Microsoft Word 2019 & 365 for Lawyers Training Tutorial

Microsoft Word is a word processing program that you can use to create various types of documents. You can create standard letters, memos, faxes, envelopes, labels, and many other types of documents. You can also create your own custom documents, as you have complete control over the appearance of your documents. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The interface in Word 2019 and 365 is like the interface in previous versions of Word. New users of the program, as with any program, should start by familiarizing themselves with the working environment. You should start by learning the names and locations of the tools you need to create Word documents. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The Title Bar is the bar that runs across the top of the entire application window. The name of the document on which you are working appears here. In Word for Office 365, the Microsoft Search Bar may also appear here. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The primary tool you use in Word is the Ribbon. This object lets you perform all the commands available in the program. The Ribbon is divided into tabs. Within these tabs are different groups of commands. You can access the commands in each button group by using either the buttons, boxes, or menus available in the button group. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Unlike other primary tabs in the Ribbon, clicking the “File” tab in the Ribbon opens a view of the file called the “Backstage view.” This view lets you perform all your file management. This includes functions like saving a file, opening an existing file, and creating a new file. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The Quick Access toolbar appears above the Ribbon, by default. To place it below the Ribbon, if desired, click the “Customize Quick Access Toolbar” button at the right end of the toolbar. Then select the “Show Below the Ribbon” command from the drop-down menu that appears. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Because of the increased use of tablets, Word contains a mode that gives you easier access to the buttons and commands in the Ribbon and Quick Access toolbar. This mode is called touch mode. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Microsoft Word provides you with a ruler you can use to set tabs within a document. It can also help you place and position document text and document objects. Depending upon which document view you are using, the ruler may appear differently. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When using the “Print Layout” view of a document, scroll bars can appear both vertically and horizontally along the right and bottom sides of the document window when you hold your mouse pointer over the document area. They appear all the time when using “Draft” view. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The document view buttons are a group of buttons in the lower-right corner of the application. They also appear on the “View” tab of the Ribbon in the “Views” button group and the “Immersive” button group. You can click these buttons to change the working view of your document. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The Zoom slider appears in the lower-right corner of the application window. You use this tool to change the magnification level of the document. This does not modify the document in any way, but rather changes your perception of how close or far away the document appears onscreen. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

At the bottom of the application window is a long, thin, horizontal bar in which you find objects like the “Zoom Slider” and the “Document View” buttons. The bar within which these tools appear is called the Status Bar. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The Mini toolbar in Word appears when you select text in a document and then hold your mouse pointer over it. The Mini toolbar then appears as a small toolbar just above the selection. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

If you are new to Word, then you may be wondering what a “keyboard shortcut” is. A keyboard shortcut lets you to press a combination of keyboard characters to execute a command instead of clicking a button in the Ribbon or the Quick Access Toolbar. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

After opening Word, a list of “Recent,” “Pinned” and “Shared with Me” files appears in the startup screen. You can click each title to view the files in that list. A “pinned” file is one you pinned to the “Pinned” list for easy access, regardless of how long it has been since it was opened. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

If you have multiple documents open and want to close only the one you are working on, then either click the “x” in the upper-right corner of the application window or click the “File” tab in the Ribbon and then click the “Close” command at the left side of the Backstage view. This closes the document window. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When you first open Word, a startup screen appears which lets you create a new document. Simply click the type of document to create in the listing of available templates that appears at the right side of the startup screen. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When you save a document for the first time, you must use the “Save As” command to choose where to save the file and what to name it. To do this, click the “File” tab within the Ribbon. Then click the “Save As” command in the command panel at the left side of the Backstage view. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Word lets you to attempt to recover unsaved document files. If you want to see if Word has automatically saved a copy of an unsaved document that you were working on, select the “File” tab within the Ribbon and click the “Open” command at the left side of the Backstage view. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When you open a new document, the insertion point cursor appears in the upper-left corner of the document. This insertion point cursor identifies where any text that you type with your keyboard will appear. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

To move the insertion mark cursor, you must have characters on the page, even if they are non-printing (invisible) characters like the ones the “Spacebar,” “Tab,” and “Enter” keys create when you press them. If you double-click into the blank document area while using the “Print Layout” view, Word will fill-in the blank area with these invisible characters to position your insertion point where you double-clicked. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

After learning how to enter text, you then need to learn how to select it. When you select text, changes you then make only affect the selected text. This includes formatting, replacing, or deleting the selected text. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

