Secrets revealed

Labels: Reference, Tips

Also some Windows hints

• Word
• Word VBA
• Excel
• Excel VBA
  
  and
• Windows

Labels: General, Tips, VBA

Not just MailMerge anymore

Labels: Addin, Macros, Merge, Tips, VBA

Finger it out

After completing this course you will be able to:
Accomplish tasks by using sequential shortcut keys, known as Key Tips, shown on the Ribbon.
Navigate around the Ribbon using the TAB key and arrow keys.
Accomplish tasks by using key combinations — keys you press at the same time - exactly as you've done in previous versions of Office.

Labels: Shortcuts, Tips

With and without code

"Have you ever been asked to fill out a form in a word processor, only to discover that when you attempted to enter information, the lines on the form moved all over the page? Not to mention that the form was difficult and time-consuming to fill out? Most people don't realize that you can easily create professional-looking forms in Word."

• Part I: Create professional looking forms in Word
  
  
• Part II: Adding Automation to your Word forms
  
  
• Part III: Learn more about VBA macros to automate your form
  
  
• Part IV: Use custom dialog boxes in your Word forms
  
  
• Part V: Linking your AutoForm to a database

Labels: Formatting, General, Tips, Tutorials

Import it all

"This macro outline allows the user to use Word's "Send To PowerPoint" feature, then run this macro to get notes from MS Word to PowerPoint as notes. The macro allows you to set the text level you want to become the notes.

Labels: Macros, Tips

File location

1. From the Tools menu, click Options.
   
   
2. Select the File Locations tab.
   
   
3. Select ClipArt Pictures from the File Types list.
   
   
4. Click the Modify button.
   
   
5. Navigate to the folder you want Word to default to.
   
   
6. Click OK. OK.

1. Click on the Office logo
   
   
2. Go to Word Options>Advanced
   
   
3. Scroll down to General
   
   
4. Click the File Locations button

Labels: Customize, Graphics, Inserts, Tips

Quick graphic reinforcement

Labels: Customize, Fonts, Graphics, Tips

Revealed

Labels: Shortcuts, Tips

Unencrypted

"Word, Excel, and PowerPoint have been able to password protect documents for several versions by setting the 'password to open'. What we felt could be improved was the ability to enforce password strength rules, similar to what may be required when logging into your computer at work."

Labels: Reference, Tips

Spell check off

Labels: Spelling, Tips

A multidiscipline subject

Labels: Tips

Little pages

Labels: General, Tips, View

Select and Add

1. On the Commands tab, select All Commands in the Category list, then scroll down the Commands list until you find ToolsCalculate.
   
   
2. Drag it to the menu bar and hover the mouse over "Tools" until the Tools menu drops down.
   
   
3. Drop Tools Calculate somewhere on the menu or drop it on a toolbar.
   
   
4. Close the Customize box.

1. Type the numbers you want to calculate, along with the appropriate mathematical operators.
   
   Word can calculate numbers in a line, in a column or row in a table, or in a column separated from other columns with tabs. Word can also calculate numbers interspersed throughout the text in one or more paragraphs if you include a space on either side of each number.
   
   
2. Select the numbers and operators.
   
   
3. From the Tools menu, choose Calculate.
   
   Word calculates the result and displays it for a few seconds in the status bar. The result is stored on the Clipboard.
   
   
4. To insert the result into your document, position the insertion point and choose Paste from the Edit menu (CTRL+V) or click the Paste button on the Toolbar.

1. Click the Office logo
   
2. Go to Word Options on the bottom of the box.
   
3. Go to Customize.
   
4. Select All Commands and find Calculate.

Labels: Customize, Shortcuts, Tips

Colour or Color?

1. Choose a template
   
2. Download a template
   
3. Guidelines
   
4. Styles & their Relevance
   
5. Saving your files
   
6. Writing - hints & tips
   
7. Creating the Front Matter
   
8. Assembling Chapters
   
9. Page Numbers
   
10. Printout & Submission

Included are Word Thesis Templates

Some of the hints may provide you with some help even if you use the letter "U" in a more parsimonious manner. See all Topics word

Labels: Templates, Tips

Fix the box

• Find your printer's unprintable area
  
  Your printer manual may specify the unprintable areas. Inkjet printers, in particular, often have a large unprintable area at the bottom of the page.
  
