Make the copy
you meant to give.

Keep an editable original.

A PDF is the reading copy. The JSON draft is the source: it holds all eight pages of text and the two optional photographs. Save both before handing the magazine over.

The editable HTML download includes the editor itself. Open it with a desktop browser and it works offline. Mobile file-preview apps may only display the file; use a desktop browser for dependable editing. After changing it, download a new file. The browser cannot silently overwrite the original on disk.

A useful naming pattern is sam-birthday-draft-2026-10-16.json and sam-birthday-final.pdf. Put the source somewhere private and backed up. GoodIssue has no accounts or recovery copies.

A photograph, without a surprise crop.

The editor fits the complete picture inside its frame. A wide landscape photo leaves more space above and below; a portrait photo leaves more space at the sides. Crop your own copy first if you want a tighter composition. Keep the original separately.

The browser converts accepted JPEG, PNG or WebP files into JPEG copies, up to 1,800 pixels on the long edge. This strips the original metadata and reduces file size, but it cannot improve a small or blurred photograph. Transparent areas become white.

At 300 pixels per inch, a 1,800-pixel edge corresponds to six inches. That is a sizing reference, not a promise of print sharpness. A 600-pixel screenshot enlarged to the same size has only 100 pixels per inch. Use the original photograph when available and inspect a proof.

First, make eight single pages.

1. Use Save / print → Check fit & print. If a page is too long, remove extra line breaks or shorten the indicated text. Do not shrink the entire magazine to rescue one paragraph.
2. Choose Save as PDF in the browser dialog. The intended page is A5 portrait, 148 × 210 mm. Use 100% scale, no browser headers or footers, and background graphics on.
3. Check that the preview contains exactly eight pages and that names, captions and signatures stay inside the margins. Browser and printer settings can override CSS; the preview is the final check.
4. Save the PDF in ordinary reading order. Do not rearrange pages by hand. For a digital gift, this is the version to share.

Then, choose flat pages or a fold.

Loose or clipped pages: print one A5 page per sheet, or fit each full page to your available paper. A4 or Letter at “fit” may change the finished size. Avoid mixing scales between pages.

A folded booklet: eight magazine pages require two sheets printed on both sides, with two page panels per side. Open the saved PDF in Adobe Acrobat Reader and select Booklet. Its booklet option arranges the pages; GoodIssue exports reading order, not imposed printer sheets.

A4 folds to A5. Letter is a different proportion and will produce a different finished size after fitting. Use left binding for this English edition. Automatic two-sided printing and manual front/back passes need different driver settings, so mark a test sheet's leading edge and follow the Reader and printer instructions. Do not assume that “flip on long edge” works for every driver.

The sample uses eight pages because folded booklets group pages in fours. Proof all four sides on ordinary paper before using the final stock. This template is for home printing; it does not supply a commercial press's bleed, crop marks or CMYK profile.

Look at the gift, not only the preview.

Print one proof. Fold it, read it in order and check whether the inner margins feel comfortable. Check the dark type, skin tones and small captions in normal room light. A home printer may add an unprinted border even when the PDF background reaches the edge.

Use paper your printer supports. Thicker sheets may need a manual feed or may not duplex. For the first proof, ordinary copy paper is enough to find upside-down backs, missing pages and an awkward fold. A paper upgrade cannot fix those problems.

Read every name aloud and verify every date. Replace any remaining sample person, contributor or photograph instruction before giving the copy away. Let another person check the final PDF when the surprise allows it.

Choose what the recipient receives.

Private gift: share the final PDF directly with the intended person through a service you trust. The editable HTML and JSON contain the complete text and photographs; anyone who receives them can extract or change that material. Neither file is encrypted.

Your own public template: use fictional, non-sensitive material and permission-cleared pictures. Check the published page while signed out; the private editor view is not proof that visitors can open it. WebTraceCheck is an optional separate-session browser for that public-link check. Your regular browser's private window can also help.

If you offer your own template through your own email signup, test the form and delivery using non-sensitive sample details. CleanTempMail can provide a temporary test inbox for that disposable test. Use a durable address for real contributor correspondence, important accounts and recovery.

GoodIssue, WebTraceCheck and CleanTempMail share the same operator. These optional publishing checks are separate from making a private birthday gift. No personal edition data is included in these links.