Text box jumps to left of page

[gianluca]

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.

 

[John McGhie]

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin. For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.

This email is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless you intend to pay!

 

[gianluca]

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

 

[John McGhie]

Yes, if you want the advanced course, we WILL have to type it out for you,
because it doesn't yet exist anywhere else :-(

First, I would like to know what's going wrong. Any chance you could email
me a sample of the 2003 doc? (email address in the .sig) A 2003 doc should
open without a problem in Word 2004...

I'm nearly asleep right now, but keep hassling me: I will do the whole text
box bit for you if you keep nagging me

Cheers

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin. For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps




John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

This email is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless you intend to pay!

 

[CyberTaz]

While John is napping have a look here & follow the links at the bottom of
the page which pertain to the Draw Layer & Floating Graphics;

http://word.mvps.org/Mac/PagesInWord.html

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

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin. For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps




John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

 

[gianluca]

To all who are helping me on this thread and others, I sincerely thank
you. I have been unable to visit the forum this week however I have
eagerly looked forward to returning and reading your replies. Please
do not think my silences are from indifference. I am now going to read
through the new responses, visit the suggested links and will return,
no doubt, with more question. I'm making a list. :>)

While John is napping have a look here & follow the links at the bottom of
the page which pertain to the Draw Layer & Floating Graphics;

http://word.mvps.org/Mac/PagesInWord.html

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

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin. For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps


On 1/03/10 11:04 AM, in article (e-mail address removed),

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

 

[gianluca]

Good day, Mr. McGhie:
I shall indeed send you some files showing the original formatting and
what 2004 is doing to my text boxes.

Your "advanced course" offer is beyond the call of duty and I am
unwilling to burden you to such a degree. For the most part, they
behave themselves and do as I bid. It just this shape-sifting that has
me puzzled. Per your suggestion, I had a look a paragraph borders. For
expediency, I need to stick with text boxes. Word is at best a
glorified TextEdit for me. For any serious layouts, even a personal
letter, I use InDesign always. One of the many reason I switched from
my dinosaur WordPerfect to Word is because Word and InDesign are
reported to play nicely together... sort of.

Requesting clarification regarding your E-address: Is it actually
mcghie [dot] name or is name supposed to be replaced with something?
(I'm not as bright and quick as I was 374 years ago when I was only
90; humour me.)

Yes, if you want the advanced course, we WILL have to type it out for you,
because it doesn't yet exist anywhere else :-(

First, I would like to know what's going wrong. Any chance you could email
me a sample of the 2003 doc? (email address in the .sig) A 2003 doc should
open without a problem in Word 2004...

I'm nearly asleep right now, but keep hassling me: I will do the whole text
box bit for you if you keep nagging me

Cheers

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin. For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps


On 1/03/10 11:04 AM, in article (e-mail address removed),

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

This email is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless you intend to pay!

--

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

 

[John McGhie]

Hi ...

Well, if you are going to get all formal on me, isn't it time you introduced
yourself?

As I understand it, 374 years ago when we were both in short pants, the
suggestion was that one should append one's name to correspondence!

Yeah, (e-mail address removed) is it. I put it in the .sig at the bottom, because
if you view these posts on most websites, the machine will remove the real
origination address.

Text boxes are "anchored frames". You need to pay attention to what you
anchor them to, because if it moves, they will move. And how you anchor
them: you can compute their position relative to a paragraph, a margi, or a
page. Depending on which you choose, high entertainment value is possible
if the other components on the page move.

The fundamental unit of a Word document is the paragraph: Word has no notion
of "pages" in its files, it makes them up at print time if it needs more
room to fit the paragraphs and whatever is anchored to them.

Cheers

Good day, Mr. McGhie:
I shall indeed send you some files showing the original formatting and
what 2004 is doing to my text boxes.

