Editing Footnote Comment Font Settings

You can modify the font in a footnote comment. This includes changing the font family, size, color, case, and more. This can be done through styles or by using local formatting. Using styles is usually recommended because the setting is automatically applied to any content using that style throughout the project, whereas local formatting affects only the particular content that you are working on.

How to Use a Style to Edit Footnote Font Settings

1. From the Content Explorer, open the stylesheet that you want to modify.

2. Complete one of the following sets of steps, depending on whether you want to use the Simplified view or Advanced view in the Stylesheet Editor.

   • Simplified The Simplified view displays styles in a grid view and is often best for brand new users.

     This view provides an easy way to apply properties to styles, with format options available from a toolbar and dialogs (similar to the way one would use an interface such as Microsoft Word). In some cases, only the most common property options are available in the Simplified view (e.g., font, letter/word spacing, paragraph alignment/indentation, autonumbering format, borders, background). One advantage of the Simplified view is that you can apply a property to multiple styles at the same time. You can also click a check box to hide the properties in the editor, allowing you to see only the styles.

   • Advanced The Advanced view displays styles in a tree structure, and despite the name, is user friendly for authors of all levels.

     For the properties, you can toggle between a grouped display and an alphabetical display. The Advanced view of the Stylesheet Editor lets you edit more settings than are available in the Simplified view. In addition, the Advanced view lets you see and apply settings to multiple mediums and media queries at the same time.

   Warning Mediums can be used if you want to use one group of settings for online output types and another group of settings for print-based output types. For example, you might use the default medium for your online outputs and the print medium for your print outputs.  From the Medium drop-down in the Stylesheet Editor, make sure the proper medium is selected before you begin. In the Advanced view, you can open multiple mediums at once; you just need to look at the title at the top of the medium pane and make sure you are working in the correct one. If you are not using stylesheet mediums for your different outputs or if you want all mediums to have the same settings, just leave the medium set to default and continue. Please note that Flare remembers the last medium that you used when working in the stylesheet, so it may or may not be the one that you want to use the next time around. See Mediums and Media Queries.

   If Using Simplified View

   1. In the local toolbar, make sure the first button displays (which means that the Simplified view is currently shown in the editor). If the button displays instead, then click it.
   2. In the upper-left corner of the editor, click in the drop-down field and select .

   3. Select the appropriate footnote style. If you used the default style when inserting the footnotes, then select MadCap|footnote. Otherwise, if you have used a class of that style (e.g., MadCap|footnote.BeginnersManual) that you created previously, then select it instead.

   4. In the local toolbar of the editor, click . The Properties dialog opens.

      Note For some properties (bold, italic, underline, font family, and color), you do not need to open the Properties dialog. Instead, you can simply click the appropriate button in the local toolbar of the Stylesheet Editor.

   5. Select the Font tab.

   6. Use the Properties dialog to change values for the style's properties.

      • Bold Use the Font tab (Style section).
      • Color Use the Font tab (Colors section).
      • Font family (e.g., Arial) Use the Font tab (Font section and Font Sets button).
      • Italic Use the Font tab (Style section).
      • Size Use the Font tab (Size section).
      • Small caps Use the Font tab (Effects section).
      • Underline Use the Font tab (Effects section).
      • Uppercase/lowercase Use the Advanced tab (Transform section).
   7. In the Properties dialog, click OK.

   If Using Advanced View

   1. In the local toolbar, make sure the first button displays . If the button displays instead, then click it.
   2. In the upper-left corner of the editor, click in the drop-down field and select .

   3. On the left side of the editor, select the appropriate footnote style. If you used the default style when inserting the footnotes, select MadCap|footnote. Otherwise, if you have used a class of that style (e.g., MadCap|footnote.BeginnersManual) that you created previously, then select it instead.

   4. From the Show drop-down list on the upper-right side of the editor, select .
   5. (Optional) You can use the toggle button in the local toolbar to show properties below in a group view or an alphabetical view .

   6. If you are using the grouped view, expand the Font group.

   7. Locate and select the font property that you want to change, depending on what you are trying to accomplish. Following are some of the more common elements that you might change.

      • Bold Use the font-weight property.
      • Color Use the color property.
      • Font family (e.g., Arial) Use the font-family property.
      • Italic Use the font-style property.
      • Size Use the font-size property.
      • Small caps Use the font-variant property.
      • Underline Use the text-decoration property. You need to type the word underline in the value column.
      • Uppercase/lowercase Use the text-transform property.

   8. The area to the right of the property is used for selecting and entering values. If you know how to enter the information correctly, you can click in the value field and type it directly. Otherwise, click the ellipsis button to the right of the property. Depending on the type of property, the appropriate controls and options display, allowing you to choose or enter values (e.g., select from a drop-down list, click a button, complete fields in a dialog or popup). If you completed values in a popup, click OK at the bottom of the box.

      As you make changes to a property's values, you can see how the changes look in the Preview section at the bottom of the editor.

3. Click to save your work.

How to Use Local Formatting to Edit Footnote Font Settings

1. Open the content file.
2. Make sure markers are turned on. To turn markers on, click the down arrow next to the Show tags button in the XML Editor. Then select Show Markers.

3. Right-click on the footnote marker icon where it is inserted in the topic, and from the menu select Footnote Properties.

   The Footnote Properties dialog opens. SeeFootnote Properties Dialog.

   Note As an alternative to using the Footnote Properties dialog, for some changes (e.g., bold, italic, font color) you can use the shortcut buttons in the Text Format toolbar. If you want to make changes to the comment text only (as opposed to both the comment text and the numbers), this is the method to use. See Editing Footnote Comment Text.

4. Select the Font tab.

5. Use the Properties dialog to change values for the style's properties.

   • Bold Use the Font tab (Style section).
   • Color Use the Font tab (Colors section).
   • Font family (e.g., Arial) Use the Font tab (Font section and Font Sets button).
   • Italic Use the Font tab (Style section).
   • Size Use the Font tab (Size section).
   • Small caps Use the Font tab (Effects section).
   • Underline Use the Font tab (Effects section).
   • Uppercase/lowercase Use the Advanced tab (Transform section).
6. In the Properties dialog, click OK.
7. Click to save your work.