Microsoft KB Archive/81647

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Border Below or Above Does Not Display or Print

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Q81647

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The information in this article applies to:


 * Microsoft Word for Windows, versions 2.0, 2.0a, 2.0a-CD, 2.0b, 2.0c, 6.0, 6.0a, 6.0c

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SYMPTOMS
In Word versions 6.0 and 6.0a, if you apply an inside border to a paragraph, and then select the paragraph mark following and apply a bottom border, the formatting applied to the first paragraph disappears. The border for the first paragraph does not display in print preview and will not print. This problem also occurs if you apply a left or right border to the following paragraph.

In Word versions 2.x, a paragraph will not display a border formatted as Below using the Border command if the following paragraph is also formatted with a border Below. This behavior also occurs for paragraphs with borders formatted as Above.

Word Version 6.x
To apply paragraph formatting to the second paragraph without losing the formatting of the first paragraph, do not select the paragraph mark of the second paragraph. Instead, position the insertion point anywhere in the second paragraph and select the Border button.

To place a border between two paragraphs in Word versions 2.x

 * 1) Select the paragraphs you want to place a line between and choose Borders And Shading (Border in Word 2.0) from the Format menu.
 * 2) In the Border box, choose the line between the paragraphs in the sample. If you are using the keyboard, press ALT+R, then press the RIGHT ARROW key four times (twice in Word 2.0).
 * 3) In the Line box, select a line style other than None. Choose the OK button.

Word Versions 6.0 and 6.0a
New paragraph formatting is applied to the subsequent paragraph when adding the bottom border. The initial paragraph no longer has an inside border, and therefore does not display or print an inside border. This is because an inside border can only exist between two or more paragraphs that contain the formatting.

To demonstrate, reproduce the problem symptoms described above and then move the insertion point to the first paragraph and press ENTER. After pressing ENTER, an inside border appears between paragraphs 1 and 2, and paragraph 2 does not have a bottom border (because it wasn't formatted to have a bottom border).

To view the border formatting, place your insertion point in the first paragraph, select Format, select the Borders Tab and view the sample border. Repeat this step for the paragraph with the bottom border applied. Notice that the border formatting is different for these paragraphs.

Word Versions 2.x
The Format Border command facilitates placing borders around multiple paragraphs as well as placing border lines between paragraphs.

NOTE: Word versions 1.x for Windows do not support placing borders around multiple paragraphs, only single paragraphs. Consequently, a paragraph with a border formatted as Below or Above will always display since it is formatted independently of the paragraphs around it.