  Here's a way to discover them for yourself in Word.
  
  
  1. Choose File>Page Setup>Margins tab. Change all four margin settings to 0". Choose OK.
     
     
  2. You're told that one or more margins are set outside the printable area of the page. Choose Fix.
     
     
  3. Word adjusts the margin settings to your printer's minimum values. Jot down your printer's settings for your future reference, then Cancel the dialog.
  
  
• Adjust the Page Border
  
  
  1. Set the insertion point on the page that's bordered, then choose Format>Borders and Shading> Page Border tab. Choose Options.
     
     
  2. At the Border and Shading Options dialog, note that the default settings are to have all four borders set to 24 pt (which is 1/3"), and to have Measure from: set to Edge of Page.
     
     
  3. To maintain the measurement from the edge of the page, yet move the borders in more toward the center, set the measurements for each of the four margins to 31 pt (the maximum allowed).
     
     For an alternative setting, set Measure from: to Text. Now the Margin settings measure outward from your text margins. You can set the Margin values anywhere from 0 pt to 31 pt.
     
     
  4. Click OK>OK. Use the Standard toolbar's Print Preview tool to evaluate your results.
  
  

Labels: Formatting, Printing, Tips, Troubleshoot

Microsoft to the rescue

Guided Help is a program that you can download from some Microsoft Knowledge Base articles. Depending on the task, Guided Help can automatically perform the task that is described in the article, or Guided Help can guide you through the steps to perform the task yourself.

Guided Help performs the steps by interacting directly with the Microsoft Windows user interface, or by using functions that are included with Guided Help. For steps that interact with the user interface, you see the steps occur on the screen.

For some tasks, you can select to run Guided Help in one of the following ways.

• Do it automatically: The whole task is automatically completed while you watch. You might be prompted for input if input is required.
  
• Show me step-by-step: Guided Help points on the screen to where you must click or type to perform the task.

Labels: Addin, Tips, Troubleshoot

Go back to a simpler time

Labels: Formatting, Shortcuts, Tips

Don't get framed

Labels: Fields, Tips, Tutorials

If it's broke, fix it

Labels: Fields, General, Reference, Tips

Shortcut to copy

1. Select the text with the formatting you want.
   
2. Ctrl+Shift+C.
   
3. Select the text to be formatted.
   
4. Ctrl+Shift+V will paste the new formatting.

Labels: Formatting, Shortcuts, Tips

How do I know it's real?

What is a digital certificate?

What is a digital signature?

What occurs when I use a digital signature?

What Word files can I sign?

How can I obtain a digital signature?

• Method 1: Obtain a digital certificate from a certification authority
  
• Method 2: Create your own digital certificate

Labels: Addin, General, Reference, Tips

Stand behind your documents

1. Normal.dot:
   Stores formatted AutoCorrect entries, AutoText entries, keyboard shortcuts, menu customizations, custom toolbars, styles, macros.
   
   
2. acl file:
   Stores unformatted AutoCorrect entries (the majority of your AutoCorrect entries).
   
   
3. custom.dic:
   Words you add during spellcheck.
   
   
4. Templates you create (.dot files).

Labels: Tips, VBA

Markup stuff

This article describes how to turn off the balloons that appear for comments and track changes in the right side margin of your Microsoft Word 2002 or Microsoft Office Word 2003 document.

To turn off or hide the balloons for comments and track changes in the right side margin of a Microsoft Word document, follow these steps:

1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
   
2. On the Track Changes tab, do one of the following:
   
   • In Word 2003, change the Use Balloons (Print and Web Layout) box to Never.
     
   • In Word 2002, click to clear the Use Balloons in Print and Web Layout check box.
     
3. Click OK to close the Options dialog box.

Labels: Customize, Reference, Tips

Office 2003 redo

1. 1. Start any Office 2003 program.
   
