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Support / Word / Word 2003 Help and How-to / Startup and Settings / Accessibility
 
 

Accessibility features in Word

Applies to: Microsoft Office Word 2003

 

Microsoft Word includes features that make the software accessible (accessibility: The quality of a given system of hardware or software that makes it usable by people with one or more physical disabilities, such as restricted mobility, blindness, or deafness.) to a wider range of users, including those who have limited dexterity, low vision, or other disabilities.

Keyboard shortcuts

ShowShow or hide shortcut keys in ScreenTips

  1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
  2. Click the Options tab.
  3. Under Other, select or clear the Show ScreenTips on toolbars and Show shortcut keys in ScreenTips check boxes.

 Note   Changing either setting affects all of your Microsoft Office programs.

ShowAssign a shortcut key to a command or other item

You can assign a shortcut key (shortcut key: A function key or key combination, such as F5 or CTRL+A, that you use to carry out a menu command. In contrast, an access key is a key combination, such as ALT+F, that moves the focus to a menu, command, or control.) to a command, macro (macro: An action or a set of actions that you can use to automate tasks. Macros are recorded in the Visual Basic for Applications programming language.), font, AutoText (AutoText: A storage location for text or graphics you want to use again, such as a standard contract clause or a long distribution list. Each selection of text or graphics is recorded as an AutoText entry and is assigned a unique name.) entry, style, or commonly used symbol.

  1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
  2. Click Keyboard.
  3. In the Save changes in box, click the current document name or template (template: A file or files that contain the structure and tools for shaping such elements as the style and page layout of finished files. For example, Word templates can shape a single document, and FrontPage templates can shape an entire Web site.) in which you want to save the shortcut key changes.
  4. In the Categories box, click the category that contains the command or other item.
  5. In the Commands box, click the name of the command or other item.

Any shortcut keys that are currently assigned appear in the Current keys box.

  1. Do one of the following:

ShowAssign a shortcut key

Begin shortcut key combinations with CTRL, ALT, or a function key.

  1. Click the Press new shortcut key box and press the shortcut key combination you want to assign. For example, press ALT plus the desired key.
  2. Look at Currently assigned to to see if the shortcut key combination is already assigned to a command or other item. If so, select another combination.

Reassigning a key combination means that you can no longer use the combination for its original purpose. For example, pressing CTRL+B changes selected text to bold. If you reassign CTRL+B to a new command or other item, you will not be able to make text bold by pressing CTRL+B unless you restore the shortcut key assignments to their original settings.

  1. Click Assign.

ShowRemove a shortcut key

  1. In the Current keys box, click the shortcut key you want to delete.
  2. Click Remove.

 Note   If you use a programmable keyboard, the key combination CTRL+ALT+F8 may be reserved for initiating keyboard programming.

ShowPrint a list of shortcut keys

  1. On the Tools menu, point to Macro, and then click Macros.
  2. In the Macros in box, click Word commands.
  3. In the Macro name box, click ListCommands.
  4. Click Run.
  5. In the List Commands dialog box, click Current menu and keyboard settings.
  6. Click OK.
  7. On the File menu, click Print.

Get more information about keyboard shortcuts.

Size and zoom options

ShowZoom in on or out of a document

You can "zoom in" to get a close-up view of your document or "zoom out" to see more of the page at a reduced size.

  1. Click the arrow next to the Zoom box Button image.
  2. Click the zoom setting you want.

ShowScroll and zoom by using the Microsoft IntelliMouse or other pointing device

Some mouse devices and other pointing devices, such as the Microsoft IntelliMouse, have built-in scrolling and zooming capabilities. For more information, see the instructions for your pointing device.

ShowUse reading layout view

Reading layout view improves the resolution and display of text for reading on the screen.

  1. On the Standard toolbar (toolbar: A bar with buttons and options that you use to carry out commands. To display a toolbar, press ALT and then SHIFT+F10.), click Read Button image.
  2. If you want to increase the size of the text, on the Reading Layout toolbar, click Increase Text Size Button image.

ShowChange the size of a toolbar button or drop-down list box

Do one of the following:

ShowIncrease the size of toolbar buttons

  1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
  2. Click the Options tab.
  3. Select the Large icons check box.

ShowChange the width of a drop-down list box on a toolbar

  1. Make sure the toolbar (toolbar: A bar with buttons and options that you use to carry out commands. To display a toolbar, press ALT and then SHIFT+F10.) you want to change is visible.

ShowHow?

  1. On the View menu, point to Toolbars.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • Click the toolbar you want to display.
    • To view more toolbars, click Customize. In the Customize dialog box, click the Toolbars tab, and then select the check box for the toolbar you want to display. Click Close.
  1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
  2. With the Customize dialog box open, click the list box you want to change — for example, the Font Button image or Font Size Button image box on the Formatting toolbar.
  3. Point to the left or right edge of the box. When the pointer changes to a double-headed arrow, drag the edge of the box to change its width.

