Vanishing Characters
So, there you are, happily editing your MS Word document. You’re in the middle of a paragraph adding in a new word here and another there, but wait, what happened to the text?
You had something like this: MS Office & Tricks
You then realized that you forgot the “Tips,” so you clicked back into the sentence to add it.
Somehow, some way, you got this: MS Office… Continue reading
Double Up
Do you create a lot of double spaced Word documents?
Getting tired of changing the normal template’s single spacing to double?
How would you like Word to use double spacing by default? I mean, if you use it enough, it seems to me that you could save a lot of time if Word just started the documents that way for you.
Sound like a good idea?
Good, let’s… Continue reading
Find and Replace the Specials
Ever find yourself working in MS Word and wishing you could run a quick find for nonprinting characters such as tabs, paragraph marks and section breaks? I mean, we all know how to use the Find / Replace feature to scan through a document for particular words, but how exactly do we tell Word to look for a thing like a section break?
I know… Continue reading
It’s All Where You Click, Click
Here are a few quick clicks that can open the formatting windows you need in MS Word.
If you double click on the ruler (top or left side)…
the Page Setup window will open.
A quick double click on the indent marker…
opens the Paragraph formatting window.
And just one more: a double click on the left side of the status bar…… Continue reading
Partial Word Selections
While highlighting parts of more than one word in either MS Word or PowerPoint, have you ever noticed that the program will automatically highlight all affected words completely?
I mean, it’s a good thing if you actually want complete words highlighted, but what if you don’t? What if you truly wanted to highlight a strange segment? Now what?
Well, I can think of several options, but the… Continue reading
View the Vertical Too
Have you ever read one of my references to the vertical ruler in MS Word and thought to yourself, “Now where do I find that”?
I mean, you’ve gone to the View menu and turned the Ruler option on and off about a million times and you’ve still never seen a vertical ruler.
It’s a good question and one that’s easily answered, so I thought today… Continue reading
Quick View Changes in Word
It seems that everyone has a preference for the way they view their MS Word documents.
Some people prefer the Normal View, some prefer the Page/Print Layout View.
Whatever your preference, it’s always a good thing to know how to get to a different view. Sometimes you’re trying to accomplish a task that lends itself to a view different from your usual way of seeing… Continue reading
“Shrinky Dink” Your Word Documents
Have you ever needed to print an MS Word document on a smaller paper size?
What did you do?
Did you print it as normal and then use the handy-dandy copier to shrink it down to the right size?
It works, but if you’ve had the experiences I’ve had with copiers, it probably took a bit of trial and error to get what you need.… Continue reading
Thumbnails For MS Word
Have you ever found yourself frustrated while working on the layout of a complicated Word document?
Where were you?
In the Print Preview, right?
Print Preview is an awesome tool. It helps you to catch a lot of layout problems without ever wasting one sheet of paper or one drop of ink.
But, what happens in Print Preview with a large, complicated document?
Do you find… Continue reading
Checking Spaces Too
Have you ever found yourself looking at a printout of a document only to wonder just how many spaces are at the end of that sentence?
I mean, you’re looking at the paper and it certainly looks like there are either too many or not enough spaces. Too bad you didn’t notice the problem before you printed, right?!
How would you like MS Word to give you… Continue reading
Word Tables That Measure Up
When you use tables in MS Word, do you ever find yourself frustrated as you try to get column widths or row heights to exact measurements?
I know you probably have the ruler open (View menu, Ruler choice) and you’re sliding the cell boundary lines around trying to get it all set, but it sure would be nice if you could verify the widths and… Continue reading
To Hyperlink Or Not To Hyperlink
Question: What good is a hyperlink on a printed document?
Answer: It’s no good!
I mean, what good is it to have MS Word automatically turn every e-mail and Web address into a hyperlink if all you’re going to do is print the document?
We all know the answer and it’s just a wasted effort on Word’s part. In fact, if you don’t like… Continue reading
Which Version Do You Want?
Do you have an MS Word document that you’re constantly revising?
Do you find yourself wishing you still had an earlier draft of the document somewhere?
Maybe, at one time you did, so now your solution is to continually save the file under a different name each time you revise.
This is a solution that certainly provides you with the ability to return to an… Continue reading
Did You Know…
…that you can set the vertical alignment of a Word document just the way you want it?
