"What Next? (PDF is printed)" Topic

So I printed out my PDF ruleset, and I have pages everywhere.

What do you do with all this mess? 140 pages.

Should I hole-punch it and put it into a binder?

Can I take it somewhere like Kinko's and get it bound? Is it expensive?

That's the way we used to do it, when we had type written pages. Everyone in our group used to carry about binders with official and homebrew rules all mingled together. Of course that was before there was a national wargaming rules police state, and unofficial rules writers were tossed in the penalty box. :)

Unikeep makes a box which is also a binder. link It's time consuming, but we've put the rules into plastic sleeves and put the sleeves in this box binder thingy and theres even room for a pencil and a few dice.

They come in three or four sizes.

OR, buy your own binding machine for a hundred or so and bind your own.

You can get sheet protectors at Wal-Mart, I think I got 50 for $4.00 USD or something like that. The presentation comes out a lot nicer and lasts longer than a bunch of punched sheets of paper.

Yes, assuming that's 140 1-sided pages you can slide two pages back-to-back into a sheet protector. That will give you 70 pages to put into a binder.

You can shop around for prices from different print shops in your area, they'll be happy to tell you, but you might want to consider getting them to do double-sided printing or copying of the pages first so that you only have 70 pages to bind and carry around. (Unless you're already printing on both sides of the page and have 140 pages with double-sided printing.)

Is it a rule-set you've made yourself for printing and sale as a business? Or just your printed copy of someone else's rules?

Thanks for beating me to the punch, Dave.

Kinkos offers these options:

Bookbinding

Turn any document into a professional paperback book. Ideal for training and policy manuals, directories, reports, and workbooks.

Booklet making

Bound with staples along the folded edge, this finishing touch is most commonly used for newsletters, bulletins and catalogs.

Coil binding

A continuous, spring-shaped piece of plastic, this durable, crush-resistant bind allows a bound document to lay flat.

Comb binding

This curled, comb-style bind allows for easy addition and removal of pages. This option is ideal for reports and manuals.

Cutting and drilling

We can cut your copies to half-size or in quarters. We'll also drill your copies for storing in three-ring binders.

Tape binding

Cloth tape is fused to your document along the left margin, forming a spine similar to a paperback book.

Wire binding

Enable readers to turn pages easily and books to lie flat when open with durable wire binding.

PDF link

binding at Kinkoe's is very affordable.
(one of the few things that are)

I was a drone who did binding at Kinko's for a while. Yeah, its easy, fast and pretty cheap. Go to the counter, say you want something bound but don't know what you need to do and they should walk you through the process. Probably what you want is the comb or spiral binding, but get them to show you the options.

Big office supply stores like Staples usually do it also, often are considerably cheaper.

Yes, I worked at Kinko's and I'm directing you somewhere else. Draw your own conclusions about what that job experience was like…

Its up to you if you want to copy it to double-sided. It will cast some to make the copies, but binding prices are based on the thickness of the stack, so you will make some of that money back by the bound product being half the size.

I just tried the "File > Print" software from Kinkos. Downloaded OK, but the install failed with a cryptic error, then the install routine backtracked and said it hadn't made any changes. Tried again a few times, no improvement. I have the Kinko's option in my print box now, but it doesn't do anything (just hangs if I try it).

I've been satisfied with Kinko's bindings. But after reading the above, I am willing to try someone else. Cheaper is always better, if you get the same or (gasp!) better quality.

I always take my pdfs to Kinkos to get them spiral bound. I also laminate the front and back pages to add stability and protection.

The FexEXKinkos print thing is borken and has been for quite some time.

Worst of all you can't send them files over 80k; that is, you can't send them a file larger than your resume so it's a useless "feature."

Another issue is that the company has expanded being bought by FedEX, meaning that it is now quite hopeless to get something done from them as good as it used to be; most of the time I end up telling the people working there what they needed to do to solve my problem or serve my request better. They have big BIG BIG huge MASSIVE training issues in just about every store now. Actually, it's better than it used to be.

Anyway, regardless, it's the best place to go to get something made when you find a store with a manager who actually has management and printing skill sets.

All of the Hex Command series of rules are designed for folding the letter size paper in half, saddle stitch in the middle, called Booklet form. At conventions, this produces a game rule book that is light and easy to carry, even roll up and fold in a back pocket. We can usually get Kinkos to produce 10 or 20 pretty quick because the rules are brief, but we've also produced our own because all that's needed is a good saddle stitching stapler (the long reach kind). Best $30 USD we ever spent.

140 sheets!!!!

Take the 140 sheets.

Paper the cat box, the birdie cage, soak up the water the next time the toilet overflows and wrap up some old stinking fish in it, and use the rest as tinder for the wood stove and go out and buy a set of rules that's comprehensible.

Hey nemopholist: length doesn't have anything to do with comprehensibility, but it might have something to do with comprehensiveness.

Our rules are over 140 pages (two-sided), but the main part of that is devoted to period armies lists.

1066.us

I usually go to the print center at my local Office Depot for my binding needs. If you use their Advantage card (it's free to sign up), you get 15% off all print jobs.

I always order coil binding with a clear cover and black back.