8 advanced Microsoft Word tricks you probably missed

Microsoft Word is without doubt one of the most generally used packages on this planet, but it’s additionally one which many complain about. The commonest criticism? That it’s heavy, gradual, and a typical instance of “feature bloat.”

Which is true. Word is full of tons of options. And whereas some critics assume that most individuals solely use it as a result of everybody else is utilizing it, Word is definitely fairly highly effective and succesful.

It’s only a matter of attending to comprehend it, and never beating it to loss of life, so to talk. Word has some quirks that may drive a person loopy, however most often it’s a setting that may be modified or a habits that may be circumvented with one other characteristic or the best dealing with.

In this information I’m going by way of numerous extra superior or unfamiliar elements of Word, within the hope that you just, the reader, will discover at the very least just a few goodies you should use. You may even begin to like this system.

Stop Word’s computerized formatting

Of all of the issues customers have discovered most annoying about Word, computerized formatting might be the commonest. Word tends to assume it is aware of finest, and doesn’t anticipate you, the person, to decide on to create a “real” checklist, for instance.

Foundry

Foundry

Foundry

Word has at all times insisted on pasting textual content whereas sustaining formatting, however this spring an replace has added settings to decide on the way you need to do it by default. This means which you can change it in order that Ctrl+V pastes textual content solely, with the identical formatting as the encircling textual content. There can be a brand new choice known as Merge formatting, which retains the daring/italic/underline/overline and checklist codecs however matches the goal font, coloration, and dimension. This makes it doable to repeat, for instance, a formatted checklist from a doc in Helvetica to at least one in Word’s commonplace font Aptos.

The program additionally likes to mechanically change, for instance, a paragraph beginning with a quantity to a numbered checklist as quickly as you press return to create a brand new paragraph. You can simply change this habits within the settings. Go to File > Options > Proofing. Click on the Autocorrect choices and choose the tab Auto format. Here you’ll discover a lot of tick packing containers for belongings you may not need, like computerized bullet factors.

Another annoyance for a lot of is that Word insists on highlighting complete phrases. For instance, if you wish to delete a sentence from the primary letter to midway into the fourth phrase, it may well appear unimaginable to get the highlighting proper in order that urgent the backspace key as soon as will delete simply that bit, as a result of as quickly as you go an area, Word begins highlighting one phrase at a time and never one character.

This can be simply mounted by opening File > Options > Advanced and ticking off When deciding on, computerized choose total phrase. Just like that, Word will spotlight precisely as you need. You can uncheck the Customize paragraph markup choice when you don’t need Word to mechanically add a brand new paragraph mark when you choose an entire paragraph, so that you could paste the paragraph into one other paragraph.

Change the default stylesheets

Have you ever puzzled why on earth Word has a number of stylesheets with blue textual content? Or how one can change the default fonts in new paperwork? These days it’s surprisingly simple.

Right-click on a method, for instance Heading 1, and choose Modify. Make any modifications you need, akin to switching to black textual content or altering the font. When you’re joyful, click on New paperwork based mostly on this template, then OK to avoid wasting the modifications to the default template. If you make modifications to the type sheet Normal it is going to additionally have an effect on a number of different templates based mostly on it: No spacing, Subheading, Quote, Strong quote, and List piece for instance, have the identical font as Normal.

Mastering the search perform

As you in all probability know, Word has a search perform. You’re in all probability additionally conversant in the marginally extra superior Find and Replace perform. But Word’s search perform is definitely far more highly effective than that, and you may seek for belongings you may not have considered.

Click on Find to the best of the fonts within the Home ribbon, after which click on Advanced discover. The dialog field that opens has three tabs, the place Replace is the same old search and change perform, and Go to is a approach to shortly get to a web page quantity or bookmark, for instance. But within the Find tab, you’ll discover the More button, which reveals a bunch of settings for searches (for instance, to look just for complete phrases, or to disregard punctuation).

There are additionally two drop-down menus with extra search features. The Format menu permits you to seek for elements of textual content that, for instance, use a selected font or are italicized. The Special menu is used to search out, for instance, particular characters akin to line breaks and arduous areas.

Transcribing recorded calls

Do you might have an audio recording you don’t need on “paper”? Word now has a built-in AI-based transcription characteristic that makes it simple. Just click on on Dictate on the best facet of the Start tab within the ribbon and choose Transcribe and the characteristic will open in the best column.

Select English if it isn’t already preset, and click on on Upload audio to ship a recording you might have on file to the Microsoft server. The transcription might take some time and Word will inform you when it’s prepared. When it’s, click on on Add to doc the place you might have 4 choices for the way the textual content ought to be formatted (with or with out audio system and timestamps).

The outcomes once I’ve examined it have been filled with errors, so it may well’t be used straight in any texts. But it really works properly sufficient to know from the context what the audio system have mentioned and might be written cleanly if wanted.