2. On Help menu, click Detect and Repair.
   
   
   
   
3. Click to select the Discard my customized settings and restore default settings check box, and then click Start.
   
4. Quit the application, and then click Ignore.
   
5. Click OK when you receive the following message:
   Reset of setting to default succeed.

Labels: Tips, Troubleshoot

I'd Like to Make It Clear

• squinted your eyes trying to see the numbers in a PowerPoint presentation?
  
  
• scratched your head at a charity leaflet with an indecipherable pie chart titled 'Where your donation goes' ... and set it aside?
  
  
• missed discussion at a meeting because you were busy trying to figure out the figures?
  
  
• put aside a graph or table, thinking "I'm not good with numbers."?

• what to include: when unsure what numbers are important, people frequently display them all, overpowering the reader with irrelevance.
  
  
• which format to use: the choice between text and table, table and chart, bar and pie.
  
  
• how to use the technology effectively: computer software generates graphs easily, but the results hide your point behind incomprehensible chartjunk.
  
  
• how to explain the information: selecting the right words for titles, columns and captions.

Labels: Formatting, General, Tips

Enter once — use again

Labels: Fields, Reference, Tips, Tutorials

One picture can mess up a thousand words

Labels: Formatting, Graphics, Tips

Diet tips

The size of a Word document may be 20 to 50 times larger than a PowerPoint presentation when you send the presentation to Word.

1. Start PowerPoint.
   
   
2. On the File menu, point to Send To, and then click Microsoft Office Word.
   
   
3. Click Paste link, and then click OK.
   
   
4. In the resulting Word document, click Links on the Edit menu.
   
   
5. Select all the links that are listed, and then click Break Link.
   
   
6. Click Yes when you are prompted.
   
   
7. Save the Word document.

When you eliminate the OLE overhead, you can reduce the size of the Word document by 90 percent

Labels: Tips

Use your own

1. Choose Document Information in the list of Categories
   
2. In the list of Field Names, choose DocProperty
   
3. Click the Field Codes button
   
4. Add the property name to the Field
   
5. Click OK
   
6. Click OK. Word to inserts the value.

Labels: Documents, Formatting, General, Reference, Tips

Old trick

Labels: Shortcuts, Tips

What the other guy says has weight

"In my presentations, I may have several slides which feature a quote from a famous (sometimes not so famous) individual in the field. The quote may be a springboard into the topic or serve as support or reinforcement for the particular point I'm making. A typical Tom Peters presentation at one of his seminars, for example, may include dozens of slides with quotes. "I say that my conclusions are much more credible when I back them up with great sources," Tom says."

"Computers are useless. They can only give you answers.
Pablo Picasso"

Labels: Tips

Sized and numbered

"If you don't want to spend money on an add-in, or use VBA; and are willing to do a bit more work yourself, here is the method I use. I've produced booklets up to 100 pages long this way, and it works quite satisfactorily for me."

"The WordBookletTemplates.zip file contains Microsoft Word templates for 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, and 32 page booklets, with and without page numbers (16 templates in all). I think I developed these with Microsoft Word 97 and I've never made any changes to them. They use a series of text boxes that flow from one to the other to get the text where it is supposed to be in the booklet."

Labels: Formatting, Printing, Tips

What grade are you?

1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Spelling & Grammar tab
   
2. Select the Check grammar with spelling check box
   
3. Select the Show readability statistics check box, and then click OK
   
4. On the Standard toolbar, click Spelling and Grammar
5. In 2007, click the Office button in the upper left corner. Click Word Options. Choose Proofing and When correcting spelling and grammar in Word.

