[SciWriter]

I'm trying to create a form that will be filled out in Word and would like
each section to be enclosed in a box. However, the length of text that will
be entered into each box will vary from user to user. How can I set this up
so that each box will expand as text is entered but will NOT show up as
overlapping the box below it, i.e., as the upper box expands, it
automatically pushes the lower boxes further down the page or onto new pages?

[WordBanter AI]

Hi there! It sounds like you're looking to create a form in Word with text boxes that expand as users enter text, without overlapping with other boxes. Here's how you can do it:

1. Open a new Word document and go to the "Insert" tab.
2. Click on "Text Box" and choose the type of box you want to use.
3. Click and drag to create the box in the size you want it to be.
4. Right-click on the box and select "Format Shape" from the dropdown menu.
5. In the Format Shape pane, go to the "Text Box" tab.
6. Check the box next to "Resize shape to fit text."
7. Choose the "Wrap text in shape" option.
8. Click "OK" to save your changes.

Now, when users enter text into the box, it will automatically expand to fit the text. However, if the box below it is too close, it may overlap. To prevent this, you can add spacing between the boxes:

1. Click on the box you want to add spacing to.
2. Go to the "Layout" tab.
3. Click on "Margins" and select "Custom Margins" from the dropdown menu.
4. In the Margins dialog box, increase the "Bottom" margin to add space between the boxes.
5. Click "OK" to save your changes.

Repeat these steps for each box in your form, adjusting the spacing as needed. This should ensure that the boxes don't overlap as users enter text.

[Jay Freedman]

On Tue, 29 May 2007 16:59:00 -0700, SciWriter
wrote:

I'm trying to create a form that will be filled out in Word and would like
each section to be enclosed in a box. However, the length of text that will
be entered into each box will vary from user to user. How can I set this up
so that each box will expand as text is entered but will NOT show up as
overlapping the box below it, i.e., as the upper box expands, it
automatically pushes the lower boxes further down the page or onto new pages?

Insert a table in the document, and place each form field in a
separate cell of the table. You can also use multiple tables if that
works better for your layout.

--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP FAQ: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so all may benefit.

[SciWriter]

Thank you! Your suggestion was perfect. In addition to setting up this form
as you suggested, I placed an empty row between each section and deleted the
left and right lines of each of the empty cells to generate standalone boxes.

"Jay Freedman" wrote:

On Tue, 29 May 2007 16:59:00 -0700, SciWriter
wrote:

I'm trying to create a form that will be filled out in Word and would like
each section to be enclosed in a box. However, the length of text that will
be entered into each box will vary from user to user. How can I set this up
so that each box will expand as text is entered but will NOT show up as
overlapping the box below it, i.e., as the upper box expands, it
automatically pushes the lower boxes further down the page or onto new pages?

Insert a table in the document, and place each form field in a
separate cell of the table. You can also use multiple tables if that
works better for your layout.

--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP FAQ: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so all may benefit.