Foundry

Foundry

Foundry

Share paperwork with others and co-edit

When Google began to take market share from Office, one of many causes was how simple it’s for a number of collaborators to co-edit a doc or spreadsheet. Microsoft realized the significance of this co-editing and launched comparable options in 2013.

Today, it’s simple to ask others to edit paperwork in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, they usually can edit both within the desktop functions or the net apps. To get began, be certain the doc is saved on OneDrive. Then click on on the Share button on the prime proper. There are two choices right here: Invite and share with chosen individuals or create a hyperlink that anybody can use. The former is clearly a bit safer, however when you don’t know what e mail handle the particular person you’re inviting makes use of for his or her Microsoft account, a hyperlink is simpler.

If a couple of person has a doc open for enhancing, everybody can see the place within the doc the others are working, which reduces the chance of enhancing conflicts that may come up if two individuals make modifications in the identical place on the similar time. Should a battle nonetheless come up, Word helps to resolve it.

Read and restore older variations of paperwork

Saving your paperwork on OneDrive provides you many benefits over storing them domestically. Firstly, autosave is activated so that you just shouldn’t have to take a seat and press Ctrl+S abruptly. Sure, Word has a restoration perform in case this system crashes, however many customers can inform horror tales about giant paperwork that they forgot to avoid wasting and which disappeared with out a hint and will by no means be recovered.

Another benefit is that OneDrive saves model historical past so you’ll be able to revert to earlier variations of the doc with out having to avoid wasting a bunch of various variations. “Report_last_draft_final_final_final.docx” turns into a factor of the previous.

Here’s how one can discover older variations:

1. Open the doc from OneDrive.

2. Click on the file identify above within the Word window.

3. Select the Version historical past and the present model shall be displayed, with an inventory of beforehand saved variations on the best.

4. Click on a earlier model to view it.

5. You can restore the previous model by clicking on the button Restore button within the yellow strip that seems under the toolbar, or choose and replica textual content which you can then paste into a brand new doc or into the final saved model to revive simply that bit.

Draw

Word has lengthy had options for putting photos and shapes in paperwork, however do you know it now additionally has drawing instruments? Microsoft added it to make Word extra usable on computer systems and tablets with a touchscreen and/or pen, however it can be used with a mouse or trackpad.

Click on the Draw menu tab to see the completely different choices. On the left are completely different pens, erasers, and two forms of markers. The subsequent button is Ruler, which locations a digital ruler over the doc you should use to attract straight strains. To change the angle of the ruler, merely maintain the pointer over the ruler and scroll the scroll wheel on the mouse (or drag with two fingers on the trackpad). To transfer it, click on and drag.

Other features aren’t that fascinating, besides presumably Ink to math, which makes it simple to print formulation and equations with appropriate formatting.

AI writing help with Microsoft Editor

Microsoft Editor is a contemporary, AI-based improve to the basic spell and grammar checker that has been in Word for a few years. It’s constructed into Word and Outlook on Windows and Mac, but in addition obtainable as an extension for Chromium-based browsers like Edge and Chrome.

In Word, yow will discover the Editor beneath the Editor button on the best of the Start tab within the Ribbon, and it opens in a column on the best of the window.

At the highest of the Editor, a judgement of the doc is displayed within the type of a share. As you repair the assorted flaws the characteristic has discovered, the proportion will increase. Below the judgement you’ll find 4 sections: Corrections, which reveals spelling and grammar errors; Refinements, the place this system suggests modifications to make the language extra formal and clear; Similarity to check how comparable your textual content is to on-line sources; and Insights, which is a shortcut to the previous Readability Statistics characteristic with figures akin to variety of sentences per paragraph and variety of phrases per sentence.

Click on every subcategory to undergo the Editor’s ideas. As with the previous spelling characteristic, you’ll be able to change, ignore, or add phrases to the glossary, and observe or ignore different prompt modifications.

Best options to Word

There are loads of packages for writing and processing textual content in numerous methods, to say the least. If you don’t just like the subscription mannequin, or simply discover Word unwieldy, you might have different choices. Because Word can be utilized for thus many alternative issues, I’ve categorized my suggestions by want:

Simple wants? Word Online or Google Docs
If you don’t essentially want a full-blown Windows program, you will get by with Word Online — included in free accounts — or Google Docs. Both have all the same old options you may want for phrase processing, and on prime of that you just get the power to co-edit with others you invite.

Packed with performance? Libreoffice Writer
The closest factor to a full Word clone you will get at this time is Libreoffice Writer. Like Word, it’s full of options for every kind of phrase processing, however it’s open supply and free.

Do you actually need to structure? Scribus or Affinity Publisher
Scribus is a robust open supply program. If you’re keen to pay a bit extra, Affinity Publisher is extra polished and just like Adobe Indesign, with very highly effective options whereas being pretty simple to get began with.

Are you writing a e-book or thesis? Scrivener
The Scrivener fee program may be very widespread amongst writers, translators, journalists, legal professionals, and lecturers, and for good purpose. The program merely makes it simpler to work with lengthy texts.