Project 1: Word Basics
Format Spaces

Title: Jan's Illustrated Computer Literacy 101
Did you want: Working with Words: Word 2007,2010,2013,2016 or españolIcon: Change web


The spaces around your text and images are very important to your document. Crowded lines are hard to read. Open space can draw the eye to the important parts of your text.

In this lesson you will learn to format the spaces that exist by default. Later you will learn how to manage the size of the spaces.

With Word you can create automatic lists that are numbered or that use a symbol at the left. You can color the background of the page or just part of it. You can surround areas with borders.

Flyer after formatting spaces
What you will format


Where you are:
JegsWorks > Lessons > Word97-2003

Before you start...

Project 1: Word Basics
    InterfaceTo subtopics
    Getting Started To subtopics
    Format To subtopics
    icon-footprintLines
    icon-footprintWords
    icon-footprintSpaces
    ImagesTo subtopics
    Pre-PrintTo subtopics
    Manage Printing
    Summary
    Quiz
    ExercisesTo subtopics

Project 2: Auto ToolsTo subtopics

Project 3: BrochureTo subtopics

Project 4: ReportTo subtopics


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Icon Step-by-Step 

Step-by-Step: Format Spaces

 Icon Step-by-Step

What you will learn:

to create a bulleted list
to add shading
to add borders


Start with: flyer-World Travel Inc.doc

Bullets

In a bulleted list each item in the list is preceded by a dot, square, or other shape or image, which is called a bullet.

  1. Select the lines which list the trips.
     
  2. Doc: bullets applied to tripsClick the Bullet button Bullets button on the toolbar to turn these lines into a bulleted list.
     
    Are your bullets small solid circles? Great! You won the lottery. This button applies the bullet formatting that was used last.

    Icon: TroubleIf your bullets aren't circles:
        While the lines are still selected --

    1. Right click on the selection and choose  Bullets and Numbering  from the popup menu.
    2. If one of the options shown uses small solid circles, click on it and then on OK. Success!

    Icon: TroubleIf you do not see a choice with circles, you must format the bullets the hard way --Customize bullets:

    1. Click on the Modify or Customize button. A dialog opens which allows you to choose the bullet symbol.
    2. Icon: Word 97 Icon: Word 2000 Click on the Bullets button in the middle. If the Symbol font is not showing, from the Fonts list, choose the font Symbol. Then click on the small solid circle on 6th row 12th column from the left.
      Icon: Word 2002Icon: Word 2003 Click on the Character button to see the choices in the current font. (If the font is not Symbols, choose Cancel, click the Font button, select Symbols, then click Character again.) Select the dot character that is in row 10, column 8.
    3. Click on OK until you are back in your document. Whew!

Shading

Shading is a colored or patterned background. Pictures and text are on top of the color or pattern. Remember that a black and white printer will turn your colors to shades of gray. The Shading portion of the Tables and Borders toolbar doesn't offer all of the choices that are on the Shading tab of the Borders and Shading dialog box from the Format menu.

  1. Select the lines listing the trips by dragging down the margin.
     
  2. From the menu select  Format  |  Borders and Shading…  |  Shading 

    Borders and Shading dialog - Shading tab

  3. Doc: shading applied to tripsSelect 20% gray. The box to the right of the palette shows the name of the selected color. In the Apply to: box select Paragraph.
     
  4. Choose OK. The text area surrounding the selected paragraphs is now a light gray.

    TipWhen you choose a dark color for shading, you should change the text color to a pale color for contrast.
     

  5. Class disk Save.
    Full disk How to handle a full disk

Borders

A border is a line around something. The versions of Word since Word97 can put a line around just about anything! The Tables and Borders toolbar doesn't have all of the choices that the dialog box shows.

  1. While the lines about trips are still selected, from the menu select  Format  |  Borders and Shading…  |  Borders 

    Borders and Shading dialog- Borders tab

  2. Click on the setting Box.
     
  3. Select the solid line Style.
     
  4. Select line Width of 2¼ pt.
     
  5. Select Apply to: Paragraph.

    TipBorder options: You can click on the picture in the right of the dialog to select which edges you want to show a border. Under Options you can change how far from the border the text is. The default is 1 pt. top and bottom and 4 pt. left and right.
     

  6. Class disk Save.
    Full disk How to handle a full disk

Flyer after formatting spaces
Flyer after Format Spaces