Monday, April 18, 2016

May I Comment on Your Balloon?

Markup stuff


How to turn off balloons for comments and track changes in Word.

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.
Note This process only hides the balloons for comments and track changes. These steps do not remove any changes.

Frequently Asked Questions About Comments
Using Tracking and Reviewing Features in Microsoft Word


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Sunday, April 17, 2016

VBA Help

From Microsoft


Here is a Help reference covering the vagaries of VBA.


Office VBA Language Reference


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Monday, April 11, 2016

Save Clean Document

Protect your layout


Sometimes a Word document does not open as well laid out as you intended.

The page numbers may be off (the numbers may be repeated).

Formatting marks may be displayed (not a big thing, but not neat).

This can happen if:

  • You open the document from a Microsoft Outlook e-mail attachment.
  • The Allow starting in Reading Layout option is turned on in Word.
  • The table of contents in the document is three or more pages long.
  • The document was saved in the page layout view.
Microsoft offers these suggestions to prepare your baby for its best look. When you send a Word document as an e-mail attachment, make sure that you save the document in normal view before you send the document. Turn off reading layout view
  1. Start Word.
  2. On the Tools menu, click Options.
  3. Click the General tab, click to clear the Allow starting in Reading Layout check box, and then click OK.
Turn off all formatting marks
  1. Start Word.
  2. On the Tools menu, click Options.
  3. Click the View tab, click to deselect the All check box under Formatting marks, and then click OK.
Manually update all the page numbers
  1. Open the Word document.
  2. Select the table of contents in the document, and then press F9 to update all the page numbers.
Support.Microsoft.com
The page numbers in the TOC are incorrectly displayed


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Thursday, April 07, 2016

Plain Numbers

I'd Like to Make It Clear


Plain Figures is a method of transforming statistical and financial data into figures, tables and graphs that people readily understand.

Have you ever:
  • 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."?

Then you know how important the clear display of numerical information can be. Common problems People have trouble using numerical information for many reasons. Most commonly, authors don't know:
  • 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.

Plain Figures is a partnership between Sally Bigwood, located in Wakefield, Yorkshire, UK, and Melissa Spore, who divides her time between Toronto and Saskatoon, Canada. Sally and Melissa are sisters and both have dual citizenship in the United States.
 PlainFigures.com


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Monday, April 04, 2016

Echo Document Data

Enter once — use again


Enter data in one place in a document and have it repeated elsewhere.

There comes the time when you need to enter a clients name at the beginning of a document and you know that it will be repeated again many other places.

Greg Maxey has collected a number of ways to make the task easier.


Repeating Data


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Friday, March 18, 2016

SQL Warning in Word

Merge Ahead!


When you open a Word  mail merge main document that is linked to a data source, you may receive the following message:

Opening this will run the following SQL command:

SELECT * FROM C:\file_name.log

Data from your database will be placed in the document. Do you want to continue?


SQL Warning

This message helps protect you from unintentionally sending data to a malicious user.
To suppress this message, you must first create the following registry key:


  1. Open Registry Editor.
  2. Locate, and then click the following registry key:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Options

    (Use 12.0 for Word 2007)


  3. Click Edit, point to New, and then click DWORD Value.

  4. Under Name, type:

    SQLSecurityCheck

  5. Double-click SQLSecurityCheck.

  6. In the Value data box, type:

    00000000
See
Microsoft KB 825765

Installing Office XP SP3 appears to cause the same problem. For Word 2002 (XP also known as 10.0) you need to place the registry key in: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\10.0\Word\Options

(Thanks to Brian Livingston at WindowsSecrets.com for pointing the way to a solution)


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Monday, March 07, 2016

PowerPoint Bloats Word

Diet tips


For various reasons, it can be helpful to send a PowerPoint show to Word. You can have great looking handouts and be able to format the document in ways that are not possible in PowerPoint.

The problem can be the size of the resultant file.

One of the easier, more practical ways to slim the doc down is to break the OLE links.
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
Support.microsoft.com
 Size of Word Document


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Saturday, March 05, 2016

Unicode and Other Characters

Why's A 65?


Underlying the intriguing prose spread across the monitor screen are numbers and more numbers.

Joel Spolsky, a New York software developer has written a combination history/tutorial about this numeric-literary liason.

He calls it:
"The Absolute Minimum Every Software Developer Absolutely, Positively Must Know About Unicode and Character Sets (No Excuses!)"
Unicode and Character sets


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Tuesday, March 01, 2016

Grammar Rules

Could Of or Could Have?


This web site sells a grammar and spell checker, but they also have a compendium of rules for free.

"Looking for a specific rule to help you in your writing? Trying to decide between two similar words? A grammar checker helps you, but does not tell you why. Grammar checkers also miss many errors, especially those having to do with names, punctuation, sounds, and style.

Some of you may have a full grammar textbook stored on your disk somewhere, but it is a nuisance to access and use.

Grammar Slammer takes care of both problems in an easy-to-use format. Grammar Slammer contains the rules and tips you need to write your best and make yourself clear. Grammar Slammer uses the familiar Web Page format to make it easy to find what you are looking for. It even has an easy-to-use glossary to help with those grammatical terms you can't remember. It will truly Slam your Grammar Agony!"

Grammer Slammer


(Could of does not exist. Neither do should of, will of, or would of as verbs.)


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Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Styles not applied to all texts

Word makes judgments


When text is selected, Word must examine the styles that have been applied and determine which to keep and which to overwrite.
  1. Type the following text:

This line will test how styles and formatting work in Word.






  • Select all the text, and then apply italic formatting.

  • Select all the text, and then apply a style such as Heading 1.

    You notice that italic formatting is not retained.

