A lengthy strip of originals is transported along a transport path. Positioned along the transport path are a plurality of copying stations, for simultaneous copying of plural successive originals. The originals are transported setwise or batchwise, thereby lowering the average transport time per individual original and increasing copying-machine productivity without the need to speed up the performance of other operations attendant to copying-machine operation. When originals are correctly spaced and all copiable, they are processed setwise or batchwise as just outlined. When not spaced in accordance with a standard and/or when not all copiable, the machine changes over to one-at-a time operation, disabling all but the most downstream copying station, until the arriving originals are again all copiable and spaced by the standard distance. During normal operation, a strip of print paper is advanced by an increment corresponding to the plural concurrently exposed originals. During one-at-a-time copying, the strip of print paper is advanced one print at a time, and the strip of originals is advanced until the next copiable original arrives at the most downstream station.