Unexpected Style Update when "Automatically Updates" is Turned Off

[Guest]

Word 2003 is changing the Normal style unexpectedly, even when I have the
"Automatically Update" option turned off in the "Styles and Formatting"
dialog for the Normal style.

What is happening is I have numerous paragraphs that are of the Normal
Style. I want to add a bullet to one paragraph and when I do, the entire
document (for what I am doing, the Normal style is the only style used) gets
bullets. Then, when I un-bullet that line, the bullet on that line only is
removed and the name of the style for that line becomes "Normal + Left: 0,
First line: 0" whereas the rest of the bulletted lines stay as the Normal
style.

What can I do to prevent this?

Thanks.

 

[Cindy M -WordMVP-]

Hi =?Utf-8?B?R1c2Nw==?=,

Word 2003 is changing the Normal style unexpectedly, even when I have the
"Automatically Update" option turned off in the "Styles and Formatting"
dialog for the Normal style.

Please check again that you've actually deactivated this option for the Normal
style.

Then test again in a new document.

If you still see the problem, shut down Word then start it up again while
holding down the Ctrl key (Safe mode). Does the problem still occur in a new
document?

What is happening is I have numerous paragraphs that are of the Normal
Style. I want to add a bullet to one paragraph and when I do, the entire
document (for what I am doing, the Normal style is the only style used) gets
bullets. Then, when I un-bullet that line, the bullet on that line only is
removed and the name of the style for that line becomes "Normal + Left: 0,
First line: 0" whereas the rest of the bulletted lines stay as the Normal
style.

Cindy Meister
INTER-Solutions, Switzerland
http://homepage.swissonline.ch/cindymeister (last update Jun 8 2004)
http://www.word.mvps.org

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[Guest]

Thanks the reply. But that didn't work. I verified that the "Automatically
Update" option was not checked for the Normal style and also started Word in
Safe Mode.

As an additional troubleshooting note, that makes me wonder if this is truly
a bug with the bullet function is that numbering works correct. I can add a
number to a single paragraph and only that paragraph gets a number, unlike
bullets where every paragraph of the sam style gets the bullet.

Another interesting note is that if I make all paragraphs a style other than
Normal, say Heading 1 for example, and then try to add a bullet to one of the
paragraphs, the entire document gets converted to the Normal style, and all
the available style in the document get a bullet added to them. Something
whacky is going on and I can't figure it out.

 

[Margaret Aldis]

Ah, this latest problem is a good clue and I think I can guess what is going
on - try this:

Use your bullet button (with whacky results).

Format> Bullets and Numbering

My guess is that you will see a highlighted bullet pane with the stylename
"Normal" showing alongside the bullet (indicating that your default bullet
List Template has become linked to the Normal style). Press the Reset
button - this should reset the pane so no stylename is showing, just a
picture of the bullets.

You will probably now need to go back to Normal style, Modify and remove the
bullets from the style.

To use bullets safely in future, see

http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/bullets/controlbullets.html

I would also be inclined to use fresh documents and templates wherever you
can - any document you've been working on with this problem will still have
a List Template within it with bullets linked to Normal style - which gives
a chance of reactivating the problem.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

This is a long shot, but check to make sure that neither of the WordPerfect
options on the General tab of Tools | Options is checked. You might also
want to disable the "automatic" features (especially bullets) on the
AutoFormat As You Type tab of Tools | AutoCorrect Options.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA

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all may benefit.

 

[Guest]

That did it!!!! Thank you very much!!!

It did seem to happen just a few days ago and must be linked to another
document I opened. Just wondering why it got set in my template and changed
all my new documents.

Anyway, thanks a bunch.

 

[Margaret Aldis]

Great news - thanks so much for confirming my guess.

The default bullet List Template (what you get when you press the Bullet
button) isn't recorded in the template but in the registry - that's why once
it started it affected all your documents. Although you were clearing
bullets out of Normal style, every time you applied bullets that was
changing the style via the linking in the list template.

I don't know at what point the default list template details get saved in
the registry, but certainly if you edit that first pane position you will
change the effect of the bullet button. When you work in a document the
panes do tend to change around, so I guess it is possible that a rogue
document changed your default bullet setting.

Just lay off that button and stick to styles in future <g>.