  • Select all the text, apply the Normal style, and then remove the italic formatting.

  • Select "work in Word" in the text, and then apply the italic formatting.

  • Select all the text, and then apply the Heading 1 style.
  • You notice that the italic formatting is retained.
    'This behavior occurs because Word uses a specific rule to determine whether to apply a style to selected text. According to this rule, Word applies a style depending on the percentage of the selected text that already has formatting applied. For example, if you already applied formatting to less than 50 percent of the selected text, this formatting is retained when you apply a style. If the selected text includes multiple paragraphs, Word first calculates the percentage of text that is formatted in the first paragraph. Then, it examines the paragraphs in the same range. If the formatting that is applied to the text in the paragraphs that follow the first paragraph differs from most of the formatting in the first paragraph, Word does not apply the style to the following paragraphs. Therefore, the formatting is retained in these paragraphs."
    Support.Microsoft.com:
    A style is not applied to all the selected text in Word


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    Friday, February 12, 2016

    Custom Properties

    Use your own


    If you look at Properties on the File menu, you will see a number of entries. You can also create your own custom properties.

    Click the Custom tab and add what you want.



    To insert your own properties in a document, use Insert>Fields

    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.


    Here's the "click path" for 2007:



    Also: Word.Tips.Net:
    Creating word custom doc properties from code


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    Wednesday, February 10, 2016

    Who was that font I saw you with last night?

    That was no font, that was my typeface


    You can find the Fonts supplied with some Microsoft products
    Select a product name from the list to get a list of fonts supplied with that product.

    Microsoft's Typography is an interesting site to poke around in.

    Here are some books I use for reference material:
    Words into Type
    by Marjorie E. Skillin, Robert Malcolm Gay ISBN 0139642625

    Stop Stealing Sheep & Find Out How Type Works

    by Erik Spiekermann, E.M Ginger ISBN 0201703394

    The Elements of Typographic Style
    by Robert Bringhurst ISBN 0881791326
    "A font can be defined as a collection of characters with the same style and size. A typeface is the design of the characters regardless of size or style. The terms are used interchangeably today."



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    Friday, February 05, 2016

    Vertical Selection with ALT

    Old trick


    This trick has been around for awhile, but it might be forgotten as new information in the right ear shoves old knowledge out the left.*

    If you hold down the ALT key while selecting in a Word document, you can select a block. This could be a vertical area, such as the prefixes of a list.



    The selection can then be formatted or deleted.


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    Wednesday, February 03, 2016

    Quote Me All You Like

    What the other guy says has weight


    There are sites that give you Bartleby Quotations.

    Gar Reynold has put together a list of some other sites that can help bolster any argument, no mater how specious.


    "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."

    PresentationZen.blogs.com:
    Where to get quotations


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



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    Saturday, January 23, 2016

    Date an Octothorpe

    Some more of those things I'm sure I used to know


    The keyboard combination of Alt+Shift+D inserts the current date in MS Word and PowerPoint. Ctrl+; (semicolon) does it in Excel and Access.

    If you do not like the date's format, select a different one with Insert>Date and Time and, if you would like to make that permanent, click on the Default button in the lower left corner of the dialog box (in PowerPoint it's in the lower right corner).

    In Excel, Ctrl+Shift +# formats the entry as day-month-year. Ctrl+1 will display the "Format cells" dialog box.

    BTW, the "hash, pound or number" sign # is also called an "octothorpe".

    The person who named it combined Octo for the eight points and Thorpe for James Thorpe.

    "Bell Labs engineer, Don Macpherson, went to instruct their first client, the Mayo Clinic, in the use of the new touch tone phone system. He felt the need for a fresh and unambiguous name for the # symbol. His reasoning that led to the new word was roughly that it had eight points, so ought to start with octo-. He was apparently at that time active in a group that was trying to get the Olympic medals of the athlete Jim Thorpe returned from Sweden, so he decided to add thorpe to the end."

    While we're at it, the "backwards P, Enter mark" is actually named a "pilcrow".

    The pilcrow was used in medieval times to mark a new train of thought, before the convention of using paragraphs was commonplace.

    Also see:
    Geek-speak names for punctuation marks

    Wikipedia:
    Punctuation


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    Sunday, January 17, 2016

    Booklets

    Sized and numbered


    Word has the built-in ability to print booklets with automatically numbered pages.

    "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."


    Word.MVPS.org:
    Booklet printing

    How-to Geek:
    Create Booklet

    RickySpears.com:
    Microsoft Word Booklet Templates
    "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."



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    Tuesday, January 12, 2016

    Add Captions Programatically

    When the project seems overwhelming


    Faced with a repetitive task, I often have to make the decision, do I do it by hand again and again? Or do I write or find a macro to do the heavy lifting?
    "Have you ever had a document with ten, twenty, or even 100 images, and then as an afterthought decided you wanted to add a caption to each of those images? This is an easy task through the user interface (UI). All you have to do is select each image, one at a time, and choose Insert, then Reference, then Caption. Unfortunately doing this through an image-heavy document is a boring chore and takes up a lot of time.

    Fortunately, the Word object model lets you to apply a caption to a selected object. An add-in that does this for you is only a small chunk of code away. The sample add-in accompanying this article demonstrates how to do this. It also demonstrates many other details about working with shapes and images in Word programmatically that are useful to know about."

    Working with Word Images Programmatically


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    Saturday, January 02, 2016

    Readability Evaluation

    What grade are you?


    Word has a built in tool to determine the level of reading difficulty of a document.

    To see the statistics:
    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.
    When Microsoft Word finishes checking spelling and grammar, it displays information about the reading level of the document.

