioning settings you have chosen.

Set the Languages for Title and Subtitle

By default, Paligo shows the title and subtitle in all languages that you include when publishing. If you prefer, you can use the PDF layout to set the title and subtitle to only appear in one language.

To learn how to set the title and subtitle languages, see:

Set the Title to Appear in One Language (PDF)
Set the Subtitle to Appear in One Language (PDF).

Languages on Cover

If you have content in multiple languages, you can create "combined language" PDFs. A combined language PDF has your content in multiple languages all in the same PDF file, for example, a single PDF that includes English, German, and Spanish translations. For these combined language PDFs, you can choose to add the names of the languages on the front cover.

If you choose to add the languages, you can get the front cover to show:

A list of the included languages (for combined language PDFs)
The name of the language (for single language PDFs).

Front cover for a PDF output. It has a list of languages in the top-right of the content area.

Tip

Paligo also has settings that let you add the title and subtitle in multiple languages, see Set your Multi-Language Preferences (PDF).

To add a language list to the front cover of a PDF:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then select Languages.
Use the Display Language List setting to choose whether the languages are listed on the front cover.
- Enabled
  
  Adds the list of languages to the front cover. They are positioned in the top-right of the content area.
- Disabled
  
  The list of languages is not shown. This is the default setting.
Use the Language format setting to choose how the languages are presented.
- Language code
  
  Each language is shown as the ISO 639-1 standard language code, for example, en for English, de for German, sv for Swedish.
- Language local name
  
  Each language is named, using the local spelling, for example, Deutsch for German and Svenska for Swedish.
- Language name in English
  
  Each language is named using the English spelling, for example, German, Swedish.
- Language name in English - local name
  
  Each language is named using the English spelling first, followed by a hyphen and then the local spelling, for example, German - Deutsch, Swedish - Svenska.
- Language local name - name in English
  
  Each language is named using the local spelling first, followed by a hyphen and then the English spelling, for example, Deutsch - German, Svenska - Swedish.
Use the Letter case for language names setting to control the capitalization on the language names:
- Upper case
  
  Show language name in capital letters, for example, ENGLISH
- Lower case
  
  Show language name in lower case letters, for example, english
- Capitalize first letter
  
  Show language name with capital first letter, lower case for other letters, for example, English.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish, Paligo will create a PDF with the language settings applied to the front cover.

Note

Logo on Cover

For PDF outputs, you can use a PDF layout to upload a logo image for your front cover. When you have added the image, you can choose to place it in any corner of the page, and you can also control its margins to move it up, down, left and right as needed.

To add a logo image to the front page and define its position and appearance:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then select Logotype.
Use the Logotype field to upload a logo image. You can upload an image in any of these formats: ai, svg, pdf, png, tif, gif.
Set the Logo alignment to your preferred corner of the front cover.
Set the horizontal and vertical margins for the logo:
- Horizontal margin between logotype and page
  
  This field contains XPATH by default:
```
{$page.margin.inner}
```
  To move the logo image to the right, enter the plus symbol ( + ) and the measurement and measurement units after the XPATH, for example:
```
{$page.margin.inner}+3cm
```
  To move it to the left, add a minus value after the XPATH, for example:
```
{$page.margin.inner}-1cm
```
- Vertical margin between logotype and page
  
  This field also contains XPATH by default:
```
{$page.margin.top}
```
  After the XPATH, enter a positive measurement to move the logo down the page or enter a minus measurement to move it up the page. For example:
```
{$page.margin.top}+2.5cm
```
Set the maximum dimensions of the logo image.
- Max height of the logotype
- Max width of the logotype
You must include the measurement and the measurement units, for example, 100pt, or 2.5cm.

Paligo will not allow the image to scale beyond these limits and will keep the aspect ratio of the original image so that it is not distorted.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

Tip

To add a logo image to other covers, such as a back cover:

Set up cover components for your publication.
Add the logo image as a regular image inside a cover component.

Paligo will include the logo image in the content box on the appropriate cover.
Use a PDF layout to control the positioning of the content box.

Cover Foreground Images

You can add foreground images to create stylish PDF covers for your documentation.

There are two different types of image that you can add to the front cover:

A product image. For example, in the image above, the drone is a product image with a transparent background. The blue sky part of the image is a background image.
Images in a content box (only if your publication uses cover components).

For the product image, you can add the image:

In the publication topic

Paligo will only use the image when you publish this particular document. To learn more, see Add a Product Image to Cover of One Publication.
In the PDF layout.

Paligo will use the image every time you publish with this PDF layout (unless the document also has a product image in its publication topic). To learn more, see Add a Product Image to the Cover of Many Publications.

For images in a content box, your publication has to be set up to use cover components. You can then add images to each of the cover components and Paligo will show these in addition to any product image. So for the front cover, you could have a product image and a content box image. You could also have images on each of the other covers by adding an image in their respective cover components (see Add Content for the Cover Content Box).

Add a Product Image to a Cover

For front covers, you can add a product image that will appear in the foreground of the cover.

Depending on your requirements, you can:

Add a product image to a publication topic

Paligo will use the product image for this particular publication only.
Add a product image to a PDF layout

Paligo will use the product image every time you publish with that particular PDF layout.

Note

To add an image to other covers, use cover components. Insert the image into a cover component and it will appear in the content box on the appropriate cover (as long as the cover components are set up correctly). To learn how to add an image in a cover component, see Add Content for the Cover Content Box.

Add a Product Image to Cover of One Publication

Every publication topic contains the structure for a foreground image (product image) by default. If you choose an image for that structure, the image will appear on the cover page when you publish to PDF. It will take priority over any product image that is set in the PDF layout settings.

To create publications that have different product images on their front pages, you can either:

Add an image to the publication topic
Create a separate PDF layout for each different publication and set the product images in the layouts.

Typically, it is easier to have one PDF layout to manage and then set the product images individually in each publication topic.

To add a product image in the publication topic:

In the Content Manager, find the publication you want to add the image to.
Select the publication's options menu ( ...) and then select Edit and then Open in Editor. Paligo opens the publication topic. This is a topic at the root of the publication and you can use it to add various "front matter" elements, such as images, cover text, copyright information, etc.
By default, the publication topic contains the structure for an image. To insert an image, right-click on the image placeholder, select Image browser, and then choose the image from your image library. You can upload a new image if required.

If your publication topic does not contain the structure for an image, select Insert and then Image to add an image.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish your content, the image you selected will be used as a product image on the front cover.

Add a Product Image to the Cover of Many Publications

To create many publications with the same product image on their covers, set the image in a PDF layout. Every time you publish with that layout, the resulting PDFs will use the product image on their front covers.

Note

To produce PDFs that use different product images, you can either create separate PDF layouts for each different document or you can add the product image in the publication topic (see Images in a Publication Topic).

To use a PDF layout to set up a product image for the front cover:

Use a graphics or photography application to create your product image.
Create or edit a PDF layout. In the Layout Editor, select Front page and then Product image.
In the Product image setting, select the Upload button and then drag the image you created into the upload box.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

Note

Use the PDF layout settings to control the position and size of the product image, see Style a Product Image for a Front Cover.

When you publish and choose to use this layout, Paligo creates a PDF and uses the product image that you defined in the layout. But if the publication has an image in its "publication topic", Paligo will use that image instead and will ignore the PDF layout. You can solve this problem by deleting the image in the publication topic.

Style a Product Image for a Front Cover

The product image is a foreground image that is shown on the front page of PDF outputs. You can either add the image to the publication topic or to the PDF layout and you can control its appearance and position in the layout settings.

Use the PDF layout settings to style the product image, for example, to set the product image container height and scaling.

Set the Product Image Container Height

When you publish to PDF, Paligo positions the product image in a container, and then the other elements on the front page are arranged above and below the container. You can set the maximum height of the container in the PDF layout settings, so that the image fits in a certain space.

Note

If the image is larger than the container, Paligo will either scale the image to fit the container or will cut off the image at the container's boundaries.

To set the product image container height:

Select Layout and then either select an existing layout to open it in the Layout Editor or create a new layout.
Select Front Page and then Product image.
Set the Height of the product image container. You need to enter the new measurement and the measurement units, for example, 8cm. The default value is 280pt.
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, Paligo will set the product image container so that it cannot be larger than your defined maximum height.

Tip

To get a product image to scale to fit in the product image container, use the Scale product image down to fit in both directions setting (see Set the Product Image Scaling).

Set the Product Image Positioning

When you publish to PDF, Paligo positions the product image in a container. You can control the vertical positioning of the container to move it up or down the front page.

To control the vertical positioning of the product image:

Select Layout and then either select an existing layout to open it in the Layout Editor or create a new layout.
Select Front Page and then Product image.
Set the Product image distance from top of page (inside page margins). You need to enter the new measurement and the measurement units, for example, 10pt.
Select Save.

When you publish to PDF using this layout, Paligo will position the product image container so that it is the defined amount below the top margin of the page. This is not the same as the top edge of the page (see Understanding the Front Cover Margins).

Set the Product Image Scaling

When you publish to PDF, Paligo positions the product image in a container. By default the product image is not scaled to fit, and so you will only see the parts of the image that fit inside the container. But you can apply scaling so that Paligo resizes the image to fit into the container.

Select Layout and then either select an existing layout to open it in the Layout Editor or create a new layout.
Select Front Page and then Product image.
Use the Scale product image down to fit in both directions setting to turn scaling on or off. Select Yes for on, No for off. The default is No.
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the scaling you have selected.

Set the Product Image Borders

When you publish to PDF, Paligo positions the product image in a container. You can set the container to have visible borders, which can be helpful when you are setting up the positioning of the container (see Set the Product Image Positioning and Set the Product Image Container Height). When you have the container positioned where you want it, you can come back and turn off the product image borders. Or you can leave them on if you want them to be visible in your PDF output.

