applied tips : march 2008
microsoft word : captivating captions
Give tables and figures a professional look with automatic or manual captions
When you insert items such as tables or figures into a Word document, you can attach a caption to identify it. You can set up Word to add one automatically, or you can attach one after the item has already been inserted.
AutoCaptions are automatic
First let's look at how to set up captions so that every time you insert a certain type of object, a caption is automatically added. Open a Word document and select Insert > Reference > Caption from the menu (or Insert > Caption in Word 97).
Click the AutoCaption button to open the AutoCaption dialog box. In the "Add caption when inserting" list, click the check box next to each type of item you want to appear with a caption. Then click the Use label list arrow and select a caption label—Equation, Figure, and Table are the default labels in Word, but you can add your own labels as well.
To add a new label, click the New Label button, type a label name, and click OK. Once you've chosen a label, click the Position list arrow and select where you want the caption positioned—above or below the inserted item.
Finally, you can change the numbering system. Word automatically numbers the captions, and you can change the numbering scheme by clicking the Numbering button, clicking the Format list arrow, selecting numbers, letters, or roman numerals, and clicking OK.
As you insert items into your document, the numbering sequence starts over for each type of label. For example, if you insert two "Table" items in a row, they'll be numbered Table 1 and Table 2. If you then insert a clip art picture, which has been labeled "Figure", that picture will be labeled Figure 1. The next table you insert will be captioned "Table 3".
Word is able to keep track of label numbering by using field codes. By inserting each number as a field code—instead of as text like the rest of the label—Word is able to use a formula to track the sequence.
Once you've set up your AutoCaptions, click the OK button to close the AutoCaption dialog box and return to your Word document.
Try an example
For this lesson example, let's assume you chose Microsoft Word Tables to be inserted with AutoCaptions, and you chose to display the "Table" label above the table.
To insert the table with its caption, click the Insert Table button on the Standard toolbar, drag across the desired number of rows and columns, and click the mouse button. The table appears, along with the caption "Table 1" above the table. The next table you insert will be automatically labeled Table 2.
Now let's say you've also chosen to add an AutoCaption when inserting Microsoft Word Pictures, and you've created a new label called Picture, which you want positioned below the pictures in your document.
Simply insert a clip art item or other type of picture as you would normally, and a "Picture 1" caption automatically appears below it.
Adding manual captions
Besides creating captions automatically when you insert objects, you can also add captions to objects later. If you have already inserted an item—such as a table or a picture—without a caption, select the item, then select Insert > Reference > Caption from the menu (or Insert > Caption in Word 97).
In the Caption dialog box, click the Label list arrow and select the label that you want to appear in the caption. Just like when you were working with AutoCaptions, you can create new labels using the New Label button and you can select from different numbering schemes by clicking the Numbering button, clicking the Format list arrow, and selecting your desired number format.
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