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jennyo89533863
Known Participant
October 18, 2021
Answered

Is there a way to have continuous footnotes on a 250 page report without linking pages.

  • October 18, 2021
  • 5 replies
  • 16075 views

Can you tell me if there is a way to continuously have numbered footnotes without linking pages. I have several chapters in a 250 page report. The report has 50 or more footnotes and requires to be numbered

consecutively.
 
Correct answer Peter Kahrel

You can't. The only way to have footnote numbers numbered consecutively across stories is by threading them. InDesign's footnote start number can be set at the document level only. One of the shortcomings of ID's footnotes.

5 replies

Participating Frequently
September 13, 2022

The following approach adds a prefix number before each footnote number, which works across Stories and Book files--not exactly pure sequential like JennyO needed, but probably easier than the other tips in this thread.

 

1) edit the Footnotes Paragraph Style: under Bullets & Numbering select "Create New" under the List menu and name it Footnotes, then choose Numbers for List Type and Numbering Style format;

 

2) select "Chapter Number" using the flyout menu triangle beside the "Number:" field-- or type it manually including a hypen or period as a separator, so the final Number field would be ^H- or ^H.  , (becoming such as 1-5 or 3.9, for example). 

 

When using in a Book, choose Update All Numbering from the flyout menu to ensure the numbers reflect their respective sequence.

James Gifford—NitroPress
Legend
October 19, 2021

Wouldn't making each chapter an INDD file and combining them in a book allow consecutive numbering? (Trying to remember if I've ever used book + running numbered footnotes.)

FRIdNGE
October 19, 2021

You will need a script here too!

 

(^/)

Peter Kahrel
Community Expert
Peter KahrelCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
Community Expert
October 19, 2021

You can't. The only way to have footnote numbers numbered consecutively across stories is by threading them. InDesign's footnote start number can be set at the document level only. One of the shortcomings of ID's footnotes.

jennyo89533863
Known Participant
October 19, 2021

Even if I start new section throughout the document, the footnotes will not allow to start at another number??????

This is a common problem. So what is my solution, physically add footnotes, that are really not footnotes?

 

Thanks.

 

Peter Kahrel
Community Expert
Community Expert
October 19, 2021

Correct. You can have footnotes restart numbering at every section (or page, or spread), but the start number can be set only once. So if you set the start number to 12, and restart numbering every section, then every section starts numbering at 12.

 

Join the crowd clamouring for footnote improvements at https://indesign.uservoice.com!

jennyo89533863
Known Participant
October 18, 2021

The files is designed in spreads.

jennyo89533863
Known Participant
October 18, 2021

And a single document, designed in spreads.

 

Community Expert
October 19, 2021

In your Type>Footnote Options

Try changing the settings

 

 

Randy Hagan
Community Expert
Community Expert
October 18, 2021

How is your report prepared? Is it a single document that makes up your full report? Or is it multiple InDesign documents that you compile into your final report?

jennyo89533863
Known Participant
October 18, 2021

Or is there anyway to manually change the footnote # to make the footnotes consecutive?