Formatting Contract Paragraphs

NOTE-- We retired MacNail construction software in 2000, and replaced it with Goldenseal: a complete, integrated business software package for Macintosh and Windows. Goldenseal handles construction spec writing, plus accounting, construction estimating, and project management, It's possible to use any word processor program to format the contract documents produced by Goldenseal contract-writing software.

Change Paragraph Spacing

To change the appearance of your contract documents from the MacNail construction management software, or to set off different contract sections, you can vary the spacing between lines and between paragraphs.

To change paragraph spacing in a word processor, follow these steps:

1. Select the paragraphs you'd like to change.
2. Click the paragraph spacing controls on the ruler (located just beneath the menu bar, or at the top of the window), or choose Paragraph from the Format menu, depending on the word processor you use.

HINT: Since you'll probably want all paragraphs to look the same, you can also set up a Style Sheet with the desired spacing, then change the Style Sheet (if your word processor supports this feature).

Change Indentation

You can also change the look of your contracts by changing paragraph indentation.

To create different types of indentation in most word processors, use the paragraph controls on the ruler (located just beneath the menu bar, or at the top of the window).

NOTE: Some word processors may use a different method to set indentation.

The ruler setting shown here will create a paragraph with no indentation (as is used in most paragraphs in this manual). You can use wider spacing between paragraphs to set them off.

NOTE: The paragraph controls on your word processor may be slightly different, or a different method of controlling paragraphs may be used. Check your word processor manual for details.

The ruler setting shown here will create a paragraph with a normal indentation. You can vary the amount of indentation by dragging the top marker.

The ruler setting shown here will create a hanging indentation. If you number your paragraphs or start them with a 'bullet' character, this is often an effective style to use.