Trouble with "frames" in Microsoft Word - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Baraka_Guru · 05-20-2008, 12:42 PM

I have a 235 page Word document where each paragraph is within its own frame. I think it's because it was imported from a PDF. The problem is, the author edited the Word document, so going back to the original PDF won't do.

Ultimately, what I need to do is find a way to turn the document into double spacing from single spacing so I can print it out for editing. The frames seem to bungle this because of their set size.

What should I do?

I go into "normal" mode and it looks fine, but "layout" mode is all bungled up even before I try to make it double spaced. Is it possible to remove all the frames all at once? I really don't want to do it by hand for over 200 pages. And I think simply removing the frames will lose the formatting of the contents.

I know I could copy and paste as a text document, but this would also lose all the tabs and other formatting. Not good. This is a finance book, and with a document this large, reinserting even just the tabs would be time consuming.

Any ideas? I have virtually no experience working with frames.

Redlemon · 05-20-2008, 02:25 PM

Tell me about the "tabs" and "formatting" in the text.

Are the tabs just at the beginning of each paragraph, or are tabs being used to format tables? Either way, neither should be happening. You should be using paragraph styles to create the first line indent, and tables to make tables, and the equation editor to make equations.

What other formatting is there? Is it just chapter and section headings, or are there various things bolded and italicized throughout?

I think copying it out to a text file, then returning it to Word and applying correct formatting would be the best bet, even at 200 pages. If I still had Word, I could probably do it in a couple of hours.

Jinn · 05-21-2008, 07:36 AM

You could try saving it as a webpage, using a freeware tool to make that webpage into a PDF, and then extracting that PDF into a new Word Doc.

Unfortunately I haven't done anything with frames either, I never understood why Word would let you output html anyway.. it's terribly bloated.

PonyPotato · 05-21-2008, 08:14 AM

I went through stuff like this with a 500+ page biostatistics book. I could do it for you relatively quickly, but explaining specific steps without seeing the file itself is somewhat difficult.

05-20-2008, 12:42 PM	#1 (permalink)
Baraka_Guru warrior bodhisattva Super Moderator Location: East-central Canada	Trouble with "frames" in Microsoft Word I have a 235 page Word document where each paragraph is within its own frame. I think it's because it was imported from a PDF. The problem is, the author edited the Word document, so going back to the original PDF won't do. Ultimately, what I need to do is find a way to turn the document into double spacing from single spacing so I can print it out for editing. The frames seem to bungle this because of their set size. What should I do? I go into "normal" mode and it looks fine, but "layout" mode is all bungled up even before I try to make it double spaced. Is it possible to remove all the frames all at once? I really don't want to do it by hand for over 200 pages. And I think simply removing the frames will lose the formatting of the contents. I know I could copy and paste as a text document, but this would also lose all the tabs and other formatting. Not good. This is a finance book, and with a document this large, reinserting even just the tabs would be time consuming. Any ideas? I have virtually no experience working with frames. __________________ Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing? —Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön Humankind cannot bear very much reality. —From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

05-20-2008, 02:25 PM	#2 (permalink)
Redlemon Devoted Donor Location: New England	Tell me about the "tabs" and "formatting" in the text. Are the tabs just at the beginning of each paragraph, or are tabs being used to format tables? Either way, neither should be happening. You should be using paragraph styles to create the first line indent, and tables to make tables, and the equation editor to make equations. What other formatting is there? Is it just chapter and section headings, or are there various things bolded and italicized throughout? I think copying it out to a text file, then returning it to Word and applying correct formatting would be the best bet, even at 200 pages. If I still had Word, I could probably do it in a couple of hours. __________________ I can't read your signature. Sorry.

05-21-2008, 07:36 AM	#3 (permalink)
Jinn Lover - Protector - Teacher Location: Seattle, WA	You could try saving it as a webpage, using a freeware tool to make that webpage into a PDF, and then extracting that PDF into a new Word Doc. Unfortunately I haven't done anything with frames either, I never understood why Word would let you output html anyway.. it's terribly bloated. __________________ "I'm typing on a computer of science, which is being sent by science wires to a little science server where you can access it. I'm not typing on a computer of philosophy or religion or whatever other thing you think can be used to understand the universe because they're a poor substitute in the role of understanding the universe which exists independent from ourselves." - Willravel

05-21-2008, 08:14 AM	#4 (permalink)
PonyPotato Soaring Location: Ohio!	I went through stuff like this with a 500+ page biostatistics book. I could do it for you relatively quickly, but explaining specific steps without seeing the file itself is somewhat difficult. __________________ "Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark." — Henri-Frédéric Amiel