6. A method of generating a document for printing, the method comprising: generating the document template, by: defining a variable-data printing template, the template comprising a layout of document pages with at least one set of the document pages comprising a flow that contains content which is variable in response to input data, the flow spanning across the at least one set of document pages, wherein the flow comprises a series of linked copy holes; defining a plurality of document versions, wherein in at least some of the different document versions, at least one document page across which the flow spans is absent from the at least one set of document pages, and defining the respective document versions further includes indicating the desired variable content of the flow; and generating one of the respective document versions for printing by providing input selection data to the template via variable data merging at the time of printing to automatically select one of the respective document versions, while automatically maintaining continuity of the flow, when a respective one of the at least some document versions is automatically selected in which at least one document page is absent, is performed according to a conditional choose function via: in the event that a first page of the at least one set exists in the input data, applying a first page sequence definition that maps the flow to begin at the first page and includes all subsequent pages of the at least one set; and in the event that the first page of the at least one set is non-existent in the input data, applying a second page sequence definition that maps the flow to begin at a second page of the at least one set and includes all subsequent pages of the at least one set while omitting the non-existent first page of the at least one set holes, wherein the non-existent first page corresponds to a first copy-hole of the linked copy holes.
6. A method of generating a document for printing, the method comprising: generating the document template, by: defining a variable-data printing template, the template comprising a layout of document pages with at least one set of the document pages comprising a flow that contains content which is variable in response to input data, the flow spanning across the at least one set of document pages, wherein the flow comprises a series of linked copy holes; defining a plurality of document versions, wherein in at least some of the different document versions, at least one document page across which the flow spans is absent from the at least one set of document pages, and defining the respective document versions further includes indicating the desired variable content of the flow; and generating one of the respective document versions for printing by providing input selection data to the template via variable data merging at the time of printing to automatically select one of the respective document versions, while automatically maintaining continuity of the flow, when a respective one of the at least some document versions is automatically selected in which at least one document page is absent, is performed according to a conditional choose function via: in the event that a first page of the at least one set exists in the input data, applying a first page sequence definition that maps the flow to begin at the first page and includes all subsequent pages of the at least one set; and in the event that the first page of the at least one set is non-existent in the input data, applying a second page sequence definition that maps the flow to begin at a second page of the at least one set and includes all subsequent pages of the at least one set while omitting the non-existent first page of the at least one set holes, wherein the non-existent first page corresponds to a first copy-hole of the linked copy holes. 18. The method of claim 6 , wherein the conditional choose function is represented as an Extensible Stylesheet Language Formatting Object.