Text Overflow Detection ??

I am building a template that has text flowing through 5 text frames. My question is this: is there a way to detect what line SPECIFICALLY the text flow enters the next successive text frame? I need to insert a section header and eliminate any returns or breaks at the top of each text frame, but need to do so based on the ever-changing flow of text between frames.

Example: if the white wine section has 30 listings and 10 flow into the next frame, I need to insert the White Wine header at the top of the next text frame before the 21st wine listing.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Create a table with a single column the width of the frame, with each listing as a row, and no cell borders. Set the heading in a header row. The header row will automatically be repeated at the top of each text column or frame.

Or, without using a table, you could simply set "Keep with next paragraph" on the header text. This won't repeat it at the top of each column, but it will make sure that the header isn't "orphaned" at the end of a column.

Dan,

Thanks for the reply! I now understand that I needed to expand on my example:

The wine menu has 15 varieties of wine (red, white, champagne, etc) Each variety is its own block of text with a varying number of listings from record to record. Successive blocks of text will flow automatically based on the block preceding it.

So, in the case of the White Wines... if it overflows at the 21st line in record 1, it might overflow at the 15th line in record 2 because the red wine section preceding it has more listings in record 2.

Each varietal has its own header. The appropriate header MUST be placed at the top of each text frame before any overflow wines are listed in that text frame.

I think I really need to be able to detect the exact line that the text overflows so that I can perform some inquiries to determine which section is overflowing or if there are any empty lines above the space for the header in order to properly typeset text.

Thanks!

Chilton

The wine menu has 15 varieties of wine (red, white, champagne, etc) Each variety is its own block of text with a varying number of listings from record to record. Successive blocks of text will flow automatically based on the block preceding it.

 

So, in the case of the White Wines... if it overflows at the 21st line in record 1, it might overflow at the 15th line in record 2 because the red wine section preceding it has more listings in record 2.

 

Each varietal has its own header. The appropriate header MUST be placed at the top of each text frame before any overflow wines are listed in that text frame.

 

I think I really need to be able to detect the exact line that the text overflows so that I can perform some inquiries to determine which section is overflowing or if there are any empty lines above the space for the header in order to properly typeset text.

You can still do this with tables. For each varietal, create a single-column table with a header row containing the varietal name, and subsequent rows for each listing (block of text). In fact, that's really all you can do, as there's no hook of any kind in FusionPro to detect where text flows from one frame to the next. This kind of use case is precisely why tables repeat their header rows automatically. You don't need to show any borders for the table cells, so it won't necessarily look like a table in the output, but that's what it is.

I have a very similar challenge in which I need the header to repeat at the top of each column, so am generating a series of tables as described in this thread. The headers are not repeating for me though. Is the repeating header something that needs to be activated in some way?

Also, I take it from the preceding discussion that there is no way to add the word "Continued" to the header name of the second and subsequent instances of a given header. Is that so?

I have a very similar challenge in which I need the header to repeat at the top of each column, so am generating a series of tables as described in this thread. The headers are not repeating for me though. Is the repeating header something that needs to be activated in some way?

It doesn't happen automatically, unless you to mark the row as a header row, with some code like this:

myTable.Rows[0].Type = "Header";

Also, I take it from the preceding discussion that there is no way to add the word "Continued" to the header name of the second and subsequent instances of a given header. Is that so?

Yes, you can have a separate row marked as a "continued header" row, like so:

text.Rows[1].Type = "ContinuedHeader";

The "continued header" row will not appear at the start of the table in the initial text frame or column, but will be shown instead of the main header row in subsequent frames or columns.

...The "continued header" row will not appear at the start of the table in the initial text frame or column, but will be shown instead of the main header row in subsequent frames or columns.

As a follow-up to my original post (whose functionality I am ever-expanding), there must be SOMETHING that can be tracked, called or triggered when the table flows onto a new page or overflow frame, since the table knows naturally when to insert a ContinuedHeader row.

In the same example of ever-changing data and naturally flowing wine sections, I need to determine, varietal by varietal, whether it is best to allow the [current] section to flow naturally between pages, or due to limited space on the current page, force the entire section on to the next page.

Again, I really appreciate any tricks or insights you can provide!

As a follow-up to my original post (whose functionality I am ever-expanding), there must be SOMETHING that can be tracked, called or triggered when the table flows onto a new page or overflow frame, since the table knows naturally when to insert a ContinuedHeader row.

 

In the same example of ever-changing data and naturally flowing wine sections, I need to determine, varietal by varietal, whether it is best to allow the [current] section to flow naturally between pages, or due to limited space on the current page, force the entire section on to the next page.

 

Again, I really appreciate any tricks or insights you can provide!

It's all about keeps (the rules for which paragraphs or table cells "keep" with others).

If you're using tables, the trick for keeping multiple table rows together is to add a very narrow column to the table, with no content, and then set it to "vstraddle" the number of rows you want to keep together. If you're not using tables, then you can set widows to 99 in each paragraph and set "keep with next" as necessary.

That said, as your requirements get more complex, it gets more and more difficult to offer specific advice here on the forum, especially without seeing the job. If you can post it here, that would make it easier for us to help. However, at some point, it becomes so template-specific that it goes beyond what can be done in the context of this forum at all, in which case you may need to look into paid consulting for your template building needs.