Apple's Pages program is a word processing application with functions similar to Microsoft Word. Pages uses both the Formatting toolbar and the Document toolbar to change the format and layout of a file. By learning how to use these menus, you will be able not only to double-spacing with Pages, but also to change margins, paragraph spacing, and tab stops.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Change the Leading
Step 1. Choose the paragraph
To change the spacing of a paragraph, click inside it with the left mouse button. A blinking cursor will appear allowing you to edit the entire section. You can also select text manually. To do this, left click by sliding the pointer over the text to change.
If you need to select multiple consecutive paragraphs, highlight them one at a time
Step 2. Click on "Style"
Within the Text section of Pages, which you can open by clicking on the "Formatting" icon, you will see the document formatting options. Here you will need to click on the "Style" button, the first on the left of the options menu.
Step 3. Click on the triangle that opens the menu
This is the small arrow pointing down. Select it to open a drop-down menu. Carefully read the options in the menu to decide which one to use.
- When you select "Lines", consider that the original default space between lines is relative to the font size. Select Lines if you want to change the spacing between lines, keeping the relative distance between ascenders and descendants. Ascenders are letters that reach the top of the line, like "t", descendants are letters that reach the bottom of the line, like "g".
- When you select "Minimum value", the distance between one line and the next will never drop below the selected value. Increase the minimum value if you want the space between lines to remain fixed, but you also want to avoid overlapping when the text is too large.
- The "exact value" is the distance between the base of the lines. Increase or decrease this value to change the distance between lines.
- "Leading" is the value that changes the total space between lines. It is different from "Lines", because the latter increases the total height of the lines, while "Leading" allows you to set 1, 5 times the space, 2 times the space, and so on. If you want to increase the white space between lines, select "Leading".
Step 4. Add double spacing
To change the spacing between lines, change the "Leading" option. To get double spacing, just click on the arrows until you reach the value "2.0" or click on the corresponding box and type "2.0".
You don't need to be particularly careful when editing lines. If you want a preview of the document with some modification, just try it out. If you want to change the spacing out of curiosity or don't understand the steps well, you can press "Command" and "z" to undo the last changes you made
Method 2 of 4: Set the Paragraph Margins
Step 1. Select the paragraphs
If necessary, select one or more paragraphs by highlighting the desired text. Click on the "Style" button located in the "Formatting" bar. You will see this menu at the top right of the page, with the icon that looks like a small blue brush. Within "Style", you will find options for fonts, alignment and bullets.
Step 2. Select the type of indent you want
The buttons you are looking for look like small square brackets. In consecutive order, you will find buttons for the indent left, center and right. Select the button of your choice to change the paragraph indentation.
The indent buttons will change the spacing by a predefined size. By pressing the left button, all paragraphs will be aligned with the left border. With the right option, the paragraphs will be aligned with the right border. Select the middle option to align the sentences in the center of the page, leaving jagged edges on the right and left
Step 3. Change the default indent (optional)
To do this, click on the "Layout" tab of the "Format" menu. Below you will see the options "Initial", "Left" and "Right". Click on the box or use the directional arrows to increase and decrease the spacing.
The "Initial" option sets the default indentation for the first line of each paragraph. The "Right" and "Left" items set the default distance for each line after the first
Method 3 of 4: Set the Tabs
Step 1. Select "View" and "Show Ruler" in the toolbar
The "View" button icon looks like a small square with an extra right angle at the top left. It is white and blue and is located in the toolbar. From here, select "Show Ruler". A ruler will appear within Pages.
Step 2. Click on the ruler to add a tab stop
At the top of the page, you will see a horizontal ruler. You can use it to set page margins, paragraph indents, and tab stops. If you want to insert a new point, click on the ruler at the desired location.
The pre-existing tab icons are small blue geometric shapes. The left-aligned tab stop is an arrow pointing to the right. The one aligned in the center is shaped like a diamond. The one aligned to the decimal values is a small circle and the one aligned to the right is an arrow pointing to the left
Step 3. Change the alignment
To change the alignment of one of the existing tabs, double-click on the tabs icon. One of the tab stops will be selected. If the one you want to change doesn't appear, just keep clicking. Pages will scroll through all the tabs, so stop clicking when the one you want to change appears.
Step 4. Drag the icon
Once the icon of the tab stop you want to change appears, you can drag it left or right from its current position on the ruler. Once you're happy with the new placement, continue using Pages as normal.
- To drag an icon, click directly on it and, without releasing the mouse button, move it to the right or left. You can drag it as many times as you want.
- If you want to completely remove a tab stop, drag it directly down from the ruler. Move it until it disappears from the ruler. Once done, you can release the mouse button and the tab will be removed.
Step 5. Set the default spacing (optional)
In the "Text" box of "Formatting", click on "Layout" to change the tab spacing settings. On "Layout", use the arrows to increase and decrease the default tab spacing.
Method 4 of 4: Align Text in a Text Field
Step 1. Insert a text field
To do this, select the "T" icon in the toolbar. A text field will appear on the page. Inside, you can enter text and change its spacing.
- To move a text field, click on the outer border and drag it where you want.
- To change the size of a text field, hover the mouse pointer over one of the colored icons along the border. When the pointer changes shape, you can click and drag to increase or decrease the size of the text field.
Step 2. Select the text and enter the "Style" menu
Once you've entered the text in the field, highlight the part you want to change to select it. Then click on the "Format" button. Here you can click on the "Style" tab. Various alignment options will appear.
Step 3. Click on the alignment you want
Once you find the alignment options, you can choose the one you prefer for the text. Experiment and find the one that's right for you.
- The first set of options changes the horizontal alignment of the text. In order, the buttons are: left edge, center alignment, right edge, and justified.
- The second set of alignment options are used to shift text left or right. The first button brings the text closer to the left edge of the field, while the second brings it closer to the right edge.
- The third set of options is used to change the vertical alignment. In order, the buttons are used to align the text with the top border of the field, in the center or with the bottom border.
