WD97: Can't See or Manipulate Objects (and Other Odd Behavior)

ID: Q167738

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Word 97 for Windows

SUMMARY

In versions of Word earlier than Word 97, all objects except for drawing objects are inserted as inline objects by default. To make text wrap around an object, you generally insert the object (inline) and then apply a frame to it. In Word 97, however, floating objects are more flexible and powerful than frames. Therefore, in Word 97, objects are inserted as floating objects by default.

This change in the default behavior, of inline to floating, between the different versions of Word may be a source of confusion at first. This article discusses various problems and points of confusion you may experience when working with objects formatted with the Float Over Text option turned on. This article covers the following topics:

NOTE: This behavior does not occur in Microsoft Word 97 for Windows, Service Release 1 (SR-1). In Service Release 1, this feature behaves similar to the way it did in Word versions 7.0 and earlier. That is, the default behavior when inserting objects was changed back to inline.

For more information about the change in the default behavior, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q170564 WD97: Pictures and Objects Inserted as Inline by Default in SR-1

Overview

What Are Objects?

Description of the Layers of a Document

How Objects Are Handled in Versions of Word Earlier Than Word 6.0

How Objects Are Handled in Versions of Word 6.0 and Later

Choosing the Appropriate Type of Object

Floating Objects
- When to Use a Floating Object
- Limitations of Floating Objects

Inline objects

Frames

Changing One Type of Object to Another

Floating Objects
- To Convert a Floating Object to an Inline Object
- To Convert a Floating Object to a Framed Object

Inline Objects
- To Convert an Inline Object to a Floating Object
- To Convert an Inline Object to a Framed Object

Framed Objects
- To Convert a Framed Picture to an Inline Picture
- To Convert Framed Text to Inline Text
- To Convert a Framed Object to a Floating Object

Troubleshooting Problems with Floating Objects

Objects Move Around on the Screen, Are Not Inserted or Pasted Correctly, or Move to the Next Page

Objects Disappear When You Insert or Paste Them

You Cannot See Objects in Some Views

Objects Cannot Be Inserted or Pasted into a Table or the Table Is Split

You Cannot See Field Codes for Inserted or Pasted Objects

Fields in the Drawing Layer Don't Work or Return Incorrect Values

MORE INFORMATION

OVERVIEW

What Are Objects?

"Object" is a generic term used to describe something you insert or paste into a document. Text is usually not considered an object (it is considered text). Examples of objects include the following:

ClipArt pictures
Drawing objects (text boxes, lines, AutoShapes, and so on)
Equation Editor objects
Graphics
Microsoft Graph objects
PowerPoint slides
WordArt objects

In Word 97, there are three basic types of objects. These types and a description of the layers in which they can appear in Word are listed in the following table. For information about the layers in a document, see the "Description of the Layers of a Document" section of this article.


   This type of object           Exists in this layer of Word
   ------------------------------------------------------------
   inline                   Only in the text layer and acts as a
                            single, large character. Text does
                            not wrap around it.

   framed                   Only in the text layer. Text always
                            wraps around it.

   floating                 Only in the drawing layer. Text may
                            or may not wrap around it.

Description of the Layers of a Document


   -----------------
   |               |   In this layer you can place objects. Only "floating"
   |               |   objects can exist in this layer. If an object is in
   |               |   this layer, it appears behind the text of the
   |               |   document (in most cases).
   |               |
   |               |
   |               |
   |               |
   |               |
   -----------------
   Layer 1--Below the text


   -----------------
   | This is the   | Generally, this layer contains the text
   |  text of      | of your document. You can, however, place objects in
   | the document  | this layer just as you can in the earlier versions
   |               | of Word. You can put the following types of objects in
   |               | this layer:
   |               |
   |               | text--all text and formatting for the document
   |               |
   |               | inline objects - objects that act as a single, large
   |               | character
   |               |
   |               | framed objects--objects that text will flow around
   -----------------
   Layer 2--The text layer


   -----------------
   |               | In this layer you can place objects. Only "floating"
   |               | objects can exist in this layer. If an object is in
   |               | this layer, it appears in front of the text of the
   |               | document (in most cases).
   |               |
   |               |
   |               |
   |               |
   |               |
   -----------------
   Layer 3--Above the text

Word has other layers that behave in the same way as the three layers mentioned here. Other layers include the header/footer layers and the footnote/endnote layers.

