06_sections

Example 06: Section and Page Layout Management

This example demonstrates comprehensive section management, page layout configuration, and headers/footers in go-docx v2.

Features Demonstrated

Page Layout

• Page sizes: A3, A4, A5, Letter, Legal, Tabloid
• Orientation: Portrait and Landscape
• Margins: Customizable margins for all sides
• Columns: Single, two-column, multi-column layouts

Headers and Footers

• Header types: Default, First, Even
• Footer types: Default, First, Even
• Dynamic fields: Page numbers, page count
• Formatting: Alignment, styles, colors

Running the Example

go run main.go

This will create 06_sections_demo.docx with configured page layout and headers/footers.

Key Concepts

Getting the Default Section

Every document has a default section:

section, err := doc.DefaultSection()
if err != nil {
    log.Fatal(err)
}

Configuring Page Size

Use predefined constants or custom dimensions:

// Predefined sizes
section.SetPageSize(domain.PageSizeA4)
section.SetPageSize(domain.PageSizeLetter)
section.SetPageSize(domain.PageSizeLegal)

// Custom size (width and height in twips)
section.SetPageSize(domain.PageSize{
    Width:  12240,  // 8.5 inches
    Height: 15840,  // 11 inches
})

Setting Orientation

section.SetOrientation(domain.OrientationPortrait)
section.SetOrientation(domain.OrientationLandscape)

Configuring Margins

Margins are specified in twips (1440 twips = 1 inch):

margins := domain.Margins{
    Top:    1440, // 1 inch
    Right:  1440,
    Bottom: 1440,
    Left:   1440,
    Header: 720,  // 0.5 inch
    Footer: 720,
}
section.SetMargins(margins)

Adding Headers

Access headers by type and add content:

header, err := section.Header(domain.HeaderDefault)
if err != nil {
    log.Fatal(err)
}

para, _ := header.AddParagraph()
para.SetAlignment(domain.AlignmentRight)
run, _ := para.AddRun()
run.AddText("Document Title")
run.SetBold(true)

Adding Footers with Page Numbers

Create dynamic page numbering:

footer, err := section.Footer(domain.FooterDefault)
if err != nil {
    log.Fatal(err)
}

para, _ := footer.AddParagraph()
para.SetAlignment(domain.AlignmentCenter)

// "Page X of Y" format
r1, _ := para.AddRun()
r1.AddText("Page ")

r2, _ := para.AddRun()
pageField := docx.NewPageNumberField()
r2.AddField(pageField)

r3, _ := para.AddRun()
r3.AddText(" of ")

r4, _ := para.AddRun()
totalField := docx.NewPageCountField()
r4.AddField(totalField)

Column Layouts

Configure multi-column sections:

section.SetColumns(1) // Single column (default)
section.SetColumns(2) // Two-column layout
section.SetColumns(3) // Three-column layout

Units

Twips

Most measurements in Word documents use twips (twentieth of a point):

• 1 inch = 1440 twips
• 1 cm = 567 twips
• 1 point = 20 twips

Common Conversions

// 1 inch margins
margin := 1440

// 2.54 cm (1 inch)
margin := 1440

// 0.5 inch
margin := 720

// Custom page size (8.5" × 11")
pageSize := domain.PageSize{
    Width:  12240, // 8.5 × 1440
    Height: 15840, // 11 × 1440
}

Output

The generated document includes:

• A4 portrait page with 1-inch margins
• Right-aligned header with title
• Center-aligned footer with "Page X of Y"
• Multiple pages demonstrating consistent layout
• List of available page sizes and options

Next Steps

• See Example 07 for combining sections with fields and styles
• See Example 04 for more field types
• Read API Documentation for complete section reference