Microsoft Word Tips, Tricks & Templates » Templates

How To Create Conditional Images In Microsoft Word

Editor — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 17:55:35 +0000

You can put Conditional Images in Microsoft Word documents, so that when a user performs one action, an image appears. This saves you having to create two pieces of text for each condition.

Why Create Conditional Images In Microsoft Word

Let’s say you have a User Guide and you want to show different images depending on what the user does. You could create another chapter and show what happens if/when the user performs one action. Or you could put conditional images into the Microsoft Word file so different images appear depending on what the user does.

Sound complicated? It’s not really.

Using Macros to Create Conditional Images

Here’s what to do:

Create a Style for each condition.
Create a macro that hides or shows that conditions on need.
When you insert the graphic, style it by Condition.

For example, we will create UserGuideBasic and UserGuideAdvanced and style them accordingly:

Make two paragraph styles: UGB and UGV.
Make two macros (one to hide UGB, the other to hide UGV).
Make a button for each.
Enter the graphic and style the paragraph to UGB.
Click the button to hide UGV and make it disappear.

Next Steps

You can use Macros to all type of weird and wonderful things with your User Guides and other technical documents.

Let me know what other Macro tricks you know.

About the Author: Ivan Walsh provides new technical writing tips every day. Make sure to get his free tips, tools, and templates at http://www.ihearttechnicalwriting.com/

How to change MS Word’s default color White to Blue

Editor — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:06:30 +0000

You can change the background color of Microsoft Word from White to Blue.

For some people, this makes it easier on the eye as it reduces the glare from the screen.

I have to admit, I prefer blue to white but have difficulties when adding images or inserting text with different color schemes.

Anyway, it’s a nice option to have. Here’s how I do it:

1. From the Tools menu, choose Options.

2. Click Blue Background, White Text.

That’s it!

How to Add Special Effects to your Next Business Report

Editor — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:16:05 +0000

How do I animate text in a Word Document? For example, to make dancing ants or add sparkles to the text.

1. Select the text you want to animate.

2. Click Format, Font, and then the Text Effects tab.

3. In the Animations box, click the effect you want, for example Sparkle Text.

You can preview the animation in the box at the bottom of the menu.

Only one animation effect can be selected at a time.

How to Create Keyboard Shortcuts in MS Word

Editor — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 16:03:25 +0000

Want to know how to Create Keyboard Shortcuts in MS Word?

In MS Word you can assign frequently used commands to a keyboard shortcut. To create a shortcut, follow these steps:

1. Right-click in the toolbar area.

2. Select Customize and click the Keyboard button.

3. To auto fix a table’s content, highlight Table on the Categories list, and then click AutoFixContent in the Commands window.

4. Type the keyboard combination into the Press new shortcut key box.

5. Click Assign.

If this combination is already in use, Word will advise you to find another combination or replace an existing one.

Did this work for you?

Why you MUST learn how to create a macro in MS Word 2002/2003/2007

Editor — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 08:25:59 +0000

One of the hidden features in Microsoft Word is macros. These are small mini-programs that you can create to automate tasks, for example, formatting a document, changing the layout or updating styles.

What is a macro? A macro is a series of commands and instructions that you group together as a single command to accomplish a task automatically.

Read why you MUST learn how to create a macro?

Why create a macro?

It makes your life that much easier. You can setup a macro to:

Automate a complex series of tasks
Combine multiple commands — for example, to insert a table with a specific size and borders, and with a specific number of rows and columns
Make an option in a dialog box more accessible
Speed up editing and document formatting

To do this, you can use the macro recorder in Word to record a sequence of actions, or you can create a macro from scratch by entering Visual Basic for Applications. The Visual Basic Editor contains a complete debugging toolset for finding syntax, run-time, and logic problems in your code.

If it sound’s intimidating, don’t be alarmed. If I can do this, you can.

How to create macros in Word 2007

To work with macros in Office Word 2007, you need to have the Developer tab displayed. This is turned off by default.

Here is how you turn it on.

To show the Developer tab in Word 2007:

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button (top left corner in Word) and then click Word Options.

2. Click Popular.

3. Select the Show Developer tab in the Ribbon check box.

The Developer tab is now displayed to the far right of the ribbon.

