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  • 1.  Layout image extraction

    Posted 10-04-2021 00:40
    MapInfo Pro community.

    I want to share an issue that we have, in the hope that someone else can tell me how to resolve it, or it can be dealt with in future upgrades.

    Our organisation has standard report templates in Microsoft Word in which maps and other images can be dropped in at a specified size to fit with the rest of the layout. These include full page images, small images, images for 2- and 3-column pages, images for portrait reports, images for landscape reports, and so on.

    To create maps we work in the layout view of MI Pro, and then we use the Output - Save image command to generate a jpg or png image which then gets inserted into our Word documents.

    If I am creating an image of, for example 16cm x 16cm to drop into a standard portrait report, I need to do two things:
    1. Set the dimensions in the frame properties of the map window within the layout (eg 160mm x 160mm); and 
    2. In the Page setup command, choose a printer driver in which I can then create a custom page size of 160mm x 160mm.

    At the moment we use a pdf creation program as the basis for setting the custom page size as it allows many custom pages to be defined.

    The problem is that within MI Pro, these settings are essentially reduced to a few lines in a workspace:

    Set Window FrontWindow() Printer
    Name "[printer driver name]" Orientation Landscape Copies 1
    Resolution 300
    Papersize 9

    I believe that the 'Papersize' reference is simply a reference to an order in a list of possible page sizes set in the printer driver on my computer. That's fine if I am the only one who is opening the workspace, but as soon as I share the workspace, I rely on the user having the same printer driver, as well as the same list of custom page sizes so that the same dimensions are applied.

    Obviously this is not an elegant solution.

    We are currently seeking workarounds using server-based print drivers in which the custom page sizes can be shared, but I don't see why we should be resorting to this.

    I wonder whether there is a why to separate the Save image output command so that it doesn't rely on the print driver as if the user is printing or generating a pdf copy? Alternatively, why can't the dimensions of the page be set as the user wishes, such as happens in QGIS when defining the dimensions of a page. Presumably the dimensions then need to be sent on to the print driver if actually printing or generating a pdf.

    Any comment or advice on the above would be appreciated.

    Cheers

    Matt

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    Matthew Lee
    Deep End Services
    South Yarra VIC
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