In Word, the “Spacebar,” “Tab,” and “Enter” keys all create characters within your document, just like any other key on your keyboard does. Normally, you cannot see these characters. However, they can sometimes be problematic if you accidentally select them. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Since Word 2007, there have been four different basic file format types available. The first and default file format type is the “Word Document.” This is a Word document that does not contain macros or code and is the type of file most users create by default. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Word automatically enables the “AutoSave” feature when you save a document using the newest file formats to an online destination, like OneDrive or SharePoint. AutoSave saves the file to the online location every few seconds as you work. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The document view buttons are a group of buttons for commonly-used document views in the lower-right corner of the application. However, all document views also appear on the “View” tab of the Ribbon in the “Views” button group and the “Immersive” button group. You can click these buttons to change the document’s working view. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Microsoft Word provides you with a ruler that you can use to set tabs within a document and assist in the placement and positioning of document text and document objects. Depending upon which document view you are using, the ruler may appear differently, or it may not appear at all. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When working with multiple types of objects or specialized placement of text in your document, you may find gridlines useful. These lines can help you accurately place objects into your document. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The Navigation pane in Word lets you quickly search or navigate through your document. To enable the display of the Navigation pane, click the “View” tab in the Ribbon. For all document views other than “Read Mode,” then check the “Navigation Pane” checkbox in the “Show” button group. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Zooming the document in Word lets you easily change the document’s magnification level. One way to do this, as mentioned in a previous lesson, is to use the Zoom slider. It appears in the lower-right corner of the application window. The document’s current magnification level appears as a percentage to the right of the Zoom slider. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

To open a second window view of the document on which you are currently working that contains an exact copy of its contents, click the “View” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “New Window” button in the “Window” button group. A new window then opens, which contains a secondary view of the same document on which you are working. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You can arrange the open document windows in Word to organize them so you can view their contents at the same time. One way to arrange the open document windows is to use the “Arrange All” command. Doing this arranges all open document windows vertically on the screen. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

If editing an extremely long document, the “Split” function may help. Enabling this function will split the current document window into two separate panes. Each pane scrolls independently, which lets you simultaneously view and edit two different, non-adjacent sections of the same document. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You can compare two open documents in Word side by side. The “View Side by Side” function lets you open both document windows at the same time, giving equal space to each. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

To quickly switch between open document windows, click the “View” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Switch Windows” drop-down button in the “Window” button group. In the drop-down menu of open document windows that then appears, click the name of the document to view to switch to that document window. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Full screen view in Word maximizes the amount of document area by removing everything else from the Word window. To switch to full screen mode in Word, first click the “Ribbon Display Options” button in the button group at the right end of the Title Bar. Then click the “Auto-hide Ribbon” command. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

In Word, you can delete characters, words, paragraphs, or all the text in your document quickly and easily. You can use the “Backspace” and “Delete” keys on your keyboard to remove text while typing. You can also select text to delete and then press the “Delete” key to remove it. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You can cut or copy and then paste document content to move or copy selected document content from one place to another. To cut, copy, and paste document content in Word, first select the document content to cut or copy. Then choose whether to cut the content or copy it. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The “Undo” command, located in the Quick Access Toolbar by default, is one of the most useful functions ever created. It allows you to reverse the last command, or last few commands, you performed. The drop-down arrow next to the “Undo” button contains a list of your last few previous actions. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You can use the commands in the “Editing” button group on the “Home” tab of the Ribbon to perform several commands that can help you edit Word documents. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You have several different ways to select document text and objects in Word. To select document text, click and drag your mouse over the text. This technique can also select objects that have a text-wrapping setting of “In Line with Text.” Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The “Spelling & Grammar” tool in Word helps you quickly identify and correct misspelled words and grammatical errors in your documents. The nature of the “Spelling & Grammar” tool is twofold. First, it identifies words and phrases in the document it thinks are misspelled by comparing the words within the document to an internal dictionary. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You can customize many features of the “Spelling & Grammar” tool. To view the “Proofing” options for Word, click the “File” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Options” command in the list at the left side of the Backstage view. Then click the “Proofing” category at the left side of the "Word Options" dialog box. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Using the Thesaurus in Word lets you find synonyms for words. When using the Thesaurus in Word, you have a couple of different options. The first and easiest way to use it is to right-click a document word to look up. From the popup menu that appears, hover over the “Synonyms” command to see a short list of available choices. If you see the word you want to use, click it to replace the word you right-clicked. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You may occasionally need to know how many words appear in your document. By default, Word displays the total word count for your document in the Status bar at the bottom of the application window. It should appear near the left side of the Status bar. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Translating documents in Word lets you translate either an entire document or a selected section of a document. To translate an entire document in Word, first open the document to translate. Then click the “Review” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Translate” drop-down button in the “Language” button group. Click the “Translate Document” command in the button’s drop-down menu to open the “Document” view of the “Translator” task pane at the right side of the application window. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The Read Aloud feature in Word lets Word read a document aloud to you. To use Read Aloud in Word, first open the document to read out loud in Word. Then click to place the insertion point cursor at the start of the part of the document where you want to begin reading the document aloud. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Formatting the font, or text, within a document helps give it a finished and polished appearance. You can add bolding or italics to emphasize selected text, change the font color, or add many other stylistic options. It is very easy to apply font formatting. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The “Font” dialog box in Word lets you apply advanced font formatting options. To access the “Font” dialog box in Word, click the “Font” dialog box button in the lower-right corner of the “Font” button group on the “Home” tab of the Ribbon. This dialog box contains a “Font” tab and an “Advanced” tab. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When formatting text, you may want to simply copy formatting from a text selection and then paste only the formatting onto other text selections. This can save you time when formatting documents with a standard appearance for many sections. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