Each readability score bases its rating on the average number of syllables per word and words per sentence.
Flesch Reading Ease score Rates text on a 100-point scale; the higher the score, the easier it is to understand the document. For most standard documents, aim for a score of approximately 60 to 70. The formula for the Flesch Reading Ease score is: 206.835 - (1.015 x ASL) - (84.6 x ASW) where: ASL = average sentence length (the number of words divided by the number of sentences) ASW = average number of syllables per word (the number of syllables divided by the number of words)
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level score
Rates text on a U.S. school grade level. For example, a score of 8.0 means that an eighth grader can understand the document. For most documents, aim for a score of approximately 7.0 to 8.0.
The formula for the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level score is:
(.39 x ASL) + (11.8 x ASW) - 15.59

posted by  Anonymous

Labels: General, Tips

Tiny code snippets

Microsoft has included a number of code pieces that you can use without having to haul out the VBA editor. These codes handle such things as page numbers, Table of Contents, Merge data and more.

"Some 80-plus fields are built into Word that provide information about the file and the user; store, display, and manipulate reference information; and link the document to other applications - all without a bit of code."

Automate Word Documents with Minimal Code
By Cindy Meister


Cindy Meister is a Word MVP.

She also works with bobbin-lace. Here is a sample of a Honiton lace butterfly.

Also:

AddBalance.com:
Using { Fields } in Microsoft Word

GMayor.com
Formatting Word Fields with Switches

Labels: Fields, Tips, Tutorials

Minimize white space

"When justifying text in Microsoft Word use the hyphenation feature to improve the look of your page. (Without hyphens). . . unnecessary 'white space' is distributed throughout. When hyphenation is turned on the overall typographic color of the page is much more even. To enable this feature in Microsoft Word do the following: After you have justified the columns in your document, choose from the "Tools menu" > Language > then from the dropdown menu, choose "Hyphenation", then choose "Automatically hyphenate document"

Labels: Fonts, Formatting, Tips

A baker's dozen of ideas

Display the word "more" at the bottom of every page except the last page.

Insert an "if" field into the footer.

The field in this case will be a compound entity that consists of two fields nested within a third field.

{ IF { PAGE } = { NUMPAGES } "" "more" }

1. Position cursor where you want the field.
   
2. Press Ctrl+F9 to insert the field braces.
   
3. Type the field expression as it appears below, using Ctrl+F9 and arrow keys as needed to keep text within the various braces as you type.
   { IF { PAGE } = { NUMPAGES } "" "more" }
   
4. Select the entire expression.
   
5. Right-click the selection and choose Toggle Field Codes.
   (or use Alt+F9)

Labels: Documents, Inserts, Tips

Collection of Word explanations

For new users of Microsoft Word

Basic concepts - Introduction

Styles in Microsoft Word

Tips for understanding styles

Formatting

How the Styles and Formatting pane works

Numbering, Bullets, Headings, Outlines

How to control bullets

Templates

What is the relationship between a Word document and its template?

Layout

How to keep a figure on the same page as its caption

Sharing Microsoft Word documents

What happens when I send my document to someone else?

Labels: General, Tips, Tutorials

Top and bottom

Labels: Documents, General, Tips, View

More data than the pie will hold

"Chris Weber provides you with a generic method to control the data for pie charts that are actually readable."

Labels: Formatting, Tips

Seek and find

Word MVP:
Using Wildcards

Felgall Pty Ltd:
Sydney, Australia
Wildcard information

TechTrax:
Wild About Wildcards
by Bill Coan, MVP

Graham Mayor:
Find and Replace

And don't miss:

WOPR.com:
Special Characters You Can Find & Replace
By Phil Rabichow


See all Topics
word

Labels: General, Tips

High caliber

Shauna Kelly:

How to control bullets in Microsoft Word

Ins and outs of bullets and numbering in Word

Dubbo College :
(an easy five hours drive from Sydney, four hours from Newcastle and a ten hour drive from Melbourne and Brisbane.)



Paragraph Bullets

Troubleshooting Bullets and numbering

Also see:
Beyond Bullets.com

Beyond Bullet Points, the book



See all Topics
word

Labels: Fonts, Formatting, Tips

Object with style

"At first glance, you might think that not much has changed in the latest version of Microsoft Word; however, when you take a closer you look and discover the added collaboration functionality, research capabilities such as Encarta, translation and more, increased security, and new XML-enabled opportunities, you will quickly realize that Word 2003 offers even more benefits for the legal user."