Select Layout and then either select an existing layout to open it in the Layout Editor or create a new layout.
Select Front Page and then Product image.
In the Default border for product image field, enter the border settings.

The border settings consist of a line thickness, a line style, and a line color.
You can use these values:
- Line thickness:
  thin
  
  medium
  
  thick
  
  Exact value (also known as "length")
  
  Enter a width measurement including the units of measurement, for example, 3pt.
- Line style:
  none - There is no border.
  
  hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
  
  dotted - The border is a dotted line.
  
  dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
  
  solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
  
  double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
  
  groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
  
  ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
  
  inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- Line color:
  
  Use any of these:
  Color name, such as silver
  
  RGB value, such as rgb(255,0,0)
  
  Hex number, such as #ff0000
For example, if you wanted a medium thickness, dashed line border and you wanted it blue, you would enter:
```
medium dashed blue
```
If you want the corners of the container box to appear rounded, set the Default border radius for product image. Enter the amount of rounding and include the measurement units, for example, 10pt.

Product image with dotted pink border and border-radius of 14pt.
Select Save.

When you publish using this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the border settings you have entered.

If you later want to remove the borders, clear the fields and save. By default, Paligo does not have visible borders around product images.

Cover Background

If you have set up your publication to use cover components, you can set up each cover to have a:

Background image

There are different ways of adding a background image. The method you use will affect how Paligo applies the background image to your cover.

To add a background image, first learn about the different Methods for Adding a Background Image to a Cover. You can then add a background image to a publication topic, cover component, or PDF layout depending on your requirements.
Background color

You can apply a color to the back layer, behind the content that appears on the cover.

Note

If you are not using cover components for your publication, you can only set a background image and color for the front cover recto.

Methods for Adding a Background Image to a Cover

There are three ways to add a background image to a cover. Paligo will use the image differently, depending on where you add the image.

You can:

Add a Background Image in a Publication Topic

Paligo uses the background image from the publication topic instead of any background image that is set in the layout.

This only applies to the front cover recto. You cannot use a background image in the publication topic for a front cover verso or a back cover.
Add a Background Image in a Cover Component

Paligo uses the background image from the cover component instead of any background image that is set in the layout.
Add a Background Image in a PDF Layout

With this approach, Paligo uses the same background image every time you use a particular layout. The image is only shown if there is no background image set in the publication topic or cover component.

Which method should you use? It depends on what you want to achieve and how you want to manage the different images.

Do you need to mostly publish PDFs that have the same background image? If yes, you may find it simpler to add the background image to a PDF layout. If you later need to use a different image, you can edit the layout or create a new layout.
Do you have documents that need different background images in different scenarios? If yes, then consider adding all of the images to a publication topic or cover component. By applying filters to the images, you can control which image Paligo uses when you publish. For more details on filtering, see Filtering / Profiling.

Note

For helpful advice on creating a background image, see Tips for Creating a Background Image .

Add a Background Image in a Publication Topic

If you have a background image in your publication topic, Paligo will use it as the background image for the front cover recto. It takes priority over any background image that is set in a layout or in a cover component.

Note

For front verso, back recto, and back verso covers you need to use a cover component. You cannot set their background image from a publication topic.

To use a publication topic to set a background image for a front recto cover:

Select the Dotted Menu (...) for the publication in Content Manager.
Select Edit and choose Open in editor.

Paligo opens the publication topic.
Select the Insert tab in the Toolbar.
Select Image and choose Image from the menu.
Browse for the image in your media library or upload a new image, see Add an Image to a Topic.
Click on the image.
Select the mediaobject element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the role attribute in the Element Attributes Panel.
Set the value to bg-image.
Select Save.

When you publish this document to PDF, Paligo will use the image you selected as the background image for the front cover (front recto). It will take priority over any background image that is set in the layout or in a cover component.

Add a Background Image in a Cover Component

You can set the background image for a cover inside a cover component. This means you can have a different background image for each of the four cover components (front recto, front verso, back recto, and back verso).

Paligo uses the background image in a cover component in preference to a background image set in the PDF layout. But for front covers, the background image in a publication topic will take priority over both the layout and any image in the front cover recto component.

Tip

If you do not have a cover component yet, see Create a Cover Component.

To add a background image:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Select the Insert tab in the Toolbar.
Select Image and choose Image.
Browse for the image in your media library or upload a new image, see Add an Image to a Topic.
Click on the image.
Select the mediaobject element in the Element Structure Menu and choose Go to element.
Add the role attribute in the Element Attributes Panel and set the value to bg-image.
Select Save.
Repeat this process for background images for other cover components.

When you publish this document to PDF, Paligo will use the background image from the cover component.

Note

If the background image is not shown, see Troubleshooting PDF Covers.

Add a Background Image in a PDF Layout

To use a PDF layout to set the background image for a cover:

Prepare a suitable image file.

We recommend that you use an image that is the same size as your intended page size. For example, if you are going to publish an A4 PDF, use an image that is the same size as A4 (210 x 297mm). Your image is going to cover the entire page, so add white space to the image if needed.

In our documentation, we use an example cover featuring a white background with a band of sky partway down the page. The entire image is A4 sized.
Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Use the Background image setting to upload your image.

Note

If the background image is the same size as a page in your PDF output, it will fill the page. You will not be able to see any background color.
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, Paligo will apply the background image to the cover. But if the publication has a background image set in its publication topic or in a cover component, Paligo will use that image instead.

Tips for Creating a Background Image

We recommend that you use a professional graphics or photography application to create your background image. When designing your background image, make sure that it is:

The same size as the page format you are using for your PDF layout. For example, if using the A4 format, create it 210mm x 297mm.
300 pixels/inch resolution.
Designed to have space for the front cover content. For example, here we have used a black pane at the bottom of the image:

Tip

We recommend that you make a colored pane to take up approximately 1/3 of the image.

Set the Background Color of a Cover

You can set the background color of a cover to compliment your brand colors. The background color is shown behind any other elements on the cover, for example, if you have a back cover with a content box, the color is shown behind the content box.

For example, the following image shows a back recto cover that has a blue background color.

The background of the context box. Here, the background of the content box is set to white.
The background of the page uses the background color, in this case, a shade of blue.

Notice how only the background is blue and the content box is white (the content box has its own color settings).

To set the background color for a cover page:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Expand the settings for the relevant cover, either Front page or Back page and then select the settings for the relevant side (front cover recto, front cover verso, back cover recto, back cover verso).

If you are unsure about which sides of the covers these settings relate to, see Covers: Recto and Verso.
Use the Background color setting to choose the color.

To select a color of your own choice, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish with this layout, Paligo will apply the background color to the cover.

If the background color is not shown, check that:

You have added the relevant cover component to the publication topic
The cover component has the required role attribute (with its value set to one of: front, front recto, front verso, back, back recto or back verso).
The cover has space for the background to be seen. For example, you could use a non-transparent background image that is the same size as the front cover page. If you then set a background color, the image covers the color so that you cannot see the color.

Set Paligo to Generate a Cover

For PDF outputs, you can choose whether the PDF includes a front cover.

If you choose to include a cover, Paligo will generate a PDF with covers.

The PDF output will include any cover components you have set up as well as a front cover. The front cover will contain content from the publication topic (and potentially also a cover component). There is only a back cover if you have used cover components.
If you choose to have no front cover, Paligo will generate a PDF that has no front cover and the table of contents is the first page.

If you have set up cover components for a back cover, Paligo will still include the back cover.

By default, Paligo is set to generate covers for PDF outputs.

To turn the cover feature on or off:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Front Page and then select General.
Set Generate front cover page for publications to Yes or No (Default is Yes).
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish PDFs using this layout, Paligo will use your choice in step 3 to decide whether to include a cover.

Understanding the Front Cover Margins

When you are designing a front cover for a PDF output, you can set the position of various elements, including the title block. Before you make changes to the positioning, it is important that you understand:

What margins are in place
How Paligo applies margins and calculates the spacing.

Knowing how the margins work will make it easier for you to position the title and subtitle more accurately.

In the PDF output, the front cover has 3 margins, all of which you can control in the PDF layout settings:

Diagram showing a page. It consists of three sections, an outer section labelled 1, a middle section labelled 2, and an inner section labelled 1.

Page margins.

Select General and then select Page Margins. The page margins define the amount of space between the edge of the page and the content area (body).
Body margins.

Select General and then Page Margins. The body margins define the amount of space between the edge of the content area (body) and where the content can be placed.
Content margins.

Select Front page and then Title block. The Title block settings include Title block distance from top, Title block margin left and Title block margin right. Use these to define an extra amount of space that Paligo calculates from the position where the content can be placed. You can set the content margins for the title and subtitle.

Example 68. Setting page and title block margins

Let's say you have a publication that has been published before. For an update to the publication, you want to change the front cover so that the title is 5cm from the top of the page.

To do that, you edit the PDF layout and look at the General settings and Page Margins. You see that the page currently has a top margin of 2cm and the body has a top margin of 1cm. So the content on the front cover already has 3cm of top spacing in place (top margin + top body margin).

To set the title at 5cm from the top, you select Front Page and then Title Block . You enter 2cm in the Title block distance from top field and then save the layout.

When you publish, the title will be 5cm from the top of the page (2cm page margin top + 1cm body margin top + 2cm title block distance from top).

To learn how to set the set the positioning for the title and subtitle, see Style the Title for a Front Cover.

Troubleshooting PDF Covers

If you are experiencing problems when setting up covers for your PDF outputs, you may find the answers in this article. It covers some of the most common mistakes relating to covers.

Covers are Missing

If your PDF has no covers at all, it is likely because Paligo is set to not generate covers.

To fix this, see Set Paligo to Generate a Cover.

