Sams Teach Yourself StarOffice® 5 for Linux in 24 Hours |
![]() |
|||||||||||||
Hour 9: Using Advanced Formatting Tools |
![]() |
|||||||||||||
|
When you want to format text that flows in multiple vertical columns, such as in a newspaper or magazine, you can use the Columns feature.
The Columns feature aligns your text into standard newspaper-style columns. In other words, each page can have multiple columns. The text that you type flows from the bottom of one column to the top of the next column.
Although you can't do everything in StarOffice that you can in a page layout program such as Quark Express or PageMaker, StarOffice enables you to define the number of columns you want, the spacing between the columns, and the width of the line that separates the columns.
You can define your columns before you begin entering your text, or you can format your document into columns at any time during the creation of the document.
The tab where you define columns is part of the Page dialog box. To view this area, select Page from the Format menu; then select the Column tab within the Page dialog box. (See Figure 9.6.)
Figure
9.6
You
can define columns within the Page dialog box.
For these examples, assume that you can use standard column widths, which means that you don't have to worry about all the measurements in the Column width area of the dialog box.
Instead, look at the Preview and the Columns areas. You can adjust the number in the Amount field (a strange field name) to change the number of columns in the document. An easier method, however, is to click on one of the little pictures that shows how you want your columns set up.
The automatically set choices include:
One column (regular noncolumn text)
Two and three columns (for newspaper style text)
Two columns, with the left or right column narrower (for newsletters or special formatting tricks)
Click on any of these figures and the Preview figure changes to show you how the text in your document will look.
The Separator area of the Columns tab enables you to define a line between each column. The default line size is None. If you want to add a line between the columns in your document, you can select a line width from the drop-down list.
After the Line field has a size selected, you can set a value in the Height field. This number is the percentage of the height of the text column. For example, if your top and bottom margins are both one inch and your paper is 11 inches tall, using a 100% Height creates a 9-inch line.
If you set the Height to less than 100%, you can also set the position of the line, placing it even with the top or bottom of the column, or centered vertically between columns. The same line specifications apply between all columns.
Figure 9.7 shows a document divided into two columns, with standard column widths. A line between columns is .01 point wide, and 100 percent high (the full distance between top and bottom margins).
Recall that you can create a columns definition any time you want. To create columns in a new document, follow these steps:
1. Open a new text document (notice that there are currently no columns).
2. Select the Columns tab of the Page dialog box accessed through the Format|Page menu.
3. Select the number of columns you want.
4. Change the Spacing field in the Column width section to .1 or .2 inches.
5. Define a line to separate the columns (if you want one).
6. Choose OK.
Figure
9.7
A sample document with columns and a line defined between them.
The document shows outlines for columns as you've defined them. As you type, the text wraps from the bottom of one column to the top of the next column.
If you already have a document and want to change its layout to include columns, place the cursor anywhere in the body of the document and follow these steps:
1. Select Page from the Format menu and choose the Columns tab.
2. Define the number of Columns you want by selecting one of the pictures in the Columns area.
3. Change the Spacing field in the Column width section to something such as .1 or .2 inches (as you prefer).
4. Define a line to separate the columns (if you want one).
5. Choose OK.
StarOffice immediately formats your document according to the columns that you defined. Unfortunately, you can't set columns for just a part of your document. It's all columns--in the same style--or no columns.
When you set up columns, each page of your document is like multiple pages of text with narrow margins, formatted onto one page. Beyond that distinction, other functions of StarOffice work the same within columns as they do in regular documents:
Tables can be inserted into columns --The table cannot, however, extend beyond the boundary of a column.
Graphics can be added to a page with columns --As with regular pages, the graphic box can be resized and moved as you choose. The column boundaries don't restrict movement.
A frame can be inserted on a page with columns --The frame can be moved and sized without being restricted by the column borders.
Tip - If you need to add a table that spans several columns, insert a Frame and add text and a table within the Frame. We haven't discussed Frames, but you can experiment with them. |
Index markers and footnote markers can be added to text in columns --The correct placement and page numbers apply.
Sams Teach Yourself StarOffice® 5 for Linux in 24 Hours |
![]() |
|||||||||||||
Hour 9: Using Advanced Formatting Tools |
![]() |
|||||||||||||
|
© Copyright Macmillan USA. All rights reserved.