A table of contents (TOC) is a guide at the beginning of a document that tells the reader where to find sections within a document. The table of contents lists section headings and their corresponding page numbers. A TOC is based on the chapter or section titles, whereas an index, which appears at the end of a document, uses keywords to locate information.
Microsoft Word has a wonderful built-in function to create a table of contents, using headings within a document or from an outline. We will save TOCs from outlines for a different post. This post discusses the creation of a TOC using heading styles within the document.
Tip: Wait until your document nearly done to produce a TOC. If you produce your TOC early on, you will spend extra time revising it whenever your document changes.
When your document is finished and formatted with headings, you are ready to create a TOC. Position your cursor at the place in the document you'd like the TOC to appear, and select:
Insert menu > Indexes and Tables.
The resulting dialogue box has four tabs: Index, Table of Contents, Table of Figures and Table of Authorities.
Choose Table of Contents
The TOC dialogue box contains two panes. The first controls the format of the table of contents. The second provides a preview of the available styles and options.
Pre-defined styles include:
From Template Classic Distinctive Fancy Modern Formal Simple
Choose a TOC style that looks appropriate for your document. You can modify the formatting on the TOC after it has been created, so you're not rigidly limited by what is shown in the Preview window.
Once you have selected a style, you must indicate the heading depth you would like displayed in the TOC. Word accommodates up to 9 heading levels, but most TOCs don't use more than three or four. To set the heading depth, type a number in the box, or use the increment/decrement buttons to adjust the number of visible levels in your TOC.
You can show (or suppress) page numbers in the TOC. This option is selected by default. Most TOCs aren't very useful without page numbers, but Word provides the option of hiding the page numbers. You can also select "Right Align Page Numbers." Word does not automatically right-align page numbers on a TOC.
You can modify the Tab Leader, which controls the appearance of the space between the end of the section title and the page number in your TOC. You may omit the tab leader, or select a dotted, dashed or solid line.
With the Options button, you can set the headings you wish to use in the TOC, and assign each heading to a depth level. This allows you to use non-sequential heading styles in your document, yet have them appear neatly in your TOC.
The Modify button opens the Styles dialogue box. It allows you to modify the style of the headings in your document.
Once you have your TOC set, click OK and Word will create your TOC in the location you selected.
To delete a TOC, simply select it and press the Delete key. To update a TOC, right-click on the area to the left of the TOC and select Update Field from the contextual menu. Likewise, if you try to close your document after having made changes, Word will ask if you would like to update the TOC. You could also highlight the TOC and insert a new TOC in its place, following the steps above.
Notes for editors: Claire Blinman is the training manager at Computer Training Solutions in Bristol. For more information visit our website at http://www.computertrainingsolutions.co.uk or call 01454 851770
Source: www.articlesbase.com
