how to cross reference multiple but sequential captioned figures

[xppuser]

hi all,

wxp pro sp2, word 2003,

i have some figures that i have labelled using built-in caption function in
word 2003. in the text, i have used the Insert -> Cross-reference -> Figures
(with hyperlink) e.g. "Figure 2 showed the result diagrammatically..." where
clicking on Figure 2 in-text will bring me to the actual Figure 2.

I am wondering how to insert cross-reference of multiple but sequential
figures e.g. Figure 9-12 in the text? Would anyone be able to advice me?

Thank you,
jes

 

[Shauna Kelly]

Hi Jes

Insert a cross-reference to Figure 9, then insert one to Figure 12. Now, add
or delete text necessary to achieve what you want to see. To help that
process, do Tools > Options > View and set the Field Shading box to
"Always". The cross-reference fields themselves will then be shaded in grey
(the shading does not print). You can safely delete or change any ordinary
text around the fields.

Hope this helps.

Shauna Kelly. Microsoft MVP.
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

See http://sbarnhill.mvps.org/WordFAQs/CombineXrefs.htm

 

[xppuser]

hi shauna, suzanne,

thank you for your advices, they both worked!

shauna, your solution seemed simpler i just did Insert - Cross Reference,
for which i have chosen the option of Figure and display label and number
e.g. Figure 9, then i put a dash i.e. "-" then i did another Insert - Cross
Reference for Figure 12 (so now the text appeared as Figure 9 - Figure 12),
then with the shading on, i deleted the label "Figure" for Figure 12 so i
ended up with Figure 9 - 12 (where Figure 9 was naturally still shaded and
the number 12 remaining shaded). for the both figures, the hyperlink i.e.
Ctrl+click still functional.

suzanne, your solution (the one that i obtained from your site, provided by
your link) whilst did work, entailed some additional steps, the additional
purpose(s) of which i am not clear. would you be able to elaborate for me,
for my own education in this matter?

thank you both again,
jes

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

It would appear that Shauna's solution is more elegant, but I confess I'm
not sure how it works. If I insert a figure caption using Insert | Reference
| Caption (which produces "Figure 1. Some text") and then use Insert |
Reference | Cross-reference to "Only label and number" of Figure 1, I get a
cross-reference that says "Figure 1." If I look at the field code for it, it
says, "{ REF _Ref142375545 }." With the field results displayed, I can
delete "Figure ," but if I update the field, it says "Figure 1" again, which
is what I would expect because it is a cross-reference to a bookmark that is
still surrounding the entire label ("Figure 1") in the original caption.
Perhaps Shauna can explain further.

 

[xppuser]

shauna, suzanne,

i spoke to soon! here is an update.

shauna's method seems easy at first look but it came a little bit undone
when i moved the section en-bloc elsewhere in that what appeared as Figure
32-37 (i.e. Figure 32 was shaded, followed by unshaded dash "-" followed by
shaded number "37") using shauna's simple method became Figure 51-Figure 56
in the new place (where Figure 51 and Figure 56 are both shaded probably
indicating that an field updates have taken place). i then have to re-do the
deleting to make it appears as Figure 51-56 again. however, the hyperlinks
and sequences are intact.

on the other hand, suzanne's method retained the appearance as Figure x-z in
the new place with the hyperlinks and sequences similarly intact.

bottom line, i suppose, if you haven't got a lot of Figure this and that
that may have to be moved (or moved a lot of times) then shauna's method
could save some time/effort but suzanne's method although more involved would
save some time later. at which point one is preferred than the other i am not
sure and may be down to individual preferences or tasks at hand.

shauna, suzanne, thought you might like the feedback.

thank you for your help.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Yes, thanks for the feedback. As I suspected, when the field is updated,
you're back where you started.

 

[Shauna Kelly]

Hi xpuser

I misunderstood what you wanted. You'll need to use the method described on
Suzanne's page to achieve what you want.

Hope this helps.

Shauna Kelly. Microsoft MVP.
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word

 

[Mat]

Hello

I realise this is an old post, but have a problem relating to it, so i
figured this is the best place for it.

I have been using the solution offered by Suzanne, and it works fine.
However...

If the figure captions are composed of a section-number arrangement (i.e.
figure 2-5 etc...) then the reference comes back as the sum of the two
numbers (returns 7 as opposed to 5-2) is there a simple way to avoid this?
i've had to resort to the 'kludgy' workaround for now but would appreciate a
more elegant solution, if anyone has one!

Thanks

Mat

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

That is rather a drawback, isn't it? The solution is to change the hyphen to
an en dash (which is preferred by many typographers, anyway). In the Caption
Numbering dialog, when you check the box for "Include chapter number," the
dropdown list for "Use separator" becomes available, and one of the options
(the last one) is an en dash.

There is actually a Unicode character called a "Figure Dash," that looks to
me just a hair longer than an en dash. It is included only in "large" fonts
such as Arial Unicode MS, however, and in any case you can't select it
through the Caption Numbering dialog.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
http://word.mvps.org