MICROSOFT WORD

INTRODUCTION

Microsoft word is an application package designed for typing, formatting, editing and saving of documents. It is popularly known as MS WORD.

VERSIONS OF MICROSOFT WORD

®     Version 2013

®     Version 2011

®     Version 2007

®     Version 2003 etc

FEATURES OF MS WORD

TITLE BAR

This is located at the top of the ms word window. It displays the name of the active document and the package name.

QUICK ACCESS TOOL BAR

It is located beside the office button by default. It is used for keeping frequently used commands for easier and quicker access.

Adding Commands to the Quick Access Tool Bar

®     Click on the drop down arrow beside the quick access tool bar

®     Click the command you wish to add. It will appear in the quick access tool bar.

NOTE:

The save, undo and redo commands appear by default in the quick access tool bar. You may wish to add other commands to make using specific word features more convenient for you.

OFFICE BUTTON

It is located at the top left corner of the ms word window. It shows recent documents and other commands such as print, save, save as, close etc.

MENU BAR

It is located below the title bar and houses menus that are used. The menu in turn houses the commands that are for preparing documents. The commands in the menu are displayed in the ribbon. It also contains the ms word help button.

RIBBON

This displays all the commands that are found under a particular menu. It is located below the menu bar.

HOW TO MINIMIZE AND MAXIMIZE THE RIBBON

®     Right-click any portion of the menu bar

®     Select minimize ribbon in the menu that appears. This will toggle the ribbon on or off.

NOTE:

The menu bar stores menus while the ribbon displays commands under the menu.

RULER BAR

There are two ruler bars in ms word. The vertical and the horizontal ruler bar. They are both used for setting margins, paragraphs and indent levels.

SCROLL BAR

Ms Word has two scroll bars-the vertical and horizontal scroll bars. They are used to navigate vertically or horizontally through the document.

ZOOM BAR

It is located at the bottom-right corner of the ms word window. It is used for increasing or decreasing the size of the electronic paper.

ELECTRONIC PAPER

This is the area used for manipulation (typing, editing, and formatting of      documents in Ms-word.

STATUS BAR

This gives information on the current document such as the page number of the active page and the number of words in the document. It is located at the bottom-left corner of the document.

SOME USEFUL KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS IN MS WORD

Ctrl + A         =              select entire document

Ctrl + B         =               bold

Ctrl + C         =               copy

Ctrl + D         =               duplicate (does not work on text)

Ctrl + E         =               align center

Ctrl + F         =               find

Ctrl + G         =               go to

Ctrl + H         =               replace

Ctrl + I         =               italicize

Ctrl + J         =               justify

Ctrl + K         =               insert hyperlink

Ctrl + L         =               left align

Ctrl + M        =               moves cursor forward

Ctrl + Shift + M               = moves cursor backward

Ctrl + N         =               new document

Ctrl + O        =               open

Ctrl + P         =               print

Ctrl + R         =               right align

Ctrl + S         =               save

Ctrl + shift + S                = change style

Ctrl + T         =               indent right

Ctrl + U         =               underline

Ctrl + V         =               paste

Ctrl + W        =               close active document

Ctrl + X         =               cut

Ctrl + Y         =               redo

Ctrl + Z         =               undo

TEXT BASICS

HOW TO INSERT TEXT

®     Take your mouse pointer to the location you want your text to appear in the document

®     Left-click the mouse- the insertion point appears

®     Type the text you wish to type

HOW TO DELETE TEXT

®     Place your cursor next to the text you to delete

®     Press the backspace key on your keyboard to delete text to the left of the cursor (background)

®     Press the delete key on your keyboard to delete text to the right of the cursor (forward)

HOW TO SELECT TEXT

®     Place your insertion point next to the text you wish to select

®     Left-click your mouse and drag over the text to select it-a blue shade will appear over the selected text

CUT/COPY AND PASTE

Cut and copy are used to move text to different locations. The basic difference is that –copy creates a duplicate of the text while –cut moves the original text to another location.