Your "advanced course" offer is beyond the call of duty and I am
unwilling to burden you to such a degree. For the most part, they
behave themselves and do as I bid. It just this shape-sifting that has
me puzzled. Per your suggestion, I had a look a paragraph borders. For
expediency, I need to stick with text boxes. Word is at best a
glorified TextEdit for me. For any serious layouts, even a personal
letter, I use InDesign always. One of the many reason I switched from
my dinosaur WordPerfect to Word is because Word and InDesign are
reported to play nicely together... sort of.

Requesting clarification regarding your E-address: Is it actually
mcghie [dot] name or is name supposed to be replaced with something?
(I'm not as bright and quick as I was 374 years ago when I was only
90; humour me.)

Yes, if you want the advanced course, we WILL have to type it out for you,
because it doesn't yet exist anywhere else :-(

First, I would like to know what's going wrong. Any chance you could email
me a sample of the 2003 doc? (email address in the .sig) A 2003 doc should
open without a problem in Word 2004...

I'm nearly asleep right now, but keep hassling me: I will do the whole text
box bit for you if you keep nagging me

Cheers

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin.
For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating
objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps


On 1/03/10 11:04 AM, in article (e-mail address removed),

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.


John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

This email is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless you intend to pay!

--

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

This email is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless you intend to pay!

 

[gianluca]

Hi ...

Well, if you are going to get all formal on me, isn't it time you introduced
yourself?

As I understand it, 374 years ago when we were both in short pants, the
suggestion was that one should append one's name to correspondence!

Them's was the good ol' days when it was safe to append one's actual
name to a post. Experience has been a stern taskmaster and counsels
caution in using one's actual name in Usenet as I did freely for a
number of years. Sad.
I have a zip ready to send along to you per your request. (You aren't
going to make me pay, are you as threatened at the end of some of your
post? ;>))

Yeah, (e-mail address removed) is it. I put it in the .sig at the bottom, because
if you view these posts on most websites, the machine will remove the real
origination address.

Text boxes are "anchored frames". You need to pay attention to what you
anchor them to, because if it moves, they will move. And how you anchor
them: you can compute their position relative to a paragraph, a margi, or a
page. Depending on which you choose, high entertainment value is possible
if the other components on the page move.

Sir, I hear you and your point is taken as read. Unfortunately, I
still feel we are not on the same page here. If I create a text box on
the PC side of my box (which is now rare that most of the WordPerfect
to Word conversion are mercifully finished) they stay put so I don't
believe I am... uh... messing up. The problem only exist in documents
imported from 2003 to 2004 or newly created in 2004. And, once the
recalcitrant box is manually put aright (to the desired rectilinear
shape) in 2004, it stays put there as well. I can edit surrounding
paragraphs and the box moves as I should expect it to do. It is only
in the _initial creation_ of the box that the problem exists. I'll
send you the PDF I created showing the progress of inserting a text
box in a doc. Why a PDF? I've covered all of that, plus [fanfare,
please] a personal introduction, in a cover letter.

Please stand by to receive.

 

[John McGhie]

Hi Gianluca:

Them's was the good ol' days when it was safe to append one's actual
name to a post. Experience has been a stern taskmaster and counsels
caution in using one's actual name in Usenet as I did freely for a
number of years. Sad.

My real name and real email address and real phone number are attached to
this post, and to every other post I have made since about 1989

I have a zip ready to send along to you per your request. (You aren't
going to make me pay, are you as threatened at the end of some of your
post? ;>))

Well, no, you escape under the clause "unless I ask you to...". Everyone
else gets to pay

Sir, I hear you and your point is taken as read. Unfortunately, I
still feel we are not on the same page here.

Well, I got your email, and I tried it on the file you supplied in Word
2003. The text box ended up flush on the left margin.

Go to Word>Preferences>View and turn on "Object Anchors" so you can see what
you are doing.

Then click the picture, and an Anchor symbol âš“ will appear somewhere on the
page where you pasted the picture. In your case, you will see that the
anchor is actually INSIDE the text box (it's actually behind it, but you get
the idea...)

Drag it to the beginning of the paragraph ABOVE where you want the picture
to appear.

