Why is PDF paper size A4 although KOMASCRIPT option a6paper is used?

Question

I created a PDF with a4paper settings using KOMAscript's scrbook class many times. Everything looks good in PDF and on paper, when I print the file double sided.

Trying to create an A6 layout things are going weird. I've been compiling this minimal example with pdflatex:

\documentclass[a6paper]{scrbook}
\usepackage{blindtext}
\begin{document}
\Blindtext
\end{document}

The result as shown in the picture below is an apparently correct page layout for A6 paper, which is positioned on the lower left corner in an A4 sized PDF. Is there any possibility to get a PDF file which can be printed as usual, i.e. double-sided in a way that according pages lay on the same position of the paper?

I hope I could make this quite clear.

.

Answer 1

Add the pagesize option. Here is a quote from the manual, end of section 2.7, page 45 and 46:

The above-mentioned mechanisms for choice of paper format only affect the output insofar as internal LaTeX lengths are set. The typearea package then uses them in the division of the page into type area and margins. The specification of the DVI formats, however, does not include any indications of paper format. If printing is done directly from DVI format to a low-level printer language such as PCL or ESC/P2, this is usually not an issue since with this output also the zero-position is at the top left, identical to DVI. If, however, translation is made into a language such as PostScript or PDF, in which the zero-position is at a different point, and in which also the paper format should be specified in the output data, then this information is missing. To solve this problem, the respective drivers use a predefined paper size, which the user can change either by means of an option or via a corresponding command in the TEX source file. When using the DVI driver dvips the information can be given in the form of a \special command. With pdfTeX or VTeX one sets instead two lengths.

With option pagesize you may select an output driver for writing the paper size into the destination document. Supported output drivers are listed at table 2.6. The default is pagesize=false. Usage of option pagesize without value is same like pagesize=auto. It is recommended always to specify this option. Generally the method without output driver , or with auto or automedia, is useful.

\documentclass[paper=a6,pagesize]{scrbook}
\usepackage{blindtext}
\begin{document}
\Blindtext
\end{document}