More formatting

[dianabanana]

1) On page 1, how do I move the frame that says Initiating coverage down slightly?
2) How do I swap the text on the right to go to the left (and move the data on the left to the right? - next to the name Sandra Bull, I again may want to insert a photo).
3) On page 2 - 27 - how do I keep what is currently in the header and footer but move it into a real header and footer so I can change some of the titles and make the date on the bottom left a field. I also want to swap out the logo on the bottom right.
4) Keep page 28 as an add-on without the header/footer.

[macropod]

Without wanting to overstate the case, that document is an abomination. Every line in each logical paragraph is terminated by a paragraph break and each logical paragraph is in a frame. It looks to me like it's been created from a PDF file that has been 'converted' to Word.

1. Since 'Initiating Coverage' is in its own frame, you can simply drag that to wherever you want it on the page.

2. Not without a lot of work. The fact that everything is in little frames instead of something sensible, like a two-column table or a two-column page, makes this a big task.

3. Create a header & footer. Move the basic text into it and replace the page #s with PAGE fields. Delete the content at the top of each page. Likewise for the footers.

4. That page already has no header or footer. To keep it that way, insert a 'Next Page' Section break before it, then unlink it's header & footer from the previous Sections - before you start updating their headers & footers.

[dianabanana]

Do you recommend I recreate this template so its easier to use in the future?

[macropod]

What you posted isn't a template and wasn't created using one either. As I said previously, it looks like it was created by a PDF converter. Indeed the document metadata shows the author as 'VeryPDF', of 'VeryPDF.com Inc'. Judging by the result, I'd say it's a fairly primitive converter - in keeping with its US $39.95 price tag.

My recommendation would be to go back to the original document and start with that. It should have all of the header/footer information where it should be, few or no frames and none of the stupid paragraph breaks at the end of every line. It may even employ Styles consistently.

[dianabanana]

In the left column, how do I create two columns with 11 skinny rows. In the second column I will be pasting in data with a link from excel. It can start below the picture. (I am trying to create the inverse of the other file from a layout perspective.

[macropod]

You'd use the 'Split Cells' tool on the Table Tools>Layout tab. But why do you want to do that, anyway? You can have as many paragraphs as you want in a single cell that spans multiple pages if need be.

[dianabanana]

For the table on the right - how do I adjust the row height so they are much skinnier. So they look more like that table on the left in the original doc that had the poor formatting?

[macropod]

Diana,

There is no "table on the right" - you have one table with a variety of column widths and row heights. As for "how do I adjust the row height so they are much skinnier", look again at the Table Tools > Layout tab. They have all you need for adjusting row & cell heights - you can even drag cell borders up, down, left & right with the mouse.

I don't propose to spend however long it's going to take telling point by point how to use Word or how to recreate the document you started this thread with - something I've already offered the most pertinent advice on.

Without wanting to sound overly 'superior', everything you've asked so far betrays an ignorance of the basics of using Word, let alone any of the more advanced things you might want to do. I suggest you ask your employer to arrange for you to attend a Word training course - or to hire someone who is proficient with Word for the company's word-processing needs.

[Charles Kenyon]

Paul is not saying don't ask for advice or help here. He is saying that if you want to use Word to produce documents, you need to learn how it works. Otherwise you are going to be very frustrated. Even if someone is willing to patiently take you step-by-step through getting what you want, the delays in the process will be mind-numbing. It will seem as if Word is fighting against you and you will have to backtrack and undo work.

See Basic concepts of Microsoft Word: An introduction by Shauna Kelly.

Converted documents never make good templates. Period. This is true even if the best and most expensive converter available is used. Converters are good at getting a document that is in one file format into another file format that looks close to the same when printed. The underlying structure of converted documents is always a mess. This is not your fault or anyone's fault really, it is just how it is.

If you want to see why Paul thought your document an "abomination" look at it with non-printing formatting characters displayed. Click in one of the "tables." Showing non-printing formatting marks in Microsoft Word. Also, view it in "draft" or "normal" view.

