I have encountered the same problems, but have a different solution. I agree that normally, using styles to provide spacing between paragraphs (including numbered paragraphs) is the better way to go -- Except in the situation where you are also numbering your lines in the left margin as in a legal document. In such a case, the extra space between paragraphs doesn't get a line number on the left and the resulting document looks awful. The solution, rather than adding additional space between paragraphs is to hit <shift-enter> rather than <enter> when you want to create an empty line between numbered paragraphs. The <shift-enter> creates a line break instead of a paragraph break. The new blank line doesn't get a number for a new paragraph, but it does get a number in the left margin for line numbering. Then, after creating the new line, hit <enter> to create the next paragraph, complete with the continued paragraph numbering scheme. I also agree that most programs do not have intuitive styles implementations. Actually, the best I ever saw was years ago in AmiPro 3.1. Virgil >From: Ron Ross <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Subject: Re: Features V stability >Date: 03 May 2001 22:37:28 -0400 > >A corrective followup to my previous post: >Ron Ross <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > > > Neil Timms <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > >[...] > > > I used 0.7.13 for a 20+ pages legal style document and found that is >was > > > easer to use than other wp for numbered paras (well done those who >worked on > > > that bit) - the problem came when saving to rtf so that I could >exchange my > > > data with others still using Word - no numbers on the para (I think >now fixed > > > for 0.7.14?). The issue in the end was was not so much in the use of >the > > > program but in the format of the data. > > > > I haven't checked this in AbiWord for myself, but I know from having > > created rtf and Word documents in either WordPerfect or through > > SGML->DSSSL (with Openjade) that autogenerated numbers/letters in things > > like outlines, lists, page numbers, and so on, will often _first_ appear > > broken in Word (usually all entries are "1" or "A" or whatever the > > scheme is based on), but if you then scroll through the document in > > "Normal" view and call for a "refresh" of the document (I'm sorry, this > > last function is a little obscure to me now, and I'm not on Windows at > > the moment and can't check, but it's something accessed through the menu > > and has to do with Page layout, or specifically with page numbers), then > > all the numbers get properly incremented. > >OK. Back in Windows, and I took the time to check this, and indeed, as >Neil's following post indicates, numbered paragraphs are read properly >in Word when saved in rtf. However, I've found a condition in which the >above anomily is manifest. If, in AW, you follow a numbered paragraph >with two newlines, thus ending the list, and then continue the list in >the following paragraph, that continuation is not interpreted correctly >in Word, producing the effect described above. Moral: if you want that >extra space between items, then apply paragraph styling to produce it >rather than entering another newline. I haven't experimented more >thoroughly with situations in which you would really want to continue a >previous list. > >I hope this is useful to others. It was a revelation to me, for >off-topic reasons, because I was in the habit of using a feature of >WordPerfect that should perhaps be considered a bug (or bad hack) and >that I had even been considering for an AW bug report/feature request! >On terminating a numbered paragraph, in all mentioned word processors, >another such paragraph with an incremented number is automatically >created. In AW and Word, if you hit return again, the listing is ended >and you're back to "normal" (or whatever). In WP, a second return adds a >newline previous to the new autogenerated numbered paragraph, pushing >the latter and the cursor position down one line, and you can add as >many such intermediate newlines as desired while preserving your >position in the ordered paragraphs. This makes it easy, as a Normal >User, to produce the desired spacing layout for listed items, in the >same sense that the normal user usually hits return twice between >paragraphs instead of defining inter-paragraph spacing in their default >paragraph style. Moral: don't do that. But this also calls for a robust, >logical, consistent and intuitive styles implementation and interface, >which no word processor now provides. More on that later. > >Cheers to all, > >Ron > > > > >----------------------------------------------- >To unsubscribe from this list, send a message to >[EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word >unsubscribe in the message body. _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com ----------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word unsubscribe in the message body.
