Tag 10 Hidden Microsoft Word Features

10 Hidden Microsoft Word Features that Will Make Your Life Easier Page 1 of 17
PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE
PRODUCTIVITY , WINDOWS
10 Hidden Microsoft Word

Features that Will Make Your
Life Easier
By Saikat Basu / January 15, 2015 15-01-2015 / 7 minutes
Saikat Basu
1263 articles
Saikat is a techno-adventurer
in a writer's garb. When he is
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Stumbleupon not scouring the net for tech
Email news, you can catch him
looking for life hacks and
Advertisement learning tidbits. You can find
him on LinkedIn & Twitter
watching over the world.
Advertisement
Updated by Tina Sieber on 28 February, 2017.
Everyone knows Clippy. But are you friends with Pilcrow?
7 Signs You Are a Seasoned Windows User

Windows has been around for longer than a lot of you have
been alive. Do you know the trivia to prove you're a long time
Windows user? Let's see what you remember.
READ MORE
Stop there if you know what I am talking about. You know more about
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-hidden-microsoft-word-features-will-make-life-easier/ 8/2/2017
Okay. Let me test you a bit more by asking about “widow lines”. If you
still got that, then do stop. If you didn’t, then welcome to this side of the
line where we think we are proficient on Microsoft Word – but honestly
aren’t.
You are fine as long as you fire up a document and just type. But billions
of Redmond dollars went into making this the office Swiss knife it is
today. Many of those greenbacks helped create the hidden productive
features that we rarely use. Here are ten Microsoft Word features that
make your work easier.
1. Be Distraction Free
Writers want peace. The visual clutter of Microsoft Word gave rise to a
legion of distraction free editors and undisturbed peace. But if you love
Word, you can use a quick shortcut to hide the visual clutter of the
Ribbon. Press Ctrl + F1 to toggle the Ribbon from view.
Advertisement
Tweak it by clicking on Ribbon Display Option and selecting Auto-hide

Ribbon.
Distraction free reading is a more specialized feature in Word 2013 and

2016, though, it was there in Word 2010, too. Designed for touch-
enabled tablets, the Read Mode works well on an everyday laptop as
well. Access it just as quickly with an ALT + W-F (Press W & F
simultaneously).
Optionally, use the default buttons:
(On the Ribbon menu) View > Read Mode.
(On the Status Bar) The Read Mode button on the right.
Double-tap with your finger or double-click with your mouse to zoom in

and make graphics like tables, charts and images fill the screen.
2. Reorganize with the Outline View

Outlining your main ideas and completing that first draft quickly is the
surefire tip for writing productivity. If used well, the Outline View can
increase your productivity with large documents by 50%.
From Idea to Final Draft: How to Increase Your

Writing Productivity
You don't have to be Stephen King to be a productive writer.
Using the right applications and writing tips, you can get more
writing done with less frustration, and finish what you start.
READ MORE
Go to View > Views on the Ribbon. Outline View helps you fine-tune the
organization of complex documents by reordering text blocks and nine
for promoting or demoting selected text. Use the controls to hide or

display selected text.
Want to get to a specific point in a long document? Switch to

Outline View and jump to a specific heading level.
Want to draft quickly? Plan out the main sections on Outline View
and them switch to the other layouts to write the body.
Want to reorganize a report by moving huge blocks of text? Drag

and drop a heading to move not only that heading, but all the sub-
levels under it and the body text. Use the upward-downward
arrows to work them.
Want to quickly format headings? Use Headlines 1, 2, and 3 instead

of changing size and using uppercase.
3. Use Word as a Quick Brainstorming

Tool
Double-click anywhere and begin typing. You don’t need to bother with
positioning a cursor if you don’t want to. This is the closest Microsoft
Word comes to freestyle writing. Click and Type has existed since Word
2002. The feature works only in the Print Layout view or in Web Layout
view.
Though this is very useful for inserting text and graphics, you can also
use it for impromptu brainstorming as a freeform mindmapping tool.
8 MS Word Templates That Help You

Brainstorm & Mind Map Your Ideas Quickly
Free Word templates are not just about beautiful documents,
perfect resumes, and cover pages. They can be vital for
brainstorming and mind maps too. Here are eight Word
templates for your ideation needs.
READ MORE
4. Convert Tables to Graphs in 3-Steps

Take your pick – a neatly formatted table with lots of data OR a nicely
done chart visualizing that data for you?
Being visual creatures, it is often a no-brainer to opt for the latter.