To do this:

®     Select the desired text  and right click on it

®     Select cut or copy from the home menu

®     Place your insertion point where you wish the text to appear

®     Right-click and select paste

Alternatively

®     Select the desired text

®     Press Ctrl+C for copy or Ctrl+X for cut on the keyboard

®     Place your insertion point where you wish the text to appear

®     Press Ctrl+V for paste

THE FORMAT PAINTER

This functionality allows users to copy formatting from one place and apply to another.

To use this feature:

®     Select the area you want to copy the formatting from

®     Click the format painter command

®     Select the section of the page you want to apply the formatting to

PROOFING FEATURES

Worried about making mistakes when you type? Don’t be. Word provides you with several proofing features that will help you produce professional error-free documents. These come as line indicators. They include:

Blue line-indicates a contextual error. A contextual error occurs when an incorrect spelling of a word is chosen.

Red line-indicates a wrongly spelt word or a word that is not English

Green line-indicates a grammatical error

HOW TO USE SPELL CHECK FEATURES

®     Right-click the underlined word

®     Select the correct word from the listed suggestions

HOW TO USE GRAMMER CHECK FEATURES

®     Right-click the underlined phrase or sentence

®     Select the correct option from the listed suggestions

PRINTING DOCUMENTS IN MS WORD

®     Click the ms office button

®     Select print and then print again

®     Select the pages you would like to print-either all the pages or a range of pages

®     Select the number of copies

®     Select the collate box if you are printing multiple copies a multi-page document

®     Select a printer  from the drop down list

®     Select paper size and click ok

USING THE PRINT PREVIEW FEATURE

This feature allows users to preview the document before printing.

To preview:

®     Click the ms office button

®     Select print and then print preview- the document opens in print preview format

®     After making changes, click print to display the print dialog box or close to exit the preview format

NOTE:

In print preview format, you can perform many tasks including but not limited to:

®     Modify the margins

®     Change page orientation

®     Change page size

®     Zoom in and out to view various parts of the document

®     View multiple pages

PRINTING WITH QUICK PRINT

®     Click the ms office button

®     Select print then quick print

®     The document automatically prints to the default printer

CREATING A NEW-BLANK DOCUMENT

®     Click the ms office button

®     Select new

®     Select blank document

®     Click create

BASIC MS WORD FUNCTIONALITIES

CHANGING FONT FACE

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the drop down arrow next to the font face  box on the home menu

®     Move your cursor over the various font faces. A live preview will appear in the document.

®     Click the font face you wish to use

CHANGING FONT SIZE

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the drop down arrow next to the font size  box on the home menu

®     Move your cursor over the various font sizes. A live preview will appear in the document.

®     Click the font face you wish to use

Alternatively

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the grow font or shrink font command to increase or decrease font size

Alternatively

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Press Ctrl + right square bracket or left square bracket to increase or decrease font size respectively

NOTE:

The standard font size for formal documents is 12 or 14

HOW TO BOLD, ITALICIZE AND UNDERLINE

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Select the bold, italicize and underline commands respectively to bold, italicize and underline text

Alternatively

®     You can use Ctrl + B, Ctrl + I, Ctrl + U to bold, italicize and underline respectively.

HOW TO USE STRIKETHROUGH

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the strikethrough  command on the home menu

USING SUBSCRIPT/SUPERSCRIPT

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the subscript or superscript  command on the home menu to subscript or superscript text respectively

CHANGING FONT CASE

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the change case  command on the home menu

®     Move your cursor over the various font cases. A live preview will appear in the document.

®     Click the font case you wish to use

Alternatively

®     Press Shift + F3 to change font case

HIGHLIGHTING TEXT

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the arrow beside the text highlight color  command on the home menu

®     Select the color you wish to use

CHANGING FONT COLOR

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the arrow beside the font color  command on the home menu

®     Select the color you wish to use

CLEAR FORMATTING

The clear formatting function is used to remove all modification applied to text. It is used to return text to its default text.

To clear formatting:

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the clear formatting command

BULLETING/NUMBERING

The bulleting and numbering commands are provided in ms word to facilitate easy and efficient organization of work when working with lists.