Imagine, if you will, an automobile put together with no welding or fasteners that looks very pretty on the showroom floor. Every piece is separate but it hangs together by gravity and friction. If you even try to open the door and get in, much less drive it, it will fall apart. That is a good metaphor for the document produced by a converter. When you see a beautiful new shiny car on the showroom floor, it is perfectly reasonable to expect that you can drive it. When you see something that looks like a Word document produced by a document conversion process, it is perfectly reasonable to expect that you can edit it using Word. Appearances can be deceiving. In the case of Word documents produced by conversion from another format, they are. Your reasonable expectation is mistaken. Trying to edit this document is like trying to drive said car! One push and it will be scattered in pieces all over the place.

If I want to create a template based on a converted document I always save it as a .txt file and copy the text from the .txt file into Word. In Word, I format that text so it looks like what I started with (if that is what I want) using Styles.

"Template" is a word of art in Word jargon. It does not simply mean a document that can be re-used or has text you want. It means a special kind of document created by Word for that purpose that has a different kind of file structure. Templates in Microsoft Word

See also Understanding Styles in Microsoft Word.

[dianabanana]

Originally Posted by Charles Kenyon

Paul is not saying don't ask for advice or help here. He is saying that if you want to use Word to produce documents, you need to learn how it works. Otherwise you are going to be very frustrated. Even if someone is willing to patiently take you step-by-step through getting what you want, the delays in the process will be mind-numbing. It will seem as if Word is fighting against you and you will have to backtrack and undo work.

See Basic concepts of Microsoft Word: An introduction by Shauna Kelly.

Converted documents never make good templates. Period. This is true even if the best and most expensive converter available is used. Converters are good at getting a document that is in one file format into another file format that looks close to the same when printed. The underlying structure of converted documents is always a mess. This is not your fault or anyone's fault really, it is just how it is.

If you want to see why Paul thought your document an "abomination" look at it with non-printing formatting characters displayed. Click in one of the "tables." Showing non-printing formatting marks in Microsoft Word. Also, view it in "draft" or "normal" view.

Imagine, if you will, an automobile put together with no welding or fasteners that looks very pretty on the showroom floor. Every piece is separate but it hangs together by gravity and friction. If you even try to open the door and get in, much less drive it, it will fall apart. That is a good metaphor for the document produced by a converter. When you see a beautiful new shiny car on the showroom floor, it is perfectly reasonable to expect that you can drive it. When you see something that looks like a Word document produced by a document conversion process, it is perfectly reasonable to expect that you can edit it using Word. Appearances can be deceiving. In the case of Word documents produced by conversion from another format, they are. Your reasonable expectation is mistaken. Trying to edit this document is like trying to drive said car! One push and it will be scattered in pieces all over the place.

If I want to create a template based on a converted document I always save it as a .txt file and copy the text from the .txt file into Word. In Word, I format that text so it looks like what I started with (if that is what I want) using Styles.

"Template" is a word of art in Word jargon. It does not simply mean a document that can be re-used or has text you want. It means a special kind of document created by Word for that purpose that has a different kind of file structure. Templates in Microsoft Word

See also Understanding Styles in Microsoft Word.

Thank you Charles. I am going through the template tutorial. I'm still having some significant issues with my table on the right hand side. There is only one table now the left hand side is a text box. I am in print layout (as the tutorial mentions) and have been trying every possible way to make the height rows smaller. I cannot move them. I cannot go into the layout tab --> height, and make it any smaller than it is. I'm sure this is basic and I've been googling it but I really cannot find the answer. Can you help?

My other issue is that I can't insert a page break on the second page. I want a different header to appear on the next page and whenever I insert the page break my bottom words on page 1 move onto page 2.

[Charles Kenyon]

You do not use a page break to get a different header. Each section can have a header, a first-page header, and different even/odd headers (total of three). A document can have as many sections as you want, but it is seldom necessary to have more than one section. The content of headers/footers can be changed to reflect the content of the page on which they occur using the StyleRef Field.

Sections / Headers and Footers in Microsoft Word 2007-2013

Table Row height is easily adjusted by selecting the rows involved and using Table Properties > Row.

Tables

[Ulodesk]

Please note that the paragraph spacing is set with 10 pts after. This may be the limiting factor.

Best,
Ulodesk

[Charles Kenyon]

Originally Posted by Ulodesk

Please note that the paragraph spacing is set with 10 pts after. This may be the limiting factor.

Best,
Ulodesk

I would think so, too, but it is not. I applied the settings shown above and the results were not constrained by the space after formatting.