List Item paragraph style

[Karen]

What exactly is required to permanently change the paragraph style used in
numbered and bulleted lists?

I want to permanently change it to space a half-line (3pt) after each item.
What's the secret to achieiving that?

Thank you.

 

[Stefan Blom]

Are you referring to this single-level numbers (bullets)? Or multilevel?
Which version of Word?

Generally speaking, though, the best approach is to attach paragraph styles
to the numbering scheme/bullet scheme (if we are talking about multilevel
numbers/bullets, attach a style for each level).

--
Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP


in message news:%[email protected]...

 

[Karen]

I'm using Word 2007. I am asking how to *permanently* change the paragraph
formatting used in all numbering so that I don't have to redo it everytime I
create a document with some sort of list. I know how to modify a style but
a) changes to the list paragraph style don't persist from document to
document (no message about changes to Normal.dot) and b) it's not always
using the list paragraph style anyway.

If this isn't possible for a normal user, is there an add-in available that
will do it for me?

Karen

 

[Stefan Blom]

You cannot control the numbering formatting by modifying the List Paragraph
style (it is not at all clear what that style is good for).

What you can do is create a list style with the desired settings: Home tab |
Multilevel List | Create New List Style.

List styles in a document show up at Home tab | Multilevel List (under "List
Styles") which makes them easy to apply to text. You can also modify them;
just right-click a style and click Modify on the context menu to display the
Modify Style dialog box for the list style.

Also, in the Modify Style dialog box, you can click "New documents based on
this template" to add the list style to the attached template (the same way
you do it with paragraph and character styles).

 

[Karen]

Apparently I am not being clear, I want to permanently modify the paragraph
spacing used in lists.

When I follow your instructions to create a new list style, the paragraph
option is inactive so I can't change the spacing. When I try to "modify"
the existing options, it appears that I have to change each and every level
in each and every style set and even when I do that, the changes do not
persist from document to document -- no matter what combination of boxes I
check.

Is it unreasonable to want to control the way my lists appear without having
to change things every time I create a new document?

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Apparently Stefan is not being clear. If you use a specific style or styles
for your lists (and save that style to the template you're using), you can
format it any way you like. Apply the style, and you'll get the formatting
you want. See
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/OutlineNumbering.html for general
principles.

 

[Stefan Blom]

Sorry, reading through my reply again, I see that it isn't clear.

If you create a list style *and* attach a paragraph style to each numbering
level, you can then modify the paragraph styles to have the desired spacing
before/after (or any other paragraph setting that you want for your list
items). Attaching styles can be done via the Customize Multilevel List
dialog box, which is similar to the Customize Outline Numbered List dialog
of previous versions (see
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/OutlineNumbering.html).

You will have to add both the list style and the paragraph styles to the
template if you want to reuse them with future documents.

 

[Karen]

I don't want a "custom" anything. Shauna's article says I have to start
from scratch and define everything then somehow (I can't figure out how)
make that my default template. I don't want to get involved with different
templates, All I want to do is to modify the space after of whatever the
default template is and make it permanent.

I've looked everywhere and I can't figure out how to do that.

 

[Karen]

I don't want a separate custom style, I want to change what is there and
forget about it. Is that really not possible?

 

[Stefan Blom]

If you want to set text formatting defaults, you need to modify a style.
Just add the style(s) to the blank document template (normal.dot), and it
will be easily available for future documents.

 

[Karen]

I think that those of you who work with Word professionally are out of touch
with non-specialists.

I've already spent several days trying to figure out how to get Word to
space after my list paragraphs and I have never once managed to a) apply it
to all lists that are already there or b) to get it to persist from new
document to new document.

HELL I can't even figure out where Normal.dot is anymore.

 

[Karen]

and if.. the only way for an ordinary person to make a simple change to make
the built-in lists more readable is to spend days and days, making up new
styles, applying them to each and every list level of the built-in styles
then wasting hours and hours testing to be sure that she hasn't missed one
(all of which has to be somehow moved to her two other machines), then there
really is no way to do it and the whole thing is MESSED UP.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

You don't have to make up new styles. You can modify the built-in styles.
And when you do, you check the box for "Add to template" or whatever is the
current equivalent to make sure the change is written to the template so it
will affect all new documents.

 

[Stefan Blom]

in message

I think that those of you who work with Word professionally are out of
touch with non-specialists.

I've already spent several days trying to figure out how to get Word to
space after my list paragraphs and I have never once managed to a) apply
it to all lists that are already there or b) to get it to persist from new
document to new document.

Well, managing numbered lists in Word *is* a complex task. But note that
*changing* the formatting of existing text is often a time-consuming manual
task; this is true for numbering as well as any other formatting. It will be
a little easier if you make use of styles. Changing a style definition
immediately changes all text formatted in the style.

With direct formatting, the difficult part is to tell Word what particular
items should change. Certain settings can be modified via Find and Replace,
but Numbering isn't one of them.

One possibility might be this: Place the cursor in a numbered paragraph.
Display the Styles pane (Ctrl+Alt+Shift+S). Assuming that "Keep track of
formatting" has been enabled in Office button | Word Options, Advanced
category, you may be able to locate the entry for the numbered list in the
Styles pane, right-click it and choose to Select All Instances from the
context menu. Then you can change the paragraph properties for the selected
paragraphs (via the Paragraph dialog box). Repeat this for other lists.
Depending on the number of lists present, this might not be much easier than
manually changing the settings for paragraphs, though.

HELL I can't even figure out where Normal.dot is anymore.

In Word 2007, the Normal template has a new file name extension: it is
called normal.dotm. (I believe I called it "normal.dot" myself in a previous
message; I apologize for any confusion.) You can search for it in Windows.
Be sure to search hidden files and folders, since recent versions of Word
places the Normal template in a hidden folder.

 

[Karen]

That's the point -- I haven't been able to figure out how to modify what is
there and permanently modify the template. I've tried every possible
combination of check boxes and every new document retains the same old
defaults. I've tried clearing the box to space after paragraphs of the
same style, checking the various template boxes and n o t h i n g has any
lasting effect.

When I click the style group it brings up "list paragraph" but my
modifications to that style do not work.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Since I'm not yet using Word 2007, perhaps someone who is can tell you the
magic button to push for this, but it sounds a lot as if your Normal.dotm is
not being saved. Do you have any add-ins that might interfere with this?

 

[Stefan Blom]

As stated previously in this thread, there is no way to change the defaults
for all lists at once. In particular, the List Paragraph style can not be
used to set indents and/or spacing defaults for numbered lists. You can only
change specific (types of) list.

For a simple, single-level numbered list, you can modify the List
Number style to suit your needs. If "New documents based on this template"
does not work, try making the modification directly in the Normal template.

To open Normal as a document, you can search for normal.dotm in Windows
(remember to search hidden files and folders). Right-click the file you
find, and choose Open from the context menu.

Then press Ctrl+Alt+Shift+S to display the Styles pane. Click the Manage
Styles button. On the Edit tab, locate List Number. Click Modify. In the
Modify Style dialog box, click Format, Paragraph. Change the Line Spacing
and/or Spacing Before/After as desired.

Save and close the template.

--
Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP


in message

 

[GeoffG]

Karen,

That's the point -- I haven't been able to figure out how to modify
what is there and permanently modify the template.

Is your Normal template in a local or network folder over which your Network
Administrator has set a policy that prevents you from saving changes to the
Normal template?

Regards
Geoff