Selecting multiple lines of text at once

[michaelha7]

i have been using Word for over 9 years and decided to get used to Open Office. I write in a journal and after several days of writing I would go back using WORD and select the dates like Monday Sept 1, 2010 , Tuesday Sept 2, 2010 and maybe 20 other dates ... then by taking the cursor to the far left of the text (or date) ... the cursor in WORD would turn into an ARROW and allow me to select the ENTIRE line, I would then hold Control Key and move the arrow down the page clicking on each day and date. After selecting several dates, I would choose my Bottom Border, 3pt, Bold, and increase font to 16 point ...ALL at the Same time. Is there a way to do this in Open Office. Thanks so much for your time in this manner, it will be very helpful. Michael in Tenn.

[Hagar Delest]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

In the margin:
- Double-click -> you select the first word
- Click one more time -> you select the sentence containing this word
- Click one more time -> you select the whole paragraph

Hit Ctrl key to make multiple selections.

Thanks to add '[Solved]' at beginning of your first post title (edit button) if your issue has been fixed.

[acknak]

Just to be clear: those are all multi-click actions, not a series of single-clicks. Double-click: select word, triple-click: select sentence, quad-click: select paragraph.

You can hold the Ctrl key to make multiple selections, or use the "ADD" selection mode (click the status bar, where it says "STD", to cycle through the selection modes).

Also, you do not need to select the whole paragraph to apply paragraph formatting, as long as Writer is clear that you mean to apply paragraph-level formatting.

Edit: PPS:

... I would choose my Bottom Border, 3pt, Bold, and increase font to 16 point ...ALL at the Same time. Is there a way to do this in Open Office.

This is a perfect example where using a style would save you far more time than selection voodoo. You can define a custom style in a few seconds and never have to repeat those formatting steps again.

Edit: PPPS:

Or, you could use the "Format Paintbrush" and copy the formatting to each paragraph with just a click.

All I'm trying to say is: it sounds like you're asking for help with pushing your car when all you have to do is start the engine

[RoryOF]

All I'm trying to say is: it sounds like you're asking for help with pushing your car when all you have to do is start the engine

And pushing an automatic won't ever get it started!

[jrkrideau]

i have been using Word for over 9 years and decided to get used to Open Office. I write in a journal and after several days of writing I would go back using WORD and select the dates like Monday Sept 1, 2010 , Tuesday Sept 2, 2010 and maybe 20 other dates ... then by taking the cursor to the far left of the text (or date) ... the cursor in WORD would turn into an ARROW and allow me to select the ENTIRE line, I would then hold Control Key and move the arrow down the page clicking on each day and date. After selecting several dates, I would choose my Bottom Border, 3pt, Bold, and increase font to 16 point ...ALL at the Same time. Is there a way to do this in Open Office. Thanks so much for your time in this manner, it will be very helpful. Michael in Tenn.

Now I remember why I was not a Word fan. You can do most or all of this simply by apply a style. Have a look at the Style and Template chapters at
OpenOffice.org 3 User Guides . Most things are easier to do with styles in OOo.

[michaelha7]

thanks so much for your suggestions... I've never used the Style function .... it sounds like what was taking me quite a few strokes, can be reduced considerably ... I'll give it a try later this evening and get back. Thanks so much for your attention in this matter and this makes me want to use Open Office More and More. SERVICE is a wonderful thing. Michael in Tenn