Using headings as an outline or organizer for long document

[mycroft]

Is there a way to use headings as an outline tool to organize long documents?

[eljaco]

it would be very useful in order to navigate quickly in a large doc.

[walt.farrell]

You can use Text > Find (or, the Find & Replace panel) for this.

Click the cog/gear icon on the right of the Find section of the dialog:

One of the choices you'll get is Paragraph Style:

If you click on that you can choose, for example, Heading 1, and you'll end up with this in the Find dialog:

If you click Find it will locate all the text with that style. You can click on an entry in the result list to navigate to the text box containing that text.

 

[mycroft]

My original question concerned the creation of a classic text outline of a long, complex document automatically, using the headings I designate.

Text styled in Heading 1 (Topic I)

       Text styled in Heading 2 (Subtopic A.)

       Text styled in Heading 2 (Subtopic B)

                 Text styled in Heading 3 (Sub-Subtopic 1)

                 Text styled in Heading 3 (Sub-Subtopic 2)

        Text styled in Heading 2 (Subtopic C)

etc.,

This helps to keep a long document in a logical or reasonable order, especially when you have to research and/or create the pieces out of order. Have I explained what I need to explain before I place this added information? Have I used the correct heading level for this information? Perhaps I am old-fashioned, but I find this an extremely useful aid. I don't need the A, B, 1, 2: etc. added—- just the text of the headings themselves will do, and the automatic indentation helps immensely.

I would love to have this “outline” of my material automatically generated from my headings as I work on the document. It would be outstanding if it dynamically upgraded if I move material in the document (that is, be automatically upgraded if, say, I decide to switch topic A and topic B in my document) and, even more so, if I can decide to move or switch topics A and B in the outline and the switch of the topics —- with all their content —- would occur In the document. I would also love to be able to plan ahead —- create proposed headings (topics) without additional content—- to guide my work and organize my thoughts and remember my intentions.

I know I can use Find to locate my headings, but my hope was an aid to the logical creation and management of the document in the first place. Perhaps you already have this in TOC? That is, can I set a TOC to be a temporary, dynamically-created and -updated screen or panel,  uninfluenced by any numerical pagination issues, to be used as this running outline? Then, when I have finished the layout of the document and its final pagination, I create and style a finished TOC?

Searching for the word “outline”in the forums brings up all issues with artistically outlining shapes and letters, so maybe my terminiology is wrong, and the tool I am seeking is there under a different name (such as TOC)? If not, I hope you will consider this tool. Thanks.

 

[walt.farrell]

I agree an outline would be valuable. As it apparently doesn't exist, Find is about all you have right now.

[mycroft]

Thanks, Walt. I hope it will be considered.

[Tom Schülke]

I remember, in Open office, you could use the Headlines to organise your text...  you could drag and drop the headlines and they and the text below would move to the new location.. 
Well i am quite sure,  in publisher this would be by far mor complex to implement..  but never the less a great feature .