z3cruzin
To pass that law firm test your very first stop should be:
http://www.ShaunaKelly.com/word/numbering/OutlineNumbering.html
This shows you how to set up and edit Word's built-in Heading styles
for outline numbering. Learn this by heart and practice it over and
over again, 'cause you can be sure outline numbering will be on any
law firm test, big-time!
And when you have questions about numbering (you'll have plenty) go to
the numbering group:
micrsoft.public.word.numbering
ITEMS OF GENERAL IMPORTANCE TO WORDPERFECT REFUGEES
RE: MAINTENANCE OF SANITY
* Allow yourself at least 3 to 6 months to get comfortable with Word.
Word has a way of making you feel stupid because you expect a certain
logic which does not come to pass. That's not your fault, is it?
* Learning Word has been known to reduce grown men and women to tears.
Avoid that route by posting any questions you have here. We've all
been there and sympathize with newbies.
RE: LITTLE BLACK MARKS, NORMAL STYLE
* Generally speaking, a well-formatted Word document will be mostly
clean and white, with a minimum number of little black marks like
extra paragraph marks, tabs, etc., and minimum use of the Normal
style. It should look completely consistent throughout.
* That's what you should be aiming for. That's how a word processing
supervisor can tell at one glance how skilled an operator is in Word.
RE: BLANK LINES BETWEEN PARAGRAPHS
* Unlike WordPerfect, you don't use extra hard returns to put in blank
lines between paragraphs. You adjust SpaceBefore and SpaceAfter in
the Alt-o-p paragraph dialog . . . or . . . you modify the style
you're in by using the paragraph dialog (it's the same dialog box for
both the individul paragraph and the style) for the whole style, which
changes all instances of the style throughout the document in one
swell foop.
* SpaceAfter 12 pt is two lines, but you can make 30 pt or 50 pt or
whatever.
RE: STYLES
* A style is simply a named collection of settings, like font,
indents, space after, etc.
* By applying a style to a pargraph instead of formatting the
paragraph directly, you save memory and work more efficiently.
* The downside of this efficiency is that you're obgliged to become a
structural engineer for each paragraph in a document, deciding on the
appropriate style for each, whereas in WordPerfect you could format
everything directly.
* For an overview of style basics, check out the Shauna Kelly website
given above.
* Because creating a custom style is so easy, many companies create
dozens of the critters for each little formatting quirk. That may
indeed be an absolute necessity; however, you'll quickly discover that
the fewer styles you use, the easier word processing becomes. You're
luckiest when you can get away with only Word's native styles, perhaps
modified a little for your requirements.
* To apply a style used in one paragraph to another, copy the
paragraph mark from the source paragraph and paste it at the end of
the target paragraph.
RE: NEXT PAGE SECTION BREAKS - NONEXISTENT IN WORD PERFECT, NOW
NECESSARY
* You need Next Page Section Breaks (Alt-i-b-n) to start new page
numbering for a section. These were not needed in WordPerfect but
they are now.
* Next Page Sections Breaks and Continuous Section Breaks are two
different animals. Beware of Continuous Page Breaks. They are buggy.
RE: FOOTERS AND PAGE NUMBERING
* Unlike WordPerfect, Word has only one footer and one header for page
numbering. Be forewarned: they're awful to learn and manage!
* In general, unless you're continuing numbering from a previous
section, take off Same as Previous in each header/footer following a
Next Page Section Break. Click the Same as Previous icon, fourth one
in from the right, till it disappears from the header/footer box.
* Where you want no page number on the first page of a new section,
use Different First Page on the PageSetUp dialog. Click the book icon
to get there.
* To set the page to start at 1, click the hand icon holding the
number sign.
* To insert a page number, click the # icon, first on the left.
* The above icons are found on your Header/Footer toolbar which pops
up when you press Alt-v-h.
RE: TABLES V. COLUMNS
* Whenever possible, use tables instead of columns (it's not always
possible). Columns require Continuous Page Breaks, and they can be
hazardous to your sanity. For most legal purposes, tables'll do the
trick fine.
* You're *sure* to be tested on tables for a law firm, so you have to
learn how to format complex statistical tables, including tab leaders
and multi-line header rows. The good news is that Word's tables are a
lot easier than WordPerfect's. The bad news is that you have to find
out for yourself what makes them so easy.
* When formatting table cells, pay special attention to learning the
Alt-o-b Borders and Shading dialog. Practice with selected cells. Note
the differences among Apply to Cell, Apply to Paragraph, Apply to Text
and Apply to Table.
* Learn the features that merge cells and make columns equal.
RE: TABS
* Like tables, tabs are much easier in Word. When there's no selection
on and you set a tab, it applies only to the paragraph your cursor is
on. If several paragraphs are selected, all will have that same tab
stop.
* To indent a paragraph from the margin, you don't even need a tab in
Word because each paragraph has its own set of indents. So, to indent
a paragraph two tabs from the left margin (one inch) just change the
LeftIndent setting for the paragraph.
* To access the paragraph settings above, Press Alt-o-p for the
paragraph dialog. It controls indentation, line spacing, space before
and after the paragraph.
* You can change a single paragraph's indents through Alt-o-p or
multiple selected paragraphs. Learn the Alt-o-p paragraph dialog by
heart. The only difference between the paragraph dialog for
individual paragraphs and for styles is that with styles, you format
all instances throughout the document, as noted before.
RE: FREQUENTLY USED SHORTCUT KEYS
(May be different if not Word 2002)
Alt-f-u, page setup
Alt-t-o, options for viewing, etc.
Alt-o-p, paragraph dialog
Alt-f-v, print view to see multiple pages
Alt-v-n, normal view
Alt-v-p, page view
Alt-v-h, go to headers/footers
Alt-i-b-n, insert next page section break
Ctrl-g, go to page, bookmark, etc.
Ctrl-d, font
Ctrl-h, find and replace
Alt-i-f, insert a field
There's millions of things missing here, but they'll come in due time.
These are the points I remember wishing I had known when I started out
in Word. Hope they help you get up to speed faster. - Bruce
