Formatting a List in FrameMaker

Purdue Engineering Computer Network

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The first time you generate a list (if you don't use a template), it uses the page layout of the source document, and all entries use the same paragraph format. You can use a template for the list so it's formatted the way you want from the start. You can also change the page design and the formats in the list after you generate it just as you do in any other document. When you generate the list again, your new format is retained.

For example, you can change the headers and footers, the number of text columns, and the paragraph formats used for entries. You can add a title. And you can use a tab and tab leader dots before the page numbers in entries, include the autonumber of a paragraph in an entry or rearrange the information in the entries.

Several of the formatting instructions that follow require you to edit a special text flow on a reference page.

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To edit the special text flow

Many aspects of a list's format and structure are controlled by a special test flow on a reference page in the list. The text flow has a tag that matches the filename suffix, such as TOC for the table of contents.

Each paragraph in the flow corresponds to a paragraph tag or marker type you included in the list. For example, the paragraph tagged Heading1TOC in the text flow for a table of contents corresponds to the entries for first-level headings (tagged Heading1 in the source document). Building blocks such as <$pagenum> and <$paratext> in each paragraph control what information appears in the list and the order in which it appears.

If the list was created with hypertext links, the special text flow also contains a paragraph that specifies the form of the hypertext commands in the list. The paragraph's tag begins with the word Active.

1. Choose Reference Pages from the View menu.

2. Display the reference page containing the text flow.
   The flow is usually on a reference page with the same name as the text flow, such as TOC for a table of contents, but it may have been moved to another reference page.

3. Edit the appropriate paragraphs in the text flow.
   See the following tasks for specific editing instructions.

4. Choose Body Pages from the View menu.

5. Generate the list again.
   This lets you see the effect of the changes you made to the text flow.

Be sure to generate the list from the source document, not the list.

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To rearrange information in entries

You may want the page number to precede the text, or, you may want some other rearrangement.

1. Display the reference page that contains the special text flow.

2. Rearrange the building blocks.
   For example, to put the page number first, followed by the paragraph text, rearrange the building blocks this way: <$pagenum> <$paratext>.

3. Generate the list again.

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To change character formats

You can change the character format of any text appearing in a list. For example, you can make the page number for all section headings in a table of contents appear in bold.

1. In the list, create a new character format.
   Store the format in the Character Catalog.

2. Display the reference page that contains the special text flow.

3. Type the character tag (in angle brackets) in the paragraph with the tag that corresponds to the entries you want to change.
   Type the character tag to the left of the item whose character format you want to change. For example, if you created the character format TOCPageNum for the page number in first-level headings, use text such as the following:

   	<$paratext> <TOCPageNum><$pagenum>
   

4. Type <Default Para Font> where you want to change back to the paragraph's default font.
   For example, if the page number preceded the paragraph text in the example above, change the character format back to the paragraph's default font as follows:

   	<TOCPageNum><$pagenum><Default Para Font> <$paratext>
   

   When you generate the list again, the character format changes to match your specification.