All about Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, Microsoft 365, Office 2021 and earlier versions.
All your Clear Formatting options for Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word has three different keyboard shortcuts to clear formatting, each with its own special variation on how to remove things like bold, italics etc. from text. Choose from Ctrl + Space , Ctrl + Q or Ctrl + Shift + N depending on exactly what you want to remove and what to leave behind. […]
How to clear all formatting in Office documents
Sometimes text formatting can get confusing in Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher and OneNote. There are several ways to clear the additional formatting and return to original settings. The formatting styles in your text can be easily restored to their default settings by clearing all formatting. Users can waste a lot of time trying to change […]
How to protect your accounts from a password spray attack
A recent attack on Microsoft 365 organizations has highlighted the danger of ‘password spray’ attacks that try to get into your account and perhaps get a foothold into an organization. There’s a simple fix that can protect you and your organization. Regular Office Watch readers will know what we’re going to say! Password Spray is […]
A cool way to check file types including Office docs
There’s another really cool way to check what a file really is, even if the file extension is missing or wrong. It works for many file types including Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents, both old and new formats as well as password protected docs. Thanks to Office Watcher, Bill G. for reminding us on this […]
Make better Office SmartArt by adding pictures
There are several ways to add images into an Office SmartArt graphic; the official Microsoft way plus some others that aren’t usually mentioned for Word, PowerPoint and other Office apps. In the introductory piece, Much better lists with SmartArt , we looked at the SmartArt basics which are much the same in Word, Excel and […]
Much better lists with Office SmartArt
SmartArt is available in all Office desktop programs for Windows and Mac. They let you turn a plain boring text list into something more compelling and understandable. SmartArt works and options do vary between the programs, especially PowerPoint. Office for Mac menus look a little different but the primary features are there. This article is […]
How to open a mystery file with no extension
What can you do with a file attachment that has no file extension? Sometimes you get a file, probably an email attachment, that has no file extension. Without something after the dot/period (.doc .docx .xlsx .pptx etc.) Windows doesn’t know what program to use. This is most likely to happen with files sent from Mac […]
Not just Facebook having trouble this week, Microsoft too
All the talk about the major outage at Facebook overwhelmed the news that Microsoft had connection troubles of their own. The six hours offline at Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp rightly attracted all the attention. It wasn’t just an inconvenience but crippling for many businesses that rely on Facebook to connect to customers. Sites that use […]
Changing text and icons on Office Quick Access Toolbar
Improve your Word, Excel, Outlook or PowerPoint Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) beyond the small changes allowed by Microsoft directly. This works in all modern Office for Windows including Microsoft 365, Office 2016/2019/2021/LTSC. You’ll be able to shorten the overly long text labels or change icons (because too many are the same) with a short list […]
Office LTSC changes name, just a little
Microsoft has slightly changed the name of the new Office LTSC product, perhaps as a clue to their future intentions for the Long-Term Servicing Channel product line. Office LTSC is a new perpetual licence version of Microsoft Office for volume licence customers only. The consumer / small business equivalent is Office 2021. LTSC stands for […]
All about Windows 11 compatibility and switching
All about Windows 11 software and accessory compatibility, promises of better and fewer updates and our view on whether Windows 11 is worth switching. See all the Office-Watch.com coverage of Windows 11 Software and accessory compatibility Underneath the changed desktop lies much the same core technology that’s in Windows 10. Windows 11 uses the same […]
Windows 11, how to switch now or should you even bother?
Windows 11 is now available to the public but in a very slow and gradual way. Here’s how to get Windows 11, upgrade precautions and, perhaps more important, whether it’s worth bothering to change from Windows 10. Office Watch’s opinion on Windows 11 Our advice – wait, there’s no need to rush into Windows 11. We’ve used Windows […]
New look for Microsoft 365 and Office 2021
From Tuesday 5 October 2021, a new look is be available to Microsoft 365 and Office 2021. Don’t worry, it’s not a major change. Everything on the tabs, ribbon and dialogs remains exactly where they are. Microsoft grandly calls it a ‘visual update’ we call the changes ‘a new coat of paint’. 5 October is […]
Office LTSC 2021 explained, the good and bad
Office LTSC 2021 is the new version of Microsoft Office for organizations and volume customers. Here’s what we know, the good news and bad news. What the !*@&$ is LTSC? Office LTSC means Long Term Servicing Channel. It’s a new name for what Microsoft calls a ‘perpetual licence’ version. A single payment for ongoing use […]
How to Easily Create Numbered or Bullet list in Word without indents
Numbered or bullet lists don’t have to look the way Microsoft sets automatically here’s how to change them to suit your needs and style. In Microsoft Word, it is simple to create a numbered or bullet list. Simply select your text | Home Tab | Paragraph Group| Select the Numbering or Bullets icon. From there […]
Office 2021 prices now revealed plus ‘generous’ extras
Microsoft has confirmed the prices for Office 2021 to consumers and announced some ‘extras’ which aren’t really anything new and, in one case, self-serving for Microsoft. Office 2021 prices Office 2021 is the new perpetual license, single payment or non-subscription version of Microsoft Office. The replacement for Office 2019. It has fixed features compared to […]
