WD97: Single-Spaced Paragraphs Convert to Double-Spaced in HTML

ID: Q185036

The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Word 97 for Windows

SYMPTOMS

When you convert a single-spaced Microsoft Word document to Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) format, and view it in a Web browser, there are double-spaced lines between the paragraphs.


CAUSE

This behavior is by design of Microsoft Word. When converting a paragraph to HTML, Word places a <p> tag at the beginning of the line and a </p> tag at the end of the line. Web browsers display these tags as double-spaced lines between the paragraphs.


WORKAROUND

To prevent double spacing between paragraphs, use the appropriate method for your situation.

Method 1: Use Prior to Converting an Existing Document to HTML Format

Prior to saving your document in HTML format, change the paragraph marks to line breaks. To do this, follow these steps:

  1. Open your Word document.


  2. On the Edit menu, click Replace. If there is a More button in the Find And Replace dialog box, click it.


  3. Click to place the insertion point in the Find What box. Click Special and then click Paragraph Mark. "^p" appears in the Find What box.


  4. Click to place the insertion point in the Replace With box, click Special and then click Manual Line Break. "^l" appears in the Replace With box.


  5. Click Replace All. Click OK. Click Close.


Method 2: Use After Converting the Document to HTML Format

If you have already converted the document to HTML format, view the HTML codes and replace paragraph tags with line break tags. To do this, follow these steps:

  1. In Word, open the HTML document.


  2. On the View menu, click HTML Source.


  3. On the Edit menu, click Replace.


  4. In the Find What box, type </P>. In the Replace With box, type <br>, and then click Replace All. Click OK.


  5. In the Find What box, type <P>. Delete the entry in the Replace With box, and then click Replace All. Click OK.


  6. Click Close.


  7. On the File menu, click Save.


  8. On the View menu, click Exit HTML Source.


Method 3: To create single space between paragraphs in a HTML document

To create an HTML document with single-spaced lines between the paragraphs, press SHIFT+ENTER at the end of each paragraph. This is the keystroke for a manual line break. You can do this with a regular Word document or with an HTML Word document.


MORE INFORMATION

HTML code also uses a <br> to represent a line break. If a <br> is used instead of a <p>, the document will appear single-spaced.

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbdta kbweb kbconversion word97 kbwdinternet
Version : WINDOWS:97
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbprb


Last Reviewed: August 19, 1999
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