Forum Discussion
Span/split columns in MS Word
Hi,
I received a PDF that was originally designed in InDesign. The client asked me to convert it to MS Word. The text is set on two columns while Heading 1 and Heading 2 are set on one column.
In InDesign is quite simple because there is a paragraph setting that allows me to span a sentence or a paragraph the columns or to split to columns a sentence or a paragraph.
For those who are not familiar with InDesign, I will explain:
If I set a text to flow on two or more columns but I want the headings to go on one column, I set the paragraph style for heading1 to span the columns. At that point, the InDesign breaks the text so that heading 1 will flow over all columns.
On the other hand, if I set the text to flow on a single column, I can choose a bullet or numbered list to go on two columns. I select the paragraph(s) and choose split column by entering the number of columns I want.
In MS Word I found no such option. Therefore, I set the MS Word document with infinite section breaks and column breaks.
In the beginning, I thought that working with tables instead of sections and columns would be simple. Nevertheless, I decided on this approach as presented in the above screenshot.
However, I am wondering if is there an option for doing that much easier and faster.
Thank you.
Sebastian
2 Replies
Yes, that crossed my mind. However, I think I'll stick with sections as I did. The idea is that in most cases, the target language is 25-40% bigger than the source text. Adding text boxes will require a second revision of the document in case the translation does not fit in the box.
How about this:
- Keep your document in two columns.
- Insert a Text Box for each heading.
- Set the text box to no fill, no border, and position it across the page width.
- Use Wrap Text > Top and Bottom to avoid overlap.
