Word and bookmarks

Question

Hello,

I'm using Word 365 and have set up som bookmarks in a document. I am struggling to get the places where I have placed a REF field to display as the target bookmark. The formatting keeps changing.

The REF field is { REF Riskbenefits }, which points to a bookmarked statement of 'Risks & Benefits'. The format that is displayed, is not the same as what is in the bookmark e.g. font size is changed or paper of it is in grey. When I have checked the REF, it is displayed as { REF Riskbenefits / MERGEFORMAT } or something like. If I remove the mergeformat it just changes back. I hope I've described the issue clearly.

Any ideas of how I can get it to display the same? Am I missing something?

Answer 1

To ensure that Word fields use the formatting at the insertion point, you can edit the REF field code to include the \* CHARFORMAT switch. (Remove \* MERGEFORMAT if it is present.) Update with F9 (or Fn+F9 on some keyboards). (Strictly speaking, CHARFORMAT forces Word to use the formatting applied to the first character of the field code itself.)

You can control the display of fields in Word via File > Options > Advanced. Choose an option for Field shading. See the screen shot below. To never display shading, choose that option. Some people prefer to have shading shown "When selected" (this is also the default setting). None of these options affect how fields print or convert to PDF.

Answer 2

To ensure that the REF field displays the same formatting as the bookmarked text in your Word document, you can try the following steps:

1. Use the Correct Field Code: The /MERGEFORMAT switch in your REF field is intended to maintain the formatting of the text that the field references. If the formatting is not consistent, you might want to ensure that the bookmark text is formatted correctly before inserting the REF field.
2. Remove the /MERGEFORMAT Switch: If you find that removing the /MERGEFORMAT switch causes the formatting to revert, you may want to keep it. However, if it’s not working as expected, consider manually formatting the REF field after inserting it to match the bookmark.
3. Update the Field: After making changes, right-click on the REF field and select "Update Field" to refresh the display. This can sometimes resolve formatting issues.
4. Check Styles: Ensure that the styles applied to the bookmarked text and the REF field are consistent. You can modify the styles in the Styles pane to ensure they match.
5. Field Codes Visibility: Press Alt + F9 to toggle the visibility of field codes. This can help you see if there are any other switches affecting the formatting.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, you may need to manually adjust the formatting of the REF field after it is inserted to ensure it matches the original bookmark formatting.

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References:

• Predefined Bookmarks
• Cross-reference links do not update to the correct heading number