Adding Headers and Footers to Your Documents
by Laura Acklen
www.wpwriter.com

Headers are used to display information that is repeated at the top of every page of a document; footers are used to display information that is repeated at the bottom of every page of a document. Headers and footers can display page numbers, chapter titles, the filename, revision dates, the author's name, or any other information about the document.

Creating a Header
Generally, you need to create the header or footer on the page where you want it to start. You can use the Suppress dialog box to suppress a header or footer on pages where you don't want headers and footers to print. For example, the title page or the first page of a letter. For more information, see "Suppressing Headers and Footers From Printing" later in this tutorial.

To create a header or footer, position the insertion point on the page where you want the header or footer to appear. Choose Insert > Header/Footer to open the Headers/Footers dialog box (see Figure 1). By default, Header A is selected. You can either click Create, or choose another header or footer, and then click Create.

Header A is selected by default in the Headers/Footers dialog box.

What happens next depends on which view mode you're using. In Page view mode, the insertion point moves up to the top of the page, within the header space guidelines. The header text displays within this space (see Figure 2). In Draft view mode, the insertion point moves to a separate header/footer editing window. You won't be able to see the document text, only the text of the header as you type it. Either way, the property bar has some header/footer-specific buttons you can use.

Header A is selected by default in the Headers/Footers dialog box.

Tip: There are a couple of things you can do to help differentiate your header and footer text from the document text. First, reduce the font size by at least 2 points, preferably 4 points. Second, use a different font style for the header and footer text. For example, if you've selected a sans-serif font (such as Arial) for your headings and a serif font (such as Times New Roman) for your text, you might want to use the sans-serif font for the header and footer text to further set it apart from the body text.

Creating a Footer
Conceptually, creating a footer is the same as creating a header. The only difference is that the footer space appears at the bottom of the page, instead of the top of the page. You have the same options that you do when creating headers.

To create a footer, choose Insert > Header/Footer to open the Headers/Footers dialog box. Select Footer A, and click Create. In Page view mode, you will see the insertion point at the bottom of the page, within the footer space guidelines. The footer text displays within this space (see Figure 3). In Draft view mode, you will see the separate header/footer editing window.

The footer text appears within light gray guidelines that delineate the footer area.

Type the text that you want to appear at the bottom of every page, then click the Close button (the last button on the right side of the property bar).

Note: WordPerfect automatically inserts a blank line between the document text and the header or footer. Do not insert a blank line in the header or footer unless you want to increase the distance to two lines.

Identifying the Header/Footer Buttons on the Property Bar When the insertion point is inside the header or footer space (or in the header/footer editing window in Draft view), the property bar provides several header/footer-specific buttons to help you work with your headers and footers (see Figure 4).

The header space is delineated by light gray guidelines at the top of the document.

From left to right, the buttons are as follows:

• Header/Footer Prev - moves to the previous header or footer (depending on what you are currently editing).
  
  
• Header/Footer Next - moves to the next header or footer (depending on what you are currently editing).
  
  
• Page Numbering - opens a list of numbers (page, secondary page, chapter, volume, total pages) that you can insert in a header or footer.
  
  
• Horizontal Line - inserts the default horizontal line from the left to the right margin.
  
  
• Header/Footer Placement - opens the Header Placement or Footer Placement dialog box (depending on what you are editing) where you can specify all pages, odd pages, or even pages.
  
  
• Header/Footer Distance - allows you to specify the distance between the text and the header or footer.
  
  
• Close - closes the header/footer editor.

Editing Headers and Footers
It's simple to edit headers and footers when you need to make changes, or add elements after the fact. To edit a header or footer, choose Insert > Header/Footer. Select the appropriate header or footer from the Headers/Footers dialog box, then click Edit. When you are finished, click the Close button to exit the header/footer editor.

Tip: Generally, it is faster to create a new document by revising an existing document, especially when specific formatting is involved. If you're doing this, be sure that you edit the header or footer to reflect the changes in the document.

Adding Page Numbers to a Header or Footer
Adding a page number to a header or footer is a great way to help the reader keep their place in a lengthy document. To add a page number, click inside the header or footer space, and position your cursor where you want to display the number. Then click the Page Numbering button on the property bar. From the drop-down list of options, select which type of number you want to insert. Voila! The number is inserted into the header or footer. Click the Close button to exit the header/footer editor.