Word 2003 Legal User's Guide

The Payne Consulting document for Word 2002 is here:
Word 2002 Legal User's Guide

Charles Kenyon has put together the Intermediate User's Guide .
This Intermediate Users' Guide is based closely on the Legal Users' Guide and supplements it. It contains all the text from the original Legal Users' Guide together with additional guides and links to other resources.

Also see:
Microsoft Office Assistance:
31 Legal articles



See all Topics
word

Labels: Reference, Tips, Tutorials

Budget0056.doc

"Sometimes, when working on a project, you may want to save your documents in sequential order (for example, "0001", "0002", "0003", and so on).

If you wanted to do this manually, you would need to sort through your working directory for the latest file number before you could assign the next number to a new file.

Using this fairly straightforward Word macro, you can make creating sequenced files as easy as pressing a button."

LogicalExpressions.com:

Save sequential number docs
(Kevin Christy)

Also see:

Autonumber Invoices



See all Topics
word

Labels: Customize, Fields, Formatting, Tips, VBA

Recover zapped files

The AutoRecover feature does not replace the saving of a document. There is no feature in Word to automatically save your document files. You must periodically save your documents.

What Is the AutoRecover Feature in Word?

How Word creates and recovers the AutoRecover files

"When you perform a full save of your file, there is no way to go back to your original version. If the document was saved automatically, in many instances data would be lost because a full save is irreversible.

In contrast, AutoRecover does not overwrite your original file; this allows you to back out of most errors just by not saving changes when you close the file.

An AutoRecover file is created or updated each time there are changes that have not been saved at the end of the preset time period. You should perform a full save specifically based on progress you've made in your document rather than arbitrarily at regular time intervals.

NOTE: Another way to protect your work and maintain all of your changes is to use the Versions command on the File menu."

Also:

Word.MVPS.org:
How can I make Word save or back up my document automatically?

By design, Microsoft Word does not create an AutoRecover file when you are working in a master document, because the AutoRecover file format is not compatible with the master document file format.

When you use Word as your e-mail editor, Word does not create an AutoRecover (AutoSave) file of your e-mail message.



See all Topics
word

Labels: Documents, Tips

Avoid the squiggles

1. Select the text you would like the spell checker to skip.
   
   
2. Next, select Tools>Language Set Language from the menu bar.
   
   
3. In the Mark Selected Text As list box, select the (No Proofing) option and then click OK.

From now on, the spell checker will skip over the text you selected without flagging any spelling or grammatical errors.

Alan Wyatt's WordTips site has a comprehensive list of spell checker links:
Spelling and Grammar Checking

BTW:
If you want to spell check Web forms and information boxes you fill out using Internet Explore, look at ieSpell:

"ieSpell is a free Internet Explorer browser extension that spell checks text input boxes on a webpage. It should come in particularly handy for users who do a lot of web-based text entry (e.g. web mails, forums, blogs, diaries).

Even if your web application already includes spell checking functionality, you might still want to install this utility because it is definitely much faster than a server-side solution. Plus you get to store and use your personal word list across all your applications, instead of maintaining separate ones on each application."

ieSpell.com



See all Topics
word

Labels: Documents, Reference, Tips

Your own #10

GMayor.com:
ChangingWord Envelope Layouts
Graham Mayor

PC Magazine.com
Custom Envelopes in Word

Microsoft Support:
Create individual envelopes and labels
40 minute lesson

About.com:
Customizing Envelopes with Pictures

Slipstick.com:
Printing Labels or Envelopes for Contacts
Inserting Addresses into Microsoft Word Documents

"One of the advantages to using Microsoft Exchange or Microsoft Outlook is the ability to use information from the Address Book in Microsoft Word documents. Exactly how to do it, though, isn't obvious. The key is an AutoText entry called AddressLayout. This article shows you how to change this entry and how to add an Insert Address button to the Word toolbar."

