If you want to format (and number) your lists manually, then you need to
disable "Automatic numbered lists" in the AutoCorrect Options.
--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
http://word.mvps.org
Hello,
It would help to get the final word on this from Microsoft, but in Word
2007. Is there anyway to control the indent on automatic numbered lists? I
would prefer for all automatic numbered lists to be flush to the left side
like a normal paragraph. Thanks so much for any response!
I tried the suggested solutions suggested by Microsoft, and they did
not work. But I found a procedure that does work. The secret is that
you CANNOT (as far as I can determine) stop Word 2007 from doing an
automatic hanging indent, shifting paragraphs or doing any of a number
of other disfunctional things to your text. So you need to outwit the
program. Here's how:
(a) Start the line with a tab key, but
(b) DO NOT type the paragraph number. Instead,
(c) hit the space bar 5 - 7 times (depending upon how much space you
want to put between the line number and the beginning of your written
text on that line. Then
(d) hit the back-arrow key several times to get to where you want your
paragraph number to appear. (Note: This is one of the four directional
arrows in the lower right-hand corner of the keyboard; it is NOT the
backspace key.) Next,
(e) type the paragraph number. Then
(f) use the forward-arrow to get back to the point where you want to
begin typing your written text. Finally, at the end of the line,
(g) DO NOT hit the return key (which will arbitrarily rearrange your
paragraph with a host of unwanted indents and spacing), but
(h) use the down-arrow to get to the next line, where you can repeat
steps (a) through (f) above.
This is easier than it sounds. It is regrettable that all of this is
necessary in order to circumvent the supposed "convenience" of
Microsoft's automatic formatting features, and that Microsoft has not
responded to the all-but-universal desire of its users to have a no-
frills program that merely produces documents.
