Re: [libreoffice-users] Tabs in selection of text

On 4/3/19 8:37 PM, Carl Paulsen wrote:
> I have a number of "paragraphs" of text (job listing section of a 
> resume) for which I'd like to add tab stops.  I select the lines and 
> click the tab stop I want, then click in the ruler, but nothing 
> happens.  I see no menu item to format tabs, though I did stumble into 
> one dialog box with Tabs that required manual setting and it was 
> unclear just where those tabs would be applied.  In any case, I can't 
> find that any more.
>
> In the help document 
> (https://help.libreoffice.org/Common/Inserting_and_Editing_Tab_Stops) 
> it says for changing one or more paragraphs: "Select the paragraphs, 
> then click inside the ruler."  That is most definitely not working.  
> Finally, if I clear all formatting, I get the default tab stops and 
> could re-format the entire section that way.  But that's a bit of work 
> given all the formatting I'd lose.
>
> What do I do to quickly and simply edit tab stops, and why is it so 
> difficult in LO?
>
> FYI I find the Styles aspect of LibreOffice to be entirely unintuitive 
> and I've never been able to work with them.  I realize that should be 
> a goal but it's not possible in my current timeline.
>
> Thank you!

   I missed this when this thread was started. Your 'FYI' statement is 
probably the real reason for all of your problems. LibreOffice is 
designed to use styles for text creation and/or editing. Manual 
formatting can create so many more problems than using styles. Besides 
they are harder to solve. The 'Getting Started Guide' has at least one 
chapter on styles as does the 'Writer Guide'. When I first began working 
on the documentation for OpenOffice.org (early 2000's) and later 
LibreOffice, I used this chapters to learn how to use styles. I have 
never regretted. I would like to know what is 'unintuitive' with styles. 
I am thinking it might be that you think in terms of lines of type 
verses groups of paragraphs.

  You also may have some problems with the concept of nesting. Each 
paragraph has specific set of characteristics that applies to every 
character of the paragraph; it ends with a paragraph break. Character 
styles are used to give specific characteristics to a continuous set of 
characters within the paragraph.

   Perhaps it might be unintuitive for you to think that each member of 
a list can also be a separate paragraph. Yet this might be the best way 
to give you document the formatting you want it to have.

Dan


--
To unsubscribe e-mail to: users+unsubscribe@global.libreoffice.org
Problems? https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/mailing-lists/how-to-unsubscribe/
Posting guidelines + more: https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Netiquette
List archive: https://listarchives.libreoffice.org/global/users/
Privacy Policy: https://www.documentfoundation.org/privacy