Bullets are used when the number of items on the list is not important

Numbers are used when the number of items on the list is required

USING BULLET LISTS

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the arrow beside the bullet command on the home menu

®     Select any bullet of your choice

USING NUMBERED LIST

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the arrow beside the number command on the home menu

®     Select the numbering format of your choice

TEXT ALIGNMENT

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Select one of the four alignment options from the paragraph group on the home tab.

Align Left

Aligns all selected texts to the left (Ctrl + L)

Align Right

Aligns all selected texts to the right (Ctrl + R)

Align Center

Aligns all selected texts to the center of the page (Ctrl + E)

Justify

 Justified text is equal on both sides and lines up equally to the left and to the right margins (Ctrl + J)

NOTE:

Traditionally, many books, newsletters and newspapers use full justification

LINE SPACING

This refers to the amount of vertical space found between lines of text in a paragraph.

To work with line spacing:

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the line spacing command

®     The desired line spacing

INDENTING

The indent command is used to move the cursor forward or backward.

To indent:

®     Place the cursor where you wish to indent.

®      Use the increase or decrease indent command to move the cursor forward or backward

TEXT BACKGROUND

The text background function is used to give background color to text. This property is used to create emphasis to a particular section of the document.

To give text background:

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the arrow beside the text background command on the home menu

®     Select your preferred color

USING BORDERS

®     Select the text you wish to modify

®     Click the arrow beside the border command on the home menu

®     Select the border format of your choice

MS WORD STYLES

Ms Word styles are predefined formatting tools used in ms word facilitate good organization and presentation of documents in ms word.

Some ms word styles include headings, titles, subtitles and book titles.

USING THE FIND AND REPLACE FUNCTION

The find function is used when carrying out a search for a particular word or phrase in a document. It makes locating of words or errors in a document easier.

The replace function works in hand with the find function to correct errors or implement changes in a document. It can be used to correct a wrongly spelt word that appears several times in a document or change a whole sentence or phrase. It could be very useful when you have to make the same correction or adjustment repeatedly.

To use the find function:

®     Click the find command

®     Input the text you wish to find

®     Select reading highlight and then choose highlight all to highlight all affected sections of the document

®     Select reading highlight and then choose clear highlighting. This will undo all highlights

®     Select find in, then choose main document to locate the text in their different locations in the document

®     Select find in, then choose text boxes in main document to locate the text in the text boxes found in the document

®     Selecting find next selects the text in the sequential order in which it is found in the document

THE GO TO COMMAND

This command also is used to navigate through a word document. It is used to move to specific sections of the document such as a page, line, heading and footnote.

To use this command:

®     Click the arrow beside the find function

®     Select go to

®     Select the section of the document you wish to move to

®     Input an appropriate name or number for your selection

®     Select go to

THE SELECT COMMAND

This selects text or objects in the document

THE HELP COMMAND

This feature of ms word enables users to find help and support on how to use ms word functionalities.

It is located at the right edge of the menu bar.

To use this feature:

®     Click the help button

®     Type in your query in the search bar

®     Click on search

®     Click on the search results to view useful tips.

INSERTING COVER PAGE

The cover page usually is the first page of a document. It displays its title, author, date and other information. Word makes the task of creating a cover page easier by offering pre-formatted cover pages in the form of templates.

To insert a cover page:

®     Select the cover page command from the pages group on the insert menu.

®     Select your preferred template

®     Input the necessary information.

NOTE:
the cover page template can be adjusted to suit the desire of the user

INSERTING A BLANK PAGE

This function inserts a new blank page at the cursor position.

To do this:

®     Place the cursor at the point where the blank page is required

®     Select the blank page command from the insert menu

PAGE BREAKS

The page break command starts the next page at the current position.

To insert a page break:

®     Place the cursor at the point where the page break is required

®     Select the page break command from the insert menu

WORKING WITH TABLES

Tables are used in ms word to organize documents into rows and columns

To draw a table:

®     Select the table command from the insert menu

®      Select the number of rows and columns needed

Alternatively

®     Select the table command from the insert menu

®     Select insert table

®     Specify the number of rows and columns and click ok

Alternatively

®     Select the table command from the insert menu

®     Select draw table

®     Click and drag to draw the table to the  required specifications

NOTE:

Once a table is inserted, the LAYOUT AND DESIGN menu appears. The layout menu is used to determine the table structure while the design menu is used to style the table.

