Control Contractions in Microsoft Word for Windows / Mac
Deep inside Microsoft Word’s (Windows/Mac) grammar checks are some detailed settings like one to look for contractions such as: I’m, you’re, shouldn’t, couldn’t and haven’t. These contractions are normal and accepted by Word 2016 Windows/Mac in it’s standard settings but you can change that. Formal Language, Consider avoiding contractions You’ll see a warning ‘Formal Language’ […]
Don’t forget WordPad – the emergency Microsoft Word
One of the ‘emergency’ options to remember is WordPad, which can open Word documents, available in modern Windows 11, 10, 8.1 and 7. Often overlooked, WordPad can be very useful. It’s always available when Windows is running even in the Safe mode. No extra install or setup needed. It’s on the Start Menu as one […]
Handwritten document editing without pen or paper
It’s possible and practical to make ‘handwritten’ notes or edits direct on your Word, Excel or PowerPoint documents. Instead of printing them out and using a pen/pencil, do it on-screen with a digital pen. Here’s a real-world guide to how you can do it, leaving aside the hype and flashy demos. Even these days, it’s […]
Two ways to get one line of Word with left and right aligned text
Two ways to put left and right aligned text on the same line in Microsoft Word. There’s the commonly used option and the less well-known choice. BONUS: putting left, center and right aligned text on one line. We’ll show how to make Left and Right aligned text looking like this. You’ll often see it in […]
FAX ℻ symbol in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
Type the Facsimile sign or Fax symbol ℻ into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. FAX ℻ symbol is a single character with the letters FAX, normally used to prefix a telephone number in a letter heading or footer. For younger readers: a Fax machine was a […]
100 points 💯 emoji in Word, PowerPoint and Office
Type the Hundred points 💯 emoji into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. 100 points 💯 symbol is also known as ’100’, ‘Keep it 100’ or ‘Keeping it real’. How 100 points 💯 looks in different fonts. Here’s some examples of how 100 points 💯 looks in […]
Face with Tears of joy 😂 emoji in Word, Office
Type the Face with Tears of joy 😂 emoji into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. Face with Tears of joy 😂 emoji is one of the most popular, if not THE most commonly used emoji. Also known as Laughing Crying, Laughing Tears, LOL (Laugh Out Loud) or […]
Make your own blue checkmark Twitter ‘verified’ in Office
You can add a Twitter blue or gray checkmark to your Microsoft Office documents including Word docs, PowerPoint slides. We’ll show you how to add the ‘verified’ graphic at any size you need with the exact blue, gray or some other color. Oh, and save yourself $8 a month <kidding>. We’ve all seen the Twitter […]
Inside Microsoft Create, the new Office templates site and more
Microsoft Create is a new part of Microsoft 365 that will replace the existing Office templates site and more. Office Watch explains how to use the Create site now, the many categories available and what’s to come. Cut through all the usual Microsoft Hype™ like “ultimate creator launchpad” and the dreadful phrase “uplevel your creative […]
Kerning text simply explained for Word and Powerpoint
Kerning is a font setting that’s important in Word and PowerPoint. We’ll explain kerning and why you mostly don’t have to worry about it except for large size text like titles and headings. Kerning adjusts the horizontal space between letters so they look right to the human eye. It’s necessary because letters take up different […]
TEL – Telephone ℡ symbol in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
Insert the TEL – Telephone symbol ℡ into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. TEL – Telephone ℡ symbol is a single character with the letters TEL, normally used to prefix a telephone number in a letter heading or footer. How TEL – Telephone ℡ looks […]
Tilde ~ symbol in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
Type the Tilde ~ into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. Plus an emoji alternative to Tilde. Tilde is used to mean ‘approximate’ as in “ ~30 minutes late”. In maths it means ‘similar order of magnitude’ e.g. “ a ~ b “. Tilde ~ symbol […]
Good advice for buying an iPad
The Verge has some good advice on buying an iPad and choosing between the many models available. Now’s the time to buy last year’s iPad by Dan Seifert cuts through the messy collection of Apple iPad models with this core advice … … thing that remains the same is it is an iPad. There might be […]
Are the 2022 Words of the Year recognized in Microsoft Word?
The 2022 Word of the Year is “Permacrisis” according to one dictionary, is that and other new words recognized in the Microsoft Word dictionary? Surprisingly, one of the 2022 words is and there’s another strangeness in the Word Grammar and Style checks. According to the Collins Dictionary, the 2022 Word of the Year is “Permacrisis” […]
Microsoft Word isn’t censoring your politically incorrect language
Yet again, Microsoft finds itself accused of “censoring” some “politically incorrect language” in another outbreak of the culture war. It puts Office Watch in the unusual situation of defending Microsoft, using some facts about how Microsoft Word really works. There are all sorts of accusations being spread, most of which could be debunked simply by […]
Change the order of styles in Word’s Gallery
Changing the order of styles in Microsoft Word’s Style Gallery is possible but buried way down inside the message boxes. A standard Word Style Gallery looks like this. Right-clicking on a style gives some options, including Remove from Style Gallery. Moving the styles into another order is more complicated. You’d think modern Word would let […]
