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Edit > Paste Special
> Unformatted Text helps solve formatting
problems when copying blocks of text or macro code from the Internet
or between WordPerfect documents
Download PASTE-UT.ZIP
(01/16/06; 21,641 bytes) which contains two macros:
Paste-UT.wcm
and
Paste-UTX.wcm.
The first makes it easy to use Edit
> Paste Special > Unformatted text; the second extends
this feature's capabilities when pasting between two WordPerfect
documents. (A "read me" document is included that also
contains most of the information on this page.)
Note:
These macros (and any macros from any source, even
from Corel) will have problems in the first release of WordPerfect
11 (i.e., 11.0.0.233). See the top section of this page: Downloading, Documentation,
Modifications, and Support
Related pages -
Using "Other
Codes" in WordPerfect (Format > Line > Other Codes)
Hyphens, hard hyphens
[a/k/a "hyphen characters"], soft hyphens, and hyphenation
soft returns . . . What they are and how they work |
Do you sometimes copy-and-paste material
from another program or the Internet into WordPerfect and it
accidentally creates strange changes in your document?
Do you want to "strip out" formatting
from another WordPerfect document when you copy something from
it into the current document?
If you copy material into WordPerfect from
another program or an Internet source such as a web site, newsgroup
or email message, you may find that the text is pasted into WordPerfect
in strange ways, such as having characters added (a number "1."
seems to be a common issue) or the document's subsequent formatting
is changed in ways that you did not expect. A quick look in Reveal
Codes will tell you why: WordPerfect often adds many codes (and
sometimes, characters) for what -- to it -- are unknown items
or format structures in the source material.
Also, if the source is a block address such
as an address for a letter, WordPerfect might not even see it
when it comes time to create an envelope with Format > Envelope
(see the Note #2 below for the probable
reason).
Finally, if you want to strip out all unwanted
formatting that is carried along during a copy-and-paste from
another WordPerfect document, see the solutions below to produce
a "plain text" paste.
Solutions
The first thing to do is adjust the way you
paste such material into WP. Instead of using the standard
paste commands (Ctrl+V, or Edit>Paste), use WP's Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted
Text ("EPSUT"), which is available
if some text was copied to the clipboard. EPSUT strips out formatting
and other codes when it inserts the copied material.
For convenience, you can use a macro such
as one of those in PASTE-UT.ZIP
to use this feature with a single mouse click. Alternatively,
in WordPerfect 11+ you can add a standard toolbar button to use
it, or simply use a pre-assigned keyboard combination, as explained
in the Tips section below.
Tips
- In WordPerfect 11/12 the default keyboard
has a combination key for "Paste Unformatted Text":
<Ctrl+Alt+C>. This is confusing -- using a "C"
key for a paste operation -- and has generated many complaints
to Corel. This feature cannot be reassigned
to another key (though the current assignment can be removed),
but you can add a toolbar button
to use this feature; this feature is found under "Edit"
in the feature categories list in the Toolbar Editor.
- However, if you need to assign this feature
to a key rather than a toolbar button, you can assign
either or both macros to keys. (Paste-UT does the same thing
as the Paste Unformatted Text default keyboard assignment mentioned
at the beginning of this paragraph.)
- In WordPerfect X3+ the default assignment
for "Paste Unformatted Text" is now <Ctrl+Alt+V>,
as you would expect for a paste operation (the "V"
key is used).
- For earlier WordPerfect versions, the downloadable
macro, Paste-UT.wcm (or one you create yourself), may be easier
to use than multiple mouse clicks through a menu. (Note that
it can be used in any later version, too.) The macro should have
this one-line (i.e., non-wrapped) command in it:
- EditPaste (ClipboardFormat:
"Unformatted Text"; FormatId: 1; LinkType: OLE!)
- See Note #3 below for
help in creating a macro from this command by copying it from
this web page, or simply download
Paste-UT here.
- Assign the macro to a toolbar button
or keystroke for easy access.
- As a technique, EPSUT can be useful in pasting
material from another WordPerfect document as well as
from an internet source, if you want to remove all formatting
from the source.
- WordPerfect 11+
users: See Note #1 below for the way various
hyphen codes and hard space codes are treated when using EPSUT.
Because these items are also deleted with EPSUT in WordPerfect
11+, which is usually not desirable, the PASTE-UTX macro included
in PASTE-UT.ZIP can be
used to retain them when pasting as unformatted text between
WordPerfect documents (when pasting from an Internet or e-mail
source, use PASTE-UT.wcm, not PASTE-UTX.wcm).