How Objects Are Handled in Versions of Word Earlier Than Word 6.0

In versions of Word earlier than version 6.0 for Windows, all objects exist in the same layer as the text of the document. You can insert objects "inline" so that they act as a single, large, text character, or you can use a frame. When you "frame" an object you can move the object around in the document by dragging it, and you can get text to flow around the object. Placing a graphic on top of text is virtually impossible in these earlier versions of Word.

A line of text with an "inline" object resembles the following (with the box being the object):


   text text text text text text text

                  |---|
                  |   |
   text text text |---| text text text text
   text text text text text text text text

A line of text with a "framed" object will resemble the following (with the box being the object). The text is said to "wrap" or "flow" around the object:


   text text text text text text text
   text text text |---| text text text
   text text text |   | text text text
   text text text |---| text text text text
   text text text text text text text text

How Objects Are Handled in Versions of Word 6.0 and Later

Word versions 6.0 and later include a "drawing layer." A drawing layer can be thought of as a clear sheet of paper on top of, and underneath, the text of the document. This gives you the ability to place objects on separate layers above and below the text of the document, in addition to the traditional methods of placing objects in the text layer of the document. You can also stack one object on top of another object in each drawing layer. Objects in either the layer above the text layer or below the text layer are called "floating objects." By default, objects inserted in Word 97 are formatted as floating objects.

CHOOSING THE APPROPRIATE TYPE OF OBJECT

Floating Objects

Floating objects are powerful and flexible enough that you can get them to emulate almost all of the behaviors of inline objects and framed objects. In Word 97, most of the time, you should use a floating object rather an inline or framed object.

When to Use a Floating Object:

Use a floating object when:

You want text to wrap around the object (although a floating object can be formatted to not allow text wrapping). Floating objects can have text wrap around them in ways that a framed object cannot. Wrapping styles include Square, Tight, Through, Top And Bottom, and None. Wrapping locations include wrapping to the left side, the right side, the largest side, or both sides of the object

You want to be able to position the object by dragging it in the document using your mouse.

You want to be able to position the object in front of or behind the text layer. This is commonly done when creating a watermark.

You want to use other drawing features with the object.

Limitations of Floating Objects:

Certain features do not work well with floating objects. Generally speaking, fields in the text layer do not recognize fields in the drawing layer. If you need to be able to access information from a field, use a frame. For example, use a frame when the object includes a field that captures any of the following types of information:

Cross-references
Captions
Table of Contents entries
Index entries
Table of Figures entries
Table of Authorities entries

NOTE: If you want to be able to view the field codes, you should use a frame rather than a floating object. Note also that you should use a frame if you want to be able to use the Find And Replace feature to locate the object by object type. For example, you should use a frame if the object is a picture and you want to be able to find it by searching for "Graphic" using the Special search criteria in the Find And Replace dialog box.

For more information about these limitations and for possible workarounds, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q158918 WD97: How to Insert a Caption Next to an Equation or Object
Q157531 WD97: Table of Figures (TOF) Missing Captions from Text Boxes
Q155802 WD97: Word Doesn't Find 'Float Over Text' Objects
Q155156 WD: Entries in Text Box or Callout Missing from Table of Contents
Q167282 WD97: Equation Object Not Inserted/Pasted at Insertion Point
Q161692 WD97: Problems with Float Over Text Objects

Inline Objects

Use an inline object when:

You do not want text to wrap around the object.

You want to format the object as a character, using tabs, indents, paragraph formatting, character formatting, and so on.

You want to position the object in a table cell.

Frames

Use a frame when you need an object to behave like a floating object, and you need to use special features with it. For more information, see the "Limitations of Floating Objects" section earlier in this article.

CHANGING ONE TYPE OF OBJECT TO ANOTHER

From time to time, it may be necessary to convert one type of object to another.

Floating Objects

To Convert a Floating Object to an Inline Object:

To convert a floating object to an inline object, use either of the following methods.

