Removing White Space Between Pages

[riversurf58]

Too often, my existing documents open with white space between pages, even though I created them without any white space. Going through File>Options>Display and unchecking "Show White Space Between Pages" has no effect. And I don't know why it often reverts to being selected.

Is there another way to get rid of this white space? Sometimes it goes away on its own, but that's completely unpredictable. Help appreciated.

(Using Office Professional Plus 2016, Windows 10, but this problem has plagued me for years on every platform I've used)

Thanks



RS

[Charles Kenyon]

I suspect you mean (apparently) unused space on your page.

Try turning on display of formatting.
Showing non-printing formatting marks in Microsoft Word

Go to the paragraph that starts a new page and press Shift+F1. What do you see about keep lines together or keep with next?
Word's Reveal Formatting Codes

[Charles Kenyon]

While you are waiting for more help, it would be worth your while to go through this series of pages:
Basic Concepts of Microsoft Word - from Shauna Kelly

[riversurf58]

Originally Posted by Charles Kenyon

I suspect you mean (apparently) unused space on your page.

Try turning on display of formatting.
Showing non-printing formatting marks in Microsoft Word

I don't see any formatting markings at all. just white space.

Go to the paragraph that starts a new page and press Shift+F1. What do you see about keep lines together or keep with next?
Word's Reveal Formatting Codes

I get a column on the right side, "formatting of selected text" three sections: Font, Paragraph, and Section.

[Charles Kenyon]

Look in the paragraph area for the words "keep with next" or "keep lines together."
Are you seeing either?

Can you post a screenshot?
How to attach a screenshot or file in this forum.

[riversurf58]

I found the Pagination screen and checked and "keep with next" and "keep lines together" are unchecked. I checked them both but no change. Then I went back to the page display options in File>Options, the Show White Space choice is now selected again, even though I had just unchecked it minutes earlier.


(Not having much luck with the screen shot. When I post a screen shot I get a message that I'm using too many characters.)

[Guessed]

Are you talking about the setting that toggles when you double click between pages when in the print layout view? Is it not sticking for a document?

[Charles Kenyon]

Originally Posted by riversurf58

I found the Pagination screen and checked and "keep with next" and "keep lines together" are unchecked. I checked them both but no change. Then I went back to the page display options in File>Options, the Show White Space choice is now selected again, even though I had just unchecked it minutes earlier.


(Not having much luck with the screen shot. When I post a screen shot I get a message that I'm using too many characters.)

I am not talking about any settings dialogs.
Shift+F1 is a diagnostic tool. Use it as such.

1. Pick a paragraph that starts a page after a large white space on the previous page and click in it.
2. Press Shift+F1 if the display formatting pane is not already showing.
3. In the paragraph area of that are you seeing either
   "keep with next" or
   "keep lines together?"
4. Are you seeing "page break before?"

Don't try to change anything, please.

Just answer the questions.
We'll get to what to change and how after we see what is going on.


I expect you want "display white space" turned on. The white space this is controlling is the top and bottom margin area and headers and footers. Most people want to see that while typing. If you do not, consider working in draft view.

[Charles Kenyon]

If you do not want to be seeing the header and footer area / top bottom margin area while typing in Print view, you can toggle it as shown in Elusive White Space by Suzanne Barnhill.

This is a toggle setting and can be switched in at least two ways, as discussed in that article. It will stay the way it is set, for all documents, until changed by the user.

It is not a document setting, it is a Word setting.

[riversurf58]

"Are you talking about the setting that toggles when you double click between pages when in the print layout view? Is it not sticking for a document?"

This is what usually happens: I get an Word attachment that is formatted with white space between pages. After I open it, all of my documents then have the white space between pages, and I cannot get rid of it, even when I go into Word options and uncheck the "show white space between pages" option, which had been unchecked before. If I create a new document, it too has the white space (again, even if I've unchecked the option. In fact, when I go back to it, it's checked again). Eventually, after rebooting or through some unknown process, the white space goes away, but by this time, I've wasted lots of time trying to get things back to normal. And I think I mentioned this problem has plagued me through several versions of word.

[Charles Kenyon]

This setting is not saved or contained in documents. It is a Word setting.
Absent macros, opening a document will not turn the setting on (check it).

However, once it is on for a single document, it is on for all documents opened thereafter until changed back.

It can easily be turned on/off with a double-click at the top/bottom of a document page.

I am on a laptop with a touchpad which gives me stray mouse-clicks all the time. If you are using a touchpad, consider attaching a mouse and telling Windows that when a mouse is attached the touchpad should not respond.

[Charles Kenyon]

One side note:
Never open a document in Word directly from email if you intend to edit it and save your edits. That is a great way to lose your work.
Instead, save the attachment to your hard drive and open it from there.

[riversurf58]

Originally Posted by Charles Kenyon

This setting is not saved or contained in documents. It is a Word setting.
Absent macros, opening a document will not turn the setting on (check it).

However, once it is on for a single document, it is on for all documents opened thereafter until changed back.

It can easily be turned on/off with a double-click at the top/bottom of a document page.

I am on a laptop with a touchpad which gives me stray mouse-clicks all the time. If you are using a touchpad, consider attaching a mouse and telling Windows that when a mouse is attached the touchpad should not respond.

I'm a bit confused.

1. Where do I go to change that setting?

2. If all of my documents have no white space, why are they changing to include white space.

3. Not using a touch pad

Thank you

[Charles Kenyon]

Originally Posted by riversurf58

I'm a bit confused.

1. Where do I go to change that setting?

See Suzanne's article. I'm lazy.
Elusive White Space by Suzanne Barnhill

2. If all of my documents have no white space, why are they changing to include white space.

Again, probably a stray mouse double-click.
Your documents show white space or not depending on your Word settings. This is not set in any document.
If the setting is changed in one document, it applies to all documents.

3. Not using a touch pad

Thank you

OK, then that is not the source of the stray mouse-clicks.

You may want to change the sensitivity settings for your mouse.

The only way to change this accidentally is to double click at the top of a page. Macros could do it, but I doubt that this is the cause.

[Charles Kenyon]

If you edit in draft view, there is no display of white space.