How to record a macro

1. Click on the Developer tab, then in the Code area, click Record Macro.

2. In the Macro name box, type a name for the macro.

Careful! If you name the new macro the same as a built-in macro in Word 2007, the new macro actions will replace the built-in macro.

3. In the Store macro in box, click the template or document where you want to store the macro.

Maybe you want to apply the macro to one document only or maybe to all documents. It’s up to you.

4. In the Description box, type a description, for example, Change Fonts to Verdana.

5. Do one of the following:

To save the macro — without assigning it to a button on the Quick Access Toolbar or to the keyboard — click OK.

Otherwise…

To assign the macro to the Quick Access Toolbar:

1. Click the Button icon.

2. Under Customize Quick Access Toolbar, select the document (or all documents) you want to add the macro to the Quick Access Toolbar.

3. Under Choose commands from dialog box, click the macro you’re recording, and click Add.

4. Click OK to begin recording the macro.

To assign the macro to the Keyboard

1. Click Keyboard.

2. In the Commands box, click the macro that you are recording.

3. In the Press new shortcut key box, type the key sequence you want (e.g. A + F4) , and then click Assign.

4. Click Close to begin recording the macro.

5. Perform the actions that you want to include in the macro.

6. When finished recording, click Stop Recording in the Code group.

How to use Visual Basic for Applications

If you need to update the macro, you can go directly into the code and change it through the Visual Basic for Applications editor.

Note that this is not the Visual Basic software that developers use to create applications but is an editor —that is already inside Microsoft Word — which uses a scripting language to update the macro.

If you’re familiar with any scripting language, then you’ll soon figure this out.

1. On the Developer tab, in the Code group, click Macros.

2. In the Macro name box, type a name for the macro.

Tip: If you give a new macro the same name as a built-in macro in Office Word 2007, the new macro actions will replace the built-in macro. To view a list of built-in macros, click Word Commands in the Macros in list.

3. In the Macros in list, click the template or document in which you want to store the macro.

4. Click Create to open the Visual Basic Editor.

How do I run the macro in Word 2007?

You have a few choices.

If you created the macro to run from the menu bar, click the Button you added there.

If you created the macro to run from your keyboard, click the numbers
and/or letters you assigned to the macro, for example, I use F4 to run a formatting macro and F5 to run a macro that changes all the text to US English.

If you setup neither of these, you can run the macro as follows:

1. Click on the Developer tab.

2. Click Macros.

3. Select your macro.

4. Click Run.

This activates the macro. It runs through the actions as per your instructions.

How to create a macro in Word 97/2000/2003

Open a new Word document, and type a few words.

1. Click Tools.

2. Scroll to Macro, and click Record New Macro.

3. Type Test in the Macro Name: window and click OK.

An activity box appears which shows that you are now in Record mode. You can use shortcut keys for the commands you want or you can use your mouse.

4. Select one of the words that you typed before starting the macro.

5. Now (with the word still highlighted) change the font style (example: “Times New Roman” to “Verdana”) and the font size.

6. Remove the highlight from the word by pressing your right-arrow key.

7. Click the square in the CommandBar to close it and stop the Macro recording.

8. Click Tools, Macro, Macros, click Test, and then click Run.

The commands you made while recording your macro will take place when you run the macro!

9. Next, click Tools, Macro, Macros, Test, Edit, File, and then click Save Normal.

You’ve now saved the macro and added it to the list of macros in Word.

Finally, close the Microsoft Visual Basic editor and assign a shortcut key to your new macro, for example, if you want to use it in the future. This is optional. You don’t have to. When you re-open the Macro Editor, you’ll see that the Test macro is still there.

How to test your new macro?

1. Using the example above, click to the right of any word in a document and then run your macro.

2. The font and font size will change automatically, e.g. it will change from Times Roman to Verdana.

You can use the macro recorder to record a sequence of actions, or you can create a macro from scratch by entering Visual Basic for Applications code in the Visual Basic Editor.

My macro doesn’t work?

There could be a few reasons for this.

1. Check if the macro is setup to run in all active templates.

You might have setup the macro to run in the current document only or maybe in the
Normal.Dot file only. Open the macro, check this setting and then re-run.

2. When you record a macro, you MUST use the mouse to click commands and options on Word’s menu bars. You can’t select text.

You MUST use the keyboard to select text.