    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
    Readability
    Measuring the reading age of books and other reading matter.

    Wikipedia.com:
     Flesch-Kincaid Readability Test
    Support.Microsoft.com:
    Frequently Asked Questions About Proofing Grammar

    I am working on a law review article dealing with readability. We have found a problem with Microsoft Word's Flesch-Kincaid formula - it does not appear to be accurate. We took a sample text of slightly over 100 words, and ran the check. We then changed the word "report" to statement" (with everything else unchanged) and Word indicated a higher grade level. However, the grade level should not have been affected, since "report" and "statement" are both two-syllable words. It looks like Word is somehow incorporating number of characters in each word into it's Flesch-Kincaid score, which it should not. Any idea what the problem might be?


    You're right, Word handles the formula a little differently.
    BTW, they say the sample s/b 200+ words for reliability.

    and:
    Wikipedia



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    Friday, December 25, 2015

    Insert>Fields

    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

    In 2007-10 you can use the =(Formula) field.
    On the Insert tab look for Quick Parts:




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    Saturday, December 12, 2015

    Justify Clean Up

    Minimize white space


    When a document is formatted with columns, the text is often Justified. This can lead to a messy layout of words and letters.
    "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"





    FontBlog:
    Typography Tip #2


    BTW, this goes along with one space after punctuation.
    Bill Hill - There is only one space after a period


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    Friday, December 04, 2015

    SCORE Templates

    Free business advice


    SCORE is a nonprofit organization providing small business advice and training.

    SCORE's 10,500 volunteers have more than 600 business skills. Volunteers share their wisdom and lessons learned in business. Our volunteers are working/retired business owners, executives and corporate leaders.
    • SCORE offers Ask SCORE email advice online.
    • Face-to-face small business counseling at 389 chapter offices.
    • Low-cost workshops at 389 chapter offices nationwide.
    • "How to" articles and business templates
    Here are some of the available templates:
    A Business Plan for a Start-up Business
    Microsoft Word
    A Business Plan for an Established Business
    Microsoft Word
    Bank Loan Request for Small Business
    Microsoft Word
    Break-Even Analysis
    Excel
    Competitive Analysis
    Microsoft Word
    Financial History & Ratios
    Excel
    Loan Amortization Schedule
    Excel
    Opening Day Balance Sheet
    Excel
    Personal Financial Statement
    Excel

    Projected Balance Sheet
    Excel
    Start-up Expenses
    Excel
    4-Year Profit Projection
    Excel
    12-Month Cash Flow Statement
    Excel
    12-Month Profit and Loss Projection
    Excel
    12-Month Sales Forecast
    Excel

    SCORE Template Gallery


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    Friday, November 27, 2015

    Page Numbers

    A baker's dozen of ideas


    Here is a collection of tips about how to display information in Headers and Footers.

    Field codes are demonstrated. Remember that the brackets {} must be inserted with Ctrl+F9, not directly from the key board.

    Here's one suggestion:

    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)
    Headers and footers and page numbers


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    Thursday, November 19, 2015

    Automate Word Tables

    VBA examples and instructions


    The Microsoft Developer's Network has a pretty comprehensive article on programmatically working with data and Word tables.

    "You can look at the world as split into applications that store data (databases) and applications that present information, such as Microsoft Office Word 2003 and Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003. Increasingly, the end user demands to display database content in documents and presentations.

    While Word does provide some tools for displaying tables from databases in its documents, these are somewhat rudimentary, they require a basic understanding of how the database is built, and using them involves a number of steps. In addition, there may also be security and access issues involved, requiring additional layers of protection.

    The developer is therefore increasingly confronted with the task of transferring data into Word, whether in the form of tables, or as part of the document text. This article considers some of the major aspects of using the Word object model to work with tables."


    • Introduction to Automating Tables
    • Creating Tables Programmatically in Word
    • Populating Word Tables with Data
    • Adding Linking in Word Tables Programmatically
    • Extracting Data from Word Tables Programmatically
    A downloadable document is also available for those of us still addicted to paper. Automating Word Tables for Data Insertion and Extraction.


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    Monday, November 16, 2015

    Kürzungen für jeder

    Accessibility Shortcuts


    Several resources are available to help increase speed and effectiveness for keyboard users. Here are keyboard shortcuts for leading Microsoft products that help save time and effort and provide an essential tool for some people with mobility impairments.

    • Internet Explorer (11/10/9/8/7/6)
    • Office (2013/2010/2007/2003)
    • PowerPoint
    • Publisher
    • Windows (8/7/Vista/2003/XP/2000)
    • Windows Media Player
    Microsoft.com Keyboard Assistance.


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    Thursday, November 12, 2015

    Mail Merge Page Printing

    One big page


    After completing a merge to a new document, the status bar may indicate that the insertion point is located on page 1 of 38 pages. This is a bit of mis-information.

    If you turn on Show/Hide and look at the merged document in Normal view, you'll see that the merged document has section breaks rather than page breaks.

    If you try to print what should be Page 1, the entire document will print.

    To print just the first section, use "s1" in the Print dialog box.



    Another way to handle it is to go to Edit>Replace and replace

    "^b" (section break)

    With

    "^m" (manual page break)



    From Office.Microsoft.com:
    In the Pages box, type instructions to print one of the following:

    Noncontiguous pages

    Type the page numbers with commas between them. Type the range of pages with a hyphen between the starting and ending numbers in the range. For example, to print pages 2, 4, 5, 6, and 8, type 2,4-6,8
    A range of pages within a section

    Type p page number s section number. For example, to print pages 5 through 7 in section 3, type p5s3-p7s3
    An entire section

    Type s section number. For example, type s3
    Noncontiguous sections

    Type the section numbers with commas between them. For example, type s3,s5
    A range of pages across sections

    Type a range of page numbers and the sections that contain them with a hyphen between the starting and ending numbers in the range. For example, type p2s2-p3s5



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    Wednesday, November 11, 2015

    Graphics from the '50s

    Remember it the way you want to


    Original fifties clipart? Just in time for the holidays, some Ozzie and Harriet style pics.



