Introduction to the changes in Word 2007

       Introduction to the changes in Word 2007


The aim of this article is to show you how to do tasks in Word 2007 that you could do in previous versions and also what new features Word 2007 offers and how to go about them.

The first thing that should be noted in Word 2007 is the new file format - .docx as apposed to .doc as in previous versions. This can cause many headaches if you neglect this when working on two machines, one using Word 2007 and one using an older version. Many features in the new format are simply not compatible with older legacy versions. However, if you forget to save to the older format when wanting to work on an older version, you will need to install the office compatability pack on the machine running the older version to allow Word to open that file type. Many features will be lost or converted into backwards compatible format.

If you, as is set as default, open Word and work using the new features given by the X format but then need to save in the traditional format, when saving the "Microsoft Word Compatibility Checker" will pop up and point out which features will not work in the older format and will, in most cases, provide automatic remedial actions it can and has taken to make the file save in the old format. Clicking Continue will fix these issues and the file will save.

The first and most striking difference is the lack of the old menu at the top of the screen. It has been replaced by this logo and “ribbons”

Ribbons are like tabs in old style windows. Under the “home” ribbon you have the basic, key features required by a user. Tasks and features have now been grouped by titles and areas, dealing somewhat with the odd layout of the menus in previous versions.
Below are some basic office tasks and how to carry them out in Office 2007 where they have changed.

Word Count:

Word count is now located at the bottom left of the screen. Click on the text Words: and the word count is displayed as a new window as per older versions of windows

Spellchecker:

Spellchecker is called up using the F7 key on the keyboard. That’s as per older versions, but the amount of data it provides has been expanded. Once any spelling and grammar checks have been completed you will be presented with “Readability statistics”. The first two blocks of data are fairly self explanatory, but the last section may need some explaining. The flesch reading ease score is just quantifying the readability of the document you are writing. A score of between 60-70 is average for standard documents. As an example, in Florida, it is a requirement for all insurance documents to have a minimum score of 45. This document has, as you can see on the right, a score of 71.2. This is achieved by the use of short, simple sentences. The Flesch- Kincaid Grade level is calculated in a similar way to the reading ease score, but gives its result as a school level. Annoyingly it is based on the American system, so this document, for example, should be readable by a 7th grader.

Inserting Equations and symbols into a document:

In previous versions of Microsoft Word, inserting mathematical or physics equations was quite a lot of hassle and often produced unprofessional looking results when done by the user. In Word 2007 however, there is an equation button. To access it, select the INSERT ribbon. In the final block “Symbols” is the Equations button with the icon of π. You can either just click on the icon and write your own equation, inserting symbols as an when required or you can insert some predefined equations straight in. Such equations include the area of a circle, binomial theorem and the quadratic formula.

Inserting super and sub scripted text:

In previous versions of Word, to complete this function you needed to go through the following menu.
Format > Font and then select super or sub script from the tick boxes in that window.
In Word 2007, it is a much more compacted process. On the Home Ribbon, in the second sector where the font selection is, along with the BOLD and underline options there are two X icons with one shown as X2 and the other as X2. Clicking on these is all you need to do to change to either mode.

As a final note, if you find the new ribbon structure a bit confusing and prefered the old menu structure of Word 2003 and prior, there is a way to get this in in Office 2007. It requires a plugin which can be obtained from the following link:

http://www.ubit.ch/software/ubitmenu-languages

The installation is really simple, just select your own language from the list, select the setup.exe (freeware) and when the file has downloaded select "Run" or "Save" Follow the onscreen instructions to install the kit.


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