Last week's newsletter featured a macro (Go2Text) designed to take you to specified text without using cursor keys or the mouse. You can learn about it here:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708547575

A couple of readers have asked (much more nicely than this), "Why the heck should I use Go2Text when Word's Find feature will do the same thing?" It's a fair question, and it's something I should have explained last week. Here's my answer:

The differences between Go2Text and Find are small (for the purpose of going to text), but to me they're significant, which is why I created the macro. Yes, Word's Find feature will take you to the text you wanted to find. But notice: after finding something, the Find dialog remains *open.* To work on the text you've found, you'll have to press the ESC key (or click the Cancel button) to get rid of the dialog. With Go2Text, that isn't the case. As soon as you press ENTER, the dialog goes away, saving you the annoyance of having to put it away manually.

Now notice this: After using the Find dialog, the text that was found is *selected,* which means you have to press the LEFT ARROW key to get in front of it--another unnecessary keystroke. Go2Text simply takes you to the beginning of the text without selecting it (unless you specify that it should be selected). This is also true when you press CTRL + R to repeat the macro, while pressing SHIFT + F4 to repeat a Find selects the text.

In summary, when text is found:

Go2Text: Find:

Closes the dialog Leaves the dialog open

Goes to the start of the text Selects the text

To some people, these differences may not be important. But in my experience, those extra keystrokes add up fast in both time and frustration. If I can avoid them, I do. And if I have a dozen small macros for specific editing tasks, with each one saving me a couple of keystrokes, the effect on my work can be dramatic.

[Clarification: I don't mean to imply that Go2Text *replaces* Find or that it should always be used *instead* of Find. Find is a useful feature all on its own. Go2Text is for those times when you just want to jump quickly to some specific text without reaching for the mouse or cursor keys.]

I'm a big believer in exploiting the power of the computer to its fullest and in finding as many ways as possible to make work easier. Eventually, I hope to do all of my work with no effort. I'm kidding, of course, but that's sort of the idea. R. Buckminster Fuller, inventor of the geodesic dome, had a word for this: ephemeralization. He believed that with technological progress, we would continue to do more and more with less and less until we were basically doing everything with nothing. That sentence is a simplification of Bucky's philosophy, but I think it's true to his vision of the world.

I love this statement from Dan A. Wilson, proprietor of The Editor's DeskTop (http://www.editorsdesktop.com/):

"The principal difference between the amateur e-editor and the real professional, in my opinion, is in the difference in their in-depth knowledge of the macro system and Find and Replace system. The amateurs use the computer as an electric typewriter and continue to do all of the slogging work as though they were still editing on paper. The pros seize the power of the computer's systems and exploit it ever more fully with each passing project."

Here's your assignment: Learn one thing this week that will make your life easier. Want some suggestions?

You can learn about macros here:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706651129

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706748016

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706832239

You can learn about Find and Replace here:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1705963026

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706069286

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706167662

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706267069

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706365638

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706458823

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1706553959

And you can learn about Buckminster Fuller here:

http://www.bfi.org/introduction_to_bmf.htm

_________________________________________

READERS WRITE

MACRO SECURITY MESSAGE

Mark Pool (mark913@earthlink.net) wrote:

From your most recent issue of Editorium I downloaded the Go2Text. When I tried to open the template, I got the following message:

"The macros in this project are disabled. Please refer to the online help or documentation of the host application to determine how to enable macros."

Can you tell me what I need to do to activate this template?

Thanks for your question, Mark. I'm sure others have encountered the same problem. This message means that Microsoft Word's macro virus protection is enabled or set to a high level of security. To change this:

In Word 2002 (XP):

1. Click the "Tools" menu.

2. Click "Options".

3. Click the "Security" tab.

4. Click the "Macro Security" button (on the lower right).

5. Click the "Security Level" tab if it's not already active.

6. Set your security level to medium and click the OK button.

7. Click the next OK button to close the Options dialog.

In Word 2000 or 2001:

1. Click the "Tools" menu.

2. Click "Macro."

3. Click "Security."

4. Click the "Security Level" tab if it's not already active.

5. Set your security level to medium and click the OK button.

In Word 97 or 98:

1. Click the "Tools" menu.

2. Click "Options".

3. Click the "General" tab.

4. Uncheck the box labeled "Macro virus protection."

5. Click the "OK" button.

In Word 95:

1. Click the "Tools" menu.

2. Click "Options."

3. Click the "General" tab.

4. Uncheck the box labeled "Enable Macro Virus Protection."

5. Click the "OK" button.

Now, in Word 2000 or higher, any time you open a document or load a template that includes macros, Word will give you the choice of whether to disable or enable macros. If the document or template isn't *supposed* to have macros in it, you should click the "Disable Macros" button, because the macros could be a virus. If the document or template *is* supposed to have macros and comes from a source you know is reliable, click the "Enable Macros" button so you can run the macros.

In Word 95, 97, or 98, you don't have these options. Macro virus protection is either on or off. Before turning it off permanently you may want to read more about it in Word's Help file or check with your system administrator.

MORE SEMIAUTOMATIC CORRECTIONS

Nancy Adess (naedit@earthlink.net) sent some additional semiautomatic corrections. Thanks, Nancy!