3. You didn’t assign the macro to a button or to the keyboard.

If you didn’t do this, then you need to go into the Developer tab (far right on Word menu bar
in 2007), click Macros and then select the macro from the list.

Want to learn more?

You MUST read this book on Mastering VBA for Microsoft Office 2007.

Also, try this here and this here and here.

Did your macro work?

I hope so!

If not, let me know what went wrong and we’ll try to fix it.

PS: Where are the built-in macros in Word 2007? To see a list of built-in macros, click on the Developer tab, then Code group, Macros, and Word Commands.

How to Recover Corrupt Microsoft Word documents

Editor — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 09:52:57 +0000

This tutorial explains how to retrieve information from Microsoft Word documents that may have become corrupt. We have provided as many screenshots as possible to show you the steps you need to take. Let’s start.

How to Fix a Corrupted Document

There are several ways to try to correct a corrupted document.

Which method you use depends on the nature and severity of the corruption and the nature of the behavior exhibited. Although many of the methods that follow succeed regularly, not every corrupted document can be recovered.

TIP – getting a clean backup copy of the document is the best way to recover a corrupted document.

1 – Convert to another Format then Convert it Back to Native Format

This is the most complete document recovery method; always try it first.

1 Save the file in RTF file format; this format preserves the formatting in your Word document.

2 Reopen the document in Word

3 Convert it from RTF back into .doc.

If this method succeeds, the file corruption may be removed during conversion.

If the corruption persists after you save the file in RTF file format, save the file in the following file formats:

Other word processing formats
Text Only
HTML

NOTE: Saving files in Text Only format may correct the document corruption problem but all of the document’s formatting will be lost.

This method requires more reformatting; therefore, use it only after other file formats fail to correct the problem.

2 – Copy Everything Except The Last Paragraph Mark To A New Document

Microsoft Word associates a wide variety of formatting with the last paragraph mark, especially section and style formatting.

Click the Show/Hide icon to turn on the page markings. This is the backward P sign you see on the menu.

Copy everything except the last paragraph mark to a new document; fingers crossed and the corruption may be left behind in the original document.

Copy the text into the new document; reapply the formatting.

NOTE: To select everything except the last paragraph mark, press CTRL+END, then CTRL+SHIFT+HOME.

3 – Copy The Uncorrupted Portions Of The Document To A New Document

Sometimes you can determine the location of where the file has been corrupted in your document.

In such cases, copy everything except the corrupted portion to a new file, then use the following steps to reconstruct your document:

1 Copy the uncorrupted portions of your document to a new file.

2 Save a copy of the corrupted document in Text Only format.

3 Open the Text Only file.

4 Copy the text from this file that was in the corrupted section, and paste that text into the file that contains the uncorrupted portion of your document.

5 Reformat the sections you pasted, and then save the recovered document.

4 – Copy Text and Paste As Unformatted Text

If you can open the corrupt document – but the document acts or looks strange – try to:

1 Select and copy the text

2 Create a New document, and

3 Choose Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted Text.

This removes all of the formatting and underlying problems in the document and provides a clean copy of the text. Reformat the text.

5 – Save as a Previous version of Word

If the document can be opened, save it as a Word 6.0 document.

If that is not successful, save it as a Word 2.0 document.

This often allows the file to be recovered without corruption.

6 – Open The Damaged Word Document In Draft Mode

Sometimes you can open a document successfully in Draft mode when it will not open in other views. Once you open the file, you may be able to recover or repair the file.

To switch to Draft mode in Word:

1 Click Normal from the View menu

2 Choose Options from the Tools menu

3 Select the View tab

4 Select the Draft Font option.

7 – Recover Text From Any File

If your Word document will not open and you need to at least get a copy of the text within the document:

1 Choose File, Open.

2 In the Files of type drop-down list, select Recover Text From Any File.

3 Use the Recover Text From Any File option.

WARNING – All formatting, graphics, fields, drawing objects, and so on, will be lost. However, headers, footers, footnotes, endnotes, and field text, will be retained as plain text.

1st Note: If the Recover Text From Any File converter is not installed, you will need to re-run Setup to install this converter.

2nd Note: Remember to reset the Files of Type box back to Word Document (*.doc) after you have recovered the document, otherwise the setting will appear when you re-open Word the next time.