Microsoft Word makes it easy to convert tabular information into a
chart. When you don’t have too much of tabular data, create a chart in
Word instead of over-killing with Excel. Select the table with the data
and follow three steps…
Click on the Insert tab on the Ribbon.
2 Click the Object tool within the Text group and open the Object
dialog box.
3 From the list of Object Types, choose Microsoft Graph Chart. Click
OK.
Word displays the tabular data as a neat graph. You can format your
graph as any other element in the document.
5. Write Equations in Word

And you think that only Excel formulas are amazing. The Equation
Editor has always been part of Microsoft Word. In Word 2013 and 2016, it
is simply known as Equation (available from Insert – Symbols).
3 Crazy Excel Formulas That Do Amazing

Things
I have always believed that Excel is one of the most powerful
software tools out there. It's not just the fact that it's
spreadsheet software. No, Microsoft Excel 2013 simply has an
awesome collection of...
READ MORE
Choose Insert > Equation > Insert New Equation.

1
Use the Equation Toolbar to design your own advanced equations for
mathematics, physics, or chemistry . Word gives you many well-known
equations to insert with just a click.
A short Lynda.com tutorial introduces the feature.
6. Hold 24 Items in the Clipboard

Unlike the Windows clipboard, Word’s own version can hold 24 items. In
the Home tab, click the little drop-down arrow next to Clipboard to
reveal the panel on the left. For the shortcut, press Ctrl+C twice to open
the Clipboard Panel. This holding capacity enables you to cut and copy
multiple elements and move them anywhere within the document.
7. Translate on the Go
Microsoft Office uses Microsoft Translator to handle all translations. In
Research tab appears on the right and you can choose from many
languages. Translate a word or a sentence. Or, translate the entire
document and display it in your web browser.
8. Be Visually Pleasing with Kerning

Kerning adjusts the space between two individual letters for a better
visual look. When designing a document, each typeface requires its own
specific kerning. Kerning becomes important when you are designing
with large fonts on Word, e.g. an ebook cover.
Word has kerning switched off by default, and normally you don’t need
to bother with it. But let’s say you need to submit a five-page homework.
Save effort by increasing the width between the letters instead of writing
fluff!
Click the little pop-out arrow on Font (on the Home tab). Alternatively:
click Ctrl+D. Select the checkbox for Kerning for fonts. Experiment by
entering a small point size in the box. Remember some typefaces and
font sizes don’t look good with kerning.
If you really want to get better with kerning and fonts, try out the Kern
Type game we mentioned in a previous article on Font Games.
A Test Of Character: 10 Font Games That Prove

Typography Can Be Fun
Playing around with typography can be fun. You will love
these games if you like the sound of the quick brown fox who
jumped over the lazy dog. Find out what we are talking about.
READ MORE
9. Inspect Your Document

These days it’s all about sharing. It’s all about security, too. The
Document Inspector is the central console in Microsoft Word that helps
you check your document for any information you want to keep private.
Whenever you create or even edit a document, some user information
gets added to the file automatically. The Document Inspector helps you
erase this kind of information before sharing a document.
To access the Document Inspector:
Go to File > Info > Prepare for Sharing > Check for Issues > Inspect
Document.
Inspect hidden content by selecting the checkboxes. After the

inspection, any categories with sensitive data gets an exclamation mark.
A Remove All button for each category removes the data and finalizes
the document.
Office Support takes you step by step on how to use the Document
Inspector.
10. Take the Benefits of Hidden Text

Oh yes. This feature is truly hidden. Hidden Text is a non-printing
character attribute that has its usefulness. Hiding text can be useful in
many situations:
Create a simple quiz by hiding the answers.
Control the layout for some specific printing job by inserting

Print two versions of a document. In one,hide portions of text. You

don’t need to create two copies or delete any part of the
document.
Temporarily hide confidential information that you don’t want

others to see.
Hide or Unhide Text
1 Select the text you want to hide or the hidden text.

