iWork Pages '08 Can't Make Booklets??

I hope it is only me being stupid and not iWork '08 that stinks. I recently switched from PC to Mac. I purchased Office for Mac and iWork '08. I'm trying to do something really simple; print a small booklet. Basically it is a booklet that has 2 pages per sheet and double sided. I gave up after about 1/2 hour and booted up a PC to get the job done using Publisher given that Office for Mac doesn't have Publisher! Arrggg!

Does anyone know if a booklet can be done with Pages '08 without me having to try to figure out on my own what page needs to go where on each sheet? That becomes nearly impossible on a larger booklet. On a simple 8 page booklet the first sheet has printed on the sheet pages 2 and 7 and on the reverse side pages 8 and 1. The next sheet has pages 4 and 5 on one side and 6 and 3 on the other, etc. That way when you fold it the pages all read in the correct order.

Please tell me the Pages '08 knows how to automatically put the pages in the proper order for booklet printing. Hopefully it is not lacking somethig so basic like iWeb is lacking Guest Book web pages.

After draining my wallet for an iMac, iWork '08, and Office for Mac, it is very annoying if another very basic thing is missing. I was hoping to not need a PC after switching to Mac.

I found this online, however i've never tried it....
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/automator/createbookletpdfservice.html
http://mac.softpedia.com/get/DTP-Prepress/Booklet-Generator.shtml

I also found this but its shareware:

http://mac.softpedia.com/get/DTP-Prepress/BookLightning.shtml

With that kind of an attitude, it is difficult to help someone. It's not like we sold you the mac. You bought it yourself. Now if you have some issues which you would like to be solved, ask politely.

Neither does Office for Windows include Publisher.
It is an entirely separate application designed for creating just such items as brochures.

I really do hope one of the apps found by shahvi's search above will help you out.

But, if your expectation is that you will never have a need for another application because you have a Mac, sorry, that's just not rational.

PilotSmith said:

On a simple 8 page booklet the first sheet has printed on the sheet pages 2 and 7 and on the reverse side pages 8 and 1. The next sheet has pages 4 and 5 on one side and 6 and 3 on the other, etc. That way when you fold it the pages all read in the correct order.

...it is very annoying if another very basic thing is missing. I was hoping to not need a PC after switching to Mac.

Click to expand...

Yes, you described a basic booklet/pamphlet.
However, making booklets is not a basic task for average computer users.
That is left to more professional ventures.
Simply put, iWork is not a professional office app suite. A business or professional is more likely to use InDesign or Quark for booklet layouts.
Even the "Standard" version of Office doesn't include the Publisher program you are using. Publisher is only included with the "Small Business" and "Professional" versions of Microsoft Office.

goobimama said:

With that kind of an attitude, it is difficult to help someone. It's not like we sold you the mac. You bought it yourself. Now if you have some issues which you would like to be solved, ask politely.

Click to expand...

Sorry, I didn't know I had to sugar coat my posts here. Yes, I was frustrated at the time. I don't think being candid about your feelings is a bad attitude. Sorry if I offended you in some manner. Now on to read the posts from people who are here to try to help one another.

shahvikram123 said:

I found this online, however i've never tried it....
http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/automator/createbookletpdfservice.html
http://mac.softpedia.com/get/DTP-Prepress/Booklet-Generator.shtml

I also found this but its shareware:

http://mac.softpedia.com/get/DTP-Prepress/BookLightning.shtml

Click to expand...

Thank you for the Apple PDF link! I had read about that on another site when I was searching for help on the topic but the post was not very clear nor did it have a link. I tried saving the file as a PDF to see if I could print it then as a booklet but that didn't work. I didn't realize there was a download to add that functionality to the PDF printing options. Now it makes sense. I'll give that a try next time. For now I got the project done with Publisher. I'm hoping to get to a point where I don't need to use any of my PC software one of these days...

bobtomay said:

Neither does Office for Windows include Publisher.
It is an entirely separate application designed for creating just such items as brochures.

I really do hope one of the apps found by shahvi's search above will help you out.

But, if your expectation is that you will never have a need for another application because you have a Mac, sorry, that's just not rational.

Click to expand...

Of course not! I know I will have to buy other software but some things just seem very basic. Printing a booklet is not what I considered "pro" work. it is just a simple printing function to arrange printing output in the correct order. I have MS Office Pro and it came with Publisher. I guess I made the mistake of thinking that iWork '08 was designed to compete with MS Office? I'm still a newb with Apple software so you have to cut me some slack. It was just frustrating that to do a simple little project I could not do it despite having Office for Mac and iWork '08 that lets you do beautiful spreadsheets and presentations. Only seemed logical that Pages '08 would let you do that. (I even think MS Word lets you do booklet printing.) Also, earlier today I wanted to add a "guest book" page to a web site and noticed that iWeb doesn't have that option. Don't tell me that is not an oversight by Apple... The two together just kind of fried me and set me off.

In any case, thanks all for the info here. I think the PDF plugin should do the trick. I will also check out InDesign and Quark.

Any recommendations for a simple web design program not any more elaborate than iWeb but that has a guest book template?

PilotSmith said:

Any recommendations for a simple web design program not any more elaborate than iWeb but that has a guest book template?

Click to expand...

I've always preferred RapidWeaver to iWeb, but I don't think it has a guestbook template: I've not seen a guest book on a website in about 10 years.

Levi said:

I've always preferred RapidWeaver to iWeb, but I don't think it has a guestbook template: I've not seen a guest book on a website in about 10 years.

Click to expand...

I used word last year on my pc to make our play program.
I copied & pasted the ads people emailed me & typed in on the pages what had to be typed in. Wish I had the option to switch back to my pc. Yes am frustrated as well, making a booklet collating pages is not pro work. Copiers can collate; however, I do find them helpful in the store for help but it's a half hour away & you have to make an appt.