Creating a Paragraph Style for numbering figures. What does "^H" the chapter symbol actually refer to?

[wideEyedPupil]

I have three levels of section heading paragraph styles.

1 Introduction

     1.1 Something Big

          1.1.1 Something more detailed
          1.1.2 Something else more detailed

2 The End

     2.1 How it Ends

     2.2 Where it ends

I want to make Figure lists paragraph style that begin with the level 1 Section heading number… then is followed by the figure number which increments like an paragraph list style. Referring here to the Bullets and Numbering sheet of the Para styles. e.g.. in contents above:

1 Introduction

     Figure 1.1

     Figure 1.2

1.1 Something Big

1.1.1 Something more detailed

     Figure 1.3

1.1.2 Something else more detailed

     Figure 1.4

2 The End

2.1 How it Ends

     Figure 2.1

     Figure 2.2

2.2 Where it ends

     Figure 2.3

     Figure 2.4

Can I combine the two numerical list counts, one form section level 1 heading and the other from a Section based figure list starting at 1 for each new section?

The only clue I see is the Chapter Symbol "^H" but I gather that refers to Chapter files of an Indesign Book and this document is small so I didn't want to run seperate files for each chapter (or level 1 section). Is there a way to do this with making a new style for each chapter or making aa style with two levels of numbering and adding my own level one entry for Figures at start of each chapter (off the page Soi it isn't seen I guess) and then counting at level two for the unique figure number with each style instance?

Hope that makes sense.

[Eric Dumas]

I would specify in the Table of Content window the sequence to 'find' the Paragraph style you want to list. Regardless of their purpose (heading or figure number). Each heading and figure caption is formatted by styles.

Make sure to expand your Table of Contents window using the 'More Options' button and 'layer' your paragraph styles to create your hierarchy.

The ^H symbol is to use nested styles. I don't think that is what you need

[Steve Werner · Accepted solution]

Actually ^H is a metacharacter for a Chapter Number which you can see in this table from InDesign Help:

Left column are metachararacters for text, right column are metacharacters for GREP.

But this post explains more about how it is used:

Re: Update Chapter and Paragraph Numbers

[wideEyedPupil]

Yes sorry maybe I didn't make myself clear enough. I get that it's a chapter symbol but not how I can use it… how to make chapters in a single document etc. I went looking in docs and it's not going to work anyhow because Chapter Symbols cannot be used in prefixes for TOCs which is the secondary use case I want for this automatic Figure numbering.

So I guess that leaves me with the option to use three levels of section numbering and then create a new style for Figures and a list for the Bullets and Numbering automation, one new style instance for each level 1 section I have (boring). Or count the Figures with two levels in parallel with section numbering (i.e. not associated with it in any symbolic way) and have the level 1 increments done in a style at start of every section off the page for purpose of incrementing the first number to be in sync with the section numbering.   

[wideEyedPupil]

It's not just TOCs (I'll have one for sections and a seperate one for Figures & Illustrations). I'm wanting this to actually automatically number the figures themselves, so if I delete one or add another the numbering cascades appropriately, and any cross-references in the text.

Clearly my post did not make sense to anybody!

[wideEyedPupil]

Sorry Eric, I don't want to actually list the figures inside the main TOC like that, that listing was just to explain the numbering I'm wanting INDD to generate for me on this forum. Communication purposes only! But yeah ^H isn't going to work anyhow (see my answer to Steve below).

I think I've partially hacked a way forward using a two level auto-numbering sequence for Figures (two para styles, one off-page for accounting purposes only) that runs parallel to the Section numbering (three para styles). But the problem with it is, with the main text frames linked through the entire document, any text frames on the side of the page only get numbered after the entire document is numbered. So I can't increment the lists at level one off the page out of sight. That means I need a blank line for each Figure style at the start of a new section. I guess I'll just have to make it very small font and line spacing and white text or no text 🙂 A bit of a crappy hack though.

Surprised there is no better way.

Copy the style each new section and hard code the level 1 section number prefix could be a better way to do it.

Or go multi document, which I kind of only do over 100 pages because it adds un needed complexities in some ways to have multi-doc books.

[FRIdNGE]

Hi,

Not really sure to understand what you want to get! … A total auto-num like this:

The numbering is double: Auto / Manual!