Then drag the picture where you want it.

Any object whose Layout is set to anything other than "Inline with text" is
a "floating" object, and is anchored to the paragraph you choose when you
paste it in.

Every floating object is anchored to a paragraph: you need to control which
paragraph (and it must be a paragraph that will remain on the page the
picture is on).

If I create a text box on
the PC side of my box (which is now rare that most of the WordPerfect
to Word conversion are mercifully finished) they stay put so I don't
believe I am... uh... messing up.

Well, you're not messing up. But the level of complexity can be fairly high
with this method. In a Word document, "everything" is related to
"everything else".

I rarely use floating objects, and then only when I absolutely have to.
Because they do create "high entertainment value" when you come to maintain
the documents.

The measurements in question are expressed in "twips". A Twip is 1/20th of
a point. Word derives its measurements from the printer driver, the fonts,
and the operating system.

If you move a document to a different operating system, chances are the
printer driver is returning different measurements, the fonts are coded to a
different rendering standard, and the pixels are a different shape.

If you build a document containing lots of floating objects that are all
floating in space relative to each other, just a tiny movement in any one
of the measurements can produce a large movement as everything shuffles
around, because everything changes size.

I construct my documents to avoid floating objects (I might allow only one
in about 500 pages...) to avoid this problem.

I also format entirely using styles, and use the paragraph properties of the
styles to position everything, including pictures. For "boxes" I use either
paragraph borders or single-cell tables.

My original recommendation stands: "Don't use text boxes" for this,
especially if you want to operate cross-platform. The alternative is that
you get to spend a LOT of time putting text boxes 'right'.

Cheers

--

The email below is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless I ask you to; or unless you intend to pay!

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word), Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
Sydney, Australia. | Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410 | mailto:[email protected]

 

[plc]

Hi,

I am also working with text boxes in Windows 7 Word 2010. The text boxes are
providing "high entertainment" value as you indicate but my project is due
and before I abandon all the work done to date I am hoping you can help me.
Here is the problem:
NOTE: My document has sections and columns. Section 1 is the masthead.
Section 2 is three columns. I have two images already on the page. Both
images have text wrapping and are anchored to the first body paragraph in
section 2.

1. I select text in cols 2 and 3.
2. I click the Text box/Draw Text Box option in the Text group on the Insert
tab.
3. The text box jumps to the left side of the page (OK I get it - it is
anchored to that paragraph).
4. I set the height to 4.1 and the width to 4.65 in the Size group. The
text box resizes.
5. I click the Position button, I select Position in Bottom Right with
Square Text, I drag the anchor symbol to the margin left of the first body
paragraph in section 2.
6. I turn off display of paragraph marks, and the text box size changes back
to its original size.
7. I resize to the dimensions in step 4.
8. I apply the shape style Subtle Effect - Blue Accent 4.

NOTES:
For Step 5: The text box did not move to the bottom right as directed. It
moved to the middle right. I had to physcially drag the box to the bottom
right.
For Step 6: I lose the size and have to enter the dimensions again.
For step 8: I lose the size and the position and have to fix again.
This worked in Office 2007 so I am confused about why it is not working now.
I can send files if that would help you visualize the problems.

Thank you for your help with this...plc

To all who are helping me on this thread and others, I sincerely thank
you. I have been unable to visit the forum this week however I have
eagerly looked forward to returning and reading your replies. Please
do not think my silences are from indifference. I am now going to read
through the new responses, visit the suggested links and will return,
no doubt, with more question. I'm making a list. :>)

While John is napping have a look here & follow the links at the bottom of
the page which pertain to the Draw Layer & Floating Graphics;

http://word.mvps.org/Mac/PagesInWord.html

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

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin. For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps


On 1/03/10 11:04 AM, in article (e-mail address removed),

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.


John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

.

 

[John McGhie]

Oh, OK. So if you look in Help>About in Word 2010 you will probably see the
End User Licence Agreement.

