Positioning captioned tables and diagrams in Word 2002

[AndyatIES]

I can't believe I feel alone in this one! For years, in Word 97 we have been enclosing [a caption line, a table or diagram, and a source attribution line] in a frame and positioning it at the top or foot of the page so text flows around it. It is really easy and controllable, and since we are a research institute we have lots of reports and LOTS of tables and charts.

Now Microsoft has taken away frames (in that sense) I don't know how to achieve the same effect. The only positionable object remaining that can contain text and pictures is the table, so I could put tables into tables etc... But then what about autocaptions for the real figures and tables?!

Yes, I do need help, urgently! Any bright ideas that can be given as an easy to use method for ordinary researchers??

 

[Dreamboat]

"The only positionable object remaining that can contain text and pictures is the table"

What about text boxes?

To my knowledge, frames have not been commonly used in a long time---MS seems to have been phasing them out since pre-97. Anne Troy

http://www.TheOfficeExperts.com

Word and Excel Macros
Coming soon: wX

 

[AndyatIES]

Thanks Dreamboat

But frames were so EASY and so convenient!

My scepticism over text boxes was to do with the error messages saying "You cannot put drawing objects into a text box, callout, comment, footnote, or endnote".

Plainly you can, so long as you do it the right way. I can draw a text box, paste a picture into it, caption it, attribute it etc. However, when you draw, caption, attribute, then COPY the block containing text, object, text, and paste it into a text box, you get the error message. It all seems to be because you're not allowed to add the drawing with its inline paragraph mark. I'm sure there must be a good reason for this, but it certainly isn't user-friendly, and doesn't seem to make a whole lot of sense.

Another annoying habit is the way Word resizes drawings to fit (sorry fill!) the text box without your say-so. Draw a shape in a text box, cut it and paste it right back, and see what I mean!!

 

[Dreamboat]

"You cannot put drawing objects into a text box"

Don't confuse Office drawing objects with other graphics. YOu can easily convert a drawing object into a graphic by cutting, then Edit-Paste special-As a picture (EMF is best).

Since I'm not sure at all what kind of drawing objects you're using and what kind of layout you're creating, I can't argue about the annoying habits. I'm currently writing a book (Yep, on Word) and don't even talk about frames or placing graphic objects of any kind into text boxes. Generally, there's just no need to do it. But...I haven't seen your layout. And would LOVE to.

Anne@TheOfficeExperts.com Anne Troy

http://www.TheOfficeExperts.com

Word and Excel Macros
Coming soon: wX

 

[dcompto]

I'm using Word 2000 and maybe it's similar enough for you to try the following...

Click on the Text Box (to get the selection border).
Right-click the selection border.
Scroll to "Format Text Box".
Click on the "Text Box" tab.
Click "Convert to Frame".
Click OK.
(Unfortunately, it defaults to a border around the frame and you will have to right-click again and scroll to "Borders and Shading" and click "None".)
Now when you right-click you get "Format Frame".

Hope this helps.

 

[AndyatIES]

Sadly, no. That would be too easy! MS has changed the frame object to mean something quite different in XP, all in pursuit of the XML dream. As far as a text document object is concerned, it is gone forever, transferred into the context of HTML frames.

The current answer to positioning a selection of pictures and text in the page (eg a captioned picture or table - pretty ordinary - no?), is either put it in a one cell table (and lose the art of autocaptions) or put it in a text box (which, unlike frames, you can't apply retrospectively: instead you must paste text and pictures as separate items into a newly-created text box. And that can cause object resizing problems).

For me that means simple macros to position captioned pictures or tables in the page won't work any more, simply because if you select text and pictures together you aren't allowed to paste them together into a text box. Separately yes, but together no: that's not allowed (try it and see the error message).

Anyone know why?

 

[Dreamboat]

The pictures must first be set to "inline with text".

After all this, I hope it helps. By the way, I'm warming to the idea of your graphs being at the top and bottom of the pages (Not that you care!), because of something you said in your last email, which now escapes me...

Anyway, I'm not sure if it's possible, and I know someone who could tell us if it's possible, to create a macro that can determine the size of the selected area, cut it, paste it into a resized textbox...

Just email me again. Anne Troy

http://www.TheOfficeExperts.com

Word and Excel Macros
Coming soon: wX

 

[plantj]

Thanks for your comments about cutting and pasting back into a text box AndyatIES. Very interesting. But I found a fix! When pasting the picture/shape/whatever back use Paste Special and paste as Picture Object rather than the default RTF and it retains the original size.

 

[AndyatIES]

Thanks plantj

It's sort of an answer, since (a) it stops the graphic element resizing to the box and (b) it collects caption text etc with the picture.

Unfortunately, this method turns everything into a picture, so your autocaption labels are no more, and if you need to edit the caption (for example) inside the text box, yes, you get the error message again "You can't put drawing object etc. into a text box" (because editing a picture dissembles it back into drawing objects).

This is still really interesting: does anyone else like their text to flow around a captioned drawing or chart? Yes, you can patch in bits of text and pictures into text boxes, but can you automate the process and the size?

IRONICALLY (!!) I find that when you've finally got everything into your text box a bit at a time, you can still convert the text box to a frame that looks and behaves exactly as it always has! But you can't just select text and graphics and insert a frame like you used to...

 

[AndyatIES]

Note for dcompto

Your note about converting to frames wasn't so wrong after all! But getting there is now a tour around the houses. (However, I do find that in XP, the frame adopts the format and position of the original text box, so requires no reformatting.)

Apart from my grouch about having to go through all the text box stuff, can anyone tell me if this new frame concept really is a whole lot different when used for this purpose? I have no interest in letting MS Word generate xml or html for me (webbies will understand!).

 

[dcompto]

Today, I found the following Word 2002 article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base (

http://www.microsoft.com).

Please forgive me if it is not helpful--in which case, I'll call it quits in trying to help on this one

Microsoft Knowledge Base Article - 313017
HOW TO: Add a Caption to a Table, Figure, Equation, or Graphic in Word 2002

How to Insert a Caption
To add a caption to a table, equation, figure, or other item, follow these steps:
Start Word, and then open the document that you want.
Select the item that you want to add a caption to.
On the Insert menu, point to Reference, and then click Caption.
In the Label list, click the caption label that you want. For example, click Figure.
In the Position list, click the location in which to position the caption. For example, click Below selected item.
Click OK.

The label is displayed in the position that you specified.

NOTE: The caption is displayed as label 1 by default, where label is the caption label that you select.



How to Modify Caption Labels
In Word, point to Reference on the Insert menu, and then click Caption.
Do one of the following:
To add a label, click New Label. Type the text that you want displayed as a caption, and then click Close.

The label is displayed in the Label list.

-or-
To remove a label, select the label that you want to remove in the Label list, and then click Delete Label.

NOTE: You cannot delete the default labels: Equation, Figure, and Table.
Click OK.



How to Configure Caption Numbering
In Word, point to Reference on the Insert menu, and then click Caption.
Click Numbering.
In the Format list, click the numbering style that you want. For example, click i, ii, iii, ....
To enable section numbering in the caption, follow these steps:
Click to select the Include chapter number check box.

NOTE: To use this feature, you must apply a list style to the document. To do this, click Bullets and Numbering on the Format menu, and then select a list style on the List Styles tab.
In the Chapter starts with style list, click the heading style that you want to use in the document.
In the Use separator list, click the item separator that you want.
Click OK twice.