Formatting Margins in MS Word 2007

March 24, 2008 6:48 PM

How do I set a different header margin for the first page in Microsoft Word 2007?

I'm still working on dissertation formatting. I've got almost everything I need done. Except for this: I need the text of the first page of each chapter (where it says Chapter X) to be exactly one inch from the top of the page.

Why is this a problem? Well, it's because, at the same time, I need every other page to have page numbers showing at exactly 1 inch from the top of the page. I've done that, with MeFi's help. But now, I don't seem to be able to format page 1 properly, and retain header formatting for the page numbers throughout the rest of the document.

What this means is that I think I need to find a way to change the header margin on p1 without changing it for the rest of the document. I don't know how to do this.

All suggestions welcomed. Idiot-proof suggestions preferred. Thanks!

posted by .kobayashi. to computers & internet (6 answers total)

Well, in Word 2003 it's:

View --> Header and Footer --> Page Setup --> Layout Tab --> Check "Different First Page".

That window will also let you monkey around with different Headers for first pages of new sections (ie, Chapters). But I'd do each chapter as a separate Word doc.

One more thing. Set up your Headers for the rest of the chapter first, then go back and do the different first page deal.

Hope that helps.
posted by notyou at 7:06 PM on March 24, 2008 [1 favorite]

Have you tried inserting a new section break for the first page, and then de-linking pages that follow this (new) section, so page 1 can be formatted differently?
posted by KokuRyu at 7:08 PM on March 24, 2008

For some reason, "Different First Page" doesn't seem to achieve the desired result here. As a last resort, you could use a text box for each affected page.
posted by roomwithaview at 8:23 PM on March 24, 2008

Yeah, the different first page thing doesn't seem to be working out for me. KokoRyu: is the de-linking an easy process?
posted by .kobayashi. at 12:29 AM on March 25, 2008

Here, do this.
Insert>>break>>next page

View>> header
click "show next" (2nd last button on header toolbar) which will take you to page 2 header
click "link to previous" off (4th last button)
click "show previous" (3rd last button)

do your stuff. Your first page header should stay different to all the others.

If you're not certain that you have the right buttons, hover over them. As soon as you open the header the toolbar should show, if it isn't already.
posted by b33j at 4:19 AM on March 25, 2008

This page shows you the buttons I mean, and the next and previous are little buttons with blue arrows pointing right and left respectively. On this view, the "link to previous" is greyed out, it is represented by an open book with a u shaped arrow going from the right page to the left one.
posted by b33j at 4:22 AM on March 25, 2008