A couple of words about why I did not even describe the unique features of Microsoft Word. The article ripened in my head slowly. Time after time, I had to describe the same capabilities of the editor to my colleagues and loved ones. Their undisguised insight surprise from what I saw and prompted me to write this material. I hope that you will also learn something new for yourself.
1. Start typing anywhere
The “Click and Write” function is not new, but not all of them have heard about it. Often you have to observe how a person clicks the “Enter” button many times to get to the end of the page and there, for example, to enter the letter’s executor.
Double-click a mouse can replace a dozen strokes on the key.
Hover your cursor over the intended location and make a couple of quick mouse clicks. Word itself will put new lines, tabs and notices for the place that you indicated to it. This is clearly visible when viewing hidden formatting signs.
2. Translate directly
Ask your neighbor about what kind of translator he prefers, and you will most likely hear about Google, Yandex, PROMT, but hardly about Bing. For some reason, Microsoft’s proprietary translator is not very popular in our region. And in vain, because the quality of his work is quite enough for everyday needs. Of course, Office offers a quick text translation using Bing. I recommend you try it.
Quite probably, you will cease to rush between the browser and Word, endlessly copying and pasting sentences back and forth.
To your choice, dozens of languages and three ways of translation. You can find them on the “Review” tab.
3. Use kerning
Designers well know what kerning is, and they often operate on text wrapping. In simple terms, kerning is responsible for the spacing (distance) between letters, depending on their shape. Changing this parameter can compress or expand the same word, sentence, or paragraph in comparison to the standard state. I’ve seen people start to delete part of the text or, on the contrary, “pour water” only to fit it in certain frames. Kerning solves such problems more exquisitely. Of course, a rough game with him severely cuts the eye, but minor manipulations may be appropriate.
Changing the kerning will be useful when using large fonts, for example, when preparing title pages for books, articles, or reports.
Press Ctrl + D combination to open the “Font” dialog box, go to the second tab “Advanced”. Here you can be pampered with kerning. And a little more in the topic. I just want to introduce you to interesting KernType browser game, in which you need to guess the best for reading kerning. Enjoy!
4. Use the hidden text
Can an empty Word document weigh tens and hundreds of megabytes? Yes! And in many cases, there is a clouding of the mind. People do not see a single word before their eyes, but they can not understand why the file is so large? Evil viruses or harmful hackers? No. It’s all about hidden information. It can be graphics, pictures and text.
Like non-printable characters, hidden data is not displayed on the screen and not printed, but they are still part of the document.
With the help of hidden text you can:
- Temporarily hide confidential information.
- Leave comments or give answers to questions that should not be mixed with the main text.
- Print out several versions of the same document, alternately hiding its different parts. In this case, you do not have to contact several copies of the file!
Select some or all of the text, press Ctrl + D and check the option “Hidden”. The fragment disappears and becomes available for viewing only in the mode of displaying nonprinting characters. For clarity, the hidden data is underlined by a line of black dots.
5. Use the “Document inspector” function before saving
Old Word can not open the file or displays it incorrectly? It is familiar to everyone and everyone! Such troubles around me happen with frightening regularity, because many organizations and people are still working in Office 2003. Therefore, before sending and / or saving a document, it should be checked for compatibility with previous versions of Word. The Inspector of Documents is responsible for this.
Also, he can start checking the readability of text for people with disabilities and, importantly, finding hidden properties and data in the document.
For example, the function determines the presence of macros, embedded documents, invisible content and other potentially problematic file elements.
6. Edit PDF
The abundance of options is not always beneficial. Working with PDF is a vivid example of this. Sometimes people are lost even when choosing the tool that they want to process a PDF file. Here, and classic Adobe Reader, and alternative Foxit Reader, and any more or less modern browser, and many more online services. However, one of the most successful ways lies on the surface – this is the hero of our article.
Word 2013 not only opens, but also allows you to edit the contents of a PDF document.
The editor converts text, tables, lists, graphics and other elements into a DOCX file, preserving the formatting of the original as accurately as possible. It should be noted that it turns out he is very, very worthy. Also, you can add PDF files to a Word document as an embedded object. In this case, only the first PDF page or the file link icon will be displayed.
7. Insert the video
It’s no secret that a long review of the dry text quickly reduces attention and leads to loss of interest in the reader. That’s why almost all the students, lecturers and office workers dilute the lines with diagrams, tables, graphs and other visual tricks. However, only a few take on a much more powerful tool – video.
Word can insert videos from a Bing search into a document, add YouTube videos and embed codes from various websites.
And do not worry about the final size of the file. The document does not save the video itself, but only draws its link into a visual form. Of course, you need an internet connection to view.
8. Work on the document together and comment on the edits
Remember the words of the classic: “What one will not do – we’ll do together”? They are relevant to this day. Only not everyone understands how to properly build a joint work. Unfortunately, it is still possible to see how a person selects a piece of text with some color, then in brackets appends his editorial or objections and sends the document back. At such moments, the nervous twitching of the century begins. The latest version of Word allows you to easily comment and make edits to a public file. This must be used!
Word 2013 gives an opportunity to respond to other people’s comments, which makes the editor an excellent tool for discussion in group work.
Spend a few minutes studying the “Review” tab, share new skills with colleagues, and you will fully experience the ease of working together.
9. Simplify the work with tables
Let me guess, do you still insert rows and columns of the table with a right-click and transition to the corresponding menu item? Everything is much simpler!
Move the cursor just above / below (to the left / right) of the place where you plan to add a row or column. Word immediately prompts you to increase the table.
By the way, the latest version of the editor has got several new functions for creating tables. Update your knowledge.
10. Merge the parts of the document into blocks
What is a sin to hide, there are such workers who are ready to flip through 100+ pages of the document just for the sake of killing time. If you want to navigate quickly in voluminous files, you need to master several keyboard shortcuts for lightning navigation or to properly structure your work.
Using headings of different levels allows you to minimize the elements of the document that you are not currently working on.
Place the cursor next to the title, and the program prompts you to collapse the contents of the block. Thus, even the most enormous works can fit just a couple of pages.
Did you find anything interesting for yourself? Just in case, read the Lifehacker article on 20 secrets of Word, which will help simplify your work. Or give your advice in the comments.
