Frequently asked questions - Writer

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How do I insert a user field to enter information in the document?

The user field is a particular variable type. Unlike regular variables described in this question, the user field has only one value for the whole document. Therefore, it can be defined anywhere in the document.

Like the variables, the user fields are managed as follows:

select the Insert ▸ Field ▸ More Fields... menu (or Ctrl + F2); and
select the Variables tab.

Define a user field

select the field type User Field;
fill the name and the value at the bottom of the dialog;
select the format. To display a character string, select Text; and
do not click Insert, but use the green mark.

Create an input field for this user field

select the field type Input field;
select the user field that you want to use;
add an annotation which will give an information to fill the field;
click Insert; and
fill the field with the default value, click OK, then Close. This will insert a field.

When the field is clicked, its value is prompted for. All the uses of the field are modified, those upstream as well as those downstream.

Reuse this user field elsewhere in the document

select the field type User field;
select the field you want to use; and
click the Insert button, then Close.

Delete a user field

delete all the setting and input fields in the text using the Del key
open the variables dialog box (Insert ▸ Field ▸ More Fields... ▸ Variables [tab] menu);
select the field type User field;
select the field you want to delete; and
click the red cross. If the red cross is not available, this means that some settings or input fields are still present for this variable.