Project 1: Word Basics
Status Bar

Word uses the Status bar to display a lot of information about your document.

As you work in your document the information on the status bar changes to show where you are in the document.  Other parts of the status bar tell you when certain features are turned on or off. You may also see an indicator when a process is going on, like printing or checking spelling.

Cursor Location

  As you scroll through your document the information in the first group of numbers changes to describe the page that you can see in the window.

A section can have different margins, page sizes, headers, footers, and columns. So a section might contain several pages or just a small part of a page that is in 2 columns.

The fraction 1/1 means you are on page 1 of a document with 1 page. So the second part of the fraction is the  total number of pages in the document . This number is also found under  File  |  Properties  |  Statistics .

  The second group of numbers describes where on the current page the cursor is. This area will be blank until you click somewhere to make the cursor active at the spot you clicked.

The distance to your typing is measured from the paper's left edge. This example is measuring in inches. You can change the units used to measure your document under  Tools  |  Options  |  General  |  Measurement Units .

Lines of type are counted from the top of the page.

The column # is the number of characters and spaces from the left of the page to the cursor position. It has nothing to do with whether you see columns on the page or not. Another confusing bit.

Double-clicking in either of these two areas brings up the Go To dialog. You can use this dialog to navigate your document by pages or using other markers.

Mode Indicators

  A Mode Indicator is black  when the feature it indicates is active and is gray  when it is not active.

Double clicking a mode indicator will either turn it on/off or will open a dialog box. The functions indicated are Record Macro, Track Changes, Extend Selection, Overtype, and WordPerfect Help (dropped in later versions).

If Extend Selection is on, your mouse will highlight everywhere you click. Disconcerting when it happens accidentally!

 If Overtype is on, your typing writes over existing text. You won't notice this effect when entering new text at the end of a document. But, when you make changes in existing text, it makes a big difference whether your typing is being inserted or is overtyping what was already there!

The other functions won't be of interest to you at this point. If you are really interested, use Word's Help.

[In Word 95 Track Changes was called Mark Revisions. In Word 2000 WordPerfect Help is not indicated here.]

Spelling & Grammar Check

  The Spelling and Grammar Status icon shows an X when Word has marked something as a possible spelling or grammar error. The icon shows a checkmark when Word thinks that your and grammar are correct. The icon looks like an animated pencil when Word is actively checking spelling and grammar, including when you are typing.

Word's dictionary is far from complete, especially for names. Sometimes Word does not know the plural of a word or the possessive. Be careful of it's suggested changes.

 Word's grammar checker can basically only point out things that might be wrong. It does not understand complex sentences well. It will call your attention to words and phrases that are often mis-used. But you are the only one who knows whether that's what you meant or not.

Language

  Word 2000 and later can use dictionaries and grammar checkers for different languages. The Status bar includes a new area which shows what language is currently in use at the cursor location.

Background Save

A flashing floppy disk shows when Word is saving your document automatically in the background.

~~  1 Cor. 10:31 ...whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.  ~~

Last updated: 30 Apr 2012