MS Office 101

Typos Be Gone!

OK—so we all have them.

You know, those nasty little typos we make time after time after time.

It seems that no matter how we may try to train our fingers to do a better job, the outcome is always the same.

Oops—hit the wrong key! Now we need the Backspace key to get rid of it and finally we can carefully type it the right way.

Seems the finger training isn't working too well... so, if we can't get the fingers to cooperate then how about MS Word (or PowerPoint, or Excel, etc...)? Let's get the program to fix your common typos without the Backspace key ever entering your mind.

Actually, unbeknownst to you, the program may have been quietly fixing some typos all along—compliments of the AutoCorrect feature.

AutoCorrect?

Yep, that's the ticket.

AutoCorrect is a feature that allows you to enter your common typos along with the correct spelling that the program should use in its place. It then monitors what you're typing and, should you make a mistake that's included in its list, automatically corrects the problem for you.

For example, many of us commonly type "teh" for "the". Once you press the space bar after typing "teh" the program automatically corrects the mistake to read "the". It does this with many common typos and spelling mistakes.

Here's another idea, instead of a typo, what about a long company name or phrase that you frequently type? Wouldn't it be nice to be able to put in an abbreviation and have the machine do all the work?

Interested in getting to know AutoCorrect a little better?

Yes?

Good—then continue on with today's tip to find out the "nitty gritty" of the AutoCorrect feature.

Office Tip of the Day

Take Command Of Your AutoCorrect

Well, we're all here for the same thing: to know more about AutoCorrect and how to make it work efficiently for us.

The first questions that come to mind are " What is currently in the list?" and "Can I change the list?".

The answers are easy enough to find, so let's get right to it.

To find AutoCorrect you need to go to the Tools menu, AutoCorrect choice.

In the AutoCorrect window we're looking for the AutoCorrect tab (some applications have other tabs as well).

AutoCorrect has a list of formatting corrections it is capable of making at the top. These are pretty self-explanatory. Simply uncheck anything you do not wish to have the program alter for you.

The bottom half of the screen applies to the "Replace text as you type" choice. When this is checked, typing is monitored and corrected according to the list. (This is the list you're looking for!)

Here's how it works. The list on the left is what you may incorrectly type and the list on the right is what each item will be replaced with.

Heading up the list are a few common symbols that can quickly be inserted using the keystrokes listed on the left. Look them over and try a few, they work!

Should you not like something on the default list then highlight it and click the Delete button.

However, it's the line just above the default list that we're really interested in.

Here's where you can edit the list and add all the things that you know will help you the most.

First, type the misspelled word you want to fix in the "Replace" box. Then, type its correct spelling in the "With" box.

Click the Add button and your custom replacement will be added to the list below.

To use this feature with long phrases or company names simply enter a small abbreviation to represent your phrase on the left. (Something you'll easily remember.) Then put the phrase or company name on the right side, as you want it to appear in the document, and then add it to the list.

For example, I might add to the list mst to be replaced with my newsletter name MS Office Tips & Tricks. Huge time saver right there!

I should caution you to be careful not to enter a word on the left that may need to be used as-is. Once it's in the list the only way to get the program to leave it in a document is to put it in quotes, turn off the AutoCorrect feature (uncheck the box next to the phrase "Replace text as you type") or to delete that entry from the list.

When you've completed all your customizations click OK.

You'll be returned to your file with the program ready to pick up where your fingers fall short.

Happy auto-correcting!

~ April