why is this SO hard ......

[Dave_Cason]

Hi,

I've inherited a few docs from a person who left and I'm no MS WORD guru.  (grin)

All I'm trying to do is pull out pages from a bigger doc and extract some forms from it.

There are these "Section Break (next page) things all over this place and I have no clue how to deal with them, when I go to delete an extra page, the formatting of the previous page goes nuts.

I tried to read a article about saving the formatting and then deleting a page but I couldn't get it to work for the life of me.

I've attached an example, and I have about 5 of these forms I need to get from a two page document down to a one page document, because the next page break thing is blank and I don't need it, its just this formatting saving stuff and page breaks.

It's got a header and footer in it but there's nothing the footer, so I have everything I need the entire document to be, but there is another blank page two that shows up with the same header.

If I try in any way to delete that second blank page, the previous page one screws up, I'm saying that  because its child-proof and I'm dumb.  (sigh)

PLEASE - could anyone just explain, exactly, step by step how to save the formatting in the document (whatever that is) and then let me delete the entire second page without wrecking the first page?

You can do it for me but I'd rather learn how!  Thankings .......

Cheers'

Dave

[#2]

@Dave_Cason 

It may be so hard because the person who created the document did not understand what they were doing.

That said, the section formatting for a Word section is contained in the section break following the section, not one at the beginning.

• Working with sections by Dave Rado, MVP
• Sections / Headers and Footers in Microsoft Word (Ribbon Versions)
• Page Numbers in Word 2007-2021 (365)

Before you go too far with this, though, I strongly recommend going through this short series of tutorials. I learned from them after using Word for years.

Basic Concepts of Microsoft Word - from Shauna Kelly  (including especially)

• 1. Start typing your new document
• 2. Rules for Typing in Word
• 2.1 Why you should not press Enter at the end of every line
• 2.2 Why you should press Enter only once to end a paragraph 
• 2.3 Why you should use one space after each sentence
• 3. Using Styles to Format Text 
• 4. Use Tables and Tabs to Arrange Text in Microsoft Word
• 5. Use a bulleted paragraph style for bullets and dotpoints 
• 6. Make changes, fix mistakes, edit your document
• 7. Use page numbering and let the text flow from page to page
• 8. Print your document

Word is not a typewriter, nor is it any other word processing program you may have learned. It works according to rules that are not necessarily intuitive. Spending a little time learning to use this tool will keep you from hitting yourself on the thumb with a hammer. It will save you time and frustration.

[#3]

@Charles_Kenyon 

Hi Charles,

OK I will, but do you think you can give me the steps to save the formatting so I can continue?

I think they're all OK for what they are, its just me, I just don't know how to extract that specific page from the whole document and save that sheets formatting.  

Granted that MS way of saving the formatting from the previous page stuff is weird and I dunno why its like that ...... but anyway ....

This one has 3 section breaks and two column breaks in it so it DOES look great when its in the entire 230 page doc - its just that I need that one page out of it to build a form out of it.

I need the last page from this 2 page document gone.  That's basically it ...... - its called the on the job training page - so I need to delete the pages that are blank....

Cheers'

Dave

[#4]

@Dave_Cason 

Hi Dave,

I've downloaded your document. I am unsure what problem you are having. What, exactly, are you trying to extract?

I will work with you on it, but only after you tell me that you've at least looked at the following and the Shauna Kelly tutorials I linked previously:

Word Doesn't Know What a Page Is by Daiya Mitchell, MVP

I would also recommend, but not require, that you look at the Working With Sections article.

Viewed in Draft view, this is what I am seeing:

Each section break carries with it the formatting of page numbering, headers and footers, margins, columns, and orientation for the text that precedes it.

"You need to learn how your tools work or you will cut your hand off!" (My dad!)

This form could be possibly improved by using Content Control CheckBoxes which would be active online instead of the images (if it is to be used on the computer rather than simply printed). It could be improved by removal of empty paragraphs.

[#5]

@Charles_Kenyon 

OK, fair enough, I'll read those articles over the weekend and go from there........