Content Overlapping on Cover

If you have overlapping content on a cover (typically a front cover), it is likely because the front cover recto (or verso) contains content from the publication topic and also from a cover component.

Paligo adds the publication topic content to the main body area of the page. The cover component content goes into a content box that overlays the body area.

You should redesign the page so that there is sufficient space for both sets of content. For that, you can use the PDF layout to control the positioning of the info elements from the publication topic and also reposition the content box.

For details, see:

Position a Content Box on a Cover
Set the Size of a Cover Content Box
Set an Info Element to be on the Front Side or Reverse Side.

Content Missing from Cover

If there is content missing from a cover, it is likely because:

There is insufficient space to fit the content in a content box

Paligo will push any content that does not fit onto the next page (for info elements in the publication topic).

If there is too much content to fit inside a content box, either the top part of the content will be missing or the bottom part will be missing. This varies depending on the type of vertical alignment that is in place for the content box.

To fix this, either change the size of the content box or reduce the amount of content inside the relevant cover component.
The publication topic does not contain the info elements

Info elements, such as copyright and pubdate, will only appear on the cover if you have included them in the publication.

Note

For most of the info elements, if you add the structure but do not enter text, Paligo will remove the empty structure before publishing.
The cover components are not set up correctly

Paligo will only show the content for cover components if they are set up correctly (see Cover Components not Working).
Other images have priority

Images in the publication topic take priority over the cover content components and PDF layout.

The priorities are:
- Publication topic image. This has top priority for the front cover recto only.
- Cover component image. Paligo uses this in preference to the layout.
- PDF layout image. Paligo uses this if there is no image set in a publication topic or a cover component.
The image does not have the appropriate role attribute

If you add an image in a publication topic or cover component and you want Paligo to use it as the background image, it needs to have a role attribute. The value of the role attribute should be bg-image.

Cover Components not Working

If you have set up cover components for your publication and they are not showing in your PDF output, it is likely because they are set up incorrectly.

Make sure that you have:

Created cover components and given their cover elements a role attribute with a suitable value (see Create a Cover Component and Set a Cover to be Front, Back, Recto, Verso).
Added the cover components to the publication topic ( see Add a Cover to a Publication).
Added content inside the correct cover component.

Headers for PDFs

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to control the header that appears at the top of the page. The header consists of a three-column table that appears on every page in your output.

Top part of a page in a PDF output. At the top of the page, above the content, is a 3 column table. This is the header table.

Use the page header settings in the layout to style the header and add content to the header cells:

Set the Header Table Height and Column Widths
Set the Border for the Header Cells
Set the Font for the Header Table Cells
Set the Vertical Alignment for the Header Table Cells
Add Content to the Header Table Cells.

Set the Header Table Height and Column Widths

You can use the PDF layout editor to change the height and widths to suit your requirements.

Note

The table has to have three columns. If you need more columns, it may be possible to achieve through a customization project. Contact customer support for more details.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Header and Footer > Page header.
Set the widths of the header columns in the Page header table relative column widths field.

The total width has to total 10. By default, the three columns are set to 1 8 1, which means that the left column is 10% of the header width, the center column is 80%, and the right column is 10%. Change the values to the widths you need. For example, if you set the value to 3 5 2, the left column would be 30% width, the center column 50%, and the right column 20%.
Set the minimum height of the header table in the Page header table height field.

The default is 14pt. When you enter a value, make sure to include the units of measurement, for example, pt.
Select Save.

When you publish your content using this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the settings to the header of the PDF.

Set the Font for the Header Table Cells

Use the PDF layout to choose the font settings for your header cells. You can choose the font family, set the color, spacing and more.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select Header and Footer > Page header.
Use the following settings to define the font and text spacing settings for the header table text:
- Page header font family
  
  Choose the typeface for the text in the cells.
- Page header font size
  
  Set the size of the text in the cells.
  
  Include the units of measurement, for example, pt or mm.
- Page header font weight
  
  Set the thickness of the text in the cells.
- Page header font style
  
  Use to set the text in the cells to italic, backslant (leaning backwards), or normal.
- Page header font variant
  
  Set the font to display as normal or as small caps. The small caps option turns lower case letters into reduced height capital letters.
- Page header font color
  
  Use to set the color of the text in the cells. You can check the box to use the default color or you can clear the box and choose a different color. Enter an RGB value or select the color block to display a color selector.
- Page header line height
  
  Set the height of each line of text in the cells. You need to include the units of measurement too, for example, px, pt, em.
- Page header capitalization
  
  Set the text in the page header cells to be shown in all full-size capital letters, all lowercase letters, or capitalized (first letter capital, other letters lowercase).
  Note
  
  If you have set the Page header font variant to small caps:
  The capitalized option sets upper case letters to be full-size capitals. The other letters will be shown as reduced height capital letters (small caps).
  
  Example of capitalized and small caps used at the same time.
  
  The lowercase option has no effect.
- Page header letter-spacing
  
  Define the amount of spacing between the letters of the text in the cells.
  
  Include the units of measurement, for example, pt or mm.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish content with this PDF layout, Paligo will use the font settings when it generates the PDF.

Set the Vertical Alignment for the Header Table Cells

Use the PDF layout control the vertical alignment of the content in the header cells:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Header and Footer > Page header.
Set the Page header table vertical alignment to:
- Auto - Sets the content to have the same baseline. This looks similar to vertically aligning content to the bottom of the cells.
- Before - Vertically align the content to the top.
- Center - Vertically align the content to the middle.
- After - Vertically align the content to the bottom.
Note

If your alignment choices appear to have no effect, try increasing the height of the header table (see Set the Header Table Height and Column Widths). At smaller table heights, the difference between the alignments can be negligible.
Select Save.

When you publish your content using this layout, Paligo will apply the alignment settings to the header.

Set the Border for the Header Cells

Use the Page header table cell border setting to add a visible border to the header. The borders can be useful when you are setting up your header and you need to see the cell boundaries so that you can better judge the cell widths.

Note

The header will appear on every page, but may appear as a line on the front cover. This is because the front cover header does not show the header text and so has a forced block height of 0.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select Header and Footer > Page header.
Set the border styling in the Page header table cell border field.
You can use these values:
- Line thickness:
  thin
  
  medium
  
  thick
  
  Exact value (also known as "length")
  
  Enter a width measurement including the units of measurement, for example, 3pt.
- Line style:
  none - There is no border.
  
  hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
  
  dotted - The border is a dotted line.
  
  dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
  
  solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
  
  double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
  
  groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
  
  ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
  
  inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- Line color:
  
  Use any of these:
  Color name, such as silver
  
  RGB value, such as rgb(255,0,0)
  
  Hex number, such as #ff0000
For example, if you wanted a medium thickness, dashed line border and you wanted it blue, you would enter:
```
medium dashed blue
```
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

Tip

When you have finished designing your header, you can turn the table cell border off by entering none as the value.

Add Content to the Header Table Cells

Use the PDF layout to add content to the header table cells for PDFs.

Note

The header table is shown on all pages, but the header on the front cover does not show text. As a result, the cover header has a fixed height of 0.

To add text, images, or auto-generated content such as page numbers to your header:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Header and Footer > Page header.
Use the Page header <column> cell content setting to choose the type of content to add to that cell. There are separate Page header <column> cell content settings for the left, center and right cells.

Choose from:
- None - Paligo will not include any content in the cell.
- Text - Set the cell to contain text that you will define in the Page header <column> cell content: text field.
- Image - Set the cell to contain an image that you will choose in the Page header <column> cell content: image field.
- Pagenumber - Adds the page number to the cell.
  
  Note
  
  The page number is only shown in the PDF output if the General > Page > Print page numbers setting is set to Yes (or Default). For details, see Include Page Numbers in PDFs.
- Page X - Adds the word "Page" followed by the page number to the cell.
- Page X of Y - Adds current page and total page number to the cell, for example, "Page 6 of 75".
- Title - Adds the first title element in your content to the cell. Depending on what you publish, this is the title of your publication or a topic.
- Chapter title - Adds the title element of the "chapter" to the cell. The "chapter" is a top-level topic in your publication.
  
  For example, let's say you have a top-level topic called "Installation" and then lower-level topics for "Install the battery" and "Install the fan unit". In this scenario, all three topics will have "Installation" in the cell, as they are all part of the same "chapter". Topics in a different "chapter" will have a different title in the cell.
- Section title - Adds the title element of the topic to the cell. For example, if you have an "Install the battery" topic, it will have "Install the battery" in the cell, but other topics will have their title in the cell instead.
This step only applies if you selected Text as the Page header <column> cell content.

In the Page header <column> cell content: Text field, enter:
- Plain text
- A dynamic variable to reference an element in your documentation. A popular use for a dynamic variable here is to reference an element that appears in the publication topic, such as copyright details. We have included an example after this procedure. To find out more, see Dynamic Text Variables.
- A combination of plain text and dynamic variables
Note

There are separate Page header <column> cell content: Text settings for the left, center, and right cells.
This step only applies if you selected Image as the Page header <column> cell content.

In the Page header <column> cell content: Image field, use the browse feature to select the image you want to use. You can choose an image from the media library or you can upload a new image.

Note

There are separate Page header <column> cell content: Image settings for the left, center, and right cells.
Repeat steps 3 to 5 inclusive for each of the cells.
Select Save.

When you publish content with this PDF layout, Paligo will add the images and text you have selected.

Example 69. Dynamic variable to insert organization name in PDF header

Let's say you have set up your publication topic to include author and orgname elements (see Edit a Publication Topic). You are going to publish to PDF and you want the left cell of your header to contain the organization name.

