Sect. 4.11 - Managing Headers, Footers, and Sections

Header Content

After a header or footer is inserted, the text becomes active and editable and is marked off from the document body with a dashed line. Some header or footer content, such as page numbers and the date and time, is formatted to update automatically, depending on the page sequence or current date. This kind of information is inserted as a Field. Other fields include the document file name, author, and other document properties.

Continuous Section Break

Inserting a Continuous section break starts a new section on the same page. Continuous section breaks are useful for implementing a formatting change, like a different number of columns, in the middle of a page.

Next Page Section Break

Inserting a Next Page section break starts a new section on the next page. This type of section break is often used to start a new chapter in a document. If you place your cursor at the beginning of a page and then insert a Next Page section break, the break will be inserted at the bottom of the previous page.

Even Page Section Break

Inserting an Even Page section break starts the new section on the next even-numbered page. This type of break can be useful in formatting chapters to always start on an even page. If an Even Page section break is inserted immediately after an even page, Word will print a blank page between the two even pages.

Odd Page Section Break

Inserting an Odd Page section break starts the new section on the next odd-numbered page. This type of break can be useful in formatting chapters to always start on an odd page. If an Odd Page section break is inserted immediately after an odd page, Word will print a blank page between the two odd pages.

Page Number Format

The Page Number Format dialog box lets you change the numerical system used for page numbering in a document. Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.) are applied by default. Other options include letters and Roman numerals (both upper and lower case). The Page Number Format dialog box also lets you restart numbering with a new section or continue numbering from a previous section.

Quick Parts

The Quick Parts Gallery contains fields, document properties, and other pre-formatted text that can be inserted into a header or footer. The most commonly used fields and properties are also available from the Date & Time and Document Info buttons on the ribbon.

Footer

The footer is a section of the document that appears in the bottom margin. Footers typically contain information like the page number, the date, or the document file name. Like headers, footers usually contain the same information on each page.

Header

The header is a section of the document that appears in the top margin. Headers typically contain information like the page number, the document title, and the author's name. When information is added to the header, it is automatically included on every page.

Different First Page

Use the Different First Page option to apply a header and footer to the first page of the document that is different from what occurs in the rest of the document. If more than one page needs to include a different header or footer, insert a section break and then break the link between the two sections (using the Link to Previous button).