"is in the process of..."

Attempt to kill this.

"grow your skills" "grow your organization" anything but grow your food!

Substitute: improve, expand.

"To better serve" "to better market" "to better any verb"

Substitute: To verb more effectively/more efficiently/more successfully

"Impact" used as a verb.

Change to "affect."

To learn more about automatic and semiautomatic corrections, see these past issues of Editorium Update:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708048908

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708127357

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708293844

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708382808

When I'm editing in Word and see something I want to correct, I usually have to use the cursor keys (repeatedly) to get to it, or I have to reach for the mouse to select it. I finally got tired of both alternatives and created a macro called Go2Text, which instantly takes you to the character, word, or phrase you specify.

I'm giving away this macro! Subscribers to Editorium Update will be the first to have it, but please feel free to share it with friends and colleagues who might find it useful. After you've used it a few times, you'll wonder how you ever got along without it.

To download Go2Text for Word 6 or 7 (95), click here:

http://www.editorium.com/ftp/Go2Text6.zip

To download Go2Text for Word 8 (97) or above, click here:

http://www.editorium.com/ftp/Go2Text8.zip

The macro will work on both PC and Macintosh.

Once you've downloaded and unzipped (or unstuffed) the proper version of the program, you'll see the documentation, which is named GO2TEXT.doc. (Open it in Word to read it.) You'll also see the Go2Text template, which is named GO2TEXT.DOT. (If you need software to unzip or unstuff the program, you can download it from http://www.winzip.com or http://www.aladdinsys.com.) To use the template, follow this procedure:

1. Open it in Microsoft Word.

2. Double-click the large button that says "Double-Click here to Install."

3. Follow the prompts on your screen.

To use Go2Text to go to some text:

1. On your keyboard, press CTRL + SHIFT + G (which stands for "Go2Text").

2. In the box labeled "Enter Text," type the text you want to go to. It doesn't have to be far away. For example, if you see an error a few paragraphs down from your cursor, just type the first few characters of the error into the box.

3. Put a check in the boxes for any options you want to use.

4. Press Enter or click the OK button.

Go2Text will take you to the text you specified. It will also remember your entry and options for the next time you use the program.

To repeat the last action of Go2Text without having to retype the text, press CTRL + SHIFT + R (which stands for "Repeat"). The Go2Text dialog will not appear, but Go2Text will take you to the next occurrence of the text you specified earlier. You can keep repeating the action as many times as you like.

Please see the program documentation for other options and niceties. I hope you enjoy Go2Text!

_________________________________________

READERS WRITE

Karen Slaney (kswa@earthlink.net) sent some terrific additions to the automatic (or semiautomatic) corrections list, which you can learn more about by reading these past issues of Editorium Update:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708048908

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708127357

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708293844

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708382808

Thanks, Karen! Here are her additions:

period of time|period

made a decision|decided

OK|okay

O.K.|okay

email|e-mail

towards|toward

for awhile|for a while

literally|[nothing]

alot|a lot

each others'|each other's

one anothers'|one another's

he/she|he or she

him/her|him or her

my Mom|my mom

my Dad|my dad

someone that|someone who

?,|,?

?.|.?

reason why|reason

!!|!

!!!|!

Neil Hymans sent this excellent tip for using Hidden formatting as a writing tool. Thanks, Neil!

Like all writers, my working copy is littered with half-finished sentences and gems-to-be that I want to retain until I'm absolutely sure I won't need them . . . but they are a real distraction when I'm trying to read back clean text. My solution is to make them disappear and reappear at will.

I have a global *character style* called "Hidden" (it is a character style so it won't overwrite the existing paragraph style). It only has two attributes: the text is hidden, and plum coloured for higher visibility. I apply it using a simple hotkey combo (ALT+D works for me), but it is easy enough to create a toolbar button or menu command to apply the style to a selection, to suit personal preferences.

By default, Word doesn't display hidden text. I recorded two simple macros: one to display hidden text, another to hide it. Once again, these can also be configured to work from hotkeys, menu commands or toolbar buttons according to preference.

When I despatch one of my creative gems to the literary boneyard, I apply the "Hidden" style with ALT+D. In Word's default mode, it vanishes instantly from the screen. When I get desperate for inspiration, I click the button to display the boneyard again, and there it is. Should I decide to reclaim the text, I simply select it and reapply the appropriate paragraph style.

Best of all: it takes about two minutes to create this facility on any version of Word.

Finally, there is an important caveat on this tip: don't rely on hidden text if trashed text is potentially sensitive. Turn the hidden text display on, then copy the public text to a new file for review (or better still use the amazing "Editioning" template--thanks for that tip, by the way!).