Best,

Michel, for FRIdNGE

[Barb Binder]

Hi wideEyedPupil:

I think this is what you are looking for—although I realize now you aren't using a 0 on the titles, so just remove it from the Number definition. Click to enlarge each pic. Note that you need a four level system, each with the same list name.

~Barb

[FRIdNGE]

Barb, thanks for explanations!

Personally, no time for that!

Best,

Michel

[wideEyedPupil]

Ah, clever Barb! I didn't think laterally enough, or I was too lateral and not straight forward enough, either way thanks that looks like it. Solution so simple in retrospect and so hard to communicate the question for me!

[Barb Binder]

Hey, we are always happy to help. You first post was perfect and explained what you needed.

Happy Wednesday to you,

~Barb

[JennaBean]

Hi folks,

I found my way to this post while struggling to accomplish the same thing with my figure and table numbering.  I just have two levels to my number scheme, so I have tried setting up my numbering the way Barb shows above for level two.  My second number increments up, but is counting straight through my document so it doesn't reset for level one changes.  And my level one number remains stubbornly at 1.  I tried adding section breaks in my text, but that didn't help either.  The thing I don't understand is that I cannot apply more than one paragraph style to any given caption, so I don't know how to make it count two things at once, since I don't ever need to apply the level one style to anything.  I'm a self-taught novice, by the way.  🙂

[wideEyedPupil]

I made this example file of what I meant, while these last answers were being posted. But it's a bad solution so hopefully these solutions are an improvement. Michel you didn't link to your file! Yes it looks right but HOW?

LINK to my half-way solution.

[FRIdNGE]

Follow Barb! 

[wideEyedPupil]

Yes, here and everywhere on forums now. Guru.

[FRIdNGE]

Not sure there're gurus here! … But surely some who have for some points a better knowledge of InDesign!

Best,

Michel

[wideEyedPupil]

Actually, the saga continues, as I have the figures and figure captions in seperate frames to the main body text (and it's a bit hard to anchor them in-line at times) and so the first level numbering for figures is the last level one for sections. I have 12 sections in the main text thread. So first figure in Section one is numbered by the style as figure 12.1 using this methodology. Only because I'm not all inside the same thread of text frames. Hmm.

Think this is why in the past I end up using arbitrarily labeled figure numbers, not a counter. Also needing to sync with client copy has meant that I can't renumber them anyways. I could go back to my separate numbering list method with two levels, top level incremented 'off page' or invisibly 'on page', second level incremented with the figure captions.

[FRIdNGE]

Aha! I think you really could need a true master now! …

Best,

Michel

[wideEyedPupil]

I could write a script to do it but not worth the time investment.

[Barb Binder]

I would just break the document into chapters, and pull them back together into a book.

~Barb

[wideEyedPupil]

It's not a long document, chapters does slow things down sometimes, syncing style changes etc, especially as I set up the template.

[Barb Binder]

I hear you, but something's got to give to accommodate your workflow. I'm out of ideas, so left to wishing you the best with whatever you decide.

The original question was on the usage of ^H in numbering, and Steve answered your question first, so I'm going to go ahead and mark his answer as correct. You can still come back and comment on the thread if you have additional questions on this topic.

~Barb

[Steve Werner]

If you have further questions or issues, I'd suggest starting a new thread.

[wideEyedPupil]

Okay, I actually said what "^H" was also in my question, just looking to check I had it right in asking my question, and providing it as a indication of what wasn't working for me. 🙂

I think your answer, Barb was closest to the question, even though it turned out I need to do it the other way I said. Was going to come back and mark yours as correct again, but you beat me to it and I can't change now. If you un-correct Steve's I can correct your answer.

[wideEyedPupil]

I went on to set this up in a demo document and while the table numbers are behaving just fine, the figure numbers are not reseting for the new chapters, they get the prefix of ^h but not the level two number for the figure (^2) doesn't reset the second digit to 1 each chapter. Weird thing is I set Table number style and list numbering identically to Figures and I've double checked several times.

Thread here:

Para Style Numbering & Lists (for my Figures) not reseting for new chapters in new files

Appreciate any advice on that thread, I included source files.