I attached a few screen caps to show you what I'm seeing: 

- the one is both pages where the whole document is two pages, and you can see that hidden page break down at the bottom right.   (page 1 +2 sample)   attached it twice by mistake

- the next sample is what happens to the document where everything shifts down  (of course)  because the formatting disappears after I delete that hidden page break in the first example.....  

(page 1 + 2 after sample) 

- the last one is just a screen shot showing that over all, I just need the entire document to be one page with that page 2 and the NOTES field gone entirely.  (need it as one page sample)

I've read that you can save the formatting of the previous page by clicking the header in specific places and copying the setting with the F4 key but I can't get it to work.

Anyway - I have my weekend reading and dad sounds like a smart cookie !!  :)

Cheers'

Dave

[#6]

Remember, there is a huge difference in Word between page breaks and section breaks. Section breaks contain formatting information. Page breaks do not.

If you use the full editor when posting you can simply paste screenshots.

[#7]

@Charles_Kenyon 

You may want to also look at Deleting Section Breaks at the bottom of Understanding Section Breaks by Tony Jollans, MVP.

[#8]

@Charles_Kenyon 

Hi, Well it was an OK read and I had no idea word was so complicated.

I went to the master doc - made a copy of the whole thing to work from, opened that copy - went down to the page I need ( pg.194) and added a Section Break (Cont) as the "Preserving section formatting when pasting between documents" article suggested in that wordmvp doc.

I put it just ahead of the section break next page  and cut and pasted the stuff I want on to a new doc and it copied just the page I wanted but for some reason it's added another blank page with the header and footer on it and it and I can't delete that page 2 ..........  so mild progress I guess?

How can I still get rid of that blank second page with the header and footer on it?   Also, after I did the paste in to the new doc the same Section Break (next Page is there but that Section Break (Cont) that I put in is gone.  Is that normal?  In this copy I sent you - its there now.

Its kind of the same thing as my original problem, I have a two page doc that I need and only want page one and its contents - the second black page with the header and footer are garbage.

Cheers'

Dave 

[#9]

@Dave_Cason 

Please see Master Documents "Feature" in Microsoft Word.

I will look at your sample document.

Why a sample file is important for troubleshooting - - - - - - - and how to do it.

[#10]

@Dave_Cason 

Am I correct that this is to be filled out by hand, not typed on the computer?

From what I can see, there was no need for any of the section breaks, this could all have been done using one or more Tables.

I will prepare a sample.

[#11]

@Charles_Kenyon 

Hi Charles,

These docs were initially in a binder and we just photocopied new ones as needed - now I'm moving them all over to an electronic design or Form using a program called:  One Span with their tool "Designers" and it takes the page of text and you drag and drop radio buttons, and text fields, and signature fields. checkboxes, etc, on to the document to turn it in to an electronic form.

So before when we needed a new sheet we old school printed just the one page we needed out of the manual and used that or photocopied a bunch.  So before having another page wasn't a problem since we literally just photocopied or printed a new page.

That's why I need to get rid of that second page of useless blank "Stuff".  So I have attached that semi edited First Aid Log again.  As you can see it's 99% ready to go, all of page one is just fine, it has the info on the page we need and the header looks just dandy, I just need to delete that second page thats blank with the header on the sheet.

I'm just going to ask you if you could just please tell me the steps to delete that second page, I don't need a table, and I don't know what that is anyway.  I have two "forms" left to add to our Fill and Sign electronic file cabinet, this first aid log and a emergency drill record and I'm done will all of it.

Cheers'

Dave

[#12 · Accepted solution]

Hi Charles,

I think I got it ...... I took the pages I needed from the old document - cut and pasted the pages I wanted plus the preceding page and the page following what I needed - so if I want the middle page I grabbed 3 in total.

- Deleted page one and it usually shifted the document up one page so now it's down to 2 pages
- Then clicked the Show / Hide button - Cntl*Shift*8
- Place the cursor in the portrait page before the section break;
- Click the Page Setup dialogue box launcher (Layout > Page Setup);
- Clicked OK (or press Enter), without making any changes to the settings;
- Place the cursor in the landscape page following the section break;
- Press F4.

That seems to clear out that last blank page I never needed !!

Cheers'
Dave

[#13]

I am delighted that you figured it out. Sorry, but it really can be hard.