2 Click Home > Font Dialog box > Font > Select or clear the Hidden
check box.
3 Print Hidden Text: Go to the File tab > Options > Display > Select
the Hidden text check box > Select the Print hidden text check box
> Click Ok.
Non-printing characters are “formatting marks” which enables the user

to troubleshoot and finetune the layout of a document.
For instance – words need to be single spaced; your paragraphs have to

be spaced with correct line breaks; all tabs should be lined up; table
cells have to be formatted neatly; pagination has to flow etc.
Pilcrows,tab-markers,spaces,line breaks,page breaks,object anchors,

and hidden text are just some of the non-printing elements that are
handy for controlling the layout of a Word document. Display the non-
printing characters by clicking the Pilcrow button on the Home tab.
Alternatively, press Ctrl + *.
Note: In Word 2013 and 2016,you can also expand or collapse parts of
a document to selectively display information.
Reveal Your Productivity Secrets

Did you know about the annual Microsoft Office Championship? The
participants are the champions at using the suite – and you can bet they
have found faster or more efficient ways to use tools like Word for their
day to day jobs. Probably,there’s a champion inside you.
Champions have their favorite tips. Share the features you use every day
— hidden or not.
WRITE A COMMENT
Scroll down for the next article
SELF IMPROVEMENT
Beat Procrastination And

Prioritize Your To-Do List With
Laterbox
By Mihir Patkar / January 15,2015 15-01-2015 / 4 minutes
Mihir Patkar
848 articles
Mihir Patkar is a freelance

writer on technology and life
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Stumbleupon hacks,who firmly believes
Email chocolate is the answer to any
Productivity philosophies are subjective. But a few of them take off and
become popular because many people seem to find them easy to
basic productivity principles,combining the best ideas for a workflow to

get things done.
Laterbox (beta) tackles some of the common problems and questions

we all face in being productive:
How to stop procrastinating
How to prioritize your to-do list
How to track your progress
Prioritize Your To-Do List With The

3 2 COMMENTS
1-3-5 Rule
If you never get through the tasks that need to be done,you need to
learn how to prioritize to-do lists. Alex Cavoulacos,founder of career
and productivity blog The Daily Muse,came up with the 1-3-5 Rule,
which Laterbox uses for its to-do list. Here’s how it works:
On any given day, assume that you can only accomplish

one big thing, three medium things, and five small
things. Yes, I know it can be tough to narrow your list of
to-dos down to 1-3-5—but it’s important to prioritize.
Like it or not, you only have so many hours in the day
and you’re only going to get a finite number of things
things you get done will be the things you chose to do —

rather than what just happened to get done.
Cavoulacos recommends making the list at the end of the work day to
plan the next day,but there’s no harm in doing it the first thing in the
morning. Laterbox will actually email you every morning asking you to
make this to-do list,and throw in an inspirational quote to kickstart
your day.
You can also opt to make a simple to-do list,but it’s going to be more
helpful to use the 1-3-5 rule.
Dump Distracting Thoughts With A

Procrastination Pad
We all need to learn how to stop procrastinating,but it’s easier said

than done. One effective method is to use a “procrastination pad” as the
Dumb Little Man blog calls it. Basically,the idea here is to get a
distracting thought out of your system by writing it down and getting to
it later.
All you need is a small and unserious notepad onto

which you will jot down every tiny thing you think of
that could potentially distract you from the task at
hand. When you have a spare moment, and ONLY when
you have a spare moment, allow yourself to review the
list on your notepad and do the things you have time
for. Whether it is reading that article, checking phone
it is, put that naughty little distraction safely to bed on

the Procrastination Pad.
Laterbox takes this concept and takes it to the next level. The “Laterbox”
section is actually this procrastination pad,where you dump a thought
and move on. But the real utility of this shows up if you install the
Chrome extension. Laterbox now starts whenever you open a new tab,
with the cursor ready to take down your distracting thought. So Ctrl+T
-> Type your thought -> Enter — just like that,you’re back to
concentrating on your work. It’s one of those great ways to make
Chrome more productive.
That’s not all. Laterbox will take all these thoughts and send you a daily
email after work hours (you can choose what time the email lands in
your inbox). This way,you know that you won’t forget to check anything
and your mind dump is successful.
Track Your Progress To Motivate