NOTE: For Office Art objects, the Float Over Text check box mentioned in the "Method 1" solution is selected and unavailable. You cannot turn off this option. For these objects, use the Method 2 solution.

Method 1: Clear the Float Over Text Check Box:

Right-click the floating object.

On the shortcut menu, click Format <object>.

Click the Position tab.

Clear the Float Over Text check box.

Method 2: Use a Macro:

Click the object. On the Edit menu, click Cut.

Run the macro described in the following article:
Q163808 WD97: Picture Is Pasted as Float Over Text Not as Inline

To Convert a Floating Object to a Framed Object:

There may be times when you need your objects to act like floating objects, but you need certain features that are only available when using framed objects. In these few cases, it may be necessary to convert a floating object to a framed object. For more information about when to use a framed versus a floating object, see the "Limitations of Floating Objects" section earlier in this article.

To convert a floating object to a framed object, use either of the following methods.

Method 1: Use an Inline Object:

With this method, you first convert the floating object to an inline object, and then you convert that inline object to a framed object. To do this, use the following steps:

Right-click the floating object.

On the shortcut menu, click Format <object>.

Click the Position tab.

Clear the Float Over Text check box.

Use the following steps to convert the inline object to a framed object:

Click the object to select it.

On the Tools menu, point to Macro, and then click Macros.

In the Macros in box, click Word Commands.

For the Macro Name, type "InsertFrame" (without the quotation marks), and click the Run button.

Method 2: Use the Convert to Frame Option:

Text boxes and callouts have a special Convert to Frame option available that is not available for other shapes. To use this feature, follow these steps:

Right-click the text box or callout object.

On the shortcut menu, click Format <object>.

Click the Text box tab.

Click the Convert to frame button.

The text box or callout is now a frame in the text layer of the document.

Inline Objects

To Convert an Inline Object to a Floating Object:

Right-click the inline object.

On the shortcut menu, click Format <object>.

Click the Position tab.

Click to select the Float Over Text check box.

To Convert an Inline Object to a Framed Object:

Click the object to select it.

On the Tools menu, point to Macro, and then click Macros.

In the Macros in box, click Word Commands.

For the Macro Name, type "InsertFrame" (without the quotation marks) and click the Run button.

NOTE: The first time you run this command, the following message will be displayed:

You inserted a frame but Insert Frame is not on any menu. Press the button below to add Frame to the Insert menu so you can quickly and easily insert frames.

Clicking Yes adds the command to the Insert menu.

Once the command is added, you can click Frame on the Insert menu (you no longer need to use the InsertFrame macro command).

The object is now in a frame and you can move it around in the document by dragging it.

Framed Objects

To Convert a Framed Picture to an Inline Picture:

Right-click the picture.

Click Format Picture on the shortcut menu.

Click the Position tab.

Click to clear the Float Over Text check box.

The picture is now an inline picture.

To Convert Framed Text to Inline Text:

Right-click the frame.

On the shortcut menu, click Format Frame.

Click the Remove Frame button.

The framed text is converted to inline text (standard text in the text layer of the document).

To Convert a Framed Object to a Floating Object:

Convert the framed object to an inline object. Use the following steps to convert the inline object to a floating object:

Right-click the inline object.

On the shortcut menu, click Format <object>.

Click the Position tab.

Click to select the Float Over Text check box.

TROUBLESHOOTING PROBLEMS WITH FLOATING OBJECTS

Objects Move Around on the Screen, Are Not Inserted or Pasted Correctly, or Move to the Next Page

This is a side effect of the object being inserted or pasted as a floating object. The solution is to do either of the following.

Method 1:

Paste or insert the object, find it, and then drag it to the location you want, or convert it to an inline object.

For more information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q155804 WD97: Inserted Picture or Drawing Object Moves Down Page

Method 2:

Use the information in one of the following Microsoft Knowledge Base articles to change the default behavior of the Insert or Paste command:

Q163808 WD97: Picture Is Pasted as Float Over Text Not as Inline
Q157773 WD97: Macro to Disable Float Over Text in Insert Picture Dialog Box

Objects Disappear When You Insert or Paste Them

The object you inserted or pasted may have landed on top of another object. Click the object you just inserted or pasted, and drag it using the mouse. You may see another object underneath it. From here, you can position each object in the location you want by dragging it.