8 – Link a Clean File with a Blank Document and then Change the Link Source To The Damaged Document.

Use the following steps to link and change the link to the damaged file:

1. Create a new document. Type This is a Test or similar wording into it. Save.

2. From the Edit menu, choose Select All.

3. From the Edit menu, choose Copy.

4. From the File menu, choose New.

5. From the Edit menu, choose Paste Special.

6. Select either Unformatted or Formatted text, and click Paste Link.

7. From the Edit menu, choose Links.

8. In the Links dialog box, select the filename of the first linked document and click Change Source.

9. In the Open dialog box appears, you will be asked which document you want to change the link to. Select the document you can no longer open (i.e. that’s corrupted) and click Open Source.

10. Click OK in the Links dialog box.

11. The text from the damaged Document will appear.

12. On the Edit menu, click Links, and select Break Links.

13. You can now reformat and save the recovered text.

This method work as it lets you to open the file if the header area has been damaged.

UPDATE: I have had some success in getting Word docs back to normal by saving

them to HTML and then re-opening them in Word. Then re-save them to .doc. This seems to remove corruptions due to problems with tables, usually caused by too many table styles causing the Normal.dot to crash.

Please let me know if you know any tricks to recover damaged Word documents.

How to Fix Damaged & Corrupt Word 2007 Documents – Part 1

Editor — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:53:37 +0000

This article describes how to identify a damaged document in Microsoft Office Word 2007. It also includes steps that explain how to recover the text contained in a document.

Step 1: Determine the template used by the document

Open the document in Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Word Options.
Click Add-Ins.
In the Manage box, click Templates under View and manage Office add-ins
Click Go.

The Document template box will list the template that is used by the document. If the template listed is Normal, go to step 2, otherwise, go to step 3.

Step 2: Rename Normal.dotm

For Windows Vista

Close Word 2007.
Click the Vista Start icon.
In the Start Search box, type the following and then press ENTER:

%userprofile%\appdata\roaming\microsoft\templates
Right-click Normal.dotm, and then click Rename.
Type Donotuse.old, and then press ENTER.
Close Windows Explorer.
Start Word 2007 and open the document.

Check if the document is now fixed. If not, see below.

For Microsoft Windows XP

Exit Word 2007
Click Start, and then click Run.
In the Open box, type the following and then press ENTER:
%userprofile%\Application Data\Microsoft\Templates
Right-click Normal.dotm, and then click Rename.
Type Donotuse.old, and then press ENTER.
Close Windows Explorer.

The next step is to change the document template.

Step 3: Change the document template

Open the document in Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Word Options.
Click Add-Ins.
In the Manage box, click Templates under View and manage Office add-ins, and then click Go.
Click Attach.
In the Templates folder, click Normal.dotm, and then click Open.
Click OK to close the Templates and Add-ins dialog box.
Close Word 2007

Step 4: Check if changing the templates worked.

Start Word 2007.
Open the document.
Click if the document if fixed.

If the problem persists, go to Method 2.

Method 2: Start Word 2007 with the Default settings

Use the /a switch to start Word 2007. This start Word with its default settings, which stop Word from loading add-ins. Also, Word 2007 won’t use your Normal.dotm template.

Step 1: Start Word 2007 by using the /a switch

Exit Word 2007
Click Start
In the Start Search box, type the following text, and then press ENTER:
“%programfiles%\microsoft office\office12\winword.exe” /a

Windows XP

Exit Word 2007
Click Start, and then click Run.
In the Open box, type the following text, and then press ENTER:
“%programfiles%\microsoft office\office12\winword.exe” /a

Step 2: Open the document

Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the document, and then click Open.

If the strange behavior persists, go to Method 3.

Method 3: Change Printer drivers

Step 1: Try a different printer driver

Windows Vista

Step a: Open Add Printer

Click Start
Click Printers.
Click Add a printer.

Step b: Add a new printer

In the Add Printer dialog box, click Add a local printer.
Click Use an existing port, and then click Next.
In the Manufacturer list, click Microsoft.
Click Microsoft XPS Document Writer, and then click Next.
Click Use the driver that is currently installed (recommended), and then click Next.
Click to select the Set as the default printer check box, and then click Next.
Click Finish.

Windows XP

Step a: Open Add Printer

Click Start, and then click Printers and Faxes.
Under Printer Tasks, click Add a printer.

