How to remove all instances of a specific character format/tag within a document?

[carlm80163462]

Hi all,

I'm wondering if anyone knows how to easily remove all instances of a particular character format (say, "Hypertext") from a document. Using the Find/Change tool, I can easily search for the character tag "Hypertext" and try to change it to a different character format, but the only option that FM gives is to create a new character format, and even when applied the text changes but the Hypertext character tag is still applied.

The only way I've been able to achieve the desired goal is to search for the Hypertext character tag (which selects the text where it is applied) and then click the "Default Font" in the character catalog, which removes the tag. But I must do this for every instance of Hypertext formatting. Am I missing something here? It seems like this shouldn't be that difficult, but I can't figure it out. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

What version of FM?

[carlm80163462]

My apologies, I should have said it's FM12.

[Jeff_Coatsworth · Accepted solution]

You can try using the new funky formatting features of the Find/Change – I don’t have FM open, but it’s something you select a bit of text that has the correct formatting on it & then right-click and copy special (or something – you copy the formatting, not the text), then you fire up your Find/Change, tell it what to look for and in the replace section there’s something like “as copied” or something. It only appears as an option to select when you’ve done the special copy thingie. Sorry I can’t be more specific, but I know it really helped me when I needed to go through and change one character tag to another throughout 300 docs.

[carlm80163462]

Excellent, that's done it! Thank you very much.

For those who might be trying to do this in the future, the steps are as follows:

• Select the text that has the formatting you wish to apply
• Right click, Copy Special > Copy [para/char/etc] Format
• Go to Find/Change
• Search for text you wish to change
• In the Change section, choose By Pasting from the drop down menu
• Click into the empty box and press ctrl-v (it won't give you any feedback that anything has happened, but it has)
• Press Change All

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Great! My feeble memory comes through (even if I can’t remember any specific details)…now, what’s my name again? – grin