Over dinner, I proudly shared: ‘I’m going to develop a training on how to use Microsoft Word for Technical Writers.’ After which my son looked at me, slightly puzzled ‘A training for using a typing programme? That sounds silly, everyone can work with Word!’
Absolutely! It is the pioneering software on your computer that everyone can type words in. It is easy to use and there are numerous possibilities to position texts and images on the screen in an orderly manner. And that is exactly the problem. There are so many possibilities that you could get lost in your own document.
MS Word: there is more than meets the eye
MS Word does not stand on a solitary pedestal and is certainly not always logical in its use, and yet it is a straightforward tool for creating solid documents. From experience we know that many of the options the programme offers are either not used to its full potential or not used at all. And that’s a shame. By fully using the solutions that MS Word offers, you can create your documents faster and more consistently.
Avoid frustrations
The following probably sounds familiar: You just created a marvelous document, only to discover that you should have used a different font! You start to frown and then begin to correct the entire document paragraph by paragraph, page by page. A time-consuming task for which you are never in the mood.
In retrospect, the solution is always easy. Take a moment to think before you start working on your document and work in a structured way by using styles.
Working with styles
A style is a collection of layout tasks specifically designed for texts. All layout tasks are
saved as a collection, or in other words, a style. If you make changes in a style, the layout of the text that is using that style also changes. This ensures a consistent use of your layout and it saves a great deal of time. On top of that, the document looks great as well. Additionally, if you wish to have the document translated, there is less fuss with the layout afterwards.
Styles are available in all Word documents, whether you use them or not. A style is always applied automatically to all texts that are typed by you. That cannot be avoided.
During our training MS Word for Techincal Writers, we provide an in-depth explanation on the use of styles, templates, tables, and positioning images. We cover a large part of the options offered by Word that are relevent for your profession!
Writing properly in Word remains a trade of its own.
Curious about the possibilities that Microsoft Word has to offer and what the Foxiz Academy could do for you? Please do not hesitate to reach out to us!