Hackbash – fixing Word since 2007
Mar 29th, 2010 by handolio
A couple of years back I was bleating at how it was a bastard to proof on Word 2007 because it couldn’t display consistently-sized spaces. Shame on me for not recognising characters ‘optimised for readability rather than layout’.
Yes, it turns out that Word’s separation of words with seemingly random amounts of fresh air is all about readability. As assessed by the Andrex puppy, I can only assume.
If you’re in the unlikely position of, you know, having a professional interest in copy with the correct number of spaces, it turns out there is a way to fix it:
-Click Word’s nameless round button
-At the bottom of the menu that appears click Word Options
-Click Advanced in the left-hand pane
-Scroll down to the Display settings
-Tick Optimize character positioning for layout rather than readability
-Click OK to save the change
Incidentally, I discovered this when setting up a new netbook. With only 600 pixels of vertical resolution I was looking for ways to free up screen space, and particularly found myself wondering whether the huge Office Ribbon was strictly necessary.
If you’ve been using Office 2007 for a while, though, you probably know which of the ribbon views the various functions you use are on. Right-click the base of the ribbon, select Minimize the Ribbon, and revel in your liberated screen space.