Toolbar and menu options

ShowCreate a custom toolbar

  1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
  2. Click the Toolbars tab.
  3. Click New.
  4. In the Toolbar name box, type the name you want, and then click OK.
  5. Click the Commands tab.
  6. Do one of the following:

ShowAdd a button to the toolbar

  1. Click a category in the Categories box.
  2. Drag the command you want from the Commands box to the displayed toolbar.

ShowAdd a built-in menu to the toolbar

  1. In the Categories box, click Built-in Menus.
  2. Drag the menu you want from the Commands box to the displayed toolbar.
  1. When you have added all the buttons and menus you want, click Close.

ShowGroup related buttons and menus on a toolbar

You can add a separator bar before the first and after the last item in a group to distinguish the group from other buttons and menus (menu: A list of commands that is displayed when you click a menu name on a menu bar or other toolbar.) on a toolbar (toolbar: A bar with buttons and options that you use to carry out commands. To display a toolbar, press ALT and then SHIFT+F10.).

  1. Make sure the toolbar you want to change is visible.

ShowHow?

  1. On the View menu, point to Toolbars.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • Click the toolbar you want to display.
    • To view more toolbars, click Customize. In the Customize dialog box, click the Toolbars tab, and then select the check box for the toolbar you want to display. Click Close.
  1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
  2. To add a separator bar, keep the Customize dialog box open, right-click the button you want on the toolbar, and then click Begin a Group. A separator bar is added to the left of the button on a horizontal toolbar, and above a button on a vertical docked toolbar (docked toolbar: A toolbar that is attached to one edge of the program window. When you drag a toolbar below the program title bar or to the left, right, or bottom edge of the program window, the toolbar snaps into place on the edge of the program window.).

 Note   To remove a separator bar between two buttons, drag one button closer to the other.

ShowAdd a button, menu, or command

Do one or both of the following:

ShowAdd a button, menu, or command to a toolbar

  1. Make sure the toolbar (toolbar: A bar with buttons and options that you use to carry out commands. To display a toolbar, press ALT and then SHIFT+F10.) you want to change is visible.

ShowHow?

  1. On the View menu, point to Toolbars.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • Click the toolbar you want to display.
    • To view more toolbars, click Customize. In the Customize dialog box, click the Toolbars tab, and then select the check box for the toolbar you want to display. Click Close.
  1. On the Tools menu, click Customize.
  2. Do one of the following:

ShowAdd a button

  1. Click the Commands tab.
  2. In the Categories box, click a category for the command you want the button to perform.
  3. Drag the command or macro (macro: An action or a set of actions that you can use to automate tasks. Macros are recorded in the Visual Basic for Applications programming language.) you want from the Commands box to the displayed toolbar.

ShowAdd a built-in menu to a toolbar

  1. Click the Commands tab.
  2. In the Categories box, click Built-in Menus.
  3. Drag the menu (menu: A list of commands that is displayed when you click a menu name on a menu bar or other toolbar.) you want from the Commands box to the displayed toolbar.

ShowAdd a custom menu to a toolbar

  1. Click the Commands tab.
  2. In the Categories box, click New Menu.
  3. Drag New Menu from the Commands box to the displayed toolbar.
  4. Right-click the new menu on the toolbar, type a name in the Name box on the shortcut menu, and then press ENTER.
  1. On the Customize dialog box, click Close.

ShowAdd a command to a menu

  1. If the menu you want to change is on a toolbar (toolbar: A bar with buttons and options that you use to carry out commands. To display a toolbar, press ALT and then SHIFT+F10.), make sure the toolbar is visible.

ShowHow?

  1. On the View menu, point to Toolbars.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • Click the toolbar you want to display.
    • To view more toolbars, click Customize. In the Customize dialog box, click the Toolbars tab, and then select the check box for the toolbar you want to display. Click Close.
  1. On the View menu, point to Toolbars.
  2. Click Customize, and then click the Commands tab.
  3. In the Categories box, click a category for the command.
  4. Drag the command you want from the Commands box and, without releasing the mouse, rest it over the menu you want to change. When the menu opens, point to where you want the command to appear, and then release the mouse.

Color and sound options

ShowChange the color of text

  1. Select the text you want to change.
  2. Do one of the following:

ShowTurn sounds on or off for buttons, menus, and other screen elements

Do one or both of the following:

ShowTurn on or off sound

  1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the General tab.
  2. Select or clear the Provide feedback with sound check box.

 Note   Changing this setting will affect all of your Microsoft Office programs.

ShowChange sounds

ShowWindows 2000

  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Double-click Sounds and Multimedia.
  3. In the Sound Events list, click the event you want.
  4. In the Name box, enter the sound you want.

ShowWindows XP

  1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
  2. In Microsoft Windows Control Panel, click Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices, and then click Sounds and Audio Devices.
  3. On the Sounds tab, in the Program Events list, click the event you want.
  4. In the Sounds box, enter the sound you want.

ShowChange the color of wavy underlines

Options for automating tasks

ShowUse AutoComplete

When the AutoComplete feature is turned on, Microsoft Word will display a ScreenTip (ScreenTip: A short description that appears when the user holds the mouse pointer over an object, such as a button or hyperlink.) when you type the first few characters of an AutoText (AutoText: A storage location for text or graphics you want to use again, such as a standard contract clause or a long distribution list. Each selection of text or graphics is recorded as an AutoText entry and is assigned a unique name.) entry, at which point you can insert the entry or continue typing.