You can learn more about the "Editioning" template here:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1708466498

Microsoft Word guru Steve Hudson has been sending me some interesting things. Today I'd like to introduce you to his "Editioning" macro, which allows you to use true conditional text in Microsoft Word 97 and above. Conditional text is the thing to use if you need to change a document in different ways for different audiences. I've written before about using Word's Hidden formatting to create conditional text:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1703011632

Steve, however, has taken the idea to greater heights of power and usability. For your convenience, I've placed his template (with its accompanying toolbar and macro) on our Web site, and you can download it here:

http://www.editorium.com/ftp/editioning.zip

After you've downloaded it, you'll need to unzip it. If you don't already have software to do this, you can get the popular WinZip program here:

http://www.winzip.com/ddchomea.htm

Macintosh users can use StuffIt Expander, available here:

http://www.stuffit.com/expander/download.html

Once the template is unzipped, you'll need to load it as a global template or add-in, which you can learn more about here:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1707012536

And here:

http://www.topica.com/lists/editorium/read/message.html?mid=1707100224

Finally, here's how to use the program:

1. Open or create a document that will be your source document for the various versions you want to create, and be sure to keep a backup of this document.

2. Use Microsoft Word's Highlighter feature (available on the Formatting toolbar) to highlight the text that will appear only in the various versions you'll be producing. For example, let's say you're writing the documentation for a computer program that will be produced in three versions: basic, intermediate, and advanced. Some of the documentation will apply to all three versions, but some of it won't. For example, the advanced version will have features not available in the basic version, and you don't want the documentation for those features to show up in the basic documentation. So let's say that you highlight the information that applies only to the basic version in yellow, the intermediate in blue, and the advanced in red. Save this document with a new name, such as "Single Source."

3. With the Editioning template loaded, you'll see a new Editioning toolbar on your screen. Click the Editioning button to start the program.

4. In the "Color" box, on the right, click one of the colors you want to use, such as yellow.

5. In the "Description" box, on the bottom, type in a description of what that color represents, such as "Basic."

6. Click the "New" button to add the color and its description to the "Current List of Editions" box. (You can also click the "Delete" button to delete them.)

7. Repeat steps 4 through 6 for each color you want to use.

8. In the "Current List of Editions" box, click the color/description for the type of document you want to produce. For example, if you wanted to create the basic documentation, you'd click "Yellow Basic."

9. Click the "Publish" button.

10. Click the "Exit" button to close the program. (It will remember your definitions for the next time you use it.)

Now, in the document on your screen, all of your *unhighlighted* text will be preserved (since you want to use it in all of your versions), and the text that was highlighted in the color you selected (yellow) will also be preserved (but now unhighlighted). Text that was highlighted in other colors (blue and red) will be removed. So, you now have the basic version of your software documentation! Be sure to save it with a new name (such as "Basic Documentation"), and be careful not to save it over the top of your previously marked-up file.

That's it! Rinse and repeat for your other versions. Many thanks to Steve for making this program available.

_________________________________________

READERS WRITE

Several subscribers provided useful tips this week, some with contrasting points of view. Many thanks to them all!

ON AUTOMATIC CORRECTIONS (see our past few newsletters):

Steve Hudson suggested the following automatic (or semiautomatic) correction:

has the potential to -> can

Kathleen Much (kathleen@casbs.stanford.edu) wrote:

You recommended: fortuitous (replace with "lucky")

You're right to check the usage, but what if the writer is actually using "fortuitous" correctly, to mean "by chance"? 🙂

I responded:

Then the editor should leave it alone. 🙂

Kathleen makes a good point. Many such corrections should *not* be made automatically or without thought. Please be judicious and remember that the computer is a tool, a means to an end, and not an end in itself.

ON NONBREAKING SPACES:

In our last newsletter, I asked for ideas about how where to use nonbreaking spaces and got some interesting (and useful) responses.

Lou Burgoyne wrote:

Phone Numbers, Addresses. Also Use Non-breaking hyphens.

Another subscriber (Martin) wrote:

useful after Mr or Mrs

Anne K. Bailey wrote:

I use it [the nonbreaking space] so often that I've got it mapped to my keyboard (alt s) so I can insert it without having to think about it (at least when using Word). I *always* use it in the following situations (I'll use a tilde to represent the nonbreaking space):

Between a first name and a middle initial (Anne~K. Bailey)

Between the two parts of certain last names (Vincent Van~Gogh)

Between the month and the day (September~11, 2001)

Between the word "percent" and the number (75~percent)

Between the word "page" and the number (page~42)

Between the word "age" and the number (age~65)

Between a number and the word it modifies (15~days) (three~times) (18~years old) (six~miles) (12~inches)

Between two parts of most compound words (pay~grade) (New~York)

Between the time and "a.m." or "p.m." (7:00~a.m.)

In addition, I often use a nonbreaking space to force line endings. I've seen people insert a hard return in the middle of a paragraph to force the line endings to look "right." However, my preference is to use a nonbreaking space to force a particular word to the next line. That way, if the text is later edited and the line endings change, the nonbreaking space won't necessarily have to be removed, but a hard return would definitely have to be found and deleted.

(I would have used a nonbreaking space between the words "hard" and "return" in the previous paragraph.)

Steve Hudson wrote:

I never use the non-break space. My Designer and I both agree that the examples we have seen it suggested to use don't actually add much to the readability and do interfere with justification. The main two examples are 75 percent and Dr Bob. To fully demonstrate the futility of the percent, what if one wrote seventy five percent, all with hard spacing? You could have half a line in nothing flat.