Step b: Add a new printer

After you install the following patches, the Microsoft XPS Document Writer icon automatically appears in the Printers and FAXes folder.

Install Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0.
Install Microsoft Core XML Services (MSXML) 6.0.
Install Microsoft XPS Essentials Pack.

For more information on these patches, visit: http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/xps/viewxps.mspx

Step 2: Verify that changing printer drivers fixes the problem

Start Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the damaged document, and then click Open.

If the problem persists, go to step 3.

Step 3: Reinstall original printer driver.

Windows Vista

Click Start
Click Printers.
Right-click the original default printer, and then click Delete.
If you are prompted to remove all the files associated with the printer, click Yes.
Click Add a printer, and then follow the instructions in the Add Printer Wizard to reinstall the printer driver.

Windows XP

Click Start, and then click Printers and Faxes.
Right-click the original default printer, and then click Delete.
If you are prompted to remove all the files that are associated with the printer, click Yes.
Under Printer Tasks, click Add a printer, and then follow the instructions in the Add Printer Wizard to reinstall the printer driver.

Step 4: Verify that changing printer drivers fixes the problem

Start Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the damaged document, and then click Open.

If the problem persists, go to Method 4.

Method 4: Start in Safe Mode

Step 1: Start Windows in safe mode

Windows Vista

Remove all floppy disks, CDs, and DVDs from your computer, and then restart the computer.
Click Start
Click the arrow next to Lock, and then click Restart.
Use one of the following procedures:
- If your computer has a single operating system installed, press and hold F8 as the computer restarts.NOTE: You must press F8 before the Windows logo appears. If the Windows logo appears, it’s too late; shut down and restart.
- If your computer has more than one OS, use the arrow keys to highlight the OS that you want to start in safe mode, and press F8.
On the Advanced Boot Options screen, use the arrow keys to select Safe Mode, and then press ENTER.
Log on to your computer by using a user account that has Admin rights.

Windows XP

Remove all floppy disks, CDs, and DVDs from your PC and restart.
Click Start, and then click Shut Down.
In the What do you want the computer to do list, click Restart, and then click OK.
Hold down the CTRL key as you restart the computer.
When you see the Starting Windows message, press F8, use the arrow keys to select Safe Mode on the Startup menu, and then press ENTER.

Step 2: Verify that starting in safe mode fixes the problem.

Start Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the damaged document, and then click Open.

If the problem persists, restart Windows, and go to Method 5.

Method 5: Force Word to try to repair a file

Step 1: Repair document

Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
In the Open dialog box, click your Word 2007 document.
Click the arrow on the Open button, and then click Open and Repair.

Step 2: Verify that repairing the document fixes the problem

Verify that the problem no longer occurs.
If the strange behavior persists, restart Windows, and then go to Method 6.

Method 6: Change the document format and then convert it back to Word 2007

Step 1: Open the document

Start Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the document, and then click Open.

Step 2: Save the document in a different file format

Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Save as.
Click Other Formats.
In the Save as file type list, click Rich Text Format (*.rtf).
Click Save.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Close.

Step 3: Open the document, and then convert document back to Word 2007 file format

Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the converted document, and then click Open.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Save as.
Click Document.
Rename the document and click Save.

Step 4: Verify that converting the document file format fixes the problem

Verify that the problem no longer occurs.
If the behavior persists, try to save the file in another file format, such as HTML.
Repeat step 1 to step 4, and then try to save the file in the following file formats, in the following order:

Web page (.htm; .html)
Any other word processing format
Plain Text (.txt)

WARNING When you save a file in the Plain Text (.txt) you may fixed the problem but lose all the document macros, formatting and graphics
When you save files in the Plain Text (.txt) format, you must reformat the document. Therefore, use the Plain Text (.txt) format only if the other file formats do not resolve the problem.

If the problem persists, go to Method 7.

Method 7: Copy everything – EXCEPT the last paragraph mark – to a new document

Step 1: Create a new document

Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click New.
Click Blank document, and then click Create.

Step 2: Open the problem document

Start Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the damaged document, and then click Open.

Step 3: Copy the contents of document, and then paste the contents into the new document

WARNING If your document contains section breaks, copy only the text between the sections breaks.

Do not copy the section breaks as this may bring the damage into your new document. Change the document View to Draft view when you copy and paste between documents to avoid transferring section breaks.