That is, you can tell Word whether to align the text at the top of the page, the bottom of the page, the center of the page or to justify the text on the page.
This one sure could come in handy if you’re trying to accommodate some weird spacing… Continue reading
Drop Cap
What is a drop cap? Well, it is that ever so small, yet beautiful addition to a document. You may be amazed at how easy it is to put such a great touch on your documents.
To put a Drop Cap on your publication, you should first decide where the drop should happen.
Once the decision is made, the rest is quick and easy.
You begin by… Continue reading
Reveal and Compare Formatting
Ever find yourself wondering exactly what formatting it is that you’re seeing in your Word document?
Now, if you want a truly complete picture of the text formatting, then we’re talking about more than just the basic font name and size. To get that complete picture we would also be discussing margins, indenting, alignment, tabs and all the rest.
To get that information, we’d have to… Continue reading
One, Two, Three…
Ever wish that you could get MS Word to display your page numbers as words? You know, actually write out One, Two or Three?
Since page numbers expressed as words is not a choice listed in the page number format list, it sounded like a unique trick to know. Therefore, I thought we’d take a look at it today.
The basic idea of what we’ll do is… Continue reading
Pick and Choose Displayed Formatting Marks
When you use MS Word, do you frequently display the non-printing formatting marks such as the paragraph mark, spaces and tabs?
I know that I have found them useful, but at the same time, they drive me a little bit crazy, because there is just too much going on in my document.
Ever feel that way?
I think the more pressing question for today’s… Continue reading
One More Way To Select It All
Last Wednesday, we discussed quick tricks for selecting an entire Word document using keys and a combination of the mouse and keys.
Unfortunately, I left an important trick out: the 100 percent key free mouse way to select an entire document.
So let’s recap:
Click And Type
So, you’re working in a newer version of MS Word and you’re trying to make a title page for your latest masterpiece. What do you do?
Do you adjust the top margin to about five inches to get the title in the middle of the page?
Well, you could, but then you would have to go back into the page settings and change the margins back for… Continue reading
An MS Word Alternative
We all know that Ctrl + A in MS Word selects the entire document. It works great and for everyone who likes to keep their hands on the keyboard, it’s a necessary tool.
But what about people who are more “mouse oriented”?
You know, people who have duties that require regular or constant mouse contact? It’s a bit annoying to keep removing your hand from the… Continue reading
Today’s Theme Is…
Well, today’s theme is actually (drum roll, please) THEMES. Who knew!?
MS Word Themes to be exact.
If you’re running at least Word 2000, you may not know it, but there are some pretty cool setups for Web pages, e-mails (for those who use Word for e-mails) and documents that are to be viewed.
This is a great way to create exciting looks for any document that… Continue reading
Snap to It!
So, if you took a look at yesterday’s tip, you probably noticed the “Snap to” section at the top of the Grids and Guides window. (Ctrl + G or View menu, Grid and Guides choice).
Some of you may have been wondering what that was all about and I’d have to say that it’s a very good question. In response, I thought today might be a… Continue reading
Creating Custom PowerPoint Handouts in MS Word
Have you ever found yourself trying to create handouts to a PowerPoint presentation and wish you had a way to add questions or extra information next to the slide picture?
Maybe it’s a presentation for a seminar or a class you’re teaching and the handout with the complete slide pictures is great, but you still need a place to ask the important questions… Continue reading
Picture Perfect Lists
Do you use bulleted lists frequently? Ever find that you wish you had a little something new to spice up your list? I mean, those same old plain Jane bullets can get a little boring.
May I suggest that we take the bulleted list into our control and give them a face lift?
Yeah, I like the idea too, so let’s get right to business.
If the… Continue reading
Starting Over At One
Do you have a Word document with several chapters or sections that need page numbers?
Did you know that you have a choice? Besides choosing where and what type of numbering, did you know that you can pick to have all the pages of the document numbered consecutively, or to have each chapter start the numbering over? Or maybe you need a combination of the two?… Continue reading
Setting Indents Using the Word Ruler
Have you ever wondered what all the little triangle looking things are on the Word ruler?
If you haven’t noticed them, take a quick look. See them now? They must be there for a good reason. Want to know what it is?
Yes? Good, you’re in the right place, because that’s what we’re going to cover today.
The “triangles” are actually markers for different… Continue reading
