Master Pages in Microsoft Publisher 2013: Video
This video lesson shows you how to create master pages in Publisher 2013. Click here to view the complete tutorial
Using Master Pages in Publisher 2013: Overview
You use master pages in Publisher to change the default appearance of pages in a publication. A master page is a page that contains the default objects and content you want to apply as a page layout to a publication page. When you add pages to a publication, they can then be formatted according to the master page’s specifications. You can have several master pages within a publication. You can create and customize your own master pages in Publisher. You can then save these master pages as a custom Publisher template for future use.
To display the “Master Page” view, click the “Master Page” button in the “Views” button group on the “View” tab in the Ribbon. The master pages for the current publication will appear in the Navigation Pane at the left side of the window. The currently selected master page in this panel will be displayed for editing in the main window. You will also see the new “Master Page” tab appear within the Ribbon. You use the buttons found in the button groups on this tab to make changes to the master pages in your publication.
To add a new master page, click the “Add Master Page” button in the “Master Page” button group to open the “New Master Page” dialog box. In this dialog box, you can enter an identifier for the master page into the “Page ID (1 character):” text box. Typically, master pages simply are identified in alphabetical order. You can then enter a description of the master page into the “Description:” text box. If you want to create a two-page master page, then check the “Two-page master” checkbox.
You can customize a master page by first selecting it in the Navigation Pane. You can then add any content that you want show in your publication pages by default into the selected master page. This is a great place to add building block content you want to have displayed on your pages. You can also apply any other design items to publication pages that are associated with the selected master page. Note that this content cannot be edited when applied to the actual pages in your publication. However, it is an excellent place to insert content that will not change, such as page numbers, design elements, and custom header and footer information.
To access the header and footer in your selected master page, click the “Show Header/Footer” button in the “Header & Footer” button group. Your insertion marker will be placed at the left edge of the header or footer each time you click this button. You can then use the “Tab” key on your keyboard to tab to the center or right tab within the header or footer, if desired. Once your insertion marker is at the desired location, click the “Insert Page Number” button in the “Header & Footer” button group to insert a page number into the text box. You can also click the “Insert Date” or “Insert Time” buttons in the “Header & Footer” button group to insert date or time stamps into the text box at the indicated locations. You can also simply type your own custom header and footer information, if desired. Once you have entered your custom header and footer information, click into the page area to quit editing the headers and footers.
Back in the “Master Page” button group, you can click the “Two Page Master” button to switch the currently selected master page between a two-page and one-page layout. If you click this button when you have a two-page master page selected, Publisher will warn you that all objects on the left master page will be deleted and replaced by the objects on the right master page. You will need to click the “OK” button in the confirmation dialog box to continue.
You can click the “Apply To” drop-down button to apply the currently selected master page to pages within your publication. From the drop-down you can select the “Apply to All Pages” command to apply the selected master page to all the publication pages. You can select “Apply to Current Page” to apply the master page to the currently selected publication page. You could also select the “Apply Master Page…” command to open the “Apply Master Page” dialog box. In this dialog box, you have the option to apply the currently selected master page to all, the current page, or a page range within the publication. If you select the “Pages” option, enter the page range into the adjacent text boxes. Then click the “OK” button to finish.
You can click the “Duplicate” button in the “Master Page” button group to duplicate the master page that is currently selected. Enter an ID and description for the duplicate into the “Duplicate Master Page” dialog box that appears and click the “OK” button to finish.
You can click the “Rename” button in the “Master Page” button group to open the “Rename Master Page” dialog box where you can enter a new ID and description for the master page and then click the “OK” button to rename the selected master page.
You can click the “Delete” button in the “Master Page” button group to delete the currently selected master page from your publication. If you do this, Publisher will warn you that if the master page has been applied to any pages in your publication that the first master page will be applied in its place as a substitution. If this is fine, then click the “Yes” button to delete the selected master page.
Once you have finished customizing the master pages, you can then click the “Close Master Page” button in the “Close” button group on the “Master Page” tab in the Ribbon to close the master page view.