Yourself
Most of us skip the simplest part of the productivity cycle: actually

tracking our successes and failures.How do you know whether you are
being productive or not if you don’t actually have statistics to tell you
that your methods are working? Laterbox keeps a record of your daily
progress.
Often, to-do apps put together so much information and so much

emphasis on improvements that you forget their base purpose: getting
things done.You need to stop organizing and start working, which is
why Laterbox keeps it simple.
At any time, you can see a graph of your productivity over the last 30
days.No complicated numbers or information overload here.Laterbox
has two lines, orange and grey.The orange line is the number of tasks
you entered in your to-do list that day, the grey line is the number you
crossed off.In one glance, you can tell whether you are overloading your
to-do list or whether you need to change your work ways.Like we said,
simple.
Can Laterbox Ease Your Day?

Laterbox is very new.There are a few kinks as it is in beta.But expect it
to get better as the web app matures.Tell us about your first look at the
tool and the 1-3-5 productivity system.
Do you have a productivity trick for Laterbox? Maybe you’d like to see a

Pomodoro timer, for instance? Jot down your random ideas below, you
never know when the developers will read it!
(via ProductHunt)
WRITE A COMMENT
Scroll down for the next article
© 2017 MakeUseOf.All Rights Reserved.
0 C OMMENTS

Tag 10 Hidden Microsoft Word Features

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Tag 10 Hidden Microsoft Word Features

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

10 Hidden Microsoft Word Features that Will Make Your Life Easier Page 1 of 17

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

10 Hidden Microsoft Word

Updated by Tina Sieber on 28 February, 2017.

Everyone knows Clippy. But are you friends with Pilcrow?

7 Signs You Are a Seasoned Windows User

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

Tweak it by clicking on Ribbon Display Option and selecting Auto-hide

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

Distraction free reading is a more specialized feature in Word 2013 and

Optionally, use the default buttons:

(On the Ribbon menu) View > Read Mode.

Double-tap with your finger or double-click with your mouse to zoom in

2. Reorganize with the Outline View

From Idea to Final Draft: How to Increase Your

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

for promoting or demoting selected text. Use the controls to hide or

Want to get to a specific point in a long document? Switch to

Want to reorganize a report by moving huge blocks of text? Drag

Want to quickly format headings? Use Headlines 1, 2, and 3 instead

3. Use Word as a Quick Brainstorming

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

8 MS Word Templates That Help You

4. Convert Tables to Graphs in 3-Steps

Being visual creatures, it is often a no-brainer to opt for the latter.

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

Click on the Insert tab on the Ribbon.

5. Write Equations in Word

3 Crazy Excel Formulas That Do Amazing

Choose Insert > Equation > Insert New Equation.

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

A short Lynda.com tutorial introduces the feature.

6. Hold 24 Items in the Clipboard

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

8. Be Visually Pleasing with Kerning

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

A Test Of Character: 10 Font Games That Prove

9. Inspect Your Document

To access the Document Inspector:

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

Inspect hidden content by selecting the checkboxes. After the

10. Take the Benefits of Hidden Text

Create a simple quiz by hiding the answers.

Control the layout for some specific printing job by inserting

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

Print two versions of a document. In one,hide portions of text. You

Temporarily hide confidential information that you don’t want

Hide or Unhide Text

1 Select the text you want to hide or the hidden text.

Non-printing characters are “formatting marks” which enables the user

For instance – words need to be single spaced; your paragraphs have to

Pilcrows,tab-markers,spaces,line breaks,page breaks,object anchors,

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

Reveal Your Productivity Secrets

Scroll down for the next article

Beat Procrastination And

Mihir Patkar is a freelance

PC & MOBILE LIFESTYLE

basic productivity principles,combining the best ideas for a workflow to

Laterbox (beta) tackles some of the common problems and questions

How to stop procrastinating

How to prioritize your to-do list

How to track your progress