To change to draft view, on the View tab, click Draft in the Document Views group.

In the damaged document, press CTRL+END, and then press CTRL+SHIFT+HOME.
On the Home tab, click Copy in the Clipboard group.
On the View tab, click Switch Windows in the Window group.
Click the new document that you created in step 1.
On the Home tab, click Paste in the Clipboard group.

If the problem persists, go to Method 8.

Method 8: Copy the undamaged parts of the document to a ‘clean’ blank document

Step 1: Create a new document

Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click New.
Click Blank document, and then click Create.

Step 2: Open the damaged document

Start Word 2007.
Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
Click the damaged document, and then click Open.

Step 3: Copy the undamaged parts of document, and then paste the undamaged parts to the blank document

WARNING Do not copy the section breaks because this may bring the damage into your new document.
In the damaged document, locate and then select an undamaged part of the document’s contents.

On the Home tab, click Copy in the Clipboard group.
On the View tab, click Switch Windows in the Window group.
Click the new document that you created in step 1.
On the Home tab, click Paste in the Clipboard group.
Repeat steps 3a to 3e for each undamaged part of the document. You must reconstruct the damaged sections of your document.

Method 9: Switch the document view to remove the damaged content

If some of the pages are missing, switch the document view and try to remove the damaged content from the document.

Determine where the damaged content is causing the document to appear to be truncated.
1. Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Open.
2. Click the damaged document, and then click Open.
3. Scroll to view the last page that is displayed before the document appears to be truncated.
Switch views, and then remove the damaged content.
1. On the View tab in the Document Views group, click Web Layout or Draft view.
2. Scroll to view the content that was displayed before the document appeared to be truncated.
3. Select and delete the next paragraph, table, or object in the file.
4. On the View tab in the Document Views group, click Print Layout. If the document continues to appear to be truncated, continue to switch views and delete content until the document no longer appears truncated in Print Layout view.
5. Save the document.

See: Advanced Troubleshooting steps if the damaged document still does not open

How to create your first Word template

Editor — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 09:51:43 +0000

How do I get Word to open with my favorite font and the exact size that I want refer to use? The easiest way to do this is to create a new template. It’s very easy. A template lets you create your own custom settings and get straight into writing your docs without having to waste time select fonts, sizes, heading and what not. Here is how it works.

Open Word 2003.
Click File New or Ctrl + N.
On the pop-up window, select the Template box under ‘Create New.’
Click OK.
Create your new blank template. Change the headings, fonts, bullet points etc
Click CTRL + S to save the template.
Name the template and click OK.

Use this file the next time you start your documents.

Open a blank document.
Create your new blank template. Change the headings, fonts, bullet points etc
Click CTRL + S to save the template AND then
Select ‘Word Template’ next to the ‘Save as type‘ drop-down option.
Name the Template and click OK.

The next time you want to use this template, open it from where you saved it and then name the file when you want to save it. The new file will be a regular .doc file, while your template will be a .dot file.

If you ever ‘lose’ your template, search your PC for *.dot.

The * means everything and the .doc is for the template. This command search across all drives in search of that elusive file.

Any problems, drop me a line.

7 Steps to Better Technical Writing

Editor — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:22:00 +0000

Technical Writing is not difficult when you know where and how to start. So, when you write a technical document, consider the following 7 points:

[ad]

Glossary – make a glossary, even for a half dozen words.
Definitions – create a list of definitions and acronyms. Always explain what the acronym means when it’s first encountered.
Use bold for the definition or acronym to make it easy to find it again.
Analogy – provide a comparison or analogy.
Graphics – Provide graphics to illustrate the object in question, how it is assembled, or how it is used by operatives.
Replace general, abstract, and needlessly objective words with more concrete, specific, and simpler words.
Break long sentences into shorter sentences.
Use terminology consistently.

These points are not meant to be all-inclusive. However, if you are new to tech writing, this should put you on the right road.

How to remove margin marks in Word 2003

Editor — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 04:14:05 +0000

Before you start, make sure that the Text boundaries option in Word is not selected.

FWIW: these steps worked at the time of writing but (as you may know) things change with Microsoft applications, so you may have to experiment a little.