Word contains many preset “Styles” you can add to text. To apply a preset style, first select the text to which to apply the style or simply set the style before typing your text. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

To remove a preset style from text, first select the text from which to remove the applied style. Then click the “Normal” style in the “Styles” button group on the “Home” tab of the Ribbon. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You have several choices on how to align paragraphs in Word. Alignment refers to the appearance of the left and right sides of the paragraph. By default, Word aligns paragraphs to the left. You can change this alignment so the right sides are symmetrical. This is called right alignment. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

There are many ways to indent paragraphs in Word. A common way to add a half-inch, first-line paragraph indentation in Word is by pressing the “Tab” key on your keyboard before typing a new paragraph. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You can change line spacing and paragraph spacing in Word. Line spacing is the amount of space between each line in your paragraph. Paragraph spacing is the amount of space before and after the paragraphs in a document. You can adjust the default line spacing and paragraph spacing settings on the “Indents and Spacing” tab of the “Paragraph” dialog box. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

All documents in Word have a document layout that lets you set properties like page size, orientation, page numbering, margins, headers and footers, and more. You are able to change the layout of your document to suit any need you may have. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When you create a document, you select a paper size, like 8.5” by 11.” When you reach the end of a document’s specified page size in Word, it creates an automatic page break. Sometimes these automatic page breaks occur in undesirable places. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You may need to create a document that contains columns, like a newsletter. This lets you vertically separate text and have the text flow from one column to the next on the same page. You can add columns to a whole document or to a selected section in a document. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

When using columns in Word, text flows automatically from one column to the next. You may find you need to stop the text in one column and start it again in the next column. You can do this by inserting a “Column Break” in Word. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

All documents based on the “Normal” template contain space for header and footer information. To view and edit the content of the headers and footers while working in the document, however, you must use the “Print Layout” document view. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You use the “Page Setup” dialog box in Word to adjust your document’s print layout settings. To access this dialog box, first click “Layout” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Page Setup” dialog box launcher button in the lower-right corner of the “Page Setup” button group. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You may need to set the margins in Word before printing your current document. To set the margins for your document, first click the “Layout” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Margins” drop-down button in the “Page Setup” button group. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The paper settings in Word let you set the document’s paper to match the paper size you need to use to print it. To adjust the paper size of your document, click the “Layout” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Size” drop-down button in the “Page Setup” button group. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

To adjust a document’s layout settings in Word, click the “Layout” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Page Setup” dialog box launcher in the lower-right corner of the “Page Setup” button group. In the “Page Setup” dialog box that then opens, click the “Layout” tab to view the document’s layout settings. This tab contains settings for the document’s sections, headers and footers, and the page alignment. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

To add line numbers in Word, first click the “Layout” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Line Numbers” drop-down button in the “Page Setup” button group to display a list of line number options. There are five preset options in this menu and a “Line Numbering Options…” command. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

The hyphenation settings in Word let you set how Word controls hyphenation at the end of a line in a document. To set the hyphenation settings in Word for a document, first click the “Layout” tab in the Ribbon. Then click the “Hyphenation” drop-down in the “Page Setup” button group. Within the “Hyphenation” button’s drop-down menu, you can choose “None” to disable hyphenation, “Automatic” to let Word automatically hyphenate, or choose “Manual” to manually hyphenate words. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

A template is a “master” document, from which you create copies of the documents on which you actually work. For example, when you create a new blank document in Word, it is actually a copy of the “Normal” template. Learn about this and more during this lecture.

You can create a “personal” document template you store on your computer for documents you frequently create and only need to change slightly between copies. Learn about this and more during this lecture.