    "Most communities in the fifties had small town print shops that doubled as printers of local news and advertising papers. These printers could not afford graphic artists so they used stock clipart supplied by large companies who distributed common graphics for use in advertising sections of the papers. They were provided for the printer in lots of categories to meet any advertiser's needs."

    Retrographix.com


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    Thursday, November 05, 2015

    Merge Pictures

    Different picture to every letter in a mail merge



    A variation of this technique could also be used with an IF statement to display different pictures based on some criteria, such as Zip code.
    1. Open the Excel worksheet that you use as the mail merge data source.

    2. Insert a new column that has a column heading such as Picture.

    3. For each row of the Excel worksheet, insert in the Picture column the path and the file name of the picture that you want to use for that record of the data source. Additionally, enclose the path and the file name in quotation marks (").

      For example, copy the path and the file name of the picture in Windows Explorer. Then, paste the path and file name into the Excel worksheet.

      Note The path and the file name of each picture in the Picture column will appear similar to the following example:


      "C:\Documents and Settings\username\My Documents\My Pictures\foldername\filename.jpg"

    4. On the Edit menu, click Replace. Then, replace each instance of a single slash mark (\) with double slash marks (\\) in each path.

      For example, each path should now look similar to the following example:

      "C:\\Documents and Settings\\username\\My Documents\\My Pictures\\foldername\\filename.jpg"

    5. Save and then close the Excel worksheet. Then, quit Excel.
    In Word, follow these steps:
    1. Open the mail merge main document.

    2. If the Excel data source is not attached, attach the data source. To do this, go to Step 3 of 6 in the Mail Merge task pane. Click Browse, and then attach the Excel data source.

    3. Click Next: Write your letter.

    4. In the mail merge main document, move the insertion point to the location where you want the picture to appear.

    5. On the Insert menu, click Field.

    6. In the Field dialog box, click IncludePicture under Field names, and then click OK.

      Note You may receive the following error message:

      Error! Filename not specified

    7. Press ALT+F9 to display the field codes in the mail merge main document. You will see a field that is similar to the following field:

      { INCLUDEPICTURE \* MERGEFORMAT }

    8. Move the insertion point into the field immediately following INCLUDEPICTURE.

    9. Press the SPACEBAR, and then click More items on the Mail Merge task pane.

    10. In the Insert Merge Field dialog box, click the picture merge field, such as Picture, and then click Insert.

    11. Click Close to close the Insert Merge Field dialog box.

      The INCLUDEPICTURE field should now look similar to the following field:

      { INCLUDEPICTURE { MERGEFIELD "Picture" } \* MERGEFORMAT }

    12. Press ALT+F9 to hide the field codes in the mail merge main


    13. Click Next: Preview your letters.


    14. Click Next: Complete the merge.

    15. In the Mail Merge task pane, click Edit individual letters.

    16. In the Merge to New Document dialog box, click OK.

    17. On the Edit menu in the merged document, click Select All.

    18. Press F9 to update the fields in the merged document.
      (Word mail merges are not dynamic)

    19. To print your letters from the merged document, click Print on the File menu. Each printed letter will contain the picture that you specified in the Excel data source.
    Knowledgebase #909132:
    Different picture to every letter in a mail merge


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    Saturday, October 31, 2015

    Almost All You Need to Know

    Collection of Word explanations



    Shauna Kelly is a Microsoft Word MVP.

    She has compiled a gathering of important Word how to's and whys.
    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?


    Making the most of Word in your business:
    Microsoft Word FAQ


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    Saturday, October 24, 2015

    Clip Art Gallery

    Sprinkle carefully


    Judicious use of Clip art can spice up a document. Here's an article about how to customize existing pictures including:
    • Display clip-related toolbars
    • Customizing your clip art
    • Cropping
    • Sizing
    • Adding text wrapping
    • Blurring
    • Rotating and flipping
    • Adding a drop shadow
    Edit clip art in Word


     

    Halloween clips


    See all Topics

    Thursday, October 22, 2015

    Split View

    Top and bottom


    If you need to look at more than one part of a document at once, consider splitting the window.

    To split the current window, just go to Window>Split from the main menu.
    (View>Split in 2007)

    Another way is to use the splitter control between the file tab channel and the scroll bar for the doc.



    To create new windows for the same document, just go to Window>New Window and create as many views on the same document as you would like. (View>New Window in 2007)


    Split Screen Feature - Word 2013


    See all Topics

    Friday, October 02, 2015

    Background Printing

    Yes, you can!


    Remember back in the old days of Word before 2003?

    We would demonstrate how a background color or theme could be applied to a document. Then say something like, "But you can only see it on the screen."

    That changed with 2003 and '07.

    Go to Tools>Options.
    (Word 2007+
    Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Word Options.On the Display menu, click to select the Print background colors and images check box under Printing Options, and then click OK.)

    Go to the Print tab and on the Include with document section,
    put a check next to "Background colors and images" and click OK.



    Now when you apply Theme formatting it will be printed as well as the text.
    (A caveat might be that on a black and white printer, the result can appear muddy)

    To apply a theme to a document go to Format>Theme. These are the same themes (colors, graphics and fonts) used in FrontPage.