To do this, follow these steps:

Start Word 2003.
On the Tools menu, click Options.
In the View tab, under Print and Web Layout options, verify that the Text boundaries check box is selected.
If the Text boundaries check box is selected, click to clear the Text boundaries check box.
Remove all the Asian languages from the Enabled languages list.

To do this, follow these steps:

Click Start, All Programs, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office Tools, and then click Microsoft Office 2003 Language Settings.

In the Enabled languages list, select and remove all the languages that you do not use except English (U.S.).

To do this, follow these steps:

In the Enabled languages list, select a language that you want to remove, and then click Remove.

Click OK to update the language settings.

Note: You can also press the CTRL key and select more than one language, and then click Remove to remove those languages.

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Word Tip – How to Automate Inserts into Technical Documents

Editor — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 13:54:10 +0000

If you frequently need to insert a word, line or block of text into MS Word documents you can easily automate the process with a simple keyboard shortcut.

Highlight the text and press Alt + F3, to create an AutoText entry, then give it a name or accept the default that appears in the dialogue box that appears and click OK.

Now go to the Tools menu; select Customize and the Commands Tab.

Click the Keyboard button then AutoText in the Categories window.

Highlight your new entry in the Commands Window, click a cursor in the Press New Shortcut Key field, choose a key combination then click Assign.

To remove an AutoText entry, go to the Insert menu, click AutoText, then AutoText, select the AutoText tab, highlight the entry and click Delete.

Word Tip – How to create Screentips that enhance your documents

Editor — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 13:40:23 +0000

ScreenTips are those little boxes that appear when you ‘hover’ your mouse over a hyperlink. As the name implies, they usually provide a small tip, or piece of information, about the word or phrase in question.

They can be really useful when you’re writing technical documentation and want to include definitions into your text – without the reader having to revert to the glossary.

To create screentips, follow these steps:

Select the word or phrase that needs a screentip.
Right-click on it and select Hyperlink.
Click the ScreenTip button.
Enter your screen tip text, click OK, and give it a name in the ‘Type the file or web page name’ box.

To test that it works, go back to the document and hover your mouse over the text. The screentip you entered should appear above the words you selected.

6 White Paper templates in Microsoft Word format

Editor — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 11:52:47 +0000

Set of Microsoft Word templates includes all the major sections required in a standard White Paper: Executive Summary; Business Challenge; Solution Description; Benefits; Technical Specifications; Target Market; Case Studies; Summary.

Package includes 6 White Paper templates in Microsoft Word format.

Take a look at http://www.klariti.com

Writing Effective Short Descriptions

Editor — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 21:21:09 +0000

Short descriptions should explain what the subject matter helps the reader to accomplish, the purpose of using it, or the benefits it offers to the reader.

Do not simply repeat the title of the page or document. Avoid stating the obvious, such as “You can use the Paste option to paste text”.

Try to add more information about why the task is beneficial. Include information that helps the reader understand when to perform this task and in what circumstances it is necessary to do so.

Example of an ineffective description:
Creating a proposal template: You can create a proposal template with the proposal wizard. This short description does not tell why using the wizard is important or beneficial. It simply states the obvious and generates no interest in the reader. Will they try it? Not likely.

Example of an effective description:
Creating an RFP Proposal template: By using the proposal template, you can speed up the documentation process, use the pre-defined styles and formatting to ensure that your proposal gets submitted on time.

This description outlines some of the benefits the proposal wizard offers the reader. It is more likely to stimulate their interest.

Example of an ineffective description:
Pasting Text: You can use the Paste option to paste text into your document. This description does not tell users the benefit or purpose of pasting text.

Example of an effective description:
Pasting Text: Use the Paste option to paste text, objects, or images into your document. Use the Paste Special option to retain formatting, for example, if you want to copy content from a website and bring over both the text and images.

The effective description is better because it describes the different types of pasting and the reasons you’d use Paste Special instead of the standard paste option. After reading this, the reader feels more informed and better placed to make a decision.

Change the spacing between characters

Editor — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 16:28:16 +0000

Change the spacing between characters

Select the text you want to change.
On the Format menu, click Font, and then click the Character Spacing tab.
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.

Tip: Selecting Expanded or Condensed alters the spacing between all selected letters by the same amount. However, Kerning adjust the spacing between two characters to create the appearance of even spacing, or to fit text to a given space.