- Want to record the command yourself? Note
that if you have some material already copied to the clipboard
and then record "Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted
Text" as a macro rather than typing the above EditPaste command
or copying it from this page (per instructions in Note #3
below), be aware of a small and rather unique anomaly. Sometimes
(due to a known bug in WordPerfect), you'll get two Paste
commands in the recorded macro, not one. Edit the recorded macro
and delete the first one (PasteSpecial (PasteType: OnlyText!)).
- After using EPSUT or the Paste-UT macro,
use Reveal Codes to delete any remaining unwanted codes (just
drag them from the RC window), or you can use the DELCODES
macro to remove them.
- After using EPSUT or the Paste-UT macro,
all lines inside paragraphs might end in hard returns. If so,
and you want lines within paragraphs to wrap, play the FIXASCII
macro on those paragraphs. FIXASCII will replace hard returns
inside paragraphs with soft returns, allowing the lines to wrap.
- As an alternative to the Paste-UT macro,
see PureText,
a small, free utility that works in any program to convert copied
material in to "pure text" before pasting.
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Notes
Note 1
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"Pasting as unformatted text" is useful not only in pasting material copied from
another program or internet source into WordPerfect, but also
in pasting material that was copied between (or within) WordPerfect
documents. In the latter case it removes formatting codes, allowing
you to paste just the important text into the current document.
However, starting with WordPerfect 11, pasting as unformatted text between or within
WordPerfect documents will also
- convert any
hard spaces (i.e., [HSpace] codes) to ordinary ("soft")
space characters;
- convert any
regular hyphens (i.e., [-Hyphen] codes) to hard hyphens (a/k/a "character
hyphens");
- and like earlier WP versions, it will remove
any soft hyphens [- Soft Hyphen] and hyphenation soft returns
[Hyph SRt] entered with Format > Line > Other Codes.
While this may seem logical and conform more
closely to the definition of "unformatted text" --
that is, text without any formatting codes -- it may or may not
be what you want (see box, below).
Moreover, this was not the way WordPerfect
10 and earlier versions handled the process: they left the hard
space and regular hyphen codes intact. So if you are upgrading
to WordPerfect 11 or later -- and even if you are not upgrading
but have started using WordPerfect 11 or later -- this change
can affect your documents, depending on the way you paste the
material.
The two forms of each item -- basically, either
a WordPerfect code or a keyboard character -- have their special
uses, but you need to know how to adapt to the way your particular
version of WordPerfect treats them when you paste material into
WordPerfect.
In WordPerfect 10 and earlier versions, pasting with Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted
text (or playing the Paste-UT.wcm
macro) removes all formatting except any hard spaces and
regular hyphens. Since these items were most likely entered from
the keyboard deliberately, you would expect WordPerfect to retain
them, and in those versions it does.
However, in WordPerfect 11 and later versions,
it does not retain them when pasting with Edit > Paste
Special > Unformatted text or playing Paste-UT.wcm.
WordPerfect 11+ converts hard space codes to soft spaces, converts
regular hyphen codes to hard hyphens, and simply removes soft
hyphen codes and hyphenation soft return codes. (The latter two
codes are entered with Format > Line > Other Codes to allow
words to split across lines if the words are pushed to the right
margin.)
But as previously mentioned with respect to
these four important codes, this may not be what you want.
Here's what you can do.
- When copying/pasting from another WordPerfect
document (or from the same document), and you want to remove
all codes, use the Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted
text feature (or the Paste-UT
macro).
- When copying/pasting from another WordPerfect
document (or from the same document), and you want to retain
any hard spaces, regular hyphens, soft hyphens, and hyphenation
soft returns when pasting in WordPerfect 11 and later versions,
you can
- use Paste-UTX
(included in the PASTE-UT.ZIP download file); or
- right-click in the target document and choose
"Paste without Font/Attributes," or add a toolbar button
to play the same built-in feature (called "Paste Simple"),
or press <Ctrl+Shft+V> in the default keyboard. In WordPerfect
11+, this "Paste Simple" feature will preserve these
four types of format codes along with most other format codes.
- Note: I have not found Paste Simple
to be particularly useful or even reliable when copying/pasting
between WordPerfect documents, but "your mileage
may vary," as they say.
- New in version 1.01 of
Paste-UTX: Along with the four codes
mentioned, you can also retain Line Breaks (the default) or you
can have them converted to hard returns (which is the usual case
with Paste Special). See the top of the macro's code for more
information and simple instructions.
- When copying-and-pasting from an outside
source such as another program (e.g., MS Word) or an internet
site, you may find the Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted
text feature (or the Paste-UT
or Paste-UTX macros) to
be particularly useful. Many (but not all) other "imported"
codes will be removed from the copied source material when you
paste this way. With outside source material, both the Edit >
Paste Special > Unformatted text feature and the Paste-UT
macro work the same in all WordPerfect versions (at least as
far back as WP8 and perhaps earlier).
