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How do I add continuous line numbers to my document?

I am required to have a document that has continuous line numbers. Is there an option in Pages to add it?

MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch,Early 2015), macOS Sierra (10.12.4)

Posted on Apr 10, 2017 6:48 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Apr 10, 2017 12:38 PM

What Peter says (no), but there are a couple of kludgy workarounds that have been used since the days of ClarisWorks/AppleWorks.


Pages will automatically number a list (of paragraphs) if you number the initial line. The catch is that in order to number lines, each line must be a separate 'paragraph', meaning each line must end with a carriage return.

Tedious to produce, and vexing to edit.

User uploaded file


Or you can set your Pages document up as a pre-numbered template by adding a single column table, set at the left margin, to contain the line numbers. You will need a separate table for each page, as Pages will not break a page across page boundaries unless it is 'inline', and the table must be set to Stay on Page (floating) so that text may run alongside it.

User uploaded file

(The numbers between paragraphs were added to assist in matching the table spacing to that of the text. The table is independent of the text, and will number empty rows as well as those containing text.)


Each page in the document will need a copy of the table. For continuous numbering, the user will need to enter a 'seed' number in the first cell of each copy, and the table will calculate the rest of the numbers for that page.


Formula (entered in cell A2, then filled down to the last cell on the table:

=A1+1


After filling the page with dummy text (12 pt, 1.5 line spacing) to determine the number of lines needed per page,

I constructed the table in Numbers, reducing the column width to fit a three digit number, set the cell berders to "No Borders, then copied the table and pasted it to a new Pages document, and moved it to align with to top of the text area of the document and with the left margin of the text area.


To match the line numbering to the lines of text, I clicked the 'bullseye' at the top left which selects the table as an object, then used the square handle on one of the bottom corners of the table to stretch the table downward and match the last number with the position of the last row of the dummy text.


I then duplicated the table (command-D, while the table is selected), dragged the duplicate into position on page 2, and entered the first line number for that page in cell A1.

User uploaded file

Regards,

Barry

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Apr 10, 2017 12:38 PM in response to shashank.patole

What Peter says (no), but there are a couple of kludgy workarounds that have been used since the days of ClarisWorks/AppleWorks.


Pages will automatically number a list (of paragraphs) if you number the initial line. The catch is that in order to number lines, each line must be a separate 'paragraph', meaning each line must end with a carriage return.

Tedious to produce, and vexing to edit.

User uploaded file


Or you can set your Pages document up as a pre-numbered template by adding a single column table, set at the left margin, to contain the line numbers. You will need a separate table for each page, as Pages will not break a page across page boundaries unless it is 'inline', and the table must be set to Stay on Page (floating) so that text may run alongside it.

User uploaded file

(The numbers between paragraphs were added to assist in matching the table spacing to that of the text. The table is independent of the text, and will number empty rows as well as those containing text.)


Each page in the document will need a copy of the table. For continuous numbering, the user will need to enter a 'seed' number in the first cell of each copy, and the table will calculate the rest of the numbers for that page.


Formula (entered in cell A2, then filled down to the last cell on the table:

=A1+1


After filling the page with dummy text (12 pt, 1.5 line spacing) to determine the number of lines needed per page,

I constructed the table in Numbers, reducing the column width to fit a three digit number, set the cell berders to "No Borders, then copied the table and pasted it to a new Pages document, and moved it to align with to top of the text area of the document and with the left margin of the text area.


To match the line numbering to the lines of text, I clicked the 'bullseye' at the top left which selects the table as an object, then used the square handle on one of the bottom corners of the table to stretch the table downward and match the last number with the position of the last row of the dummy text.


I then duplicated the table (command-D, while the table is selected), dragged the duplicate into position on page 2, and entered the first line number for that page in cell A1.

User uploaded file

Regards,

Barry

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How do I add continuous line numbers to my document?

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