    This Knowledgebase article also offers suggestions on how to get around the problem in Word 2002.
    Word 2003 or Word 2002 document that includes a background


    See all Topics

    Monday, September 28, 2015

    Merge Formatting

    $ lost


    The data in Access or Excel has been formatted. You have leading zeros, percents, currency is formatted and so on.

    Word 2000+, however loses the formatting when a mail merge is attempted.

    Here's a fix.

    Word has three potential data access methods, the "old fashioned" ODBC or DDE and the newer OLE DB.

    ODBC and OLE DB can, quickly, extract data from a source application without opening the program. The application does not even have to be installed.

    The downside is that these methods do not transfer the formatting in the data file. Individual MERGEFIELDs need to be formatted in Word.

    DDE can be used with Excel and Access. It communicates with the source and carries the formatting into the target document. This is how it worked before Word 2002.

    To have a choice go to:
    Tools>Options>General "Confirm Conversions at Open"

    When you connect to the Data Source, a dialog box will give you the opportunity to choose the type of connection to use.


    If you don't see DDE, check Show all.
    Also see:

    Cindy Meister:
    Mail Merge FAQ

    Here are some other Mail Merge resources:
    Mail Merge Links


    See all Topics

    Monday, September 14, 2015

    Certificate of Anything

    Make your own


    Give your kid an award for not setting the house on fire in the last 24 hours.

    Make a formal presentation to your dog for scaring away imaginary burglars.

    The desktop publishing power of your computer can create official (looking) honors.

    Here's a collection of free templates:

    Southworth.com
    Free Award And Certificate Templates


    EducationWorld.com:
    Award Certificates


    Office.microsoft.com:
    Certificates
    (86 Certificates, labels, etc. Word, PowerPoint, and Publisher)


    See all Topics

    Monday, September 07, 2015

    WordPerfect?

    Word!


    I used to ask "How many have ever used WordPerfect?" Over the years it has gone from about 50% to blank stares.

    WordPerfect (WP) couldn't bring itself to accept the existence of Windows, and Microsoft ran past, taking over the market.

    Word is Object-Oriented, WordPerfect is Stream-Formatted.
    "What does this mean? Well, this basically means that when you make a change to a WordPerfect document, the changes take effect 'From THAT Point Forward'. You generally don't need to select an Object (e.g., a word, sentence, or a paragraph) in order to effect a change. You can simply select a color, a font, a paragraph style, etc, and the whole document will be affected (as stated, from that point forward). Stream Formatted is, as you can imagine, like a stream of formatting that flows throughout the document.

    Word, on the other hand, is object-oriented. Every letter, word, sentence, and paragraph is an object. To help people grasp the concept of object-oriented programming, Microsoft uses a simple analogy: oranges. You can imagine that an orange has several attributes that can be changed: it has a color, a texture, etc. It can be changed by being painted or peeled. Therefore, once you understand that you need to select an object when you want to manipulate your Word document, you begin to understand how to work in Word."

    WP vs. Word

    WP is still around. Mostly used in the legal profession by those who still bemoan the loss of powdered wigs.

    Here are some references:

    The history of WordPerfect:
    Almost Perfect
    (a book by W. E. Peterson)

    Wikipedia:
    WordPerfect


    See all Topics

    Sunday, August 30, 2015

    Too Many Slices

    More data than the pie will hold


    A pie chart displays the per cent of the whole is represented by the component elements. Four salesmen, four slices of pie.

    The problem arises when there are 10 or so components that vary in size. The labels begin to overlap and the chart is difficult to read:


    One suggestion that Chris Weber offers is to rearrange the order of the slices:


    The article uses MS Graph in Access, but the techniques are applicable in all the other applications that can use graphs.

    SmartAccess:
    Easy as Pie. . .

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

    (A downloadable example file is also provided


    See all Topics

    Friday, August 28, 2015

    Redact That!

    Redact that!

    Weapon of Mass Obfuscation


    "Redaction is the careful editing of a document to remove confidential information.

    The Microsoft Office Word 2003 Redaction Add-in makes it easy for you to mark sections of a document for redaction. You can then redact the document so that the sections you specified are blacked out. You can either print the redacted document or use it electronically.

    Sensitive government documents, confidential legal documents, insurance contracts, and other sensitive documents are often redacted before being made available to the public. With the Word 2003+ Redaction Add-in, users of Microsoft Office Word 2003+ now have an effective, user-friendly tool to help them redact confidential text in Word documents."

    The redacted document can be protected and saved. The add-in creates a copy of the original, so original material is still available.



    Hide Information:
    OfficeWatch.com

    Word 2003 Redaction download


    Word 2007 Redaction Tool


    See all Topics

    Friday, August 21, 2015

    Wildcards

    Seek and find


    When you are looking for a particular word or file, wildcards can be used to refine the search.

    An asterisk (*) can be used to represent any number of characters. A search for pop* would return popsicle, popcorn, pop1, pop2, pop37, pop29, and pop's favorite chair.

    A question mark (?) is a stand-in for a single character. Popc??? would bring back only the word popcorn. Pop? searches for pop1 and pop2, but not pop37 etc.

    That's a simple look at wildcards. Word has a rich variety of symbols that can do quite complex search and replace operations.

    Here are some links to more detailed discussions:

    Word MVP:
    Using Wildcards

    Felgall Pty Ltd:
    Sydney, AustraliaWildcard information

    Graham Mayor:
    Find and Replace


    See all Topics

    Tuesday, August 11, 2015

    Custom Dictionary

    Spell it the way you want to!