It will read something like "This is beta software. You should not use it
in production." It should go on to say "If you do, and it stuffs up your
document, you're screwed." It should...

Sorry, I don't want to seem unduly unsympathetic, but that's the name of the
software testing game: you are using Beta Software. It may damage or delete
your document. If it does, your guess is as good as mine: it doesn't work,
they know it doesn't work, that's why it's a beta.

Report the bug, and re-build the document...

I should also mention that this is the Mac Word forum. We normally refer
support for the Windows products to our good friends down the hall...

http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/flyoutoverview.mspx

Cheers

Hi,

I am also working with text boxes in Windows 7 Word 2010. The text boxes are
providing "high entertainment" value as you indicate but my project is due
and before I abandon all the work done to date I am hoping you can help me.
Here is the problem:
NOTE: My document has sections and columns. Section 1 is the masthead.
Section 2 is three columns. I have two images already on the page. Both
images have text wrapping and are anchored to the first body paragraph in
section 2.

1. I select text in cols 2 and 3.
2. I click the Text box/Draw Text Box option in the Text group on the Insert
tab.
3. The text box jumps to the left side of the page (OK I get it - it is
anchored to that paragraph).
4. I set the height to 4.1 and the width to 4.65 in the Size group. The
text box resizes.
5. I click the Position button, I select Position in Bottom Right with
Square Text, I drag the anchor symbol to the margin left of the first body
paragraph in section 2.
6. I turn off display of paragraph marks, and the text box size changes back
to its original size.
7. I resize to the dimensions in step 4.
8. I apply the shape style Subtle Effect - Blue Accent 4.

NOTES:
For Step 5: The text box did not move to the bottom right as directed. It
moved to the middle right. I had to physcially drag the box to the bottom
right.
For Step 6: I lose the size and have to enter the dimensions again.
For step 8: I lose the size and the position and have to fix again.
This worked in Office 2007 so I am confused about why it is not working now.
I can send files if that would help you visualize the problems.

Thank you for your help with this...plc

To all who are helping me on this thread and others, I sincerely thank
you. I have been unable to visit the forum this week however I have
eagerly looked forward to returning and reading your replies. Please
do not think my silences are from indifference. I am now going to read
through the new responses, visit the suggested links and will return,
no doubt, with more question. I'm making a list. :>)

While John is napping have a look here & follow the links at the bottom of
the page which pertain to the Draw Layer & Floating Graphics;

http://word.mvps.org/Mac/PagesInWord.html

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


On 3/1/10 12:18 PM, in article (e-mail address removed),

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin.
For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders
or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating
objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps


On 1/03/10 11:04 AM, in article
(e-mail address removed),

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.


John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

.

--

The email below is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless I ask you to; or unless you intend to pay!

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word), Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
Sydney, Australia. | Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410 | mailto:[email protected]

 

[plc]

Thank you for the information. I guess what I was really wondering is if it
is a Beta problem that will be fixed (I can't find anything to suggest that
Microsoft is working on this) or if it is something in my document.

Thank you for the link to the Windows side of things. I will pursue my query
there. Sorry to have bothered you.

Best...plc

Oh, OK. So if you look in Help>About in Word 2010 you will probably see the
End User Licence Agreement.

It will read something like "This is beta software. You should not use it
in production." It should go on to say "If you do, and it stuffs up your
document, you're screwed." It should...

Sorry, I don't want to seem unduly unsympathetic, but that's the name of the
software testing game: you are using Beta Software. It may damage or delete
your document. If it does, your guess is as good as mine: it doesn't work,
they know it doesn't work, that's why it's a beta.

Report the bug, and re-build the document...

I should also mention that this is the Mac Word forum. We normally refer
support for the Windows products to our good friends down the hall...

http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/flyoutoverview.mspx

Cheers

Hi,

I am also working with text boxes in Windows 7 Word 2010. The text boxes are
providing "high entertainment" value as you indicate but my project is due
and before I abandon all the work done to date I am hoping you can help me.
Here is the problem:
NOTE: My document has sections and columns. Section 1 is the masthead.
Section 2 is three columns. I have two images already on the page. Both
images have text wrapping and are anchored to the first body paragraph in
section 2.

