Re: [libreoffice-users] Writer auto indenting?

At 15:53 07/09/2014 -0700, Jerry Noname wrote:
> Is there a way to get Writer to preserve the tab indenting from the 
> previous line on which I was typing?

I hope not. If you indent the first line of a paragraph using a tab 
character and you want this behaviour repeated, you would have tab 
characters at the beginning of every line. So far so (apparently) 
good. But then what happens when you edit the text and material flows 
naturally between lines? The tabs flow into positions other than at 
the beginning of the lines and you get a mess!

> For instance, let's suppose that the left hand edge of this message 
> is the left margin of a Writer document.
>
> This is my first line of typing. <Press Enter>
> <tab> Type another line. <Press Enter>
> Now I want this line to begin at the same place as the previous 
> line, at the "T" in the word "Type".

It's interesting here that, although you said you wanted this 
behaviour for consecutive lines, you now explain that you want it for 
separate *paragraphs*. Paragraphs, not lines, are what you get if you 
separate the items by pressing Enter, of course.

> I don't want to have to use auto formatting, I get all mixed up with 
> that stuff.

The solution to "getting all mixed up" is to learn how to use the 
facilities properly, so you are not "mixed up" - not to dismiss the 
facilities that the product provides.

> I just want subsequent lines to preserve the tabs in the previous 
> line, unless I press Backspace.

No: you don't want any tabs (unless you are using a typewriter); you 
want persistent indentations.

> Is there a setting somewhere to do this?

Yes. You can set an indentation in the paragraph properties or the 
paragraph style properties. More simply, you can use the Increase 
Indent button in the Formatting toolbar. You can do any of these 
before or after you type the material, or at any point whilst you are 
doing so. In any case, pressing Enter to start a new paragraph will 
preserve the current indentation. You can remove the indentation 
using the paragraph or paragraph style dialogues or the Decrease 
Indent button in the Formatting toolbar. If you put the cursor at the 
start of any paragraph, you can also cancel its indentation using 
Backspace, as you desire.

I trust this helps.

Brian Barker


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