Office 2021 is the personal and small business ‘perpetual licence’, non-subscription version of Microsoft Office. For Windows and Mac.
Office LTSC (Long Term Servicing Channel) is the volume licence ‘perpetual licence’, non-subscription version of Microsoft Office for organizations, companies and governments. Also for Windows and Mac.
The features in Office 2021 and Office LTSC are very similar, if not the same.
Learn how to use Excel’s powerful SWITCH function, the modern alternative to nested IF statements. The SWITCH function evaluates a value against multiple matched outcomes and returns the first corresponding result, plus an optional default if nothing matches. Our guide breaks down the format, best usage patterns and practical examples
Pantone’s color of the year for 2026 is “Cloud Dancer”. You can use that exact color in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Designer using the right Hex/RGB color code. And we’ll look at the flowery prose that’s become a hallmark of this annual promotion. The color of 2026 is …
In a move reversing a 2023 policy, the U.S. State Department has officially returned to using Times New Roman font for its communications, ending the brief tenure of Calibri. Why choose one font over another? Times New Roman vs Calibri – the pros and cons of each font. The US
Type the Left arrow ← into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. The official Unicode name is ‘Leftward Arrow” ← but it can be called ‘Left pointing’ ‘Left facing’ or just ‘Left Arrow’ See also Right arrow → symbol in Word, Excel,
Looking for the perfect holiday emoji for your document, slide or email? This quick-and-easy list from Office Watch offers a searchable collection of Thanksgiving-themed symbols that work across Windows, macOS, iPhone and Android. These emoji are supported (with different looks) on Windows, iPhone, iPad and Android devices. Unicode value (hex)
If you’re working in Microsoft Excel and want a drop-down list from a dynamic array you have to use a workaround because the direct method for fixed arrays doesn’t work for dynamic arrays. Here’s the simple workaround to use a dynamic array function to generate a list of unique values
Want to make your document look polished by having an image neatly enveloped by text? In this quick tutorial, you’ll learn how to insert a picture into Microsoft Word and apply proper text-wrapping so it can sit on the left, right, center or anywhere – and stay there. Let your
If you’ve ever paused over that little horizontal line in a document and wondered whether you should use a hyphen, en-dash or em-dash, you’re not alone. In Microsoft Word there are nine distinct dash or hyphen-like characters, each with its own typographic role and keyboard shortcut. From the standard hyphen
If you’re working in Microsoft Excel and need to test formulas, dashboards or data‐driven workflows, real data can often get in the way. Fortunately, you don’t have to wait for live data sets or scrub proprietary information—this article shows you two powerful techniques to create fake data lists quickly and
Excel users, beware, comparing text in formulas doesn’t always behave as you’d expect. While most programming languages treat text strings with upper/lower case as different, Excel doesn’t. By default, it compares text without case sensitivity, leading to potential errors in formulas and automation. Learn how to correctly use functions like
If you’ve ever wondered how to replicate the distinctive “school bus yellow” shade in your documents or slides, you’ll find the answer here. It’s the standard hue for North American school buses, chosen for visibility and impact. You can apply this same shade in Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint or any
Word documents and Outlook emails can be cluttered with unnecessary emoji. Copilot AI loves adding emoji, like it or not. If you’re tired of seeing smiley faces in your reports or emails, here’s practical ways to clean them out. Learn step-by-step methods to find and remove emoji using font searches
If you’ve ever seen Microsoft Word underline a word with a cryptic “Possible Word Choice” warning, you’re not alone. This subtle feature of Microsoft Editor can confuse even seasoned users. It flags real words that might not fit the sentence’s context, often catching homophones or subtle mix-ups that spell-check misses.
Tired of endless nested IF statements in Excel? The CHOOSE function offers a cleaner, smarter way to pick from multiple options using a single, simple formula. Learn how to replace complex conditional logic with CHOOSE(), streamline your spreadsheets, and make your formulas easier to read, maintain, and debug. Choose() an
Ever had a heading in Microsoft Word that seemed to wander off from its paragraph like a rebellious teenager? Or a bullet point that ghosted its follow-up text? Enter “Keep with Next” or KWN to its friends, Word’s low-key matchmaker that makes sure certain paragraphs stay together—forever (or at least
A viral post recently accused Microsoft Excel of bias for labeling the shekel as “Hebrew” instead of “Israel.” However, there’s no conspiracy—Excel lists currencies by language, not country, using the same format for all entries. Thanks to Office Watcher, Gary B. from Portland for alerting us to this bit of
Most Word users stop at page numbers and dates in their headers and footers, but Microsoft Word can do much more. From inserting document titles, authors, and file paths to using advanced field codes like StyleRef or NumPages, you can make your headers dynamic, informative, and even interactive. Discover the
Creating polished, consistent headers and footers in Microsoft Word is easier than you think. This guide walks you through every step—from adding page numbers and section-specific layouts to using “Different First Page” for cleaner title pages. Whether you’re preparing reports, articles, or academic papers, these techniques will help your documents
Did you know you can make Microsoft Word automatically change text color or formatting depending on whether a number is positive, negative, or zero? With field codes like {SEQ} or {MERGEFIELD}, it’s easy to apply different font styles, colors, or highlights directly in your document—no macros required. This simple formatting
Microsoft Word lacks native support for adding prefix and suffix text through styles—but clever workarounds can make it possible. This guide from Office Watch shows how to simulate prefixing and suffixing paragraphs or character styles, just like CSS’s :before and :after elements. Learn how to format consistent labels, product codes,
Microsoft Word’s grammar checker might help with commas and verb tenses, but it misses one subtle yet frequent English mistake, putting numbers, amounts, times, or dates in the wrong order. After our article on adjective order in English , Aussie Office Watch reader “MJ” pointed out something that Word doesn’t
Did you know Windows quietly swaps out Helvetica font for Arial every time you open certain documents? This subtle substitution affects how text looks in Word, browsers, and more. Learn why Helvetica isn’t included in Windows, how Microsoft handles font replacements behind the scenes, and what you can do to
A viral post sparked debate over whether Microsoft Word’s grammar checker shows hidden bias, but the truth is more technical than cultural. Office Watch investigated and found that Word and Google Docs simply make different choices about what to flag in grammar suggestions. There’s no homophobia here, just decisions that
Microsoft’s default font family, Aptos, isn’t limited to Microsoft 365 or Office 2024. Anyone can download and install the complete Aptos font set directly from Microsoft to use across any app or platform. Whether you’re running Office 2021, older Office versions, or non-Microsoft software like LibreOffice, this quick download ensures