1. I select text in cols 2 and 3.
2. I click the Text box/Draw Text Box option in the Text group on the Insert
tab.
3. The text box jumps to the left side of the page (OK I get it - it is
anchored to that paragraph).
4. I set the height to 4.1 and the width to 4.65 in the Size group. The
text box resizes.
5. I click the Position button, I select Position in Bottom Right with
Square Text, I drag the anchor symbol to the margin left of the first body
paragraph in section 2.
6. I turn off display of paragraph marks, and the text box size changes back
to its original size.
7. I resize to the dimensions in step 4.
8. I apply the shape style Subtle Effect - Blue Accent 4.

NOTES:
For Step 5: The text box did not move to the bottom right as directed. It
moved to the middle right. I had to physcially drag the box to the bottom
right.
For Step 6: I lose the size and have to enter the dimensions again.
For step 8: I lose the size and the position and have to fix again.
This worked in Office 2007 so I am confused about why it is not working now.
I can send files if that would help you visualize the problems.

Thank you for your help with this...plc

To all who are helping me on this thread and others, I sincerely thank
you. I have been unable to visit the forum this week however I have
eagerly looked forward to returning and reading your replies. Please
do not think my silences are from indifference. I am now going to read
through the new responses, visit the suggested links and will return,
no doubt, with more question. I'm making a list. :>)

On Tue, 02 Mar 2010 06:26:01 -0500, CyberTaz

While John is napping have a look here & follow the links at the bottom of
the page which pertain to the Draw Layer & Floating Graphics;

http://word.mvps.org/Mac/PagesInWord.html

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


On 3/1/10 12:18 PM, in article (e-mail address removed),

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin.
For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders
or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating
objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes properly.

Hope this helps


On 1/03/10 11:04 AM, in article
(e-mail address removed),

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.


John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

.

--

The email below is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless I ask you to; or unless you intend to pay!

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word), Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
Sydney, Australia. | Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410 | mailto:[email protected]


.

 

[John McGhie]

What you describe is more likely to be "the way you are using it" or
"something in your document" than a "bug". But without seeing your
document, I wouldn't like to commit myself.

We have no idea at all which bugs (if any...) Microsoft intends to fix.
Neither does Microsoft.

All bugs are entered into a database, where they get a "score" based on how
many users they hit, what happens, and what the users can do instead.

The closer they get to their target on-sale date (which we don't know, and
neither do they...) the higher a bug needs to score to make it into the
winner's circle and get fixed. The more code they have to change to fix it,
the more expensive, and thus less likely, it gets.

The Product Manager for Office 2007 System could give you the list of what
he thinks will be fixed "today". Tomorrow, he'll have a different list...
Many trivial bugs, some reported 20 years ago, may suddenly "go away"
because someone opened up the code that is causing them to fix something
else and put that right while they were in there.

It's just not possible to say anything sensible about this unless you are
one of the Managers in the daily "Quality Assurance" committee meeting

Eventually, the Marketing Director (who does sit on that committee...) will
say "OK, burn the disks, we're going to market!" Which is the first time
that anyone, inside Microsoft or outside it, can tell you for sure when the
product will appear

Cheers

Thank you for the information. I guess what I was really wondering is if it
is a Beta problem that will be fixed (I can't find anything to suggest that
Microsoft is working on this) or if it is something in my document.

Thank you for the link to the Windows side of things. I will pursue my query
there. Sorry to have bothered you.

Best...plc

Oh, OK. So if you look in Help>About in Word 2010 you will probably see the
End User Licence Agreement.

It will read something like "This is beta software. You should not use it
in production." It should go on to say "If you do, and it stuffs up your
document, you're screwed." It should...

Sorry, I don't want to seem unduly unsympathetic, but that's the name of the
software testing game: you are using Beta Software. It may damage or delete
your document. If it does, your guess is as good as mine: it doesn't work,
they know it doesn't work, that's why it's a beta.

