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June 1, 2007
When Word’s Weird – Strategies for Controlling Microsoft
Word
For most people who work on PCs, Microsoft Word is one of the
staples as far as their suite of software is concerned. Yet most people are
familiar with only a fraction of the features Word has to offer. As a result,
when they stumble upon something new, mistype a character, or click
inadvertently, it often appears to them as if Word is malfunctioning. Here are
some quick questions and answers that address some of the most frequent issues
users have with this deceptively complex program.
My font keeps changing. How come?
There are a number of reasons behind this. First, be sure
Word’s default font is set to your liking: Start a new document , then click
Format, Font in the menu bar. Adjust the typestyle and size parameters until
they represent the font you most often use. Click the Default button to lock
that in for all future documents. (Note: This may have little or no impact on
old documents.)
Another reason fonts may suddenly change has to do with
hidden, embedded settings within blank lines of text. To reduce the chance that
fonts may spontaneously get away from you, click and drag over the area in which
you’re typing, then click Format, Font to set the font for this portion of your
document. To set the font for your entire document, press CTRL+A or click Edit,
Select All before issuing the Format, Font command.
Lastly, “styles” play a major role in the way Word formats
text. To exercise complete control over the look and feel of your document,
you’d be well advised to learn how styles work in Word. For a free tutorial on
the subject, go to
http://office.microsoft.com/training/training.aspx?AssetID=RC011039261033.
How can I get new Word documents to have one-inch margins
all the way around?
Click File, Page Setup in the menu bar, set all four margins
the way you like, then click the Default button.
Every time I want to create a numbered list, Word insists
on wresting control away from me. How can I tell it to keep hands off?
Click Tools, AutoCorrect Options in the menu bar. In the Auto
Format As You Type tab, uncheck the Automatic Numbered Lists option. While
you’re there, review all the other options in the various tabs to customize Word
to the way you work.
I want a section of my document to look exactly like
another section. How can I copy the formatting without copying the text?
By using Word’s Format Painter tool. The Format Painter icon
is the paint brush in the middle of the Standard toolbar (that also contains
icons for New, Open, and Print). Start by clicking anywhere in the section of
text that contains the formatting elements you want to copy. Next, click the
Format Painter icon in the Standard toolbar. Lastly, click and drag over the
section of text you wish to inherit the copied formatting. Keep in mind that any
previous formatting that you applied to this highlighted text will be gone and
replaced by the formatting from the first section of text. If you don’t like
what you see, press CTRL+Z to undo and consider another strategy.
This is Larry Schneider, logging off.