From Answers.com:

"USAGE NOTE The word envelope was borrowed into English from French during the early 18th century, and the first syllable acquired the pronunciation (on) as an approximation to the nasalized French pronunciation. Other similar words borrowed from French in the modern period include envoy (17th century), encore, ennui, ensemble, entree (18th century), entourage, and entrepreneur (19th century). Most retain their pseudo-French pronunciations, with the exception of envoy, which, like envelope, is mainly pronounced with (en) now."

Labels: Customize, Tips

Clean it up

Also see:
Charles Kenyon's Word Users Guide:

Confidentiality and MetaData in Word Documents

Microsoft downloads:
Office 2003/XP Add-in: Remove Hidden Data
With this add-in you can permanently remove hidden data and collaboration data, such as change tracking and comments, from Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint files.

This add-in is not compatible with the 2007 Office system. The Document Inspector feature in the 2007 Office system replaces this add-in. For more information see Office 2007 Resource Kit and the online Help topic.



See all Topics
word

Labels: Documents, Reference, Tips

Custom layout

Microsoft Knowlegebase:
HOW TO: Modify the Layout of an Address Book Entry



See all Topics
word

Labels: Customize, Inserts, Reference, Tips

Publisher/Word

..."Word is ubiquitous. If you buy a new computer, chances are good that it will come with some version of Office or Works Suite (which includes Word) installed. Word is a powerful word processing program that incorporates many of the features of a page layout application, but there are times when a page layout or desktop publishing application is what is needed. If you are using the Small Business Edition of Office 97 or Office 2007, Professional, or Ultimate, you have such a program: Microsoft Publisher.

...even if you use only Word, Publisher can be useful to you. Because once upon a time, at least, it came with an excellent manual. The Microsoft Publisher 97 Companion is a 328-page book (compare this to the 19 pages devoted to Publisher in Discovering Microsoft Office 2000 Premium and Professional), and it contains much material that can be equally helpful to Word users.

For example, the chapter "The Look of Words" discusses what fonts are, how to choose them, and how to get the most from them. The following tips, guidelines, and rules of thumb are excerpted from that chapter [with some comments interspersed]. We have not attempted to reproduce all the illustrations that appear in the actual manual, but even the text alone is helpful."

Labels: Formatting, Tips

M-N-Hyphen

There are three kinds of dashes, each a bit longer than the other.
You don't need to put spaces before or after dashes (in the US).

Use the hyphen (-) for hyphenating words.

Use the en dash (–) where you would use "to," as in "business hours are 10 A.M. – 5 P.M.," in a range of numbers (pages 17–25), or to link certain compound adjectives like "the Tokyo–Hong Kong flight" or "anti–blood clotting serum."

Use the em dash (—) instead of parentheses—as is done here—to set off a parenthetical phrase. On the typewriter, two hyphens stood in for this dash.

Labels: Formatting, General, Reference, Tips, Tutorials

Stick it in Word

Arrange the windows so that both applications can be seen.
(Right-click an empty area of the Task bar and choose "Tile Windows Vertically."

Type your introductory text in the Word document.

Switch to PowerPoint and open the PowerPoint file.

In Slide Sorter View, hold down the Ctrl key and select the slides you want to include.

Drag the selected group of slides onto the Word document.

You will only see the first slide in the document, but if you double-click on the image, the PowerPoint show will run.

It will also work in Excel.

(This, of course assumes that the target machine has PowerPoint or PowerPoint Viewer installed)



See all Topics
word

Labels: Inserts, Tips

A suggestion I don't suggest

1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Edit tab.
   
2. Under Editing options, select the Keep track of formatting check box, if it is not already selected.
   
3. Under Editing options, select the Mark formatting inconsistencies check box.
   Formatting inconsistencies will be marked with blue, wavy underlines.
   
4. Click OK.
   
5. In your document, right-click the blue, wavy underline where a formatting inconsistency has occurred.
   
6. Do one of the following:
   To correct the inconsistency, click the command that describes the inconsistency.
   To have Word remove the blue, wavy underline and not correct this inconsistency, click Ignore Once.
   To skip all occurrences of the inconsistency in the document, click Ignore Rule.