You edit your PDF layout and set:

Page header left cell content to Text
In the Page header left cell content: text field, you enter a dynamic variable to reference the author>orgname element. The syntax is:
```
${//d:article/d:info/d:author/d:orgname}$
```
Notice how the dynamic variable has to reference each element in the path from the top of the publication topic to the element you want to use. So it starts with the top-level d:article, which represents the publication topic, then the next level down is d:info for the info element, followed by d:author for the author element, and finally d:orgname for the orgname element.

PDF layout. Page header left cell content setting has text as its value. Page header left cell content text setting has a reference to the orgname element as its value.

When you publish, Paligo:

Looks in the publication topic and finds the text that is inside the orgname element. It copies that text.
Inserts the copy of the text into the left cell of the header table.

Header Rule for PDFs

By default, Paligo PDF outputs have a header rule at the top of each page. To style the rule, or remove it completely, use the Page settings in the PDF layout.

Top of a PDF page. The name of the document is shown above the header rule. The header rule is shown as a thin gray line. Below that, the topic title is shown in white text on a blue background. Two callout arrows point to the gray header rule.

To set up the header rule:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General and choose Page.
Use the Header rule setting to control whether the header rule is shown.

Choose either:
- Yes
- No
Set the Header rule length. This is the amount of page width that the header rule will cover and it has to be a numerical value with units of measurement. By default, it is set to 100%.
Use the Header rule alignment setting to control the position of the header rule. Choose from:
- Start
  
  The start of the line is aligned to the start of the content on the page. For example, on a left-to-right page, the line is left-aligned.
  
  For example, the following image shows a line that is set to 50% width and aligned to the start of the page.
- End
  
  The start of the line is aligned to the end of the content on the page. For example, on a left-to-right page, the line is right-aligned.
  
  For example, the following image shows a line that is set to 50% width and aligned to the end of the page.
- Center
  
  The line is aligned in the center of the page. This is only noticeable if the header rule length is less than 100%.
  
  For example, the following image shows a line that is set to 50% and aligned to the center of the page.
- Justify
  
  If you use a line with spaces in it, such as a dashed line or dotted line, Justify sets both ends of the line to be solid. Paligo adjusts the spacing of the gaps in the line to compensate (spaces in the line cannot be at the start or end of the line).
- Inside
  
  The line is aligned to the inside edge of the page (the binding edge).
- Outside
  
  The line is aligned to the outside edge of the page.
Set the Header rule thickness. Enter the amount and the units of measurement (points), for example, 0.25pt. The higher the amount, the thicker the header rule will be.
Choose the Header rule style. You can choose from any of the available line styles including dotted, solid, and dashed.

For example, the following image shows a dashed header rule.
Set the Header rule color. By default it is set to dark gray (#555) but you can change it if you wish.

To change the color:
1. Clear the Use default color checkbox.
2. Set the color.
  
  Either:
  - Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
  - Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
    
    Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will create a PDF that uses the header rule settings that you have defined.

Footers for PDFs

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to control the footer that appears at the bottom of the page. The footer consists of a three-column table that appears on every page in your output.

A PDF page produced by Paligo. It has text on the page and at the bottom there is a three column table with a single row. It a footer and it has a left cell, center cell, and right cell. A callout box highlights the table.

Use the page footer settings in the layout to style the footer and add content to the footer cells:

Set the Footer Table Height and Column Widths
Set the Font for the Footer Table Cells
Set the Vertical Alignment for the Footer Table
Add Content to the Footer Table Cells.

Set the Footer Table Height and Column Widths

You can use the PDF layout editor to change the footer table height and widths to suit your requirements.

Note

The table has to have three columns. If you need more columns, it may be possible to achieve through a customization project. Contact customer support for more details.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Header and Footer > Page footer.
Set the widths of the footer columns in the Page footer table relative column widths field.

There are three values, each representing a column. The default value is 1 1 1 which produces three columns of equal width. You can change any of the three values to allocate the available space differently, for example, 1 3 1 produces a footer where the center column has three times the width of the left and right columns (this is equivalent to 20% 60% and 20%).
Set the minimum height of the footer table in the Page footer table height field.

The default is 14pt. When you enter a value, make sure to include the units of measurement, for example, pt.
Select Save.

When you publish your content using this PDF layout, Paligo will apply the settings to the footer of the PDF.

Set the Font for the Footer Table Cells

Use the PDF layout to choose the font settings for your footer cells. You can choose the font family, set the color, spacing and more.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select Header and Footer > Page footer.
Use the following settings to define the font and text spacing settings for the footer table text:
- Page footer font family
  
  Choose the typeface for the text in the cells.
- Page footer font size
  
  Set the size of the text in the cells.
- Page footer font weight
  
  Set the thickness of the text in the cells.
- Page footer font style
  
  Use to set the text in the cells to italic, backslant (leaning backwards), or normal.
- Page footer font variant
  
  Set the font to display as normal or as small caps. The small caps option turns lower case letters into reduced height capital letters.
- Page footer font color
  
  Use to set the color of the text in the cells. You can check the box to use the default color or you can clear the box and choose a different color. Enter an RGB value or select the color block to display a color selector.
- Page footer line height
  
  Set the height of each line of text in the cells. You need to include the units of measurement too, for example, px, pt, em.
- Page footer capitalization
  
  Set the text in the page header cells to be shown in all full-size capital letters, all lowercase letters, or capitalized (first letter capital, other letters lowercase).
  Note
  
  If you have set the Page footer font variant to small caps:
  The capitalized option sets upper case letters to be full-size capitals. The other letters will be shown as reduced height capital letters (small caps).
  
  Example of capitalized and small caps used at the same time.
  
  The lowercase option has no effect.
- Page footer letter-spacing
  
  Define the amount of spacing between the letters of the text in the cells.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish content with this PDF layout, Paligo will use the font settings when it generates the PDF.

Set the Vertical Alignment for the Footer Table

Use the PDF layout to control the vertical alignment of the content in the footer cells:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Header and Footer > Page footer.
Set the Page footer table vertical alignment to:
- Auto - Sets the content to have the same baseline. This looks similar to vertically aligning content to the bottom of the cells.
  
  Sets the content to have the same baseline. This looks similar to vertically aligning content to the bottom of the cells.
- Before - Vertically align the content to the top.
  
  Vertically align the content to the top.
- Center - Vertically align the content to the middle.
  
  Vertically align the content to the middle.
- After - Vertically align the content to the bottom.
  
  Vertically align the content to the bottom.
Note

If your alignment choices appear to have no effect, try increasing the height of the footer table (see Set the Footer Table Height and Column Widths). At smaller table heights, the difference between the alignments can be negligible.
Select Save.

When you publish your content using this layout, Paligo will apply the alignment settings to the footer.

Set the Border for the Footer Cells

Use the Page footer table cell border setting to add a visible border to the footer. The borders can be useful when you are setting up your footer and you need to see the cell boundaries so that you can better judge the cell widths.

Note

The footer is on every page, but may appear as a line on the front cover. This is because the front cover footer does not show the footer text and so has a forced block height of 0.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select Header and Footer > Page footer.
Set the border styling in the Page footer table cell border field.
You can use these values:
- Line thickness:
  thin
  
  medium
  
  thick
  
  Exact value (also known as "length")
  
  Enter a width measurement including the units of measurement, for example, 3pt.
- Line style:
  none - There is no border.
  
  hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
  
  dotted - The border is a dotted line.
  
  dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
  
  solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
  
  double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
  
  groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
  
  ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
  
  inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- Line color:
  
  Use any of these:
  Color name, such as silver
  
  RGB value, such as rgb(255,0,0)
  
  Hex number, such as #ff0000
For example, if you wanted a medium thickness, dashed line border and you wanted it blue, you would enter:
```
medium dashed blue
```
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

Tip

When you have finished designing your footer, you can turn the table cell border off by entering none as the value.

Add Content to the Footer Table Cells

Use the PDF layout to add content to the footer table cells for PDFs.

Note

The footer table is shown on all pages, except the front cover. Technically, the footer is on the front cover, but it is set to have a fixed height of 0 so any text in the footer will not be visible.

To add text, images, or auto-generated content such as page numbers to your footer:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select Header and Footer > Page footer.
Use the Page footer <column> cell content setting to choose the type of content to add to that cell. There are separate Page footer <column> cell content settings for the left, center, and right cells.

Choose from:
- None - Paligo will not include any content in the cell.
  
  Paligo will not include any content in the cell.
- Text - Set the cell to contain text that you will define in the Page header <column> cell content: text field.
  
  Set the cell to contain text that you will define in the Page footer <column> cell content: text field.
- Image - Set the cell to contain an image that you will choose in the Page header <column> cell content: image field.
  
  Set the cell to contain an image that you will choose in the Page footer <column> cell content: image field.
- Pagenumber - Adds the page number to the cell.
  
  Adds the page number to the cell.
  
  Note
  
  The page number is only shown in the PDF output if the General > Page > Print page numbers setting is set to Yes (or Default). For details, see Include Page Numbers in PDFs.
- Page X - Adds the word "Page" followed by the page number to the cell.
  
  Adds the word "Page" followed by the page number to the cell.
- Page X of Y - Adds current page and total page number to the cell, for example, "Page 6 of 75".
  
  Adds current page and total page number to the cell, for example, "Page 6 of 75".
- Title - Adds the first title element in your content to the cell. Depending on what you publish, this is the title of your publication or a topic.
  
  Adds the first title element in your content to the cell. Depending on what you publish, this is the title of your publication or a topic.
- Chapter title - Adds the title element of the "chapter" to the cell. The "chapter" is a top-level topic in your publication.
  
  Adds the title element of the "chapter" to the cell. The "chapter" is a top-level topic in your publication.
  
  For example, let's say you have a top-level topic called "Installation" and then lower-level topics for "Install the battery" and "Install the fan unit". In this scenario, all three topics will have "Installation" in the cell, as they are all part of the same "chapter". Topics in a different "chapter" will have a different title in the cell.
- Section title - Adds the title element of the topic to the cell. For example, if you have an "Install the battery" topic, it will have "Install the battery" in the cell, but other topics will have their title in the cell instead.
  
