Patent ID: 7505169

Claim:
An image forming apparatus, comprising: a setting section to be used by an operator for setting, as a copying mode, a writing space mode in which a document image in a preset number are printed on a half of a single paper sheet, thus forming a writing space for a comment on the other half of the paper sheet; a document top side setting section arranged to accept the operator's input designating a position of a top side of a document; a document direction judging section arranged to determine a direction of the document; a layout determination section arranged to determine a layout of the document image and the writing space on a paper sheet based on the operator's input accepted by the document top side setting section and the direction of the document judged by the document direction judging section; and an image forming section for printing the document image in the preset number on a half of a single paper sheet, in accordance with the layout determined by the layout determination section, when the writing space mode has been set as a copying mode.