Here it is, 2007 already. So it seems appropriate to look at Word 2007 and see if it's something editors and other publishing professionals might find useful. You'll find Microsoft's sales pitch here:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word/FX100487981033.aspx
You should know ahead of time that I'm jaded, biased, and curmudgeonly when it comes to Microsoft's upgrades to Word. My favorite version is still Word 95, and my next favorite is Word 2000. Word 2003 is acceptable.
And 2007? Here's a list of of what Microsoft considers the "top benefits":
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/word/HA101650321033.aspx
Word 2007's big new feature is the navigation "ribbon," which actually is pretty handy and doesn't make you guess about what the features might be or which ones are available.
My big gripe with the navigation ribbon is that Microsoft has made it so difficult to customize:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms406046.aspx
And customization is really important for editors, indexers, typesetters, and other power users. Out of the box, Word is and always has been configured for the needs of the most basic users--people who need to write a letter, for example. That hasn't mattered much because Microsoft has made it so easy to customize. Users have been able to create their own menus and toolbars and set Word up to work exactly the way they need.
Not anymore.
With the navigation ribbon, all customization (unless you're a serious programmer) is limited to the Quick Access Toolbar above the ribbon. Customizations from existing add-ins are relegated to the "Add-ins" area of the ribbon and won't apply elsewhere. What in the world was Microsoft thinking?
What I *think* they were thinking is what they always seem to be thinking: "How can we dumb down this program even further?" No? Then explain to me the existence of the universally hated "Clippy," the Office Assistant. And why is a dog animation built into the Windows Search program? Why does a feature like "Automatically create styles based on my formatting" even exist?
The other thing they always seem to be thinking is: "How can we make customization harder for the average user?" Why do I say this? Consider the interface for Word 95. Menus were menus; toolbars were toolbars. Customizing either one was a cinch. Then came Word 97, in which menus and toolbars were different but really kind of the same, and much more confusing to customize. Then came Word XP, with that #@*$! Task Pane--which couldn't be customized at all. And now comes Word 2007 with its set-in-stone navigation ribbon.
Now consider the programming language for Word 95: WordBasic--which ordinary mortals (with a little study) could understand and use. Commands were simple. For example, the command to toggle bold formatting was this:
Bold
Then came Word 97, whose macro language was Visual Basic for Applications. Commands were complex. For example, the command to toggle bold formatting was this:
Selection.Font.Bold = wdToggle
Yes, it's more powerful. Yes, it's more consistent. No, it's not easier to use, and it made macro programming impossible for most people.
This combination of making the interface more and more generic and customization more and more difficult has, in my opinion, finally resulted in a version of Word (2007) that is unfit for any but two sets of users: the most basic, and the most advanced (programmers).
Am I wrong? Responsible comments to the contrary are welcome. Please send them here:
mailto:editor [at symbol] editorium.com
And now for a few comments on some of Word's new "benefits," as listed on Microsoft's website:
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Spend more time writing and less time formatting.
A new, results-oriented interface presents the right tools when you need them, making it easy to format your documents quickly. Now you can find the right features in Office Word 2007 to make your documents communicate more effectively. Using Quick Styles and Document Themes, you can quickly change the appearance of text, tables, and graphics throughout the entire document to match your preferred style or color scheme.
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This actually is a pretty neat feature for people setting type in Word, but it's more sizzle than steak, in my opinion.
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Quickly assemble documents using Building Blocks.
Building Blocks in Office Word 2007 can be used to assemble documents from frequently used or predefined content such as disclaimer text, pull quotes, sidebars, cover pages, and other types of content. This will help ensure you don't spend needless time recreating content or copying and pasting between documents; it also helps ensure consistency across all of the documents created within your organization.
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This could be useful for some editors.
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Save as PDF or XPS directly from Office Word 2007.
Office Word 2007 offers you a choice for sharing documents with other people. You can convert your Word documents to Portable Document Format (PDF) or XML Paper Specification (XPS) format without the addition of third-party tools to help ensure broad communication with users on any platform.
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Great!
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Master your document review processes using Office Word 2007 and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007.
With built-in workflow services in Office SharePoint Server 2007, you can initiate and track document review and approval processes from within Office Word 2007 to help accelerate review cycles across your organization without forcing people to learn new tools.
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This could be very useful in a publishing office that actually uses SharePoint Server.
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Remove tracked changes, comments, and hidden text from your documents.
Detect and remove unwanted comments, hidden text, or personally identifiable information using the Document Inspector to help ensure that sensitive information doesn't escape when your documents are published.
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This is a much-needed fix; I wouldn't call it a new feature.
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Use the tri-pane review panel to compare and combine documents.
Office Word 2007 makes it easy to find out what changes were made to a document. A new tri-pane review panel helps you see both versions of a document with deleted, inserted, and moved text clearly marked.
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Now we're talking! Editors should find this very useful.
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Reduce your file sizes and improve corrupt file recovery.
The new Ecma Office Open XML Formats offer a dramatic reduction in file size as well as improvement in recovery for damaged files. These new formats provide a tremendous savings to storage and bandwidth requirements, and reduce the burden on IT personnel.
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There shouldn't *be* file corruption in the first place.
One final thought. Microsoft notes, "In our experience, every custom solution continues to work in the 2007 Office system."
That includes the programs I offer at the Editorium. In spite of my snide comments in this article, I'm extremely grateful to Microsoft for making this so, and to Wordmeister (and Word MVP) Steve Hudson for holding their feet to the fire.