PC World:
Word 2002 adds fast formatting for stylin' documents.

ShaunaKelly.com:
How the Styles and Formatting pane works in Microsoft Word 2002 and 2003

I would suggest that you don't use this feature. See:
Runaway Styles in 2003

If you are going to use it, just to track formatting, remember to turn it off for the majority of uses.

Also see Wopr lounge



See all Topics
word

Labels: Formatting, Tips

Pre-defined locations

This macro, for instance, changes the text in just the header of the first section:

Sub HeaderFooterObject()
  Dim MyText As String
  MyHeaderText = "This would be your text"
  With ActiveDocument.Sections(1)
   .Headers(wdHeaderFooterPrimary).Range.Text = MyHeaderText
  End With
End Sub

When you use Edit>Replace in Word, it does a fine job of locating all occurrences of the target in the body of the document or in the header or footer.

Something fails, however, when you record the action and try to run it as a macro. To make it work, you must loop through the built in ranges of a Word document.

The exercise is interesting if only for the exposure to the built in ranges such as:

• wdCommentsStory
  
• wdEndnotesStory
  
• wdEvenPagesFooterStory
  
• wdEvenPagesHeaderStory
  
• wdFirstPageFooterStory
  
• wdFirstPageHeaderStory
  
• wdFootnotesStory
  
• wdMainTextStory
  
• wdPrimaryFooterStory
  
• wdPrimaryHeaderStory
  
  and
  
• wdTextFrameStory.

See this article for more information:

Word.MVPS.org:
Find and replace with VBA

Also:

Microsoft KB
VBA macro examples to insert text into a document



See all Topics
word

Labels: Macros, Tips, Tutorials, VBA

Twaddle free

"The Federal Government's writing must be in plain language. By using plain language, we send a clear message about what the Government is doing, what it requires, and what services it offers. Plain language saves the Government and the private sector time, effort, and money."

Plain language can be understood by YOUR reader at first reading. It doesn't mean writing for a certain grade level - it means organizing and writing for your reader. Writing in plain language saves time and money for writers and readers.

The Plain Language Center
Building Plain Language from the Ground Up

Introducing Plain Language

Plain language matches the needs of the reader with your needs as a writer, resulting in effective and efficient communication. It is effective because the reader can understand the message. It is efficient because the reader can read and understand the message the first time.

Also:
LegalWriting.net
Plain language produces clear, concise, and readable documents

And then for no reason ,other than most writing is twaddle, here's a review of:

How Mumbo-jumbo Conquered the World:
A Short History of Modern Delusions
by Francis Wheen.

It's entitled: "Twaddle unswaddled".
Appropriate or not, it is fun to say.

[Edited entry from 12/27/2004]




See all Topics
word

Labels: General, Tips

Order!

1. Make a list of the important words.
   
2. Create a two-column table in a new document.
   
3. In the first column, enter the word or phrase.
   
4. In the second column, enter the index entry
   (If you need a sub-category, type the main entry followed by a colon (:) and then the sub category.)
   
5. Save the file.

When it comes time to create the Index, place the insertion point, go to Insert>Reference Index and Tables. Choose Index and then AutoMark.
(2007 – Reference Tab>Index group)

Browse to the location of your Index file.

Word will now automatically use your list to mark the main document and insert an Index.

Also:

Word for Word:
An Index or a Concordance for Your Book?

Word MVPS.org:
How can I automatically generate an index in Word?

Microsoft KB:
How to create a table of contents and index with field codes in Word



See all Topics
word

Labels: Fields, Inserts, Lists, Reference, Tips, Tutorials

Problem solvers

1. Go to Edit>Replace
   
2. Make sure to include all of your local drives in the search and that "include subfolders" is checked.
   
3. Search for:
   *.tmp
   
4. Then delete all these temp files.
   

1. Use Edit>Find to locate Normal.DOT.
   
2. Rename it (Normal.OLD) or delete it. Word will create a new copy when it restarts.
   

The only caveat here is be careful that you don't have important macros stored in Normal.DOT. If you rename, you can recover them.

