Restart page count along with page number

[LI1]

Hi, I have a separate page style for the title page, contents, and body. The page numbering is restarting nicely at 1 for the contents and the body.

However, the page count is showing the total number of pages in the whole document. So for example the last page says “Page 20 of 22”. How can I get the page count to restart and count just the pages for the body?

Update: Just realized it is weirder than that. I have started with a clean three (3) page document. One title page, one contents page, one body page. However, the page count is 5. Huh?

[ProLogic]

Top menu >File >Print Preview how many pages do you have? More than expected?

Also can you tell us more about your OS and LO version?

[LI1]

Yes, that is what seems to be going on. See my comment in response to @Grantler below.

[ajlittoz]

Page count is an internal counter which can’t be fiddled with. It is intended to count all pages (as its name implies).

Counting pages part per part of your document is possible but contorted. It requires setting bookmarks at critical location(s) and using the page number of such bookmark instead of the built-in page count. It is complicated for a newbie but can be done. If you’re interested, edit your question (don’t use an answer) to request the procedure.

Seemingly inconsistent page count: in your “clean” 3-page document, your page styles probably request that they start on a right page. Writer then inserts blank pages for correct parity. These blank pages are included in the page count to accurately reflect the length of the printed document.

To show the community your question has been answered, click the ✓ next to the correct answer, and “upvote” by clicking on the ^ arrow of any helpful answers. These are the mechanisms for communicating the quality of the Q&A on this site. Thanks!

[LI1]

Understood, thanks. Of course this means that restarting the page numbering for a new section is not useful if you also want to include a page count, as the last page will always something like “Page 100/102”, leaving people wondering where the last few pages went. The best solution would be to add another field to Writer called something like “SectionPages” that tracks the pages in that section, as implemented in Word.

[ajlittoz]

As I have offered, If you really want to count pages per book part, I can tell you how to do it. This is based on using a cross-reference to a smartly-positioned bookmark. But be aware that you’d have to pay special attention when editing the last paragraph of a book part, so that the bookmark remains in last position.

You have to be familiar with fields, bookmarks and cross-references.

[Grantler]

In addition to the answer of @ajlittoz
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Just realized it is weirder than that. I have started with a clean three (3) page document. One title page, one contents page, one body page. However, the page count is 5. Huh?

Use book view for your document. Check for right hand and left hand pages, check for page styles.
Libre Writer always thinks it has to print both on upside and downside sheets…

[LI1]

Yes, that seems to be what is going on. The Contents is starting on the right hand page, as is the first page of the body, so there is a blank page before each. I’ve spent ten minutes searching for how to change that without luck. The “Page layout” in the page styles options is set to “Left and right”, but changing this does not seem to have any effect. Can you tell me how?

[Grantler]

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The "Page layout" in the page styles options is set to "Left and right", but changing this does not seem to have any effect. Can you tell me how?

If you design your document as changing “Left page” and “Right page” you must know that every “section” of your document which is based on this has to start on Right page. If you start “Left page” style another page style has to fill the missing right page - so Libre Writer adds a blank page.

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Always check manual page breaks; examine first paragraph of page (Format menu | paragraph | text flow) and be sure that the manual break contains a connection to a specific page style.

[Grantler]

Example

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Your first page of the document is based on “First Page” page style and contains this only page. So you may insert a manual page break connected to “Left Page” page style. Writer recognizes that there is a preceding right hand page (“First Page”) and there will be no problem with any blank page.

Later on…: If you need a second page for your title you have to react and to swap the first “Left Page” into a “Right Page”. The subsequent pages will automatically follow…

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HTH

[LI1]

Thanks, I understand how to change the text flow for a break now.

Is there any way to have the “section” just always start on the next page, regardless of whether it is left or right? For example, I have a document where I want the body to start on the next page after the table of contents. Sometimes the table of contents will be only one page, but as the document gets longer, it might expand to two pages, three pages, etc. I’d rather not have to change the text flow for the break between the table of contents and the body to “left page”, “right page”, etc. each time the table of contents grows by one page, and just have it always start on the next page.

[LI1]

The very helpful information provided by @Grantler and @ajlittoz above gave me a good way ahead. However, the document still had blank left pages before the contents and the body.

So I went back in to the document, and deleted everything except the first page, which had the “First Page” style.

Then selected “Insert / More Breaks / Manual Break / Page Break” with page style “Contents”, and did not restart page numbering. Then I had a Contents page starting at page 2.

Then I went to the end of that Contents page, and selected “Insert / More Breaks / Manual Break / Page Break” with page style “Default Style”, and did not restart page numbering. Then I had a first document body page starting at page 3.

So far so good. As per other comments on this question, restarting page numbering leads to too many other problems.