  Adds the title element of the topic to the cell. For example, if you have an "Install the battery" topic, it will have "Install the battery" in the cell, but other topics will have their title in the cell instead.
This step only applies if you selected Text as the Page footer <column> cell content.

In the Page footer <column> cell content: Text field, enter:
- Plain text
- A dynamic variable to reference an element in your documentation. A popular use for a dynamic variable here is to reference an element that appears in the publication topic, such as copyright details. We have included an example after this procedure. To find out more, see Dynamic Text Variables.
  
  A popular use for a dynamic variable here is to reference an element that appears in the publication topic, such as copyright details. We have included an example after this procedure.
  
  To find out more, see Dynamic Text Variables.
- A combination of plain text and dynamic variables
Note

There are separate Page footer <column> cell content: Text settings for the left, center, and right cells.
This step only applies if you selected Image as the Page footer <column> cell content.

In the Page footer <column> cell content: Image field, use the browse feature to select the image you want to use. You can choose an image from the media library or you can upload a new image.

Note

There are separate Page footer <column> cell content: Image settings for the left, center, and right cells.
Repeat steps 3 to 5 inclusive for each of the cells.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish content with this PDF layout, Paligo will add the images and text you have selected.

Example 70. Dynamic variable to insert copyright information in PDF footer

Let's say you have set up your publication topic to include copyright elements, including year and holder elements (see Edit a Publication Topic). You are going to publish to PDF and you want the center cell of your footer to contain the copyright details.

You edit your PDF layout and set:

Page footer center cell content to Text
In the Page footer center cell content: text field, you enter a dynamic variable to reference the copyright>year and holder elements. The syntax is:
```
Copyright © ${//d:article/d:info/d:copyright/d:year}$ ${//d:article/d:info/d:copyright/d:holder}$
```
Notice how it includes the word Copyright and the copyright symbol as plain text. It then has two references: one to the year element and one to the holder element. It starts with the article element (which is in the publication topic), and then each level of the structure (info>copyright>year and info>copyright>holder).

PDF layout. Page footer center cell content setting has text as its value. Page footer center cell content text setting has a reference to the copyright year and copyright holder elements as its valye.

When you publish, Paligo:

Adds the text copyright and the copyright symbol to the center cell of the footer
Finds copyright > year in the publication topic and inserts the year value into the center cell, after the text
Finds copyright > holder in the publication topic and inserts the holder value into the center cell, after the year.

Footer Rule for PDFs

By default, Paligo PDF outputs have a footer rule at the bottom of each page. To style the rule, or remove it completely, use the Page settings in the PDF layout.

Footer rule. A solid dark gray line is at the bottom of the page, above the page number.

To set up the footer rule:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General and choose Page.
Use the Footer rule setting to control whether the footer rule is shown.

Choose either:
- Yes
- No
Set the Footer rule width. This is the amount of page width that the footer rule will cover and it has to be a numerical value with units of measurement. By default, it is set to 100%.
Choose the Footer rule style. You can choose from any of the available line styles including dotted, solid, and dashed.

For example, the following image shows a dashed footer rule.
Set the Footer rule color. By default it is set to dark gray (#555) but you can change it if you wish.

To change the color:
1. Clear the Use default color checkbox.
2. Set the color.
  
  Either:
  - Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
  - Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
    
    Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish with this PDF layout, Paligo will create a PDF that uses the footer rule settings that you have defined.

Numbering for PDFs

The PDF layout has settings for controlling various types of numbering in your PDF outputs including:

Page numbers

You can set Paligo to show or hide page numbers that are added to the header table or footer table.

To learn how to show/hide the page numbers, see Include Page Numbers in PDFs.

To learn how to add a page number to the header or footer, see:
- Add Content to the Header Table Cells
- Add Content to the Footer Table Cells.
To set page numbering to start after the table of contents, see Start Page Numbers after the TOC.
Section numbers (heading numbers)

To learn how to set up numbered headings, see Manage Section Numbering (PDF).
Title numbers, such as numbering for figure titles and table titles.

To learn how to set up numbered titles, see Title Numbering and Auto-Labels in PDF.

Include Page Numbers in PDFs

To include page numbers in your PDF outputs:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General and choose Page.
Set Print page numbers to:
- Yes
  
  To include page numbers in your headers or footers in your PDFs
- No
  
  To exclude page numbers from the headers or footers in your PDFs
Select Save.
If you want to include a page number, set a cell in the footer or header to show the page number. For details, see:
- Add Content to the Footer Table Cells
- Add Content to the Header Table Cells

When you publish content with this layout, the resulting PDF will include page numbers if:

Print page numbers is set to Yes (default is Yes)

and

You have set the left, center, or right cells in the header or footer to show the page number.

If Print page numbers is set to No, the page number is not shown in the header or footer. Similarly, if Print page numbers is set to Yes, but the header and footer tables do not include a page number, then no page number is shown.

Start Page Numbers after the TOC

By default, Paligo starts the page numbering on the first page of the TOC (table of contents). The page numbers then continue throughout the rest of the document. If you prefer, you can set Paligo to start the page numbering after the TOC, so that only the content pages are numbered.

To set page numbering to start after the TOC:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select General and choose Page.
Use the Start page numbering after the TOC setting to control where the page numbering begins.

Choose either:
- Yes
  
  Paligo will begin the page numbers after the last page of the table of contents.
- No
  
  Paligo will begin the page numbers on the first page of the table of contents. No is the default setting.
Select Save.

Manage Section Numbering (PDF)

You can choose to have numbered headings, such as "1.2 Power up the device" in your PDF output. Typically, you apply numbering to all sections (by enabling Section Titles > All Sections > Section Numbering in the Layout Editor) or to not use numbered headings at all.

But there may be times when you need a mix of numbered headings and headings without numbering and for that, you can use the element attribute label.

When you publish topics that use this element attribute, Paligo will not apply numbering to its heading, even if the publication is set to use numbered headings. The heading will appear as text-only, both in the topic itself and in the table of contents.

To prevent a topic from being auto-numbered:

Select the topic or component in the Content Manager.

Paligo opens the content in the Editor.
Select the section element in the Element Structure Menu.
Select Go to element.
Add the label attribute in the Element Attributes Panel.

The 0 value instructs Paligo to avoid using numbering for this section.
Set the value to 0.
Select Save.

Note

To enable numbering again, remove the label attribute.

Title Numbering and Auto-Labels in PDF

Some elements, such as tables and examples, can have titles. By default, these titles consist of an auto-generated label, a number, and a number delimiter, for example, "Table 1. Specifications". Depending on your requirements, you can set Paligo to include or exclude the title numbers and labels.

To turn on/off the numbering and auto-labels for PDF outputs, use the settings in the PDF layout editor:

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select Formal Elements > General.
Set Use auto-label for formal elements to:
- Enabled to include the title numbering and auto-labels for tables, examples, and other elements with titles.
- Disabled to exclude the title numbering and auto-labels for titles.,
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish with this PDF layout, the title elements will include or exclude the auto-label and numbering, depending on your selection in the layout.

Admonition Styles for PDF

Use the PDF layout's admonition settings (General, Graphical, and Nongraphical) to change the appearance of notes, warnings, cautions, and other admonitions.

Which Admonition Parts Can You Style?

Abstract

What parts of an admonition can you customize for your PDF outputs? Find out in this article.

The PDF layout has Admonitions settings for styling the notes, cautions, and other admonitions in your PDF outputs. Use the settings to style the various parts of an admonition:

A caution admonition. It has two columns. The left column is narrower and contains a symbol. The right column has a title and the text for the admonition. The background of the admontion is yellow. There is a callout number 1 above the left column. A 2 is next to the symbol, a 3 next to the title, a 4 next to the text, and a 5 on the background.

The spacing around the admonition
The icon for graphical admonitions
The title
The body text
The admonition box (the container that the icon, title, and text are inside).

The Admonitions settings are divided into three categories:

General

The General settings apply to all admonitions in your PDF output and they take priority over the Graphical and Nongraphical settings.
Graphical

The Graphical settings only apply to admonitions if the layout is set to use graphical admonitions (which it is by default).

Graphical admonitions have a box that, by default, contains two columns. The left-side column is narrower and contains an icon that represents the type of admonition. The right-side column contains the title and body text.
Nongraphical

The Nongraphical settings only apply to admonitions when you have set the layout to use non-graphical admonitions.

Non-graphical admonitions have a single column with a title, body text and no icon.

You will need to use the settings in the General category and one of the other categories, depending on whether you want graphical or non-graphical admonitions.

Set Admonitions to Graphical or Non-Graphical

Abstract

Find out how to set admonitions to be graphical or nongraphical. Graphical admontions have an icon and box, but nongraphical ones are text only.

There are two styles of admonition in Paligo: graphical (with an icon) and non-graphical (no icon). For PDF, you can use the PDF layout to control which type of admonition your publication will use.

Warning admonition. In the left column is a warning symbol. In the right column is a title "Warning" and below that, the text of the warning.

Example of warning admonition with icon

A warning admonition. It has no symbol and no background color. It only has a title "Warning" and below that, the text for the warning message.

Example of warning admonition without icon

To set the layout to use graphical or non-graphical admonitions:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Admonitions.
Select General.
Set Use graphics in admonitions to choose the type of admonitions:
- Enabled
  
  Paligo will publish your content with admonitions that have an icon. For styling, Paligo will use a combination of the admonition General and admonition Graphical settings. It will ignore the Nongraphical settings.
- Disabled
  
  Paligo will publish your content with admonitions that have no icon, only the text. For styling, Paligo will use a combination of the admonition General and admonition Nongraphical settings. It will ignore the Graphical settings.
- <listitem>
  Default - To inherit the value for this setting from the base layout. The base layout is either a built-in layout provided by Paligo or another custom layout. To find out more, see Layout Relationships - Base, New, Duplicate.
  </listitem>
Select Save.