    Although Office has its own dictionary, it probably does not contain all the words and jargon that you use. If this is the case, you can add your own frequently used terms, and names to the dictionary.
    1. Open Word
    2. From the Tools menu, click Options
      (See link below for 2007)
    3. Select the Spelling and Grammar tab
    4. Click the Custom Dictionaries button
    5. Place a check beside the dictionary you want to modify
    6. Click the Modify button
    7. In the Word field, type in the word you want to add to the dictionary and click the Add button Click OK
    8. Click OK to close the Custom Dictionaries dialog box
    9. Click OK to close the Options dialog box
    If you want to remove a word from the dictionary, complete steps 1 through 7. Select the word you want to remove and click the Delete button.
    The Custom.dic file is a text file. You can create it or edit it using notepad.
    Multiple dictionaries can be created for special purposes, like a list of employee names.
    The Custom.dic file is used by all of the Office applications that do Spell checking.
    How to add a custom dictionary in Word

    About.com: Working With Dictionaries in Word

    Microsoft.com How to create an exclude dictionary in Word

    Copy the Custom Dictionary to a Floppy Disk and Use It on Other Computers

    Error when you add a word to the custom dictionary


    See all Topics

    Tuesday, July 21, 2015

    List All Files

    All files in a folder


    Here is a macro that will produce a list of all the files in a selected folder.
    • The folder name for the listed files
    • The file names of the files found
    • The file sizes of the files found
    • The dates and times of the files found
    • The total number of files listed
    Macro to List All Files in a Folder


    See all Topics

    Wednesday, July 15, 2015

    Free Photos

    and other graphics


    Robin Good has compiled a list of places that provide royalty free images.
    " Finding quality images and photos for complementing an important article, essay or news report is already quite a challenge for many. Imagine when the goal is not just too find good images, but find some that you could openly and freely use without needing to pay royalties or one-time publishing rights to someone."

    Free Photographs and Other Visuals

    A dozen sources are listed including:
    PD Photo.org
    "PDPhoto.org is a repository for free public domain photos. Unless something is clearly marked as being copyrighted, you can assume it is free to use. But if you intend to use an image you find here for commercial use, please be aware that standards for such use are higher. Specifically, you should assume no model release was obtained. And pictures featuring products or property should be used with care. The photos are here to be used, but I don't want you to get either of us in trouble over it."



    Copyright Information


    See all Topics

    Monday, July 13, 2015

    Microsoft Word 2007-2013 Tutorials

    How it's done


    Microsoft Office Online:
    "It's time to get up to speed with Microsoft Office Word 2013. Learn the best ways to use the new Ribbon, get a handle on finding popular commands, and understand what the new file format does for you."

    Microsoft Word 2013 Tutorial

    Word 2010 for 2003 Upgraders

    Also:

    BayconGroup.com:

    Microsoft Word 2007 Tutorial


    See all Topics

    Sunday, July 05, 2015

    Word Form or Content

    Shape or substance



    "The legibility of a typeface should not be evaluated on its ability to generate a good word shape.

    Word shape is no longer a viable model of word recognition. The bulk of scientific evidence says that we recognize a word's component letters, then use that visual information to recognize a word. In addition to perceptual information, we also use contextual information to help recognize words during ordinary reading, but that has no bearing on the word shape versus parallel letter recognition debate. "

    The science of word recognition
    by Kevin Larson
    From EyeMagazine
    Suggested by:
    Microsoft Typography

    Also see:
    Cmabrigde


    See all Topics

    Monday, June 29, 2015

    Legal User's Guide

    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

    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.


    See all Topics

    Tuesday, June 23, 2015

    Unicode

    Index resource

    "Have you ever tried to include a passage in a different alphabet in one of your documents, for example a quotation in Russian in an English document, only to find that you have no Cyrillic characters available? Or sent a Spanish document in electronic form to someone in Greece, only to be told that the accented Latin characters have been replaced by Greek characters? Or produced a Web page that includes technical symbols and found that it works with Windows but not with Mac OS or Unix?"
    Alan Wood's Unicode Resources
    —

    Unicode fonts for Windows computers

    From the Word Help file:

    If you know the Unicode (hexadecimal) value of a character, you can use the ALT+X keyboard shortcut to enter the character directly in your document.

    Type the Unicode (hexadecimal) value of the character. Press ALT+X.
    Note: The value string can also begin with U+.

    Microsoft Word replaces the string to the left of the insertion point with the character you specified.

    You can also use ALT+X to display the Unicode character code for a particular character. Place the insertion point to the right of the character, and then press ALT+X. The character is replaced by its character code. Press ALT+X again to switch back to the character.

    • Љ — Hex=0409
    • א — Hex=05D0
    • ئ — Hex=0626

    Editorium.com:
    How to use Unicode characters in Microsoft Word

    Also see:
    Unicode Fonts and Keyboard
    —
    Unicode Macros


    See all Topics

    Tuesday, June 16, 2015

    Sequentially Number Documents

    Budget0056.doc


    Here's an example of how to use an external text file to record incremental numbering.
    "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:

    Using Sequential Document Serial Numbers
    (Allen Wyatt)

    Also see:

    Autonumber Invoices


    See all Topics

    Friday, June 12, 2015

    Special Characters

    The other letters


    • Ctrl+'
      Adds an acute accent to the character typed next

      Á


    • Ctrl+'
      When followed by d or D, creates the old English character "eth"

      Ð


    • Ctrl+`
      Adds a grave accent to the character typed next

      À


    • Ctrl+^
      Adds a circumflex to the character typed next

      Â


    • Ctrl+~
      Adds a tilde to the character typed next

      Ã


    • Ctrl+:
      Adds a dieresis or umlaut to the character typed next

      Ä


    • Ctrl+@
      Adds a degree symbol above the letters a and A; used primarily in Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish

      Å


    • Ctrl+&
      Creates combination or Germanic characters based on the character typed next

      Æ

      or

      ß


    • Ctrl+,
      Adds a cedilla to the character typed next

      Ç


    • Ctrl+/
      Adds a slash through the letters o and O; used primarily in Danish and Norwegian

      Ø


    • Alt+Ctrl+?
      Creates an inverted question mark

      ¿


    • Alt+Ctrl+!
      Creates an inverted exclamation mark

      ¡


    Also see: Word MVPS.org:
    How can I insert special characters, such as dingbats and accented letters, in my document? Article contributed by Suzanne S. Barnhill


    See all Topics

    Wednesday, June 10, 2015

    Typography for the rest of us

    Real world fonts


    Choosing a type face can be fun, but also overwhelming.

