Formatting convulsions

[Bobbi]

I use Word 2003 to create 2-column documents with photos embedded in the
documents. The photos use a "square" layout so that text flows around them.
But when I make changes to the text any place on the page (not next to the
photo), the photos leap around wildly on the page, across section breaks,
sometimes to the next page or sometimes on top of another photo. Is there a
way to keep the photos where I put them? I feel as though I'm wrestling with
alligators.

Bobbi

 

[Jay Freedman]

I use Word 2003 to create 2-column documents with photos embedded in the
documents. The photos use a "square" layout so that text flows around them.
But when I make changes to the text any place on the page (not next to the
photo), the photos leap around wildly on the page, across section breaks,
sometimes to the next page or sometimes on top of another photo. Is there a
way to keep the photos where I put them? I feel as though I'm wrestling with
alligators.

Bobbi

You could put the photos, with in-line text wrapping, into a borderless
two-column table. That's the only truly stable layout method in Word.

The real answer is to use page layout software such as Publisher.

 

[Bobbi]

Thanks, Jay. That's a good tip.

I discovered that there's a "lock anchor" option in "advanced..." on the
layout tab that seems to keep the photos fixed, though it doesn't move with
text changes (which is fine with me.) That might solve my problem.

I tried Publisher once. It seemed more restrictive than Word, so I haven't
made an attempt to learn it well. It appears to me that I can vary
individual page formats more easily in Word than in Publisher.

Bobbi

 

[CyberTaz]

All floating objects (those formatted as other than In Line with Text) in
Word are anchored to a paragraph. By default the anchor can be dragged to
anchor the object to a different paragraph. The Lock Anchor option simply
prevents manually moving the anchor & won't do anything to "lock" the
position of the object - if the paragraph the object is anchored to shifts
to another page the object anchored to it will go along with it.

What controls the position of a floating object - as best it can be - are
the other settings in the Advanced options which stipulate position relative
to Margin, Page, Paragraph, etc. However, the object remains anchored to a
paragraph as there are no "pages" in the structure of a Word document, so
even the Relative to Page options pertain to the page on which the anchoring
paragraph is located.

Publisher is designed in a completely different way, where physical pages do
exist & all content is stored in containers which can be independently
positioned anywhere on any page. Because each container - text or graphic -
is independent of the others moving one doesn't disturb the position of
anything else. The fundamental difference is the distinction between a word
processing environment & a page layout [desktop publishing] environment.

If you intend to use Word as a vessel for embedded objects you may find the
following page & its associated links useful:

http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/DrawingGraphics.htm

Regards |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

 

[Bobbi]

Bob-

Thank you for the very informative reply and the link to the also very
informative website.
I have a lot to learn.

Bobbi

All floating objects (those formatted as other than In Line with Text) in
Word are anchored to a paragraph. By default the anchor can be dragged to
anchor the object to a different paragraph. The Lock Anchor option simply
prevents manually moving the anchor & won't do anything to "lock" the
position of the object - if the paragraph the object is anchored to shifts
to another page the object anchored to it will go along with it.

What controls the position of a floating object - as best it can be - are
the other settings in the Advanced options which stipulate position
relative
to Margin, Page, Paragraph, etc. However, the object remains anchored to a
paragraph as there are no "pages" in the structure of a Word document, so
even the Relative to Page options pertain to the page on which the
anchoring
paragraph is located.

Publisher is designed in a completely different way, where physical pages
do
exist & all content is stored in containers which can be independently
positioned anywhere on any page. Because each container - text or
graphic -
is independent of the others moving one doesn't disturb the position of
anything else. The fundamental difference is the distinction between a
word
processing environment & a page layout [desktop publishing] environment.

If you intend to use Word as a vessel for embedded objects you may find
the
following page & its associated links useful:

http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/DrawingGraphics.htm

Regards |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

Thanks, Jay. That's a good tip.

I discovered that there's a "lock anchor" option in "advanced..." on the
layout tab that seems to keep the photos fixed, though it doesn't move
with
text changes (which is fine with me.) That might solve my problem.

I tried Publisher once. It seemed more restrictive than Word, so I
haven't
made an attempt to learn it well. It appears to me that I can vary
individual page formats more easily in Word than in Publisher.

Bobbi