The only thing standing between you and your writing is your word processor. Yeah, I know: It’s supposed to be helpful. Well, it tries. Computers can do only so much. But you, as a smart person, are capable of so much more, which is why I’m guessing you opened this book.

Welcome to Word For Dummies, which removes the pain from using Microsoft’s greatest and most confusing word processing software ever! This book is your friendly, informative, and entertaining guide to getting the most from Word.

Be warned: I’m not out to force you to love Word. This book won’t make you enjoy the program. Use it, yes. Tolerate it, of course. The only promise I’m offering is to ease the pain that most people feel from using Microsoft Word. Along the way, I kick Word in the butt, and I hope you enjoy reading about it.

About This Book

I don’t intend for you to read this book from cover to cover. It’s not a novel, and if it were, it would be a political space opera with an antihero and a princess fighting corrupt elected officials who are in cahoots with an evil intergalactic urban renewal development corporation. The ending would be extremely satisfying.

This book is a reference. Each chapter covers a specific topic or task you can accomplish by using Word. Within each chapter, you find self-contained sections, each of which describes how to perform a specific task or get something done. Here are some sample topics you encounter in this book:

• Moving a block
• Check your spelling
• Save your stuff!
• Text-formatting techniques
• Working with tables in Word
• Plopping down a picture
• Mail merge, ho!

I give you no codes to memorize, no secret incantations, no tricks, no presentations to sleep through, and no wall charts. Instead, each section explains a topic as though it’s the first thing you read in this book. Nothing is assumed, and everything is cross-referenced. Technical terms and topics, when they come up, are neatly shoved to the side, where you can easily avoid reading them. The idea here isn’t for you to master anything. This book’s philosophy is to help you look it up, figure it out, and get back to work.

How to Use This Book

You hold in your hands an active book. The topics between this book's yellow-and-black covers are all geared toward getting things done in Word. All you need to do is find the topic that interests you and then read.

Word uses the mouse and keyboard to get things done, but mostly the keyboard.

I use the word click to describe the action of clicking the mouse’s main (left) button.

This is a keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+P. Press and hold down the Ctrl (Control) key and type the letter P, just as you would press Shift+P to create a capital P.

Sometimes, you must press more than two keys at the same time, such as Ctrl+Shift+T. Press Ctrl and Shift together and then press the T key. Release all three keys.

Commands in Word exist as command buttons on the Ribbon interface. I may refer to the tab, the command group, and then the button itself to help you locate that command button.

Menu commands are listed like this: Table ⇒    Insert Table. This direction tells you to click the Table command button and then choose the Insert Table item from the menu that appears.

Some of Word’s key commands dwell on the File screen. To access that screen, click the File tab on the Ribbon. To return to the document, click the Back button, found in the upper left corner of the File screen and shown in the margin. Or you can press the Esc key.

When I describe a message or some text you see onscreen, it looks like this:

Why should I bother to love Evelyn, when robots will
eventually destroy the human race?

If you need further help with operating your computer, I can recommend my book PCs For Dummies (Wiley). It contains lots of useful information to supplement what you find in this book.

Foolish Assumptions

This book was written with a few assumptions. Foremost, I assume that you're a human being, though you might also be an alien visiting from another planet. If so, welcome to Earth. Try the tacos. When you conquer our planet, please destroy Idaho last. Thanks.

Another foolish assumption I make is that you use Windows as the computer's operating system. Windows 10 is current, though Windows 11 is on the horizon and may be current by the time you read this introduction — assuming that you’re still reading this Introduction. This book doesn’t cover Windows.

This book covers several versions of Microsoft Word. Specifically, it’s written to Word 2021, the Microsoft 365 version of Word, and the online version of Word. Most versions of Word 2013 forward are similar, so you should be covered here. Any differences between the various Word versions are covered in this text.

One version of Word not covered here is the Macintosh version of Word. Sorry, Mac users, but the Mac version of Word is too different to present along with the Windows versions covered in this text.

What’s Not Here

This book covers using Word for anyone from a bare beginner to a modestly sophisticated scrivener. More advanced material is covered in its companion book, Word 2016 For Professionals For Dummies, which I wrote and Wiley published. I recommend this book if you want to dig into advanced topics such as manuscript preparation, Word use in a legal office, macro programming, and other “professional” word processing duties. The title covers Word 2016 specifically, but nearly all of it also applies to the current version of Word.

Icons Used in This Book

This icon flags useful, helpful tips, or shortcuts.

This icon marks a friendly reminder to do something.

This icon marks a friendly reminder not to do something.

This icon alerts you to overly nerdy information and technical discussions of the topic at hand. The information is optional reading, but it may enhance your reputation at cocktail parties if you repeat it.

Where to Go from Here

Start reading! Behold the table of contents and find something that interests you. Or look up your puzzle in the index.

Read! Write! Let your brilliance shine!

My email address is [email protected]. Yes, this is my real address. I reply to all email I receive, and you get a quick reply if you keep your question short and specific to this book or to Word itself. Although I enjoy saying hi, I cannot answer technical support questions or help you troubleshoot your computer. Thanks for understanding.

You can also visit my web page for more information or as a diversion:www.wambooli.com. This book’s specific support page can be found atwww.wambooli.com/help/word. I place errata and updates on that page as well as write frequent blog posts with Word information, tips, and tricks.

My YouTube channel contains hundreds of videos about Word, including tips, tricks, and tutorials. Check it out at youtube.com/dangookin

To find this book’s online Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for Word For Dummies Cheat Sheet in the Search box.

Enjoy this book. And enjoy Word. Or at least tolerate it.