THIRD

If that does not correct the problem, try this next step:

1. Go to Start>Run and type:
   winword.exe /a
   (Note that there is a space before the /a)
   
2. Then press ENTER. This starts Word without any add-ins, global templates, or Normal.DOT.
   Look in Tools>Templates and Add-ins to see if there are any files that can be un-checked.
   

Labels: General, Tips

Stop them up front

Labels: Customize, Fonts, Formatting, Tips, Tutorials

Demo tutorial

You can control when Word decides to break for a new page.

Ctrl+Enter is the keyboard shortcut, but there are a number of variations.

This MS link has both Demos and text tutorials.
Page breaks

BTW; a merged document is made up of Section breaks, not Page breaks.

For ease of printing, Replace ^b with ^m



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word

Labels: Documents, Formatting, Tips, Tutorials

Here's another good newsletter

Jack M. Lyon, a book editor who got tired of working the hard way and started creating programs to automate editing tasks in Microsoft Word. He's been editing more than twenty years and started working on the computer in 1985.

(Unfortunately has not published recently, but still full of good information)

A few back issues of Editorium Update arranged chronologically:

• Deleting Unused Styles
  
• Pasting Tracked Revisions
  
• Indexing with a Two-Column Concordance
  
• Fancy Sorting
  
• Editing by Concordance
  
• Making a Concordance
  
• Numbers by Chicago
  
• Fixing Typos Automatically

Labels: Tips

More than I want

Try to place an AutoShape on a page and the Drawing Canvas pops up by default.

To turn off this feature, go to:
Tools>Options.
On the General tab, remove the check mark from
"Automatically create drawing canvas when inserting AutoShapes"

To just dismiss it each time, choose your AutoShape and then touch the Delete or Esc key before drawing the object.

Here's some more information.

Wordsite.com:
The draw layer: a metaphysical space

Knowledge Base
General Information About Floating Objects
(a discussion of Word's floating objects and layers)

As I understand it, the Drawing canvas is not really a new layer. The following illustration shows the classic layers. It is from the Knowledge base article:

How to Place Text over a Graphic

                                           ___________________
                                          /                   /
                                         /   <SURFACE OF     /
                                        /       PAPER>      /
                                       /                   /  /
                 Front drawing layer  -------------------  /
                     MAIN TEXT LAYER  =================== / /
                  Back drawing layer  -------------------/ / /
                                                          / /
                 Front drawing layer  -------------------/ /
   (Header/footer) BOTTOM TEXT LAYER  =================== /
                  Back drawing layer  -------------------/

Labels: Graphics, Tips

It can make life easier

Labels: General, Tips, Tutorials

=rand(p,s)

In Word 2007 =rand() produces a selection from the Help file.

=lorem() displays:

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Maecenas porttitor congue massa. Fusce posuere, magna sed pulvinar ultricies, purus lectus malesuada libero, sit amet commodo magna eros quis urna.
Nunc viverra imperdiet enim. Fusce est. Vivamus a tellus.
Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Proin pharetra nonummy pede. Mauris et orci.

In French it's:
"Servez à ce monsieur une bière et des kiwis."

"Serve this gentleman a beer and some kiwis."

Other Panagrams



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word

Labels: General, Random Text, Tips

A collection of hows

• How do I save so earlier versions of Word can open my documents? Talk about a one-two punch?
  Answer: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/924074/en-us
  
  
• How do I recover a lost or over-written file? Who says the "are you sure" dialogs are annoying?
  Answer: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/827099/en-us
  
  
• How do I create a mail merge? The fifth tab on the Ribbon is a brand new take on Mail Merge.
  Answer: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/294694/en-us
  
  
• How do I scan documents into Word 2007?
  Answer: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word/HA101786621033.aspx?pid=CH100675901033
  
  
• How to do stuff with templates?
  Answer: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/924460/en-us
  
  
• How do I create forms or use form fields?
  Answer: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word/HA100307461033.aspx?pid=CH100991571033

Labels: Tips