To learn about using the other PDF layout settings to style admonitions, see Admonition Styles for PDF.

Set the Admonition Spacing for PDF

Abstract

Learn how to control the spacing for admonitions in PDF outputs. Set the margins and the padding to control the space inside an admonition.

To control the spacing around admonitions in PDF outputs, use the margin settings in the PDF layout. The layout also has padding settings for controlling the spacing inside the admonition.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Admonitions.
Select General.
Use these settings to define the side margins for the text inside your admonitions:
- Margin-left for admonitions body
  
  Use to set a left-side indent for the body text of admonitions.
- Margin-right for admonitions body
  
  Use to set a right-side indent for the body text of admonitions.
For both settings, enter a value and include the units of measurement, for example, 16pt. Paligo applies the indent from the default position of the body text.
Use these settings to define the side margins for the titles in your admonitions:
- Margin-left for admonition title
  
  Use to set a left-side indent for the title of admonitions.
- Margin-right for admonition title
  
  Use to set a right-side indent for the title of admonitions.
  
  Note
  
  If you have short titles for your admonitions, you may not be able to see the effect of the margin. This is because the title text will not extend across the admonition box far enough to reach the margin.
For both settings, enter a value and include the units of measurement, for example, 16pt. Paligo applies the indent from the default position of the title.
Select Graphical.
Use these settings to define the amount of space above and below graphical admonitions:
- Space-before (optimum) for graphical admonitions
  
  Use to set a preferred amount of space above graphical admonitions.
- Space-after (optimum) for graphical admonitions
  
  Use to set a preferred amount of space below graphical admonitions.
- Space-before (optimum) for graphical admonitions in list items and steps
  
  Use to set a preferred amount of space above graphical admonitions that appear in a list or procedure.
- Space-after (optimum) for graphical admonitions in list items and steps
  
  Use to set a preferred amount of space below graphical admonitions that appear in a list or procedure.
For all of these settings, enter a scaling value. Paligo uses the value in relation to the size of body text in your PDF. For example, if you enter 2.5, Paligo will add spacing that is 2.5 times bigger than the body text size. If you enter 0.5, Paligo will add spacing that is half the size of the body text.

Paligo will try to apply the preferred amount of space, but in some cases may need to use less. For example, a page break might result in Paligo applying different spacing.
Use the following settings to define the amount of space inside the graphical admonitions. This is the "padding".
- Padding-top for graphical admonitions
  
  Enter the amount of space between the top of the admonition box and the top of the title (or body text if there is no title). Enter a value and the units of measurement, for example, 2em.
- Padding-bottom for graphical admonitions
  
  Enter the amount of space between the bottom of the admonition box and the bottom of the body text. Enter a value and its units of measurement, for example, 2em.
Use these settings to set margins for graphical admonitions. The margins apply to the whole admonition, not just the content inside it.
- Margin-left for graphical admonitions
  
  Sets the left-side indent for all graphical admonitions.
- Margin-right for graphical admonitions
  
  Sets the right-side indent for all graphical admonitions.
For both settings, enter a value and the units of measurement, for example, 2cm. When setting a margin, consider the amount of space available on the page of your PDF.
Use the Margin-left for graphical admonition icon setting to control the position of the admonition icons. Enter a value and the units of measurement, for example, 1.5em. Paligo applies the margin from the default position of an icon.

Note

The icon can overlap the text and title. If you change the icon margin, you may also need to change the title and body text margins.
Select Nongraphical.
Use the spacing settings to adjust the positioning of the title and body text of your nongraphical admonitions. The settings work in the same way as the similarly named settings in the Graphical category, except that they apply to the nongraphical admonitions instead.
- Space-before (optimal) for nongraphical admonitions
  
  Use to set a preferred amount of space above non-graphical admonitions.
- Space-after (optimal) for nongraphical admonitions
  
  Use to set a preferred amount of space below non-graphical admonitions.
- Padding-top for nongraphical admonitions
  
  Use to set the amount of space above the title of nongraphical admonitions. This space applies to the body text if there is no title.
- Padding-bottom for nongraphical admonitions
  
  Use to set the amount of space below the body text of nongraphical admonitions.
- Margin-left for nongraphical admonition
  
  Use to set the left-side indent of nongraphical admonitions. This applies to the whole admonition.
- Margin-right for nongraphical admonition
  
  Use to set the right-side indent of nongraphical admonition. This applies to the whole admonition.
Select Save.

To learn about using the other PDF layout settings to style admonitions, see Admonition Styles for PDF.

Style the Admonition Icons for PDF

Abstract

Discover how to style the icons in graphical admonitions. Change the icon for each type of admonition and set its width.

Graphical admonitions have an icon that is shown on one side of the admonitions box.

A tip admonition. It has a title "Tip" and below that is some body text. To the left is a lightbulb icon. A callout arrow points to the lightbulb icon.

To style the icon for PDF outputs, use the settings on the PDF layout.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Admonitions.
Select Graphical.
Use Admonition icon width to set the size of the admonition icons.

Enter a value and the units of measurement, for example, 24pt. Paligo will set the width of the icon image container and will scale the image to fit. When it scales the image, Paligo keeps the aspect ratio so that the image is not stretched in height or width.
Use the following settings to upload an icon graphic for each type of admonition. We recommend that you use graphics that are square and the same size (or close to) that you want them to be in your output.
- Icon for 'Note'
- Icon for 'Notice'
- Icon for 'Warning'
- Icon for 'Danger'
- Icon for 'Caution'
- Icon for 'Important'
- Icon for 'Tip'
For each setting, select the Upload button to display an image upload dialog. Drag the image file on to the dialog.

Select Save.

Note

To learn how to indent an admonition icon, see Set the Admonition Spacing for PDF.

To learn about using the other PDF layout settings to style admonitions, see Admonition Styles for PDF.

Style the Admonition Titles for PDF

Abstract

Learn how to style the titles in admonitions for PDF outputs. Include or exclude a title, set its font, style, and color.

Admonitions can have a title (also referred to as a label) that is shown at the top of the admonition, above the body text. For example, the following image shows a tip admonition and it has "TIP" as its title.

A tip admonition. There is a lightbulb icon in the narrow column on the left. In the right column, there is a title "TIP" and below that the text for the tip.

Note

If you use an admonition that does not include a title inside it, Paligo will add an auto-generated title when you publish. The auto-gerated title has text that describes the type of admonition, either: NOTE, NOTICE, DANGER, WARNING, CAUTION, IMPORTANT, or TIP. Paligo translates these title terms into most other languages automatically.

If you use an admonition with a title element inside it, the editor shows its title element and you can enter your own title text. Paligo will use this title and will not auto-generate a title. You will need to get this translated if you publish into other languages.

You can use the PDF layout to control whether your admonitions have a title and also to style the title text:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Admonitions.
Select General.
Set Use text label in admonitions to:
- Enabled to include an auto-generated title.
  
  If you use an admonition that does not contain a title element, Paligo will automatically add a title element when you publish. The auto-generated title has the text: NOTE, NOTICE, DANGER, WARNING, CAUTION, IMPORTANT, or TIP. These are automatically translated into other languages.
  
  If you add your own title element to an admonition, you can enter its text in the editor. Paligo will use your title element and will not auto-generate a title.
- Disabled to prevent Paligo from creating auto-titles.
  
  When you publish, Paligo will only include the titles that have been added into the admontions in the editor. It will not auto-generate any admonition titles.
Use the following settings to style the title text for admonitions:
- Default font family for admonition title
  
  Choose the typeface that Paligo will use for the title of admonitions by default.
- Default font size for admonition title
  
  Set the default size for the admonition title (if the admonition has a title element). Enter a value and the units of measurement, for example, 12pt.
- Capitalization for admonition title
  
  Choose from:
  - None
    
    Paligo does not change the case of the title characters.
  - Capitalize
    
    The first letter in each word is uppercase, the other letters are lower case.
  - Upper case
    
    All letters are capital letters. for example, ABC. Upper case is the default for this setting.
  - Lower case
    
    All letters are lower case, for example, abc.
Use the following settings to set the color for your admonition text. The color applies to the title and the body text.
- Font color for 'Note'
- Font color for 'Notice'
- Font color for 'Warning'
- Font color for 'Danger'
- Font color for 'Caution'
- Font color for 'Tip'
- Font color for 'Important'
To choose your own color, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).

Select Save.

Note

To learn how to indent an admonition title, see Set the Admonition Spacing for PDF.

To learn about using the other PDF layout settings to style admonitions, see Admonition Styles for PDF.

Style the Admonition Text for PDF

Abstract

Learn how to style the body text in admonitions for PDF outputs. Choose the font and set the size and color.

Admonitions have body text that provides the user with information. Typically, the body text is in para elements, but you can also include lists and other types of content. We recommend that you keep admonitions short and concise.

A tip admonition. It has a title "Tip", an icon, and some body text. There is a callout box around the body text to highlight it.

To style the body text for PDF outputs, use the settings on the PDF layout:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Admonitions.
Select General.
Use the following settings to style the text for admonitions:
- Default font family for admonition text
  
  Choose the typeface that Paligo will use for admonition text by default. Select the typeface from the list of available fonts.
- Default font size for admonition text
  
  Set the default size of the admonition text. Enter a value and the units of measurement, for example, 12pt.
Use the following settings to set the color for your admonition text. The color applies to the title and the body text.
- Font color for 'Note'
- Font color for 'Notice'
- Font color for 'Warning'
- Font color for 'Danger'
- Font color for 'Caution'
- Font color for 'Tip'
- Font color for 'Important'
To choose your own color, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

Note

To learn how to indent admonition body text, see Set the Admonition Spacing for PDF.