There is a place for both types of "paste"
(Paste Simple and Paste Unformatted Text) in WordPerfect.
Pick the best for your specific needs, depending on how you want
to use the following items.
Hard spaces, hyphens, hard hyphens,
soft hyphens, and hyphenation soft returns
- Hard spaces can be entered from the keyboard
by pressing <Ctrl+space>. Normally, pressing the <space>
key produces a space character (ASCII 32), not a WordPerfect
code; pressing the hyphen key produces a WordPerfect code,
not a hyphen character (ASCII 45).
- Hard spaces are useful in several circumstances,
to "glue" words, numbers or dates together to prevent
them from splitting to the next line with word wrap.
- For information on hyphens, hard
hyphens ("character hyphens"), soft hyphens,
and hyphenation soft returns in WordPerfect, see here.)
- Note that hard spaces, regular hyphens, soft
hyphens and hyphenation soft returns must be deliberately inserted
by the user in WordPerfect, while hard hyphens can be either
deliberately inserted or be imported from an external source.
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Note 2
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WordPerfect's Format > Envelope feature
looks for the last block of three or more consecutive lines on
Page 1 that each end in a hard return -- i.e., a [HRt] code --
and are followed by a blank line ending with a [HRt].
Tips:
Don't type a first-page "letterhead"
with 3 or more consecutive information lines at the top of the
page above the recipient's mailing address. If you do this, WordPerfect
may get confused, so use your mouse to select the recipient's
address before using Format > Envelope. A better solution
is to put multiple-line "letterhead" information in
a header or in a watermark.
Also, multiple RE: or SUBJ: lines below the
recipient's address could be erroneously selected instead of
the address. A solution for this problem is to get in the habit
of using the Format, Paragraph, Indent function (F7, or F4 on
the DOS keyboard) instead of ending each reference or subject
line with a HRt. These lines will then wrap to a single, terminal
HRt. Another solution is as above: first select the recipient's
address with your mouse, then click Format > Envelope.]
In some WP versions, pasting addresses
into WP from an internet source with <Ctrl+V> or Edit>Paste
can produce an address block where each line ends in a line break
([LnBrk]), not a hard return ([HRt]). Solution: Use EPSUT or
the Paste-UT macro instead.
WordPerfect 9
users: However, as Debra
Earle (a Corel C_Tech) stated - "One other note, if
you don't have SP4 (9.0.0.883 from Help/About within the program)
this [Paste Special method] may not work properly anyway, as
there was a fix for this ["address invisibility"] issue
in one of the service packs [for WP9].+"
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Note 3
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To create a macro using code from an internet
source (such as this page), open a blank document in WP and click
on Tools > Macro > Macro Toolbar to display the Macro Toolbar
-- which, among other things, uses non-typographical quote marks
instead of "curly" quote marks (the latter won't work
in a macro). Position your cursor at the very bottom of the page,
after all codes, and click on Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted
Text to paste the macro code into the WP document.
Be sure to check in Reveal Codes for long
lines that may have been wrapped into two or more lines with
a hard return (HRt) between them; remove the hard return(s) to
"glue" the lines back together.
Save the macro with the Save & Compile
button on the Macro Toolbar. This will save it to your default
macros folder.
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Note 4
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Paste as Unformatted Text is different from
the old (now undocumented) command, Paste Simple. As John
Burness said in a WP user group:
> Doesn't Ctrl+Shft+V paste unformatted
text without the need to [create] a macro??
Yes, but.
There is good news and bad news. Paste Simple
(Ctrl+Shft+V) does let the text come in to the doc "in the
font style and size, text color, and any attributes (such as
bold or italics) of the text at the insertion point." If
used on a blank line in the document, "the text appears
in the default font style, color, and size." Unfortunately,
Paste Simple (Ctrl+Shft+V) also brings any associated styles
with the text, a potential problem if pasting a mail program
such as Eudora, as well as some unexpected formatting.
I receive a fair amount of interview material
or research through email which I then cut and paste into a WP
doc. Eudora sends along styles called 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, plus HTML
Address, HTML Blockquote, HTML Cite, HTML Code, and so on. Even
worse, Paste Simple brings in any margin settings, tab settings,
hidden codes like the email subject line, and some other garbage
that get in the way of the plain text. Having the margins change
unexpectedly is irritating even with Reveal Codes in WP.
The Edit > Paste > Special > Unformatted
Text command does away with all the formatting garbage, leaving
just the text. . . .
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Barry
MacDonnell's