The object you inserted or pasted may have landed on another page or on a different part of the current page. Scroll around in the document until you locate it. Then, you can drag it back to the location you want.

You Cannot See Objects in Some Views

Floating objects cannot be seen in normal, outline, or master document view. Switch to online layout or page layout view in order to see the object.

There is also a view setting that needs to be enabled in order to see floating objects. To turn this setting on, follow these steps:

On the Tools menu, click Options.

Click the View tab.

Click to select the Drawing Objects check box.

Objects Cannot Be Inserted or Pasted into a Table or the Table Is Split

If you are unable to insert or paste an object, or if the table splits into two tables when you insert or paste an object, you must convert the object from a floating to an inline object. To do this, use either of the following methods.

Method 1:

Paste or insert the object, find it, convert it to an inline object, and then cut and paste it into the table cell.

Method 2:

Use the information in one of the following Microsoft Knowledge Base articles to change the default behavior of the Insert or Paste command:

Q163808 WD97: Picture Is Pasted as Float Over Text Not as Inline
Q157773 WD97: Macro to Disable Float Over Text in Insert Picture Dialog Box

You Cannot See Field Codes for Inserted or Pasted Objects

The ability (or inability) to view the field code does not change the functionality of the field code. Therefore, there really isn't a need to make the field code visible. If, however, you want to be able to view the field code, you need to convert the floating object to an inline object or a framed object.

For more information about floating objects and field codes, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q157465 WD97: Can't See Field Codes for Some Objects

Fields in the Drawing Layer Don't Work or Return Incorrect Values

Many fields do not work in the drawing layer. These fields include REF, SEQ, TA, TC, XE, TOA, TOC, AUTONUM, and MERGEFIELD. To use these fields, you must convert the floating object to a framed object.

REFERENCES

Microsoft Knowledge Base

For more information about floating objects, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q167282 WD97: Equation Object Not Inserted/Pasted at Insertion Point
Q157667 WD97: Float Over Text Objects Cutoff in Online Layout View
Q161692 WD97: Problems with Float Over Text Objects
Q157119 WD97: Pictures Visible Even When Picture Placeholders Check Box Selected

Online Help

For more information about floating objects, click the Office Assistant, type "floating objects," click Search, and then click "Label a graphic or insert text in a shape."

For more information about positioning objects, click the Office Assistant, type "float over text," click Search, and then click one of the following topics:

About positioning text and graphics

Type over existing text

Select text and graphics

Change a floating picture to an inline picture and vice-versa

For more information about frames, click the Office Assistant, type "frames," click Search, and then click one of the following topics:

Select a frame

Position text that contains notes, comments, or certain fields

The difference between a text box and a frame

Position a frame

Convert a text box to a frame

Resize a frame

Remove a frame

For more information about wrapping text around objects, click the Office Assistant, type "wrapping text around objects," click Search, and then click one of the following topics:

Arrange text and graphics on a page

Troubleshoot text in drawing objects

Label a graphic or insert text in a shape

For more information about wrapping text around objects, click the Office Assistant, type "text wrapping," click Search, and then click "About positioning text and graphics."

For more information about AutoShapes, click the Office Assistant, type "AutoShapes," click Search, and then click "Add or change an AutoShape."

For more information about watermarks, click the Office Assistant, type "watermark," click Search, and then click of the following topics:

Create a watermark

Ways to arrange drawing objects

For more information about special drawing effects, click the Office Assistant, type "wordart," click Search, and then click one of the following topics:

Ways to enhance drawing objects

Add or edit a special text effect

What's new with the drawing tools?

NOTE: If the Assistant is hidden, click the Office Assistant button on the Standard toolbar. If Word Help is not installed on your computer, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q120802 Office: How to Add/Remove a Single Office Program or Component

Additional query words: anchor anchored manipulating layer layers


Keywords          : word97 kbframe kblayout 
Version           : WINDOWS:97
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbinfo

Last Reviewed: July 7, 1999