    You want to convey the message without obscuring the thoughts in an avalanche of weird shapes.

    Cameron Moll has a web site/Blog called Authentic Boredom; his "platitudinous web home."

    Recently he explored:

    The non-typographer's guide to practical typeface selection
    "I honestly believe typeface selection is one of the most transparent ways of detecting good - and bad - design. You can tell plenty about a designer merely by the typefaces he/she chooses. So you'd be wise to start with trusted faces, and you'd be even wiser to know something about the history of each typeface."


    Also see:
    Who was that font I saw you with last night?


    See all Topics

    Sunday, June 07, 2015

    AutoRecover

    Recover zapped files


    You can use the AutoRecover feature in Word to recover a Word document if your computer loses power or if an application error occurs while you are working in a document.

    To set the AutoRecover feature in Word:

    1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
    2. Choose the Save tab and select the "Save AutoRecover info every" check box.
    Set the minutes box to the desired time interval between AutoRecover saves.



    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?


    In Word 2007+ it's under "Office button">Word options> Save.

    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

    Friday, May 29, 2015

    Don't Check Spelling

    Avoid the squiggles


    Omitting text selections from Word's spell checking process

    If you frequently include macro code listings or other chunks of cryptic information in your documents, Word's spell checker is likely to have a field day pointing out unrecognized words.

    You can make Word's spell checker skip over code listings and other information that it is likely not to recognize by applying the No Proofing language setting.
    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."



    See all Topics

    Wednesday, May 27, 2015

    Signing Macros

    Security levels


    There are three levels of Macro security:

    High:
    A computer user can open without a prompt a digitally signed project from a trusted publisher. Otherwise, the application blocks opening signed projects from untrusted publishers as well as unsigned projects.
    Medium:
    A computer user can open without a prompt a digitally signed project from a trusted publisher. In addition, you can also designate the publisher of a signed project as trusted so their projects will open without a prompt in the future. Unsigned projects are always prompted with a reminder that the file may contain potentially harmful code, but users can elect to open them anyway.
    Low:
    A computer user can open an unsigned project without a prompt. When users make a Low security setting, they're reminded that they aren't protected from potentially unsafe macros.
    Securing Access Databases
    "If you've used Access 2003, you've probably seen several security warning messages - Access 2003 cares about your security. An important part of Access 2003 security is digitally signing your code. As Rick Dobson shows, you can do it, but preparing for digital signing is critical.

    A digital signature acts like shrink-wrap on your project: Clients know that they're getting a copy directly from you that no one else modified. Clients will also know that they're working with "your" code and not any version of it modified by a third party. As computing moves forward into a "security conscious" era, learning how to acquire and use a digital certificate is also important for interfacing with organizations that adopt policies of only running digitally signed Access 2003 projects: Your users may refuse to accept software from you that isn't shrink-wrapped."
    Also:
    Signing Access Projects
    Other links:

    How to make sure that your Office document has a valid digital signature in 2007 Office products and in Office 2003


    See all Topics

    Friday, May 22, 2015

    Sequentially Number Invoices

    Creating sequentially numbered documents


    Use an Autonew macro to add a sequential number to a document and save it with that number.

    In the template from which you create the document, insert a bookmark named Order in the location where you want the sequential number to appear and create an AutoNew macro, as follows:

    
    Sub AutoNew()
    Order = System.PrivateProfileString("C:\Settings.Txt", "MacroSettings", "Order")
    If Order = "" Then
    Order = 1
    Else
    Order = Order + 1
    End If
    System.PrivateProfileString("C:\Settings.txt", "MacroSettings", "Order") = Order
    ActiveDocument.Bookmarks("Order").Range.InsertBefore Format(Order, "00#")
    ActiveDocument.SaveAs FileName:="path" & Format(Order, "00#")
    End Sub 


    If you do not need to display the number in the document, but just want to save it with a sequential number, there is no need to create the bookmark in the template and you should then delete the second last line of the code.

    Article contributed by Doug Robbins
    Word MVP Site


    Microsoft Knowledgebase:
    Macro to Increment Invoice Number to New Form Document


    See all Topics

    Monday, May 18, 2015

    Customize Envelopes

    Your own #10


    The default layout for envelopes is not sacrosanct to anyone but the postal service.
    You can move objects around; add text and pictures.

    GMayor.com:
    Changing Word Envelope Layouts
    Graham Mayor

    PC Magazine.com
    Custom Envelopes in Word


    Microsoft Support:
    Create and print envelopes for a mass mailing
    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."



    See all Topics

    Monday, May 11, 2015

    Personal Information

    Clean it up


    If you have enabled the "Allow fast saves" feature, earlier versions of your document, that you thought had been deleted, may still be readable.

    If the document was edited with "Track Changes" enabled, a name is associated with each change. You can get rid of all the personal information with a few simple settings.

    Choose Options from the Tools menu, click on the Save tab, and uncheck the box labeled "Allow fast saves". Now click on the Security tab and check the box titled "Remove personal information from this file on save".

