Frames can be very useful when producing a newsletter or other layout-intensive documents. Frames can contain text, tables, multiple columns, pictures, and other objects.
Use frames when you need to:
- Position something in a particular place on a page, for example, a logo or a “stop press" news box in one corner of a page.
- Allow text on one page to continue on another page somewhere else in the document (other than the next page), by linking the content of one frame to another so the contents flow between them as you edit the text.
- Wrap text around an object, such as a photograph.
Because OpenOffice.org does not allow you to define page styles with recurring frames, consider doing some quick sketches of the basic page layouts you need, indicating the approximate positions of different frames and their purposes. Try to keep the number of different page layouts as low as possible in order to avoid chaos in your design.
Pay special attention to the positioning of frames. Many of the predefined styles default to a center alignment. This is the lowest common denominator of design; centering all frames looks reasonably good in most cases but is rarely the best choice.
One of the most visually effective ways to position a frame is to align its left margin with that of the paragraph above it. To achieve this effect, insert the frame in a blank paragraph of the same style as the paragraph above. Then, select Insert > Frame > Type > Position > Horizontal > From Left to position the frame exactly where you want it.
You also should think about the type of wrap and the spacing between the frame and text. Instead of cramming a frame close to the text, use the Wrap tab to place some white space between them.
You can format frames individually or define and apply frame styles; see
Chapter 7 (Working with Styles).
Example: Using a frame to center text on a page
Although you can center text horizontally as part of a paragraph style or by using manual formatting, those methods do not work for vertical centering. To center text vertically, you need to place the text in a frame and then center the frame vertically on the page.