PagePlus

Creating custom table formats

PagePlus comes with an impressive selection of pre-defined table formats, but it’s possible to customize these table formats further so that tables suit your publication style more exactly. Pre-defined table formats can be modified at various points in the program, typically:

• When creating a table using the  Table Tool (Tools toolbar).

• At any time from the Table menu.

• When modifying an existing table on the page.

Customized tables have all the capabilities of tables created from pre-defined formats. You’ll be able to:

• Select table cell styles such as Rows (Odd/Even), Header Rows, and Rules for table modification.

• Add or remove styles to make the format more basic or more advanced.

• Set each style’s cell properties such as fill, transparency, border, margins, and fonts.

• Independently format odd and even rows for alternating styles between rows.

If you’re looking for design freedom, you can create your own format from scratch.

To create a new table format based on an existing format:

1. Select Edit AutoFormat… on the Table menu.
   – or -

   Select  Table Tool from the Tools toolbar’s Table flyout, and choose Edit in the dialog.

2. Either:

1. Select New…  from the dialog.

2. Enter the new table format’s Name, then select a pre-defined format from the Copy from drop-down list. Click OK.

- or -

• Select an existing format from the Format drop-down list.

  

The Table Formats dialog shows the header and row cells that make up that table format.

Selecting cells in the table will highlight the style for possible editing.

3. Click Save to save your new format, or Save As… to save to a new format name.

4. Click OK.

5. You can add a Comment related to your table design at the bottom of the dialog.

To create a new table format from scratch:

• As for the previous procedure, but select (Default) from the Copy from drop-down list.

It’s possible to save custom table or calendar formats (along with other defaults) as a global setting so they will remain in effect for future publications.

• To edit a selected table’s AutoFormat, select  AutoFormat from the Table context toolbar.

Editing the table structure

A PagePlus table is essentially a two-dimensional grid of cells, with each cell possessing its own cell style. If you base new table designs on a pre-defined table formats, you’ll find that each design has differing cell styles depending on their complexity. Because these styles are editable you have the freedom to create your own custom tables with ease.

The Table Format Grid is used to allow different cell styles to be applied to areas of your table.

Table Format Grid	Sample Preview

Styles are varied and include the above Header, Odd Row, Even Row styles, but also Row, Body, and various Rule styles. Some formats have Column Header, Row Header and rules (lines between cells).

To edit an existing cell style:

1. From the Table Formats dialog, select a cell in the Table Format Grid that you wish to edit (e.g., Header). Its border becomes bold.
   The Style list highlights the chosen format.

   

2. Click Edit under the list to change the style’s properties (Fill, Transparency, Border, Margins, and Font).

3. Once cell properties are modified, click OK.

You can create your own named cell style based on an existing style. This preserves the original cell style.

• Use numbered schemed colors (in Cell Properties) to allow your new table format’s appearance to change with your color scheme.

To add a new style:

1. For more styles, click Add.

2. Name the new style and copy the format (Copy from) from an existing style if previously selected. For example, you could create a newly named table header (e.g., Header_custom_orange) based on the Header style.

3. Change the style’s properties (Fill, Transparency, Border, Margins, and Font) for the format, then click OK. The style is added to the styles list.

You may wish to swap the cell style of a chosen cell for another style,
especially if you’ve just create a new one.

To apply a style:

1. Select a cell whose style you want to change.

2. Select a different style from the Cell Styles list.

3. Click Apply to apply the formatting to the selected cell, then click OK.

The new style can be applied to any selected table cell.

Advanced table design

Until now, the focus has been on editing the cell layout for simple table formats, i.e. a header and odd/even rows. However, for more advanced tables, the cell layout can be expanded to allow for a more sophisticated appearance incorporating a footer, row/column headers, and possible repeating patterns.

To expand the cell layout:

• In the preview window, use  Add Column (Add Row) to add extra columns (rows). Use   to remove columns/rows from the end of the table.
   

  	Adds a new column	Adds a new row

Once expanded, it’s possible to introduce footers, Column headers, Row headers, and repeating cell patterns.

To add a table footer:

•  Add a new row as described above, then click the Footer row handle to move it up one row. This creates a footer area which can be given different cell properties.

The cell properties of the footer can be edited to display a contrasting footer style.

To add a row header:

Using the same principles you can drag the Header Column handle to introduce a row header.

1. Click to move the Header Column handle	2. Column header area.
3. Select area by dragging	4. Apply new cell properties (blue color) to row header.

To add a repeating pattern:

• Select individual cells within the body area of the table, then apply different cell styles to alternating cells.

Table Format Grid	Sample Preview

 

Saving and deleting formats

To save formats globally:

• From the Table Formats dialog, click Save Defaults.
  – or -

  Select Tools>Save Defaults…, and check the Table and calendar formats option.

For more information, see Updating and saving defaults.

To delete a table format:

• Select the table for deletion from the Format menu, then click Delete. At the confirmation dialog, click Yes to confirm deletion.

Creating custom calendar formats

Calendars can be added to your publication as described in Inserting a calendar. Like table AutoFormats you can create calendar AutoFormats at any time or when adding a calendar to the page.

The process of creating custom calendar formats is very similar to that for creating custom table formats, except that you can add additional formatting to specific cells. This allows different calendar layout to be used.

To create a new calendar format based on an existing format:

1. Select Edit Calendar AutoFormat… on the Table menu.
   – or -

   Select  Insert Calendar from the Tools toolbar’s Table flyout, and select a calendar auto format from the wizard (choose Edit).

2. From the dialog, use the Table tab to edit the cell styles as described in Creating custom table formats above.

3. Select the Calendar tab to edit cell properties in areas of the calendar such as heading, note, and number for Saturdays and Sundays. Formatting for weekdays can be applied using the same principle.

4. To edit a cell’s Font, Fill and Border, select the cell type (e.g., Sunday Note ), then click an adjacent  button.

   

5. From the Cell Properties dialog, edit font, fill, and border properties. The Cell Properties dialog takes on several forms depending on the Cell type.

Font	Choose a font, its position, size, style, color, and alignment. See Setting character attributes.
Fill	Choose a solid, gradient, or bitmap fill from the Type drop-down list.
Border	Select a preset edge line configuration at the right. This is previewed in the Edge Selection box, with bold lines showing lines to be applied. · Click the empty (lower-left) preset to remove all border lines. · Click the Line Style… button to set line properties for the border. Any lines indicated with arrows in the Edge Selection box will take on the new properties.

To disable applied cell properties, uncheck check boxes next to Font, Fill, or Border.

Creating custom table formats