Learn how to change paragraph formatting in Word documents using Go

Introduction:

Word processing is a critical component in many software applications. Golang, with its robust set of libraries, is excellently suited for automating and manipulating documents.

This blog post focuses on using Go to remove formatting from Word documents, a useful technique for tasks such as text analysis or when you need to standardize the formatting of incoming documents.

Getting Started with Golang and Word Document Processing:

To manage Word documents in Go, we use the UniDoc library, UniOffice. This powerful library allows for comprehensive document manipulation. Start by installing the UniOffice library with this command:

go get github.com/unidoc/unioffice

After installation, import the library into your Go project to start working with Word documents.

Removing Text Formatting:

To remove formatting, we essentially reset the formatting attributes of text elements (runs) within the document. Here’s how you can strip formatting from text:

// Open an existing document
doc, err := document.Open("path_to_document.docx")
if err != nil {
    log.Fatalf("error opening document: %s", err)
}

defer doc.Close()

// Iterate through all paragraphs
for _, para := range doc.Paragraphs() {
    for _, run := range para.Runs() {
        // Reset formatting
        run.Properties().SetBold(false)
        run.Properties().SetItalic(false)
        run.Properties().SetFontFamily("Calibri")
        run.Properties().SetSize(12)
    }
}

// Save the modified document
doc.SaveToFile("path_to_modified_document.docx")

Resetting Paragraph Styles:

Besides text, paragraph styles including alignment and spacing can also carry unwanted formatting. Here’s how to reset these:

for _, para := range doc.Paragraphs() {
    // Reset paragraph formatting
    para.Properties().SetAlignment(document.AlignmentLeft)
    para.Properties().SetLineSpacing(1.0, 12)
}

Conclusion:

Removing formatting from Word documents can be essential for various applications, from preparing documents for text processing systems to ensuring consistency across documents from multiple sources. Using Golang and the UniOffice library, you can automate these tasks efficiently, making your document processing pipelines more robust and reliable.

With these techniques, you can ensure that your Word documents are free from unwanted formatting, providing a clean slate for whatever your next steps might be.