    In Word 2003 the check box's title is: "Remove personal information from file properties on save". When you save the file, the Author, Manager, Company, and Last saved by fields are cleared. Names in comments or edits are changed to simply Author. Any routing slip or e-mail header information is also removed. If the document contains tracked changes, you may want to accept them all before saving.

    The Allow fast saves option is global. The Remove personal information option is specific to the current file and is present only in Word 2002 and later. If you want that option to be the default, click on the File Locations tab in the Tools> Options dialog and note the folder containing user templates. In that folder, open the file Normal.dot. Check the Remove personal information box as noted above, then save and close the file. All new files created from this point on will have that feature enabled by default.

    Also see:
    Charles Kenyon's Word Users Guide:

    Confidentiality and MetaData in Word Documents


    See all Topics

    Wednesday, May 06, 2015

    Kearning

    More typography


    At larger point sizes, it is aesthetically pleasing to move some letters closer together than they would normally appear. For instance, the word "To". The letter "o" can be nudged under the arm of the "T":


    Kerning
    Adjusting (increasing or decreasing) the space between adjoining type characters.
    Kearning pair
    Two adjoining type characters to which a particular kearning value is applied.
    Kearning value
    The space between two adjoining type characters. This value is usually measured in em.

    From the Word Help file:
    1. Select the text you want to change.
    2. On the Format menu, click Font, and then click the Character Spacing tab.
    3. Do one of the following:
      • Expand or condense space evenly between all the selected characters

        Click Expanded or Condensed in the Spacing box, and then specify how much space you want in the By box.

      • Kern characters that are above a particular point size

        Select the Kerning for fonts check box, and then enter the point size in the Points and above box.
    Note: Selecting Expanded or Condensed alters the spacing between all selected letters by the same amount. Kerning alters the spacing between particular pairs of letters.

    Microsoft Typography: A Disagreeably Facetious Type Glossary
    WebStyleGuide.com: Webstyle Guide - Typography
    About.com: Typography Tutorials
    Typographica a journal of typography featuring news, observations, and open commentary on fonts and typographic design. Here's the RSS connection: Typographica Feed


    See all Topics

    Thursday, April 30, 2015

    Mail Merge

    Personalize mass mailing

    Mail merging creates multiple copies of the same document and inserts data from an external file or database. For example, printing a form letter for different recipients and including each recipient's name.
    Word mail merge

    FAQ about the mail merge feature in Word 2003 and in Word 2007-10 will help you learn how to use Mail Merge to create form letters, mailing labels, envelopes, or catalogs. It can also help you troubleshoot problems; and provides step-by-step instructions.

    The Word MVP site has some more suggestions.

    About.com:
    Mail Merge
    Creating Documents With Mail Merge

    Cindy Meister:
    Mail Merge FAQ


    See all Topics

    Sunday, April 26, 2015

    Address Layout

    Custom layout


    When you use the Outlook as a source for addresses, you can customize the display to suit your own needs.

    When you use the Insert Address button in the Envelopes and Labels dialog box it does not use the same format as the Insert Address button.

    Here's the location to put the Address book on the Quick Access Toolbar in 2007-10:



    Here's the work around:
    Insert Address Button Does Not Use AddressLayout AutoText Entry

    MacroButton; scroll down to Insert Address from Outlook.



    Here are two sources with directions about how to reformat the AutoText entry: "AddressLayout".

    Slipstick.com
    Inserting Addresses into Microsoft Word Documents

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


    See all Topics

    Friday, April 24, 2015

    All Fonts

    List maker



    Here is a macro that will produce a list of all of the installed fonts.


    1. Open Word.
    2. Use Alt+F11 to open the Visual Basic editor.
    3. Choose Insert>Module from the Menu.
    4. Copy and Paste this code in the module.
    5. Return to Word and go to: Tools>Macro>Macros.
    6. Select and run "InstalledFonts".
    Sub InstalledFonts()
    
    Dim F As Integer
    Dim InstalledFonts As Table
    
     'Open a fresh document
    
    Set FreshDoc = Documents.Add
    
    'Create a table and define the header
    
    Set InstalledFonts = FreshDoc.Tables.Add(Selection.Range, FontNames.Count + 1, 2)
    With InstalledFonts
    .Borders.Enable = False
    .Cell(1, 1).Range.Font.Name = "Arial"
    .Cell(1, 1).Range.Font.Bold = 1
    .Cell(1, 1).Range.InsertAfter "Font Name"
    .Cell(1, 2).Range.Font.Bold = 1
    .Cell(1, 2).Range.InsertAfter "Example"
    End With
    
    'Loop through all the fonts and add them to the table
    
    For F = 1 To FontNames.Count
    With InstalledFonts
    .Cell(F + 1, 1).Range.Font.Name = "Arial"
    .Cell(F + 1, 1).Range.Font.Size = 10
    .Cell(F + 1, 1).Range.InsertAfter FontNames(F)
    .Cell(F + 1, 2).Range.Font.Name = FontNames(F)
    .Cell(F + 1, 2).Range.Font.Size = 10
    .Cell(F + 1, 2).Range.InsertAfter "ABCDEFG abcdefg 1234567890 &$@"
    End With
    Next F
    'Sort the names of the fonts
    
    InstalledFonts.Sort SortOrder:=wdSortOrderAscending
    
    End Sub

    Also see a more sophisticated macro using Excel from Erlandsen Data Consulting: Display all installed fonts (Excel)


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    Thursday, April 16, 2015

    Formatting/Layout Suggestions

    Publisher/Word


    From the Word MVPS.org site:
    Typographical Tips from Microsoft Publisher

    ..."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."



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