Text box (Word 2003)

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Hello all-

I have a document with a text box that is longer than the actual 8.5 x 11 document. So what’s happening is that hte text box is disappearing where it passes below the bottom margin.

How can I make the text box break into 2 pieces iwth the remaining parts going on to the next page?

Thanks,

JMT

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I have no idea whether that is possible. There is a way to link textboxes together so that text flows from one to the next. However, I don’t know whether that is convenient for the user (i.e., whether the cursor magically moves to the second textbox).

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> whether the cursor magically moves to the second textbox

Yes, it does.

(To link two text boxes, click in the first one, then click the button in the Text Box toolbar shown below, and finally click on the second one. The toolbar also contains buttons for “Next text box” and “Previous text box” that are only available if you have linked text boxes)

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That’s a neat trick, but what I really need is to find a way to somehow break up the textbox so that it splits in 2 whenever the bottom end is hanging over the end of a page. I need that bottom part to roll over to the next page. Anyone have a clue?

Sincerely, JMT

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Text boxes don’t resize themselves automatically, so I see no way to do what you want.

Why do you want a text box longer than one page?

Perhaps it would be better to use a table, or else to use multiple columns.

Added: sorry, text boxes do have an AutoFit to contents option. But I still don’t think it’s possible – at least not easily – to create a new linked text box when the box becomes too tall

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Dear Hans,

I need a textbox or otherwise a table or some other solution for texts lasting more than one page that needed to go into a box.

In the attached document, the first entry is created as a table.

The second entry is created as a texbox behind the writing.

Both look similar, but the table actually allows itself to break at the end of the page and to continue on the next page. That is what I am going after. Notice how the textbox does not do that. It just abruptly ends.

The table looks good, but there is just one problem. Word does not allow me to put the table as an entry within my outline. Note how the textbox is the entry that goes beside the Heading 2 “B.” outline entry. I can’t, however, put the table next to the Heading 2 “A.” outline entry. I have to put the “A.” inside of the table.

Is there a way to get around that’

Sincerely,

JMT

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Create a table with two columns. Put the letter (A, in the narrow first column, and the actual text in the second, wider column. Shade the second column only.

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Dear Hans,

That’s EXACTLY the look I am going for. However, in the table of contents, the entry in Column 1 shows up as one entry and that in column 2 shows up as another, even though they should show up as one line (i.e., “A. Rule 611. Mode and Order of Interrogation and Presentation”). See attached.

Is there a way to get them on one line in the TOC??

Thank you,

JMT

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Hi JMT

See attached. The secret to this solution is to put a shaded autoshape behind a separate first row, which holds your heading and is merged.

Cheers,
Paul Edstein
[Fmr MS MVP - Word]

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Thanks Macropod, that’s basically what I am looking for. But why is it that even when I choose the same fill color for both the autoshape and the 2nd row, the autoshape comes out to be slightly darker?

Also, if I mess up and later decide that I want to change all of the shading to lighter grey or no grey, is there a shortcut, or do I have to go through all 85 tables and autoshapes and do it separately?

JMT

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Hi JMT,

The fill colour differences may be because the cell shades and autoshape shades aren’t all the same. From memory, I think there’s one that’s 12.5% grey while the other is 10% or 15%.

And yes, if you later decide to change the lot, they’d have to be done individually. You could automate it with a macro but, unless you had many to do and/or this was likely not to be a one-off occurrence, it probably wouldn’t be worth the effort.

Cheers,
Paul Edstein
[Fmr MS MVP - Word]

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