  1. On the Insert menu, point to AutoText, and then click AutoText.
  2. Select or clear the Show AutoComplete suggestions check box.

ShowUse AutoText to insert frequently used text and graphics

AutoText (AutoText: A storage location for text or graphics you want to use again, such as a standard contract clause or a long distribution list. Each selection of text or graphics is recorded as an AutoText entry and is assigned a unique name.) entries are divided into categories such as Closing or Salutation. When you add entries of your own, AutoText places them in the Normal category. Check that category for entries you've created unless you know they are stored under another category.

  1. Click in the document where you want to insert the AutoText entry.
  2. On the Insert menu, point to AutoText, point to the category that contains your entry, and then click the entry.

ShowTips

  • You can also use a shortcut to insert an AutoText entry. First, turn on AutoComplete (Insert menu, AutoText subcommand, AutoText command, AutoText tab, ShowAutoComplete options check box). In your document, type the first few characters in the AutoText entry's name. When Microsoft Word suggests the complete AutoText entry, press ENTER or F3 to accept the entry.

To reject the AutoText entry, keep typing.

To insert AutoText entries in the language you're typing in, use the AutoText menu (Insert menu, AutoText command) or the AutoText toolbar. To insert AutoText entries in the language version of Word that you are using, use the AutoText tab in the AutoCorrect dialog box (Insert menu, AutoText command, AutoText subcommand).

Also note that if you insert an AutoText field by using the Field dialog box (Insert menu, Field command), the Field dialog box, like the AutoText tab, reflects the language version of Word that you are using, not the language you are typing in.

ShowCollect and paste among programs

ShowCollect items to paste

  1. Make sure that the Microsoft Office Clipboard is displayed in the task pane (task pane: A window within an Office program that provides commonly used commands. Its location and small size allow you to use these commands while still working on your files.) of any open Office program or the Collect Without Showing Office Clipboard option is turned on.
    • If you want to display the Office Clipboard in the active program, click Office Clipboard on the Edit menu.
    • If you want to check the Collect Without Showing Office Clipboard option, display the Office Clipboard, click Options, and then make sure the Collect Without Showing Office Clipboard option is checked.
  2. Select the first item you want to copy.
  3. On the Standard toolbar (toolbar: A bar with buttons and options that you use to carry out commands. To display a toolbar, press ALT and then SHIFT+F10.), click Copy Button image.
  4. Continue copying items from documents in any Office program until you have collected all of the items you want (up to 24).

 Note   In some cases such as Unicode (Unicode: A character encoding standard developed by the Unicode Consortium. By using more than one byte to represent each character, Unicode enables almost all of the written languages in the world to be represented by using a single character set.) text, the image displayed in the gallery will look slightly altered. This is because text is always displayed in the gallery using the Tahoma font. However, the correct formatting and font information is restored when the item is pasted from the gallery.

ShowPaste collected items

  1. If the Microsoft Office Clipboard is not displayed in the task pane (task pane: A window within an Office program that provides commonly used commands. Its location and small size allow you to use these commands while still working on your files.), click Office Clipboard on the Edit menu.

 Note   If the Office Clipboard is not available, you are in a program or view that doesn't support showing or pasting multiple items from the Office Clipboard.

  1. Click where you want the items to be pasted. You can paste collected items into any Microsoft Office program.
  2. Do one of the following:
    • To paste items one at a time, on the Office Clipboard, click the each item you want to paste.
    • To paste all the items you copied, click Paste All Button image on the Office Clipboard task pane.

ShowUse Click and Type to insert and format text and graphics

  1. Switch to print layout view (Print Layout view: A view of a document or other object as it will appear when you print it. For example, items such as headers, footnotes, columns, and text boxes appear in their actual positions.) or Web layout view (Web Layout view: A view of a document as it will appear in a Web browser. For example, the document appears as one long page (without page breaks) and text and tables wrap to fit in the window.).
  2. In the document, move the pointer to a blank area where you want to insert text, graphics, or a table. Then, click to enable the Click and Type pointer (Click and Type pointer shapes: Indicate which formatting will be applied when you double-click: a left-aligned, centered, or right-aligned tab stop; a left indent; or left or right text wrapping.).

The pointer shape indicates how the item will be formatted. For example, if you point to the center of the page, the pointer shape Align center indicates that the item will be centered.

  1. Double-click, and then start typing text or insert an item as usual.

 Notes 

  • If you don't see the Click and Type pointer shapes, the Click and Type feature may not be turned on. To turn it on, click Options on the Tools menu, click the Edit tab, select the Enable click and type check box, and then click OK.
  • If you don't want to insert an item where you double-clicked, just double-click in another area. If you've already inserted an item, you can undo the insertion.

ShowQuickly set AutoCorrect and paste options

Quickly set AutoCorrect options and paste options by using the AutoCorrect Options button Button image and the Paste Options button Button image, which appear in your document as you work.

 
 

See Also