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#1
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
Is there a way of changing the left hand margin of a document but keeping
any tabs and indents in their old positions on the page, rather than having them change too? Apart, I mean, from the obvious method of resetting the tabs manually. In other words, if I have a document with these settings: left margin: 3.3 cms tabs: 2 cms, 4 cms and I want to change the left margin to 2.3 cms, is there an alternative to deleting the old tabs and setting new ones at 3 cms and 4 cms? (This is a much simplified version of the true situation.) Many thanks, Bert |
#2
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
and I want to change the left margin to 2.3 cms, is there an alternative
to deleting the old tabs and setting new ones at 3 cms and 4 cms? That should have read "and 5 cms" of course. Sorry. And I should have said that I'm using Word 2000. Bert |
#3
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
Tabs are measured from the margin so if you move the margin, you will have
to change the tab positions in order for them to remain in the same position on the page. For an odd paragraph you could instead set a negative indent i.e. -1cm -- Graham Mayor - Word MVP My web site www.gmayor.com Word MVP web site http://word.mvps.org Bert Coules wrote: Is there a way of changing the left hand margin of a document but keeping any tabs and indents in their old positions on the page, rather than having them change too? Apart, I mean, from the obvious method of resetting the tabs manually. In other words, if I have a document with these settings: left margin: 3.3 cms tabs: 2 cms, 4 cms and I want to change the left margin to 2.3 cms, is there an alternative to deleting the old tabs and setting new ones at 3 cms and 4 cms? (This is a much simplified version of the true situation.) Many thanks, Bert |
#4
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
Graham Mayor wrote:
Tabs are measured from the margin so if you move the margin, you will have to change the tab positions in order for them to remain in the same position on the page. Ah, thanks for that. I knew it, of course, but I was hoping that there might be an option somewhere to set tabs in absolute rather than relative positions - a bit like that old-fashioned writing device, the typewriter. For some reason, I always seem to have minor difficulties resetting tabs in a whole document. I select the entire text and fiddle away (either on the ruler or more usually in the menu) but the results tend to be a bit variable. I just need more practice, I guess. Bert |
#5
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
If you use styles to format your document tabs can usually be avoided
altogether, but at least you only have one place to change them. Tabs can make a document very difficult to re-edit. I have a regular correspondent who insists on using them to excess in a newsletter. I counted 519 of them in the last one of only two pages! -- Graham Mayor - Word MVP My web site www.gmayor.com Word MVP web site http://word.mvps.org Bert Coules wrote: Graham Mayor wrote: Tabs are measured from the margin so if you move the margin, you will have to change the tab positions in order for them to remain in the same position on the page. Ah, thanks for that. I knew it, of course, but I was hoping that there might be an option somewhere to set tabs in absolute rather than relative positions - a bit like that old-fashioned writing device, the typewriter. For some reason, I always seem to have minor difficulties resetting tabs in a whole document. I select the entire text and fiddle away (either on the ruler or more usually in the menu) but the results tend to be a bit variable. I just need more practice, I guess. Bert |
#6
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
Graham,
If you use styles to format your document tabs can usually be avoided altogether, but at least you only have one place to change them. An excellent point. Styles is (are?) something else on my waiting list to get to grips with. Work (complete with many tabs) just keeps getting in the way... Bert |
#7
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
As Word formats documents with styles whether you set out to use them or
not, the use of styles should be moved up your list of Word things to investigate. It should stop all that extra work getting in the way Maybe this will get you started THE RULES OF FORMATTING WITH STYLES Word formats documents by using styles. It is not possible to avoid them, so save yourself a lot of formatting grief and learn to use them. RULE 1. All paragraph formatting should be applied through the use of appropriate paragraph styles. Each uniquely formatted paragraph within a document should have a unique paragraph style applied. The styles you create should be saved in document templates. RULE 2. Avoid the use of direct formatting wherever possible. Direct formatting should only be used for emphasis within a paragraph e.g. to underline, embolden or italicise a word (or words) within a sentence, and even then it is probably wiser to create a character style and apply it. Direct formatting may seem to be a quick solution to special formatting needs, but it adds complexity when re-editing the document, particularly when the document is passed to a third party for editing. RULE 3. Do not use the Format Painter. The Format Painter is even worse than direct formatting, creating invisible formatting links that ought to be controlled by proper application of styles. RULE 4. Format follows function. Name styles for the function text performs in a document, rather than the method of formatting. For instance, the most common text in many documents will use Body Text style. If in some documents it needs to be single spaced, while in others double spaced, don't use a "Single Space" style for one and a "Double Spaced Style" for the other. Use Body Text in both, but change the settings for Body Text (preferably through application of a grouped set of styles maintained in a template). Then the document will be instantly and accurately transformed from the formats required by one practice to those of another, with no fiddling around with formatting. RULE 5. Use common names for styles across the body of templates. To change the overall formatting of documents, store the common style settings in a template, and use the Style Gallery to switch formats. RULE 6. Avoid applying Normal style. Normal style has some reserved functions within Word e.g. it is used as the base style for an number of in-built styles and it is used to format labels. Leave Normal style alone and create new styles based on 'no style' to format your documents. RULE 7. Do not use the "Automatically Update" setting for any styles. It would have been better had Microsoft omitted this option altogether as it is a constant source of formatting problems. RULE 6. Use no empty paragraphs. Empty paragraphs are a relic of typing. They have no text except the paragraph mark. When documents use them for spacing, instead of styles set with proper paragraph spacing, they corrupt the clean global transformation of document formats. A simple macro can clean out empty paragraphs. Public Sub CleanEmptyParagraphs() Dim aPara As Paragraph For Each aPara In ActiveDocument.Paragraphs If Asc(aPara. Range. Characters. First) = 13 Then aPara. Range.Delete End If Next aPara End Sub RULE 7. Tie automatic numbering to heading styles. -- Graham Mayor - Word MVP My web site www.gmayor.com Word MVP web site http://word.mvps.org Bert Coules wrote: Graham, If you use styles to format your document tabs can usually be avoided altogether, but at least you only have one place to change them. An excellent point. Styles is (are?) something else on my waiting list to get to grips with. Work (complete with many tabs) just keeps getting in the way... Bert |
#8
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
Graham,
Thanks for all that. Since almost every document I type uses a uniform layout, I suppose I should be able to apply a single style throughout. Bert |
#9
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
If every paragraph is the same in layout - then certainly.
-- Graham Mayor - Word MVP My web site www.gmayor.com Word MVP web site http://word.mvps.org Bert Coules wrote: Graham, Thanks for all that. Since almost every document I type uses a uniform layout, I suppose I should be able to apply a single style throughout. Bert |
#10
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Altering left margin but keeping tab positions unchanged?
I really can't get used to the way Word seems to think in paragraphs!
Bert |
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