INSERTING PICTURES IN MS WORD

Pictures can be inserted in ms word thus:

®     Select the insert picture command from the insert menu

®     Select the picture you wish to insert

®     Select insert

USING CLIP ARTS

Clip arts are used to illustrate specific concepts. They could be drawings, videos or sounds

®     Select the clip art command from the insert menu

®     Specify the kind of clip art you wish to use and the location you want the computer to search

®     Click on go to search to search for the clip art

®     Select the clip art of your choice and it will be inserted in the page

INSERTING SHAPES

To do this:

®     Select the shapes command from the insert menu

®     Specify the kind of shape you wish to use

®     Click and drag to draw the shape

INSERTING SMART ART

Smart art is used to visually communicate information through the usr of diagrams. It is used to show illistrations for better understanding.

To do this:

®     Select the smart art command from the insert menu

®     Specify the kind of smart art you wish to use

®     Click ok

INSERTING CHARTS

Charts are used to illustrate and compare data. They could be otherwise called graphs.

To do this:

®     Select the chart command from the insert menu

®     Specify the kind of chart you wish to use and click ok

®     Specify the parameters

HYPERLINK

This is a piece of text or image in an electronic document that connects readers to another portion of the document, other documents, to a web page or email

Hyper linking to another section of the same documents

®     Select the point you wish to place a hyperlink by placing your cursor there

®     Select the insert tab

®     Click hyperlink in the link group- the insert hyperlink dialog box appears

®     Select the PLACE IN THIS DOCUMENT command

®     Type the hyperlink name in the “text to display” box

®     Select the hyperlink destination. It could be a web page or another    document

®     Click ok. The text or image selected will now become a hyperlink

LINKING TO OTHER DOCUMENTS OR A WEB PAGE

®     Select the point you wish to place a hyperlink by placing your cursor there

®     Select the insert tab

®     Click hyperlink in the link group- the insert hyperlink dialog box appears

®     Select the EXISTING FILE OR WEB PAGE command

®     Type the hyperlink name in the “text to display” box

®     Select the hyperlink destination

®     Click ok. The text or image selected will now become a hyperlink

LINKING TO AN E-MAIL ADDRESS

This feature is also used to link to an email address. This enables the user to send information directly to the email address.

To achieve this:

®     Select the point you wish to place the hyperlink by placing your cursor there

®     Select the insert tab

®     Click hyperlink in the link group- the insert hyperlink dialog box appears

®     On the left of the box where it says -link to, click email address

®     Type the email address you want to connect to in the email address box

®     Type the hyperlink name in the “text to display” box

®     Type the email subject

®     Click ok

REMOVING HYPERLINKS

®     Select the hyperlink you wish to deactivate

®     Select the insert tab

®     Click hyperlink in the link group-the edit hyperlink dialog box appears

®     Click remove link

USING BOOKMARKS
Bookmarks are used to give names to specific points in a document. Hyperlinks can be made to connect to bookmarked section of a document.

To bookmark a point in a document:

®     Place the cursor at the point you wish to insert the bookmark

®     Click the bookmark command from the insert menu

®     Input the name of the bookmark

®     Click add

REMOVING BOOKMARKS

®     Click the bookmark command from the insert menu

®     Select the bookmark you wish to remove

®     Click delete

LINKING HYPERLINKS TO BOOKMARKS

®     Select the point you wish to place a hyperlink by placing your cursor there

®     Select the insert tab

®     Click hyperlink in the link group- the insert hyperlink dialog box appears

®     Select the EXISTING FILE OR WEB PAGE command

®     Select the BOOKMARK command from the insert hyperlink box

®     Select a bookmark and click ok

®     Type the hyperlink name in the TEXT TO DISPLAY box

®     Click ok.

THE CROSS-REFERENCE FEATURE

This feature is used to refer to specific features such as tables, figures, charts by inserting a cross reference. This feature works like the hyperlink only that it only references to sections within the same document.