Adding a Horizontal Line to a Header or Footer
It's common to use a thin horizontal line to separate the header or footer from the body of a document. To add a horizontal line, click inside the header or footer space. Make sure the insertion point is on a blank line; otherwise, the graphics line will land right on top of your text. To insert a very thin line that stretches from the left to the right margin, click the Horizontal Line button. When you are finished editing, click the Close button to exit the header/footer editor.

Inserting the Filename in a Header or Footer
A filename in a footer can be a very useful tool, especially if you frequently share documents on a network. As long as the filename (even better, the full location) is present on every page, the reader can locate the document on the network. To add a filename, click inside the header or footer space. Choose Insert > Other > Filename to insert the filename, or choose Insert > Other > Path and Filename to insert the location (path) and the filename. Click the Close button to exit the header/footer editor.

Inserting the Current Date/Time in a Header or Footer
When collaborating on a document with co-workers, it simplifies the process if everyone can see exactly when a document was modified. To insert a date (and/or time), click inside the header or footer space. Choose Insert > Date/Time to open the Date/Time dialog box (see Figure 5). Select a format from the Date/Time formats list box, and click Insert. If you want to insert another item from the list, select it, then click Insert. Click Close when you are finished, and click the Close button to exit the header/footer editor.

Select the format for the date (and time) in the Date/Time dialog box.

Suppressing Headers and Footers From Printing
The Suppress feature is designed to prevent headers, footers, watermarks, and page numbers from printing on a particular page. For example, suppress is frequently used to keep these items from printing on a document's title page. To suppress a header or footer (or both), simply click at the top of the page that you do not want the header or footer printed. Choose Format > Page > Suppress. The Suppress dialog box opens (see Figure 6). Click the check box next to the header or footer that you want to suppress, and then click OK.

In the Suppress dialog box, select the page elements that you do not want to print on the current page.

Creating a Different Header or Footer for Odd/Even Pages
You can specify where you want a header or footer to appear. For example, Header A could appear only on odd pages and Header B could appear only on even pages. Footer A could appear at the bottom of every page.

To specify the placement of a header or footer, create or edit the header or footer. On the header/footer property bar, there is a button called Header/Footer Placement (refer back to the section titled "Identifying the Header/Footer Buttons on the Property Bar" and Figure 4 for more information). Click the Header/Footer Placement button to open the Placement dialog box for that element. Figure 7 shows the Header A Placement dialog box. Select a placement option, then click OK.

Specify on which pages you want the header or footer to print in the Placement dialog box.

Tip: Since headers and footers are printed within the text area of a page, you should decrease the margins to allow more space for the body text. Be sure to change the margins in the Document Style (choose File > Document > Current Document Style), or your changes won't affect the placement of the headers and footers. In fact, any formatting codes that you want to apply to headers and footers, as well as the body text, should be inserted in the Document Style rather than in the document itself.

Creating Two Headers or Two Footers on a Page
With WordPerfect, you can create up to two headers and two footers on a page. It's nice to be able to create one header for odd pages and another header for even pages. Another way you might take advantage of this is to create two headers on the same page. One might contain something standard, such as the title of the document and a page number. The other would contain something that changes periodically in the document, such as a chapter name. To keep the two headers from overlapping, place the first header's text at the left margin and the second header's text flush against the right margin. Also, be sure you use short titles and chapter names so they don't run into each other in the middle of the page!

Working in Document Substructures
Working with headers and footers may be your first introduction to "document substructures". A document substructure is essentially an element that is not considered to be a part of the document text. Headers, footers, footnotes, endnotes, and graphic box captions are all considered to be substructures in a document. As such, they must be treated differently.

One of the most obvious differences is that formatting codes inserted into the body of the document do not affect substructures. For example, if you change the font in the document, the font in a header or footer will not change. In order to "sync" the fonts, you must specify a font in the Document Initial Font dialog box, or you must select the font in the document initial style. This is easily accomplished with two menu commands: File > Document > Default Font and File > Document > Current Document Style.

Another difference that you will find is that when you use Find and Replace, it will not locate text in a header or footer unless you specifically tell it to. This is especially important when you are making global changes in a document. If the change isn't reflected in the header or footer, it could be a problem. To extend a Find or Replace into these substructures, you need to choose Options > Include Headers, Footers, etc. in Find in the Find and Replace Text dialog box (see Figure 8).

You should always check document substructures when performing a Find and Replace.