The majority of computer users do not use the full suite of features that Microsoft Word is equipped with. Knowledge and use of these useful features can save you time (and money) and they also improve the presentation of your documents to a great extent. Check to see if you were aware that you could do these awesome things with MS Office. This article specifically refers to Microsoft Office Word 2003, but similar options can also be found in earlier and of course, later versions of Office – you just need to find them.
Saving ‘Versions’ of Files
This feature is found on the File menu of MS Word and saves disk space and gives you version control. It allows you to keep a record of changes made to a document. For example, if you are writing a report, you can save the initial version, and then if changes are made later but you wish to keep the original copy as it is, you can simply save the modified document as a separate version.
Comments
This feature is very useful both for individual use and more so when you want to get another person’s feedback on your work. It can be found on the Insert menu and it allows the user to insert certain comments at any point in the document. For example if you wish to remember to add something to a certain paragraph, simply place the cursor at the start or end of that paragraph and click on ‘Comment’ on the Insert menu. Word will mark that point in red and allow you to type in a comment. Once done, simply click anywhere else in the document.
The ‘mark up’ option on the View menu is related to the Comments feature, because in order to display all the comments in a document, the ‘mark up’ function needs to be on. If you have inserted comments into the document and they are not visible, simply click on the ‘mark up’ option on the View menu. Similarly, to hide comments that are visible, turn off the ‘mark up’ option by again clicking on it.
Track Changes
Just like Comments, this feature facilitates the editing process by allowing multiple users to make changes in a document without permanently overwriting the original text. It uses different colored fonts to display exactly what was deleted and inserted by other users and provides the option to either accept or reject all or some of the changes.
Inserting Files
This feature allows you to insert another Microsoft Word file into an open file, thus merging the two files. To use the feature, click on ‘File’ in the Insert menu and then select the file you wish to insert and click on the ‘Insert’ button. There is a small drop-down menu besides the ‘Insert’ button that allows you to insert the file as a link rather than place the entire file into the existing document.
Cross Reference
This option lets you refer to an item that appears in another location in a document, such as a heading, a footnote, a bookmark, a caption or a numbered paragraph. To insert a cross reference, first click on it on the Reference submenu of the Insert menu. Within the dialogue box, there are several options to select. In the Reference type box, click the type of item you want to refer to, for example, a heading. In the ‘Insert reference to’ box, click the information you want inserted in the document. For example, the heading text. In the ‘For which’ box, select the particular item you want to refer to, for example, the heading for a certain section.
Selecting the ‘Insert as hyperlink’ check box will allow users to jump to the referenced item. If the ‘Include above/below’ check box is available, it allows you to include information about the relative position of the referenced item.
Macros
In simple terms, macros are shortcuts to performing a series of steps. For example, if you regularly format documents in a specific way, you could record a macro that would allow you to perform all the formatting activities in a single step.
For example, if you frequently create documents to which you apply line spacing of 1.5 lines, font style Arial, font size 14, and justified alignment, you can compress all these steps into one step by recording a macro. To do so, first select the text, and point to the Macros submenu on the Tools menu, followed by ‘Record New Macro’.
In the dialogue box that appears, give a name to the macro, specify where to store it and provide a description of what the macro does. You can assign the macro to either a toolbar or a keyboard shortcut. To put a button on a toolbar, click on the ‘Toolbar’ icon, and to assign a keyboard shortcut click on ‘Keyboard’
If you opt to assign your macro shortcut button to a toolbar, the next window that opens will ask you to select which toolbar to apply the button to. Similarly, if you select ‘Keyboard’, the next window will require you to select a keyboard shortcut of your choice, for example, Ctrl+Q’.
Once you close the window after assigning your macro to either a toolbar or keyboard, the Record Macro toolbar will automatically appear on the screen. Now you can proceed to apply the formatting that you wish to record i.e., apply the line spacing, change the font, etc. Once done, click on the small ‘Stop Recording’ button on the Macro toolbar, or alternatively, point to the Macro submenu again on the Tools menu and click on ‘Stop Recording’.
Now, to either test or run the macro on a document, point to the Macro submenu and click on ‘Macros’. In the dialogue box, select the saved macro and click on the Run button and see whether the changes that you recorded take place. If they don’t, there is probably an error in the recording and this can be solved by either editing the macro in the Visual Basic Editor, or simply re-recording the macro.
These are just some of the relatively unknown features of MS Word and as you can see, it’s quite easy to make Microsoft Word work to your advantage if you work with these cool options. So explore these features now and your word-processing experience will be richer and more enjoyable!
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—About our writer:
Mehak Siddiqui is a freelance writer based in Ahmedabad and has a B.A in Psychology. She has written for national magazines such as Woman’s Era and Live IT as well as for two international writing e-zines. She works as an editor for a study-abroad consultancy and can write with on a variety of topics including health, technology, academia, and travel.
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