Yes, you can indeed change the starting page number.
1. Right-click your first page and select Numbering & section options...
2. In there you can find Start page numbering at:
If I understood the whole process correctly, you need to export each section as separate pdf documents...? you could use this script
This script will also work with with the the book method in @Bakabaka's answer...
This is how you use the script: 1. Run it. 2. Select pdf preset. 3. Find folder where these .indd
files sit. –– The script will then save the pdfs into that same folder.
For preservation, here's the script:
// Script for InDesign CS3-5.
// July 22 2011
// Written by Kasyan Servetsky
// http://www.kasyan.ho.com.ua
// e-mail: askoldich@yahoo.com
//======================================================================================
var gScriptName = "Batch export INDD-files to PDF"; // Name of the script
var gScriptVersion = "1.0"; // Version
var gSet = GetSettings();
CreateDialog();
//===================================== FUNCTIONS ======================================
function CreateDialog() {
var pdfPresetsList =app.pdfExportPresets.everyItem().name;
var win = new Window("dialog", gScriptName + " - " + gScriptVersion);
win.p = win.add("panel", undefined, "");
win.p.alignChildren = "right";
win.p.alignment = "fill";
win.p.g = win.p.add("group");
win.p.g.st = win.p.g.add("statictext", undefined, "PDF-presets:");
win.p.g.ddl = win.p.g.add("dropdownlist", undefined, pdfPresetsList);
win.p.g.ddl.selection = gSet.selectedPdfPresetIndex;
win.p.g.ddl.preferredSize.width = 220;
win.buttons = win.add("group");
win.buttons.orientation = "row";
win.buttons.alignment = "center";
win.buttons.ok = win.buttons.add("button", undefined, "OK", {name:"ok" });
win.buttons.cancel = win.buttons.add("button", undefined, "Cancel", {name:"cancel"});
var showDialog = win.show();
if (showDialog == 1) {
gSet.selectedPdfPresetIndex = win.p.g.ddl.selection.index;
app.insertLabel("Kas_" + gScriptName + gScriptVersion, gSet.toSource());
Main();
}
}
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
function Main() {
var folder = Folder.selectDialog("Select a folder with InDesign files to export");
if (folder == null) exit();
var files = GetFiles(folder);
var pdfFolder = new Folder(folder.fsName + "/" + "Pdf");
VerifyFolder(pdfFolder);
if (files.length == 0) {
alert("No files to open.", gScriptName + " - " + gScriptVersion);
exit();
}
var pdfPresets =app.pdfExportPresets.everyItem().getElements();
var selectedPdfPreset = pdfPresets[gSet.selectedPdfPresetIndex];
var count = 1;
app.scriptPreferences.userInteractionLevel = UserInteractionLevels.NEVER_INTERACT;
// Progress bar -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
var progressWin = new Window ("window", gScriptName + " - " + gScriptVersion);
var progressBar = progressWin.add ("progressbar", [12, 12, 350, 24], 0, files.length);
var progressTxt = progressWin.add("statictext", undefined, "Starting exporting files");
progressTxt.bounds = [0, 0, 340, 20];
progressTxt.alignment = "left";
progressWin.show();
// Progress bar -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
for (var i = 0; i < files.length; i++) {
var currentFile = files[i];
try {
var doc = app.open(currentFile, false);
var docName = doc.name;
// Progress bar -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
progressBar.value = count;
progressTxt.text = String("Exporting file - " + docName + " (" + count + " of " + files.length + ")");
// Progress bar -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
var file = new File(pdfFolder + "/" + GetFileName(docName) + ".pdf");
if (file.exists) {
var increment = 1;
while (file.exists) {
file = new File(pdfFolder + "/" + GetFileName(docName) + "(" + increment++ + ").pdf");
}
}
doc.exportFile(ExportFormat.pdfType, file, false, selectedPdfPreset);
doc.close(SaveOptions.NO);
count++;
}
catch(e) {}
}
// Progress bar -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
progressWin.close();
// Progress bar -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
app.scriptPreferences.userInteractionLevel = UserInteractionLevels.INTERACT_WITH_ALL;
alert("Done.", gScriptName + " - " + gScriptVersion);
}
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
function VerifyFolder(folder) {
if (!folder.exists) {
var folder = new Folder(folder.absoluteURI);
var array1 = new Array();
while (!folder.exists) {
array1.push(folder);
folder = new Folder(folder.path);
}
var array2 = new Array();
while (array1.length > 0) {
folder = array1.pop();
if (folder.create()) {
array2.push(folder);
} else {
while (array2.length > 0) {
array2.pop.remove();
}
throw "Folder creation failed";
}
}
}
}
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
function GetFiles(theFolder) {
var files = [],
fileList = theFolder.getFiles(),
i, file;
for (i = 0; i < fileList.length; i++) {
file = fileList[i];
if (file instanceof Folder) {
files = files.concat(GetFiles(file));
}
else if (file instanceof File && file.name.match(/\.indd$/i)) {
files.push(file);
}
}
return files;
}
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
function GetFileName(fileName) {
var string = "";
var result = fileName.lastIndexOf(".");
if (result == -1) {
string = fileName;
}
else {
string = fileName.substr(0, result);
}
return string;
}
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
function GetSettings() {
var set = eval(app.extractLabel("Kas_" + gScriptName + gScriptVersion));
if (set == undefined) {
set = { selectedPdfPresetIndex : 0 };
}
return set;
}
//--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Numbering and section options...
2. There you can findStart page numbering at:
. But yea, book is often the smart choice.