Report the bug, and re-build the document...

I should also mention that this is the Mac Word forum. We normally refer
support for the Windows products to our good friends down the hall...

http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/flyoutoverview.mspx

Cheers

Hi,

I am also working with text boxes in Windows 7 Word 2010. The text boxes are
providing "high entertainment" value as you indicate but my project is due
and before I abandon all the work done to date I am hoping you can help me.
Here is the problem:
NOTE: My document has sections and columns. Section 1 is the masthead.
Section 2 is three columns. I have two images already on the page. Both
images have text wrapping and are anchored to the first body paragraph in
section 2.

1. I select text in cols 2 and 3.
2. I click the Text box/Draw Text Box option in the Text group on the Insert
tab.
3. The text box jumps to the left side of the page (OK I get it - it is
anchored to that paragraph).
4. I set the height to 4.1 and the width to 4.65 in the Size group. The
text box resizes.
5. I click the Position button, I select Position in Bottom Right with
Square Text, I drag the anchor symbol to the margin left of the first body
paragraph in section 2.
6. I turn off display of paragraph marks, and the text box size changes back
to its original size.
7. I resize to the dimensions in step 4.
8. I apply the shape style Subtle Effect - Blue Accent 4.

NOTES:
For Step 5: The text box did not move to the bottom right as directed. It
moved to the middle right. I had to physcially drag the box to the bottom
right.
For Step 6: I lose the size and have to enter the dimensions again.
For step 8: I lose the size and the position and have to fix again.
This worked in Office 2007 so I am confused about why it is not working now.
I can send files if that would help you visualize the problems.

Thank you for your help with this...plc

:

To all who are helping me on this thread and others, I sincerely thank
you. I have been unable to visit the forum this week however I have
eagerly looked forward to returning and reading your replies. Please
do not think my silences are from indifference. I am now going to read
through the new responses, visit the suggested links and will return,
no doubt, with more question. I'm making a list. :>)

On Tue, 02 Mar 2010 06:26:01 -0500, CyberTaz

While John is napping have a look here & follow the links at the bottom of
the page which pertain to the Draw Layer & Floating Graphics;

http://word.mvps.org/Mac/PagesInWord.html

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


On 3/1/10 12:18 PM, in article (e-mail address removed),

Thank you for your reply. In reading it, perhaps some clarification is
needed on my part. The text boxes were not created in WordPerfect and
imported into Word therefore the problem about which I inquire has
nothing to do with that app. The boxes were created in either Word
2003 or 2004.

You said:
"For new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put
them."

Actually that is the opposite of what I said:
"When... [2003] files are opened in 2004, the text box _has shifted_
and become a large square on the left side of the page. The same is
true with new text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it
out and reshape the box once and it stays in place thereafter..."

Stated another way.
If I have two lines of text in a 2003 doc and place it into a text
box, that is exactly what happens: the text remains as two lines as it
was only with a rectangular border around it. If I then open that file
in 2004, the text box is no longer a rectangle stretching across the
page (where it was originally placed in the 2003 doc). Rather, it is
now a square box against the left margin and the original two lines of
text have become numerous lines of text. Only then, if I again stretch
out the box to the two-line, rectangular box I intend, does it stay
that way.

That said, I have not thought of paragraph borders and should like to
try them; tables take more time to format for a simple paragraph
border than does the text box therefore it is not considered an option
for this purpose.

I should indeed like the text box "advanced course" floating, layering
et al provided I am not asking you to laboriously write out these
instructions. Is there a URL to which I may be directed for this
information?

I am happily indebted to you and the others in this forum for your
time and diligence in helping us master Word.

Well, it's not a "bug"

Text Boxes go where you put them. Unless you say differently, that is
the
left margin of the paragraph they are anchored to.

In converted WordPerfect documents, the information needed to position
the
text box is not present, so they will always end up on the left margin.
For
new ones, as you have discovered, they will go where you put them.

Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to
use
in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to
manage.
Normally, you can accomplish what you need with either paragraph borders
or
tables, and these are much less confusing and more reliable.

If you absolutely MUST use Text Boxes, come back and we will give you an
advanced course in how to use them. You need to understand floating
objects
and relative positioning and z-order (layers) to use Text Boxes
properly.

Hope this helps


On 1/03/10 11:04 AM, in article
(e-mail address removed),

Word 2004

(I am relatively new to Word and am delighted to find a forum
specifically for the Mac version. There are a number of unresolved,
niggling issues I can live however they slow the workflow. I am eager
to learn.)

In the recent past, I manually converted 12,000+ recipes from
WordPerfect 7 to Word. Since Word 2004 does not have a filter for the
old files, the conversion was done on the Windows side of my Mac in
Word2003. Those files _usually_ open without protest also in 2004. One
annoyance regards text boxes. When text was highlighted and a text box
was requested for it in 2003, the box surrounded the text as it was
originally formatted, i.e. across the width of the page. When those
same files are opened in 2004, the text box has shifted and become a
large square on the left side of the page. The same is true with new
text boxes created in 2004 documents. I can stretch it out and reshape
the box once and it stays in place thereafter however it is a
nuisance.This happens 100% of the time. Is this a 2004 bug?

Thank you.


John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word); Consultant Technical
Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410; mailto:[email protected]

.

--

The email below is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless I ask you to; or unless you intend to pay!

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word), Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
Sydney, Australia. | Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410 | mailto:[email protected]


.

--

The email below is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless I ask you to; or unless you intend to pay!

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word), Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
Sydney, Australia. | Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410 | mailto:[email protected]

 

[B-Mac]

"Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use in Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage."

What do you suggest? I used to like to use text boxes to insert notes to myself on drafts of documents next to the text in question (some notes use drawings) and for inserting pictures. By using text boxes I could move these items where I wished in the document.

However, in my current version of Word, text boxes are much more difficult. Indeed, moving them is like trying to herd cats.

 

[John McGhie]

Comments. They're made for that purpose

See Insert>Comment... You can place a button for that on a toolbar, or
assign it a keystroke.

Cheers

"Generally, we would advise you that Text Boxes are not a good thing to use in
Word unless you absolutely HAVE to, because they ARE complex to manage."

What do you suggest? I used to like to use text boxes to insert notes to
myself on drafts of documents next to the text in question (some notes use
drawings) and for inserting pictures. By using text boxes I could move these
items where I wished in the document.

However, in my current version of Word, text boxes are much more difficult.
Indeed, moving them is like trying to herd cats.

--

The email below is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless I ask you to; or unless you intend to pay!

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word), Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
Sydney, Australia. | Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410 | mailto:[email protected]

 

[gianluca]

Mr. McGhie et al
Finally, I am returned briefly to the forum and have found the kind
and generous replies made to my inquiry during my protracted absence.
My sincere thanks to one and all for your assistance. One or two more
newbie question, either from me or He-Who-Borrows-My-Name, and then
you may hope to be well rid of each and both of us... until next time.
:>)

distinti saluti
GianLuca

 

[John McGhie]

Hi GianLuca:

Oh, we love to see you in here, you are one of our favourite friends!

"He who borrows your name" is a grumpy old man, get someone to make sure he
takes his medication!

Cheers

Mr. McGhie et al
Finally, I am returned briefly to the forum and have found the kind
and generous replies made to my inquiry during my protracted absence.
My sincere thanks to one and all for your assistance. One or two more
newbie question, either from me or He-Who-Borrows-My-Name, and then
you may hope to be well rid of each and both of us... until next time.
:>)

distinti saluti
GianLuca

--

The email below is my business email -- Please do not email me about forum
matters unless I ask you to; or unless you intend to pay!

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP (Word, Mac Word), Consultant Technical Writer,
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
Sydney, Australia. | Ph: +61 (0)4 1209 1410 | mailto:[email protected]