Pages and breaks

The paper is laid out at a real paper size, and Rejarsume works out where each page ends. The strip above the paper says how many pages there are, such as 2 pages.

Paper size and zoom#

Beside the page count are the controls for the view:

• Paper size switches between A4 and Letter. Changing it re-flows the pages, because the pages are a different size.
• Zoom out and Zoom in step through 50, 67, 80, 100, 125, 150 and 200 per cent. Fit width returns to the zoom that fits the paper to the pane, which is what it uses until you pick another.

Zoom changes how large the paper is drawn and nothing about where pages break. On a narrow pane these controls fold into a menu.

How a page is filled#

Every block is laid out once at the real page width and measured, and whole blocks are then placed onto pages one after another. A block that does not fit the room left on a page starts the next one.

So a page break never cuts through the middle of something: an entry is moved to the next page whole, and a paragraph is never split. What this does not do is shrink or squeeze a block to fit. A block that is taller than a whole page is given a page of its own and is cut off at the bottom of it, which is rare, as it takes an extraordinarily long block.

The export uses the breaks the paper measured, so the PDF breaks exactly where you see it break.

Saying where a page should end#

There are three ways, from one place to the whole document.

A break at one place#

A page break forces whatever follows it onto a new page. Write it in the Markdown on a line of its own:

::pagebreak

Or, in Visual mode, use Insert a page break after this on a block. The two are the same thing: a break written in the Markdown appears on the paper, and a break inserted on the paper appears in the Markdown. Delete removes one. Two breaks in a row make a blank page, which is what asking for two breaks means.

A section that starts on a new page#

In the Sections tab, each section has Start on a new page. Turning it on begins that section on a fresh page every time. It belongs to that section and moves with it.

Whether a heading can end a page#

In the Style tab, under Page breaks, Keep headings with content decides whether a section's heading may be the last thing on a page. It is on by default, so a heading is moved to the next page along with the first thing under it, and it is why a break you place before a section's first block is honoured before the heading, not between them. Turning it off packs the pages tighter, at the cost of the break most readers notice.

What CSS cannot do#

Your own CSS cannot move a page break. The pages are decided from measurements, and break-inside, orphans and widows are deliberately left out of the print stylesheet, so they have nothing to act on. Use a page break or a section's own setting instead.