To use this functionality:

®     Select the point you wish to place a cross-reference by placing your cursor there

®     Select the insert tab

®     Click cross reference in the link group- the cross-reference dialog box appears

®     Select the reference type that suits your goal. The reference type refers to the referral object

®     Select the item being referenced

®     Select a bookmark and click ok

®     Select the position at which the reference will link to

®     Click insert.

THE HEADER AND FOOTER FEATURE

This feature is used to specify what appears at the head and foot of pages in a document. It could be text, picture, date/time, clip art or page number.

To use the header feature:

®     Select the header command from the insert menu

®     Select the header format of preference

®     Input the necessary information in the fields provided

®     Click the close header button

To use the footer feature:

®     Select the footer command from the insert menu

®     Select the footer format of preference

®     Input the necessary information in the fields provided

®     Click the close header and footer button

NOTE:

The header and footer could be used for inserting page numbers

INSERTING PAGE NUMBER

The page number command is used to number the pages of a document.

This feature is used thus:

®     Click the PAGE NUMBER command  on the insert menu

®     Select the position you wish the page number to be applied

WORKING WITH TEXT BOXES

Text boxes enable the user to move text freely round the electronic paper. Text boxes if used properly could be a very powerful tool to beautify and organize a document since they have the ability to house a variety of objects such as pictures, charts, diagrams, word arts, tables, text and many other objects. They can also be easily resized to fit the interest of the user. They come with different functionalities such as colored backgrounds, picture backgrounds, textured backgrounds, different outlines and shapes. These are but a few functionalities of the text box.

INSERTING A TEXT BOX

®     Click the insert text  box command in the text group on the insert menu

®      Select any of the text box templates to apply them

Alternatively

®     Select draw text box to draw the text box- a cross like cursor appears

®     Click and drag till the text box reaches the desired size

HOW TO CHANGE TEXT BOX STYLE

Shape styles are templates used to determine the background and outline color of the shape.

®     Select the shape

®     Click the drop down arrow in the shape style group to display more options

®     Move your over the various styles to view a live preview of the document

®     Click the desired style to apply it

CHANGING SHAPE FILL

®     Select the text box

®     Click the shape fill command to display a drop down list

®     Select a color from the list

®     Choose no fill (to remove background) or any of the colors

NOTE:

Apart from colors, the shape fill command also gives the user the liberty of using a picture an as the text box background.

CHANGING SHAPE OUTLINE

The shape outline refers to the shape borders. This feature enables the user define how the border appears. It is used to define border color, thickness or pattern.

®     Select the text box

®     Click the shape outline command to display a drop down list

®     Select a color from the list to apply to the outline

®     Choose no outline (to remove background) or select any of the outline options that suits your interest

CHANGING TEXT BOX SHAPE

®     Select the text box

®     Click the change shape command to display a drop down list

®     Select a shape from the list

MOVING A TEXT BOX

®     Click the text box. Your cursor becomes a cross with arrows on each side

®     Click and drag the text box to the desired location on the page

RESIZING A TEXT BOX

®     Select the text

®     Click one of the blue sizing buttons

®     Click and drag the text box sizing handle until the text box reaches the desired size

APPLYING SHADOW EFFECTS

®     Select the text box

®     Click the shadow effects command

®     Choose any of the effects from the menu to apply

®     Use the nudge shadow command to place the shadow at the desired location

APPLYING 3D EFFECTS

®     Select the textbox

®     On the format menu, select 3D EFFECTS command

®     Choose any of the effects from the menu

NOTE:

The tilt command is used to adjust the 3D EFFECTS position

THE POSITION PROPERTY

This determines the position of the text box on the page.

®     Select the text box

®     Select the position property from the format bar and choose the position you want the text box to assume.

The BRING TO FRONT and command brings the object to the front so that no part of it is hidden and the SEND TO BACK takes the object to the back of all other objects.

The BRING FORWARD brings the object one step in front of other objects while the SEND BACKWARD takes the object one step behind other objects.

The BRING IN FRONT OF TEXT command sends text behind the object while the SEND BEHIND TEXT brings the text in front of the object.

