Entering the RD field code manually

Question

This is Word 2013 on Windows 10. Note that I am absolutely new to field codes.

I want to create a table of content over several documents. This can be done using the RD field code, I understand. I have 11 files, and it seems tiring and cumbersome to enter each field code via the "insert field" dialog, so I opt for entering the codes manually. This is what I do.

1. Insert a TOC: References-->Table of Contents-->Automatic Table 2
2. I put my cursor at the end of the TOC
3. Enter the Field Code:  Hit ctl-F9.

Shaded open/close braces appear. 4. Hit R.

An R appears between the two braces. So far so good. It looks like this:

5. Hit D.

The shaded text disappears. My field code is gone.

This is NOT what I expect. I do expect a D to appear so that I can add the filename.

What am I doing wrong here?

Well, the workaround is obvious - for now I will just do it the hard way and add field codes via the GUI dialog. But I am sure I will have to do that more often, and typing in field code and filenames seems a lot more efficient.

Answer 1

The RD field is one of several that Word automatically marks as Hidden. To continue to see the field code, turn on nonprinting characters by clicking the ¶ button on the Home tab of the ribbon, or press Ctrl+Shift+8; or go to File > Options > Display and check the box for Hidden text.