Microsoft Word 7.0 - A Quick Guide to Using Columns

You can change the way your Microsoft Word document looks by formatting all or part of it in newspaper-style columns. To determine how much of your document will be formatted into columns, you use sections. Each section can contain text formatted in a different number of columns, if you want.

MS-Word applies column formatting to the section that contains the insertion point. If you have not divided the document into sections, the entire document is a single section, and column formatting affects the entire document. If you've already inserted section breaks in your document, position the insertion point anywhere in the section you want to format.

You can also select text and have MS-Word create a new section to which column formatting will apply. When you select text, Word inserts a section break at the beginning and end of the selected text, and formats only the text in that new section into columns.

When you work in normal view, MS-Word displays only one column at a time. By using page layout view or print preview, you can see the columns as they will appear on the printed page.

You may find it easier to use a Word table when you want to arrange and adjust columns of text and numbers.

You can quickly format text in multiple columns. When you use the Columns button, Word changes the text to the number of columns you want.

In normal view, Word displays one column at a time. In page layout view or print preview, Word displays the columns side by side.

1. In page layout view, do one of the following:

If your document has only one section and you want to format the entire document in columns, position the insertion point anywhere in the document.

If you want to format only part of your document in columns, select the text you want to format in columns.

If your document has more than one section, position the insertion point in the section where you want to format the text in columns.

You can use the horizontal ruler to modify the width of columns and the space between columns. If column widths are equal and you change the width of one column, Word automatically changes the width of all columns and adjusts the spacing between the columns. If column widths are unequal, Word changes only the column or spacing you are adjusting. Word automatically adjusts the width of the columns so that the text fits between the margins.

In normal view, Word displays one column at a time. In page layout view or print preview, Word displays the columns side by side.

In page layout view, drag a column marker on the horizontal ruler to adjust the column width or the space between columns.

You can specify exact measurements for the width of columns and the space between columns by using the Columns command on the Format menu. See Columns command.

When you modify columns of unequal width, you cannot drag a column marker beyond the marker of an adjacent column. Instead, you must first drag the column marker of the adjacent column to make it narrower.

The Columns command is found on Format, Columns. You can change the format of columns using the dialog box. The Columns command controls column options, including the width of the space between columns and whether or not a line appears between columns.

These fields are described below and on the following page.

At the end of a section or document, the text may not be evenly distributed among columns. You can balance the text among columns by inserting a continuous section break, which distributes the text evenly.

In normal view, Word displays one column at a time. In page layout view or print preview, Word displays the columns side by side.

1. In page layout view, position the insertion point at the end of the text in the columns you want to balance.

2. From the Insert menu, choose Break.

3. Under Section Breaks, select the Continuous option button, and then choose the OK button.

In normal view or page layout view, a continuous section break appears as a double dotted line. If you want to begin a new page where you've inserted a continuous section break, position the insertion point after the continuous section break, and then insert a page break.