TEXT WRAPPING 

This determines the position of the object in relation to text. It determines how text will be wrapped round the object.

THE ALIGN COMMAND

This is also used to determine the position of the object in the document.

THE GROUP COMMAND

The group command is used to integrate multiple objects to behave as one.

To group objects:

®     Select the objects you wish to group

®     Select the group command and choose group

THE SIZING BUTTONS

These are used to increase or decrease the height and width of objects in ms word.

NOTE:

All objects in ms word-shapes, pictures, clip arts, smart arts and tables are inserted into text boxes. Therefore, using them efficiently only requires knowledge of text boxes which we have already done.

THE QUICK PARTS COMMAND

This feature is used to insert reusable content or user defined templates.

THE WORDART COMMAND

This feature enables users to work with decorative text. It contains different preformatted text styles that could be used as decorative tools when preparing documents.

To insert word art:

®     Select insert tab

®     Click the word art command

®     Choose the word art of your choice and type that you wish to apply word art to

®     Click ok. The word art will appear in your document

THE DROP CAP FEATURE

This feature allows the user to create a large capital letter at the beginning of a paragraph. It is often used in newspaper and magazine publications.  

To use this feature:

®     Place the cursor on the line you wish to drop cap

®     Select the drop cap command and choose the drop cap format of your choice

®      

THE OBJECT COMMAND

This command enables users to access functionalities of other ms office programs while still working in ms word. For instance, you can create a slide in your word document using this feature. This feature also enables users to import text from other word documents.

THE EQUATION AND SYMBOL COMMAND

These former enables users to insert built-in mathematical symbols or equations and gives room for users to define other equations when working with word while the latter enables users to access characters or symbols that are not present on the keyboard.

WORKING WITH THEMES

Themes are additional styles in ms word that can be applied to determine the way the whole document looks.

INSERTING WATERMARK

This is used to insert fainted text behind the original document. It is sometimes used to indicate the way a document should be treated such as urgent or confidential documents.

To insert watermark:

®     Select the watermark command

®     Select a default watermark or select custom watermark to customize it. It could either be a picture or text of your choice.

®     Select REMOVE WATERMARK to  remove an existing watermark

WORKING WITH THE PAGE COLOR COMMAND

The page color command is used to determine the page background. It could be a solid color, a gradient, texture, pattern or picture.

To insert page background:

®     Select the page color background

®     Select a color of your choice or select fill color for other background options

WORKING WITH PAGE BORDERS

Page borders used to add beauty to the page. They are used to create patterns round the corners of the page.

To use borders:

®     Select the border command

®     Select any border style of your choice and click ok

HOW TO CHANGE PAGE ORIENTATION

Microsoft word has two page orientations-the landscape and the portrait. The page orientation to be used depends on the nature of the job to be done. The portrait orientation keeps the page vertical while the landscape orientation keeps the page horizontal.

To change page orientation:

®     Select the ORIENTATION command

®     Select the page orientation of your choice.

CHOOSING PAGE SIZE

The page size feature contains standard paper sizes on which to present your work.

To change page size:

®     Select the PAGE SIZE command

®     Select the page size of your choice.

SETTING MARGINS

Margin refers to the amount of space bordering the text area. It could be left, right, top or bottom margins.

Use the MARGIN command from the PAGE LAYOUT menu to determine the margins of a page.

WORKING WITH COLUMNS

The column command enables users to divide a page into columns.

Use the COLUMN command from the PAGE LAYOUT menu to determine the number of columns a page should have.

THE INDENT COMMAND

The left and right indent commands enable users to move the cursor to the right or left of the paragraph. This is most helpful when you have a section of the document that needs to be indented differently from others. The left and right indent increases or decreases the margin to the right or left respectively.

BREAKS

Breaks are used to mark out different section of a document for easier presentation of work. For instance, page breaks mark the end of a page and moves to a new page while section breaks enables users to style distinct sections of a page differently.

LINE NUMBERS

This command is used to give numbers to all the lines in a document.

HYPHENATION

This command uses hyphens to break words that are too long to fit at the end of a line into syllables (two parts), thus preventing the entire word from jumping to the next line.