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Fitting A Table To A Page Using Nonlinear Optimization

Author

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  • NICHOLAS BEAUMONT

    (Department of Management, Monash University, PO Box 197, Caulfield East, Victoria 3145, Australia)

Abstract

It is sometimes difficult to fit a large table comprising several rows and columns onto a page. The usual tactic is to manually adjust column widths, abbreviate some text, and/or change some cells' font sizes until the table fits onto a page. We show that it is possible to express the problem of adjusting column widths so as to minimize the height of a table as an optimization problem with nonlinear constraints. Five test problems were routinely solved using a free software package. We stress that the solutions are approximate because the model imperfectly simulates how many lines of a cell of a table will be required to contain a segment of text, but they appear to provide good approximations in difficult cases. The scant literature is summarized; the formulation and solution techniques outlined; examples are described; and differences between theoretical and actual answers explained. It would be possible to incorporate the calculations in word processing and typesetting packages such as Word and TeX.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicholas Beaumont, 2004. "Fitting A Table To A Page Using Nonlinear Optimization," Asia-Pacific Journal of Operational Research (APJOR), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 21(02), pages 259-270.
    • Handle: RePEc:wsi:apjorx:v:21:y:2004:i:02:n:s0217595904000230
    DOI: 10.1142/S0217595904000230
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