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Using a Master Document in Word (4)

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If you want to exclude a subdocument in your master document, you can either delete it or merge it into the master document as ordinary text. To delete a subdocument, you just need to click the 'Document Icon' and press the key when you are in the 'Master Document' view. To merge a subdocument into the master document as regular text, you then need to expand the subdocument, select its 'Document Icon', and click the 'Remove Subdocument' button on the 'Outlining' toolbar.

Also we know that a subdocument can be locked from editing. Actually, there are three ways in which a document becomes locked:

  1. The file of subdocument is open in a separate window on your computer.

  2. The subdocument is stored on a network server and is open on others'computers.

  3. The subdocument was locked by you to prevent further changes to it.

However, to manually lock a subdocument without opening its file, you can select or click inside it and then click the 'Lock Document' button on the 'Outlining' toolbar. Besides, this button is a toggle, so you can click it again to unlock the document.

You must know that it is not very effective when the subdocuments are large in a master document, because you cannot scroll inside them with the scroll bars. Instead you must use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move down within a subdocument. If you are planning to do a lot of editing or formatting work in such a subdocument, you should open it as a separate file. There are three ways to do so:

  1. You open the file of subdocument from its original location.

  2. You doubly click the subdocument icon in the 'Master Document' view.

  3. You collapse the subdocuments and then click the hyperlink of a subdocument.

Sometimes you may want to combine two fairly small subdocuments into one subdocument so that you can have one less subdocument file to keep track of. Or you want to split a subdocument into two so that different people can work on parts of it separately. Well, it is very easy to split and merge subdocuments.

When you split a subdocument, you actually create a new subdocument file. In addition, you can split it anywhere you like, as long as the line you choose to become the first line in the new subdocument is formatted with the 'Heading 1' style.

To split a subdocument, please follow these steps:

  1. Expand all subdocuments so that you can see their context.

  2. Expand all the headings of subdocuments to reveal all of its text if you cannot find the specific place where you want the split to occur.

  3. Move the insertion point to the beginning of the line that will begin the new subdocument. If this line is not formatted with the 'Heading 1' style, apply this style now with the 'Style' option under the 'Format' menu.

  4. Click the 'Split Subdocument' button on the 'Outlining' toolbar. Then Word will create a new subdocument using the first line in the new subdocument as its filename.

If you merge two subdocuments, you just add the contents of one subdocument to another subdocument. To do this, please follow the steps below:

  1. Switch to the 'Master Document' view

  2. Arrange the two subdocuments so that the subdocument you want to end up with is directly above the one to be merged into it.

  3. Delete any blank lines or outline markers between them if necessary.
  4. Select both subdocuments by clicking the document icon of the first subdocument and then clicking that of the second subdocument with the key being pressed simultaneously.

  5. Click the 'Merge Subdocuments' button on the 'Outlining' toolbar. Then Word will add the contents of the lower subdocument to the upper subdocument.

Next time, I will talk about formatting subdocuments, saving master documents and printing a master document.

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(Email address: "Daniel_KC_To@police. gov.hk")
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