Strange tab problem

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ian
  • Start date Start date
I

Ian

Some time ago I created a phonebook document using Word 97 under Win98.
The layout was very simple: a single line per entry, consisting of a
person's name, a few tabs, then the phone number. The tabs were the
default tabs (i.e. no special tab stops), and the correct number of tabs
was entered to make all the phone numbers align vertically. 8pt Arial
used throughout.

Viewing the document with "Print Preview" showed the phone numbers
lining up nicely. Likewise everything lined up nicely when the document
was printed, to a Laserjet 4000. No problem.

I have now started editing the same document with Word 2002 SP-1, under
XP Professional. No problem with lining everything up, and the layout
still looks fine in "Print Preview". But when I print (to the same
printer), the phone numbers on a few of the lines on the hardcopy are
now aligned one tab position to the left, and a few are aligned one tab
position to the right (forcing wrap-around onto the next line). I cannot
see any obvious correlation between the text on the line and the
occasional left/right displacement of the phone numbers.

Is this a known "benefit" of Word 2002? Or should I be looking at the
printer driver? Or something else?
 
Although the printer driver is more likely to be the culprit (perhaps the
font is printing a hair wider or narrower), it's also possible that letter
spacing in Word 2002 is a little different (I've noticed that the default
line spacing is a little different). That's why we advise never depending on
the default tab stops and always setting specfic ones so that you never have
to tab more than once. See
http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Formatting/SettingTabs.htm

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://www.mvps.org/word
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Thanks Suzanne. I agree with your advise on setting specific tab stops.
I'll try that first, and see if the problem goes away.

If not, I'll look for the latest version of the printer driver.
 
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