Remove Vertical Gray Lines in Table Cells

[Kevin Scott]

I have a Word document that has faint gray lines displayed in the table cells
where carriage returns exist. They are there no matter the viewing format
(web layout, print layout, etc.). They show up whenever you try to view this
particular document (someone else created the original) and interfere with
the text if viewed on a projector and they also show up when printed out.

How can I turn off these gray lines? I have searched through many menus and
options but I have not been successful so far.

Any ideas on what these are?

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Generally speaking, unless you have more than one paragraph of text in a
cell, you should not see paragraph marks ("carriage returns") at all. You
should see only the end-of-cell marker. I suspect that what you're seeing
is that someone has pressed Enter at the end of the cell content in a row
with an Exact height specified. The additional content (which we will hope
is merely an empty paragraph) is hidden below the bottom of the cell.
Usually, placing the insertion point before the paragraph mark and pressing
Delete will remove the unwanted and unnecessary paragraph break and restore
the (single, we hope) paragraph to its default condition as the only
paragraph in the cell, ending with the end-of-cell marker, and you won't see
the gray lines any more.

If there is still a gray line, you may see yet another paragraph mark, in
which case you can delete it, again hoping that there is not actual content
below it, just an empty paragraph. Continue until there is no more overflow
content.

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

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Oh, shoot, I just reread your post and see you said *vertical* lines. Could
this mean that the paragraph has a negative right indent?

Another avenue to explore might be shading applied to the paragraph/cell.

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

 

[Kevin Scott]

Hello Suzanne,
I already tried to use "no fill" on the cell AND the table but to no avail.
If you like, I can send you a screenshot direct from my Outlook email but I
cannot in this posting format.

Let me know if that is OK. A picture is worth 1000 words.
Regards,
Kevin

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

A picture would not be helpful, but if you want to send a sample of the
problem table to my email, I'll take a look.

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

 

[Swifty]

A picture would not be helpful, but if you want to send a sample of the
problem table to my email, I'll take a look.

Within the organisation that I work for (one of those really large IT
Corporations) I find that attaching my problem document to a post in one
of the busiest newsgroups, and offering a $5 Amazon voucher to the first
person to mail me the answer with a working copy of the document, to be
about the most effective customer support it is possible to get.
We do a roaring trade in fixing up Excel spreadsheets this way.

The $5 isn't a inducement; I just like rewarding people who have helped
me (and working for said large Corporation, I don't have heaps of cash
to hand out).

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

No reward needed for me to take a look at it, but you will have to email it.
If you're using an NNTP newsreader, you *can* attach it here, and I *can*
pick it up, but it is contrary to the protocol for this NG, which is not a
binaries group.

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

 

[Kevin Scott]

Hello Suzanne,
Again, thanks for your insight on this issue. We will just re-do the
document to clear out the mess.
Thanks,
Kevin

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful, but the gray shading was just really
intractable and mysterious.

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