To learn about using the other PDF layout settings to style admonitions, see Admonition Styles for PDF.

Style the Admonition Box for PDF

Abstract

Learn how to style the border and background color of admonitions for PDF outputs. Set a border style and color and change the background color of the admonition box.

Graphical admonitions have a box that acts as a container for the admonition icon, title, and text. For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to style the box, including setting a background color and styling the box borders.

Note

To learn how to control the space around an admonition and inside it, see Set the Admonition Spacing for PDF.

To style the admonition boxes:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Admonitions.
Select General.
Use the following settings to set the background color of the admonition box:
- Background color for 'Note'
- Background color for 'Notice'
- Background color for 'Warning'
- Background color for 'Danger'
- Background color for 'Caution'
- Background color for 'Tip'
- Background color for 'Important'
To choose your own color, clear the Use default color checkbox and then either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Graphical.
Use Background color for graphical admonitions to choose one color for all graphical admonitions.

Again, to set a custom color, clear the Use default color checkbox and then use the color selector to choose a color.

Note

Paligo will only use the color you select here if the General category has the background colors set to default.

For example, let's say you select the General category and set Background color for 'Caution' to orange. You then go into the Graphical category and set Background color for graphical admonitions to blue. When you publish, your caution admonitions will have an orange background, as the General category takes priority over the Graphical category and Nongraphical category.
Set the Border width for graphical admonitions. This is the thickness of the border line around the edge of the admonition box. It applies to all types of admonition, such as note, caution, and warning.

Enter a value and the units of measurement, for example, 0.5pt.
Choose the Border style for graphical admonitions from the list. The options are:
- none - There is no border.
- hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
- dotted - The border is a dotted line.
- dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
- solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
- double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
- groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
- ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
- inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
Set the Border color for graphical admonitions.

Again, to choose your own color, clear the Use default color checkbox and then use the color selector to set the color.
Use the Border radius for graphical admonitions setting to set the amount of curve on the corners of the border box. Set it to 0pt for no curves or enter a value and a unit of measurement to add curves. For example, you could use 10pt to give the box curved corners.

Select Save.

Inline Elements for PDF

For PDF outputs, you can use the PDF layout to style various inline elements, such as guilabel, email, and quote. There are separate sections for the commonly used inline elements and each section has settings for choosing the font, spacing, color and other features.

The hierarchy of inline element settings on a PDF layout. At the top is the parent Inline elements option. Inside that, there are options for filename, various gui elements, email, glossterm, computeroutput, productname and quote.

To learn how to apply the styling settings, see the following sections:

Style the Font for Inline Elements
Set the Padding for Inline Elements
Control Line Breaks in Inline Elements
Set the Color for Inline Elements
Style the Border for Inline Elements.

Note

For HTML outputs, use CSS to style the classes (see Style with CSS).

Style the Font for Inline Elements

To style the font for inline elements in PDFs, such as guilabel and guimenu, use the settings in the PDF layout.

Note

For HTML outputs, use CSS to style the classes (see Style with CSS).

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Inline elements and then the category for the type of inline element you want to style, for example, guilabel.
Use the font settings to style the appearance of the text:
- Font family for <inline element>
  
  Choose the typeface for the inline element from the available list.
- Font size for <inline element>
  
  Enter the font size, including the units of measurement, for example, 12pt or 1.2em
- Font weight for <inline element>
  
  Set the thickness of the text for the inline element. Choose from the list, which includes options for a range of widths, including thin, semi bold, and extra bold.
- Font style for <inline element>
  
  Set the text for the inline element to italic, backslant (leaning backwards), or normal.
- Font variant for <inline element>
  
  Set the font to display as normal or as small caps. The small caps option turns lower case letters into reduced height capital letters.
- Capitalization for <inline element>
  
  Set the text for the inline element to be shown as normal, all capital letters, or all lower case.
  Note
  
  If you have set the Font variant to small caps, it will affect the capitalization options too. The capitalization options will work like this:
  Upper case sets uppercase letters to appear at full height. Other letters are shown as reduced height capital letters (small caps).
  
  Lower case has no effect.
- Letter-spacing for <inline element>
  
  Define the amount of spacing between the letters of the inline element. Enter the value and the units of measurement, for example, 0.2pt.
Select Save.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the styling to the appropriate elements.

To learn about the other settings for PDF inline elements, see Inline Elements for PDF.

Set the Color for Inline Elements

Use a PDF layout to change the color of inline elements. You can change the color of the text, like this:

A step in a procedure. It contains a guilabel element and the text inside that element is pink.

Also, you can change the color of the inline image background, which is useful for creating a "highlight" effect like this:

A step in a procedure. It contains a guilabel element and the the background of the element is yellow. This makes the guilabel element look like it has been highlighted.

Note

For HTML outputs, use CSS to style the classes (see Style with CSS).

To set the color for inline elements in PDF outputs:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Inline elements and then the category for the type of inline element you want to style, for example, guilabel.
Use the Color for <inline element> setting to choose the color for the inline element text.

If you do not want to use the default color, clear the Use default color checkbox. You can then use the color selector to choose a color.
Either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Use the Background color for <inline element> setting to choose a background color. This is the color that will appear behind the text for the inline element, similar to a highlight.

Again, clear the Use default color checkbox and then use the color selector to choose a color.
Select Save.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the styling to the appropriate elements.

To learn about the other settings for PDF inline elements, see Inline Elements for PDF.

Control Line Breaks in Inline Elements

Use the PDF layout to control how Paligo handles inline elements that cannot fit entirely on the same line. Depending on your choices, Paligo will either break the inline element over two lines, hyphenate it, or move the entire element on to the next line.

Note

For HTML, use CSS to control hyphenation and line breaks. To learn how to use and upload CSS, see Style with CSS.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Inline elements and then the category for the type of inline element you want to style, for example, guilabel.
Use the Allow Hyphenation for <inline element> setting to control whether Paligo hyphenates words in the element.

Choose:
- True
  
  Paligo will hyphenate a word, if needed. This means part of a word may appear on one line, with the rest of the word on the next line, with a hyphen at the break point.
- False
  
  Paligo will not hyphenate words that cannot fit on a line. It will only show complete words on a line, and if a word does not fit, it will move to the next line. So if you have two words inside an inline element, the first word might be on one line and the second word on the next line.
Use Keep <inline element> on one line to control how Paligo positions the entire element.

Choose:
- Yes
  
  Paligo will try to keep the entire inline element on the line where it is positioned. If it cannot fit on one line, the entire inline element is moved to the next line. This is true in most cases, but there are some exceptions where the inline element will break over two lines, such as if the inline element is too long for a table cell.
- No
  
  Paligo will allow the inline element to break over two lines. It will either hyphenate the inline element or split the inline element over two lines, depending on the Allow hyphenation in <inline element> setting.
- Always
  
  This option will set Paligo to always display the entire inline element on the line where it is positioned. This can mean that the inline element extends beyond the body area of the page. Typically, this option is not used, but it is included for special cases.
Select Save.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the styling to the appropriate elements.

To learn about the other settings for PDF inline elements, see Inline Elements for PDF.

Style the Border for Inline Elements

You can use the PDF layout settings to add a border around inline elements such as guilabel and guimenuitem. This is useful if you need to draw extra attention to the inline elements for some reason.

A step from a procedure. It is number 1 and states Select the layout tab in the top menu. The word layout has a blue rectangular border around it.

Example of a blue, solid border around a guilabel element.

Note

For HTML outputs, use CSS to style the classes (see Style with CSS).

To style a border for inline elements in PDF outputs:

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Inline elements and then the category for the type of inline element you want to style, for example, guilabel.
Use the Border width for <inline element> setting to set the thickness of the border line. Enter a value and the units of measurement, such as, 0.5em or 1pt.
Use the Border style for <inline element> setting to choose a type of border.
- none - There is no border.
  
  There is no border.
- hidden - There is a border but it cannot be seen.
  
  There is a border but it cannot be seen.
- dotted - The border is a dotted line.
  
  The border is a dotted line.
- dashed - The border is made up of short lines.
  
  The border is made up of short lines.
- solid - The border is a single line with no breaks.
  
  The border is a single line with no breaks.
- double - The border is two lines with no breaks.
  
  The border is two lines with no breaks.
- groove - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look.
- ridge - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look.
- inset - The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "pressed down" look. It is similar to the groove style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
- outset - The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
  
  The border has lines and shading to create a "raised" look. It is similar to the ridge style, but uses a different line and shading pattern.
Set the Border color for <inline element>.

If you do not want to use the default color, clear the Use default color checkbox. You can then use the color selector to choose a color.
Either:
- Enter the RGBA code for the color you want (1).
- Select the color square (2) to display the color selector.
  
  Use the spectrum bar (3) to choose the color and use the opacity bar (4) to control the transparency of the color. Choose the shade of color from the main color panel (5).
Select Save.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the styling to the appropriate elements.

To learn about the other settings for PDF inline elements, see Inline Elements for PDF.

Set the Padding for Inline Elements

You can set each type of inline element, such as guilabel and guimenuitem, to have a specific amount of space before and after the element. For example, in the following image, there is a 2em space before an inline element and also after it. (This is quite a large amount of space, but used here to show where the spacing applies).

A paragraph that contains an inline element. There is a 2em space before and after the inline element. Callout arrows point to the spaces.

To control the amount of space before and after an inline element, use the Padding for <inline element> setting (where <inline element> is a specific element, such as guilabel). The space can help to make the inline element terms stand out more on a page, so that they are easy to pick out when skimming over the page rather than reading it in depth.

Note

For HTML outputs, use CSS to style the classes (see Style with CSS).

