About Fields
Fields are used for data that changes in a document, such as the current date or the total number of pages in a document.
Viewing Fields
Fields consist of a field name and the field content. To switch the field display between the field name or the field content, choose View - Field Names.
To display or hide field highlighting in a document, choose View - Field Shadings. To permanently disable this feature, choose Tools - Options - Office - Application Colours, and clear the check box in front of Field shadings.
To change the colour of field shadings, choose Tools - Options - Office - Application Colours, locate the Field shadings option, and then select a different colour in the Colour setting box.
Field Properties
Most field types in a document, including database fields, store and display variable values.
The following field types execute an action when you click the field:
| Field Type | Property |
|---|---|
| Placeholder | Opens a dialogue box to insert the object corresponding to the placeholder, except for text placeholders. For text placeholders, click on the placeholder and type over it. |
| Insert Reference | Moves the mouse pointer to the reference. |
| Run macro | Runs a macro. |
| Input Field | Opens a dialogue box to edit the content of the field. |
Updating Fields
To update all of the fields in a document, press F9, or choose Edit - Select All, and then press F9.
To update a field that was inserted from a database, select the field, and then press F9.
Placeholders are not updated.