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Barry MacDonnell's
Toolbox for WordPerfect

Macros, tips, and templates for Corel® WordPerfect® for Windows®
© Copyright 1996-2008 by Barry MacDonnell. All Rights Reserved.

Page updated July 9, 2007
WordPerfect Tips
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Page identification for even and odd pages

 

Tip #1  - Create even page and odd page identification in headers or footers

Two headers and two footers are provided with WordPerfect:

Header A
Header B
Footer A
Footer B

You can use them in pairs (A and B) to create "alternating page" identification.

For example, the top of odd-numbered pages could have an identifier on it in the upper right, like this:

 My Life Story / 1


 It was a dark and stormy night ...

On even pages the identifier would be on the upper left, like this:

 2 / Jane Smith


... and then daylight came ...

Here's how:

In this example we use Header A for the right-hand pages, which we assume will always be an odd number, and Header B for the left-hand pages (even numbers).

  • Go to the top of your document (or the page where you want to start the headers), and create Header A with Insert, Header/Footer, <select Header A>, Create.
  • Right justify the header's contents: Click on Format, Justification (or use the justification button on the Text property bar).
  • Add the header's text (e.g., "My Life Story") and a spacer (e.g., "/" or perhaps a few spaces or a tab).
  • Insert a page number code with Format, Page, Insert page number, <select the page number format>, Insert, Close. A page number should appear at the cursor location. (For more on page numbering see the left sidebar here.) Keep the cursor inside the header and ...
  • Set Header A's placement to Odd pages: On the header property bar that appears when you are in a header, click the "Header/Footer Placement" button; this lets you set the placement to odd, even, or every page. Set it to Odd pages.
  • Click outside the header (or press <Esc>) to get back to the body text.
  • Next, create Header B.
    • TIP: Headers (and Footers) overlay each other, like the transparencies used on an overhead projector. Be careful that the material in one type of Header (or Footer) doesn't appear on top of the material in the other Header (or Footer). You can always add a hard return or two with the <Enter> key when composing the Header or Footer, to offset one from the other. You can also use Format, Typesetting, Advance to precisely position the material inside a Header or Footer.)
  • Left justify the header's text, then insert the page number code, spacer, and header text. (I.e., just the opposite order from Header A). Click outside the header (or press <Esc>) to get back to the body text.
  • Set the placement of Header B to Even pages.

RELATED TIPS:

  • You can record these steps in a macro (Tools, Macro, Record). If you need to change the text portion later, simply open the macro like any WP document and revise the text inside the two Type() commands. Then click on Save & Compile on the macro toolbar that will be displayed.
  • See the Library for several macros that can add special formatting to odd/even page setups. For example,
    • ALTMARG - A macro that changes the outside page margins of alternating pages in a document to a wider setting, similar to the appearance of many nonfiction books that have large amounts of "white space" outside the main text area.
    • DYNAHEAD - Dynamic headers (also known as "floating headers" or "running heads") that change with the content of each page.
  • You might want to start, stop replace, change, or delay headers, footers, or watermarks. See HeadFootWM.html on this site.
  • Do you need to create page numbering for Chapters or Sections like that found in many books? That is, do you need to create a page number at the bottom of the first page of a chapter or section with remaining page numbers at the top of subsequent pages? See Page Numbering in Books.

Tip #2  - Create a third type of "header" or "footer" for additional identifying information

For example, you could place a copyright notice on every page in a specific fixed location, and still use the even-odd, dual header technique described in Tip 1.

© Copyright 2007

6  Chapter One


© Copyright 2007

Using Macros  7


There are two ways to do this:

1. Use a watermark (Insert, Watermark, Create/Edit either A or B) and while creating or editing the watermark, set the watermark's shading to 100% using the button on the watermark property bar that displays while you are inside a watermark. The watermark's contents can be positioned to simulate a third header (or footer) in the document.

Note that a watermark, like a header (or footer), is a "repeating element" which remains in effect until discontinued or replaced by another watermark of the same type (A or B).

2. If you use page numbering inside one of your headers or footers, or if you don't use any page numbering, you can use WordPerfect's normal page numbering feature to create something similar to a "Header C" or "Footer C."

This idea is most useful if you have used Header A and Header B (or Footer A and Footer B) in the alternating even-odd page fashion described above, and you need one more Headers (or Footers) to appear in the same location on all pages, such as the copyright notice in the above example. The new structure will appear on every page in the selected location, while the material in the other two structures will alternate location depending on whether the page is odd or even numbered.

You can create this new effect with WordPerfect's page numbering feature. Normal page numbering (Format, Page, Numbering) causes numbers (with an optional bit of text) to appear inside the page margins, just like Headers and Footers. You can simply create a custom format without the page number. This will perform much like a new type of Header or Footer -- in effect, producing a "C" variety of these structures. Here's how:

  • Click Format, Page, Numbering.
  • Choose a position from the drop list (e.g., Bottom Center)
  • Choose a font with the Font button.
  • Click on the Custom Format button.
  • Delete the page number code in the format field, and enter your text (e.g., © Copyright 2003 by John Q. Smith). You can even enter symbols with <Ctrl+W>.
  • Click OK twice to return to the document.
  • If you want to suppress this new item on a page, use Format, Page, Suppress, Page numbering.

Note that you may need to adjust material inside Header A and Header B (or Footer A and Footer B) so that the header or footer will not interfere with existing headers or footers. You can make the new structure's font smaller and/or adjust the postion of the material in the other headers or footers (see the TIP in the section above).