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Inline elements and then the category for the type of inline element you want to style, for example, guilabel.
Use the Padding for <inline element> setting to set the amount of space before and after every instance of the <inline element>. You need to enter a value and the units of measurement, such as, 0.5em or 1cm.

For example, if you want to add 0.5em padding to all guilabel elements, you would enter 0.5em in the Padding for guilabel field.
Select Save.

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will apply the styling to the appropriate elements.

To learn about the other settings for PDF inline elements, see Inline Elements for PDF.

PDF Document Properties and Metadata

PDFs have document properties that, when viewed in Adobe^® Acrobat^®, are shown on the Document Properties dialog.

Document Properties in Adobe Acrobat. The dialog has many tabs with metadata about the document.

To include this information in the PDFs you publish in Paligo, you will need to set up the publication topic and make some choices in the PDF layout.

Note

When you publish to PDF, you choose a PDF layout to use. Paligo creates the PDF document properties based on your choices in the PDF layout settings. But these properties may not be used by all PDF viewers. For example, copyright information is included in the full Adobe Acrobat, but may not appear in other PDF viewer applications.

Set Title, Subject, Keywords, Author in the Publication Topic

PDF document properties include a title, subject, keywords, and author information. In Paligo, this information is taken from specific elements that you can add to your publication topic. (Unlike many of the other document properties, which you can set in the PDF layout).

Note

The structures for author, subject, and keywords are optional. You do not have to include them.

To add the appropriate elements and structure in the publication topic:

Select the publication's options menu ( ...) and then select Edit and then Open in Editor. Paligo opens the publication topic. This is a topic at the root of the publication and you can use it to add various "front matter" elements, such as images, cover text, copyright information, etc.

The publication topic has article as its top-level element rather than section. Inside this, there is an info element. The info element is important, as all of the elements you add for PDF properties need to be inside the info element.
Define the title.

The title for your PDF properties comes from the title inside the info element, for example:
```
  <info>
    <title>Acme 200X User Guide</title>
```
Enter the text you want for the title inside the title element.

Note

If the document is translated into other languages, translations of the title will also appear. They are separated by a bullet point.
Define the subject.

Select the position after the title but before the next element.

Use the element context menu to add the subjectset element.

To display the element context menu, press Alt and Enter (Windows) or Option ⌥ and Enter (Mac).

When you have added the subjectset element, select it and then use the element context menu to add the subject element. Then select the subject element and add the subjectterm element. Enter your subject text inside the subjectterm element.
```
 <subjectset>
      <subject>
        <subjectterm>User guide for the Acme 200X series</subjectterm>
      </subject>
 </subjectset>
```
Note

You can add multiple subject elements inside a subjectset, if required. The subjects will all be shown in the PDF document properties, separated by a comma.
Define the keywords.

Select the position after the closing subjectset element. In the element structure menu, you should see that the cursor is positioned at article > info.

Use the element context menu to add the keywordset element. Then select the keywordset element and add the keyword element.

Enter the text for the keyword. This text should describe one of the main concepts covered in the content.

To add more keywords, select the position below the keyword, but above the next element. Then use the element context menu to add another keyword element.
```
 <keywordset>
      <keyword>Acme 200X</keyword>
      <keyword>Acme 200Xe</keyword>
      <keyword>Acme 200Xs</keyword>
    </keywordset>
```
Define the author.

Select the position after the last element, so that the element structure menu shows the position as article > info. Then use the element context menu to add either the author element or the editor element. Paligo will use the first one of these it finds in the publication topic and map it to the author property of the PDF.

Select the author or editor element and then add the personname, honorific, firstname, surname, and othernameelements.

The following examples show the correct structure and order for these elements:
```
 <author>
      <personname>
        <honorific>Dr</honorific>
        <firstname>Sergio</firstname>
        <surname>Alvarez</surname>
        <othername>F</othername>
      </personname>
</author>
```
```
<editor>
      <personname>
        <honorific>Dr</honorific>
        <firstname>Sergio</firstname>
        <surname>Alvarez</surname>
        <othername>F</othername>
      </personname>
</editor>
```
Select Save.

Note

You can have other elements in the publication topic, such as copyright, but these are not used for the PDF document properties. For copyright details, use the settings in the PDF layout.

Set the Version of a PDF

There are different versions of PDF standards. For each PDF layout in Paligo, you can choose which version it will produce.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > PDF properties.
Select the PDF version that you want Paligo to create.

By default, Paligo uses version 1.7. If you have a specific need for an earlier version, choose that from the list.

For an output that complies with accessibility standards, choose a version that ends with UA-1:2014. You will also need to enable Generate Tagged PDF, which is in the General > Misc settings.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will create a PDF that uses the settings you have chosen.

Set PDF Copyright Metadata

Use General > PDF properties to set the copyright metadata for the PDF file. This is not the same as the copyright information that is shown inside the document, it is just the copyright information for the file.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > PDF properties.
Set the copyright information:
- Use the Copyright Status list to choose whether the content is Copyrighted or in the Public Domain. Select Unknown if you are unsure.
- In the Copyright Notice field, enter the full text of your copyright details.
- In the Copyright Info field, enter the URL of the organization that holds the copyright (typically, the website of your organization).
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

When you publish using this layout, Paligo will create a PDF that uses the settings you have chosen.

Set PDF Page Mode, Page Layout and UI Preferences

Use the General > PDF Properties settings to control the PDF page mode, page layout, and UI preferences such as whether the toolbar is shown. These settings affect how the PDF is presented in the initial view when it is first opened.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > PDF properties.
Set the Page Mode that will be used when the document is first opened.

Choose from:
- UseNone
  
  The document outline and thumbnail images are hidden.
- UseOutlines
  
  The document outline is shown.
- UseThumbs
  
  Thumbnail images are shown.
- FullScreen
  
  The document is shown at full screen size, with no visible menu bar or window controls.
Set the Page Layout that will be used when the document is first opened.

Choose from:
- SinglePage
  
  Show one page at a time.
- OneColumn
  
  Show the pages in one column.
- TwoColumnLeft
  
  Show the pages in two columns, with odd-numbered pages on the left
- TwoColumnRight
  
  Show the pages in two columns, with odd-numbered pages on the right
- TwoPageLeft
  
  Show two pages at the same time, with odd-numbered pages on the left
- TwoPageRight
  
  Show two pages at the same time, with odd-numbered pages on the right.
Use Hide Toolbar to choose whether the toolbar is visible when the document is first opened.
Use Hide Menubar to choose whether the menu is visible when the document is first opened.
Use Hide window UI to choose whether the UI elements, such as the scrollbar, are visible when the document is first opened.
Use Fit window to choose whether the document window is sized to fit the page size when it is first opened.
Use Center window to choose whether the document is shown in the center of the display area when it is first opened.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

Set PDF to Show Title or Filename

Use the General > PDF Properties > Display title feature to control whether the PDF view shows the filename of the PDF or the title. By default, PDFs will show the filename but showing the title can be better for accessibility.

Select Layout and then edit the PDF layout you are going to use for publishing. Alternatively, you can create a new PDF layout and edit that.
Select General > PDF properties.
Set Display title to:
- Yes to display the title instead of the filename
- No to display the filename instead of the title.
Check the box Use gateway to enable IP Allowlisting. Optional

Style Quote (PDF)

It is possible to customize the quotes in the Layout editor. You can edit the PDF layout to define font family, font weight, font style, font size, font variant, color, border, usage of capitalization and more.

Define Quote Font Family (PDF)

The font family used for Quotes can be defined in the Layout editor. The font family is inherited from the Document body settings. Paligo uses Arial as default font family with DejaVu Sans and Arial Unicode MS as fallback fonts.

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Inline elements and choose Quote from the left menu.
Select the Font family to be used from the menu.
Select Save.

Define Quote Font Style (PDF)

The font style used for Quotes can be defined in the Layout editor. You have the following options:

Normal - The text will be regular (default)
Italic - The text is slanted to the right in the reading direction (in left-to-right languages)
Backslant - The text is slanted to the left against the reading direction (in left-to-right languages)

Select the Layout tab in the top menu.

Paligo displays a list of Layouts. The list is empty if there are no custom Layouts in your Paligo instance.
Select the layout to be updated or Create a Layout.

Tip

You can copy the URL of the layout editor and paste it into a new tab in your browser. This can be useful if you frequently switch between your Paligo content and the layout settings.
Select Inline elements and choose Quote from the left menu.
Select the Font style to be used from the menu.
Select Save.

Articles in this section

Note

PDF Styling Workflow

PDF Layout Editor Options

Note

General for PDF

Note

Note

Tip

Admonitions for PDF

Back page

Cross-references for PDF

Note

Formal Elements for PDF

Front page

Header and footer

Inline Elements (PDF)

Keep-together options

Note

Lists

Section titles

Note

Tables for PDF

Verbatim (code and software)

Note

Set Default Fonts (PDF)

Note

Tip

Note

Booklet

Tip

Standard 2x1 Booklet

Tip

Note

Customize a Booklet

Note

Tip

Note

Troubleshoot a PDF Booklet

Tip

Style Titles and Subtitles (PDF)

Note

Define Title Alignment (PDF)

Tip

Define Title Font Color (PDF)

Tip

Rotate a Table (PDF)

Set a Table to Landscape Orientation

Note

Note

Set a Table to Portrait Orientation

Adjust List Spacing (PDF)

Note

Normal Lists and Compact Lists

Tip

Spacing Above and Below Lists

Tip

Spacing Above and Below List Items

Tip

Spacing After Block Elements in Lists

Note

Tip

Note

Left Margin Spacing for Lists

Tip

Level Text and Image

Add a Two Column Sidebar

Note

Note

Use Numbering in Sidebars

Note

Flow Text Around an Image

Three Column Page

Tip

Tip

Note

One Column Page

Tip

Tip

Note