Footnotes have the wrong numbers and are put on the wrong page

[Guest]

I'm using MS Word 2003. I created a fairly lengthy document (about 45 pages)
that originally had a lot of footnotes in it, about 50. For a revision, I
removed many of these footnotes. The footnotes that remained got all messed
up. Their numbering got changed, and I can't change the numbers to what they
should be. The first footnote is 11, the next is up in the 20s, etc.
Furthermore, the first footnote is getting thrown onto the wrong page. The
reference is on page 11 of my document, but it's throwing the actual footnote
onto the bottom of page 5. I tried fiddling with the footnote options, but
haven't found a solution yet. I even tried deleting all the footnotes, but
when I try to re-write them the same problems emerge. The problem isn't
linked with tracking changes, is it? I have that on and wonder if it's
keeping deleted footnotes in the system. Help!

 

[Tony Jollans]

If you have Track Changes on they won't be renumbered until changes are
accepted or rejected. As you say "it's
keeping deleted footnotes in the system".

 

[Guest]

Yes, that was it. Thank you very much. It fixed the problem; that was driving
me nuts.

Adam

 

[JonTarg]

I am experiencing the problem that you describe. In a document with several
footnotes, if a footnote is deleted the subsequent footnote numbers do not
update automatically.

 

[Peter T. Daniels]

Which version of Word?

Are you sure the footnotes were inserted properly, by using the Insert
Footnote command (and not by typing a superscript number in the text
and the note at the bottom of the page)?

Do you have Track Changes turned on? If so, the numbers won't fix
themselves until you accept all the changes involving footnote
numbers. (I.e., if you moved or deleted a footnote, its number is
still there, messing up the following numbers.)

 

[JonTarg]

If you are tracking changes in the document, the footnote numbers will not
update automatically until the "all changes have been accepted" button is
depressed.

 

[Doug Robbins - Word MVP]

See the article "Why do my footnotes sometimes end up on a different page
from their references in the text?†at:
http://www.word.mvps.org/FAQs/Formatting/FootnoteFAQ.htm


--
Hope this helps.

Please reply to the newsgroup unless you wish to avail yourself of my
services on a paid consulting basis.

Doug Robbins - Word MVP, originally posted via msnews.microsoft.com