Word is capable of far more than writing simple letters.

Add a stylish cover page

Instead of boring black centred text on a white background with the document name and title, why not add colour, graphics or a photograph?

Go to Insert > Pages > Cover Page. Click on your desired cover page template. On the cover page, double-click on fields such as “Title” and “Year” to edit the appropriate text.

Use drop caps for flair

Place your cursor on the line or paragraph where a drop cap should appear. Go to Insert > Text > Drop Cap. Select either a “Dropped” or “In Margin” drop cap or click Drop Cap Options for more advanced options.

Insert captions

Captions are helpful when creating a newsletter or any other type of publication; you can place a quote under the photo of the person who said it, or tell readers something about the picture.

Go to Reference > Caption > Insert Caption. In the dialog box, click AutoCaption > Add Caption when Inserting, and select the types of objects you want Word to automatically add captions to by selecting those checkboxes. Choose the labelling, position and numbering and click OK. Now, when you insert that type of object, a caption will automatically be inserted.

To insert a caption manually, select the item you want to add a caption to. Go to Reference > Caption > Insert Caption. In the dialog box, choose from an existing label or click “New Label”, type in your desired label and click OK.

Create a photo letterhead

Open a new blank document and design the letterhead any way you like. Set your formatting to single space and try to keep your text around 11 points. Position the cursor at the start of the letterhead text (in front of your name, for instance). Go to Insert > Picture and locate your photo. After the photo appears, resize it by clicking and dragging a corner of the photo. With the photo still selected, go to Format > Text Wrapping and choose “Square”. Position the image in the letterhead region of your document, e.g. to the left of your name. If you like, add an effect to the photo using one of the picture styles in the Format ribbon.

Finally, draw a thin horizontal line under the text and image. Go to Insert and click on the “Line” tool in the “Shapes” drop-down menu. Drag out a horizontal line, holding down the Shift key at the same time. The line will snap to the horizontal automatically. Save this file as an ordinary Word document and open it up anytime to access your photo letterhead.

Insert bookmarks

While working on a long document, navigating through it can be a hassle. Bookmarking helps you return to a specific location for further editing.

Select the portion of the document you'd like to bookmark. Go to Insert > Links > Bookmark. Type a name under “Bookmark name”. Click Add.

To open or delete bookmarks: Go to Insert > Links > Bookmark. Select the name of the bookmark you want to open/delete. Click “Go To/Delete”.

Insert your signature

Usually, we use AutoCorrect to replace certain long text with a shorter form to reduce key strokes. But few are aware that AutoCorrect text can include images too. Now you can use your scanned signature to 'sign' any document that you want to distribute via email or fax.

First scan your signature and save it as a graphic file. Make sure there isn't too much white space around the signature. If there is, use a photo editor to crop the signature alone. Go to Insert > Picture and browse to the folder where your signature image is saved and select it. Click “Insert”. Once the image is inserted into the page, select the signature. Click the Microsoft Office Button > Word Options > Proofing and click “AutoCorrect Options”. Under the AutoCorrect tab, click “Formatted Text”. In the “Replace” text box, type an abbreviation or code for the signature, e.g. 'sig'. Click Add. Click OK and then click OK again in the Word Options dialog box. Now whenever you want to insert your signature, just type 'sig' and press Enter.

Insert equations

Go to Insert > Symbols. Click on the Equation down arrow. Click the equation you want to insert from the list that appears. An equation text box will appear, containing the equation, and the Equation Tools Design tab will display. Click in the equation, and make any needed changes. Use the right arrow and left arrow keys to move through the text. When you have completed the equation, click outside the text box to close it and leave the equation looking like it is part of ordinary text.

Mark your document

A background watermark can help signify that your document should be treated as “Secret”, “Confidential”, or is a rough draft. Word 2007 has many options for creating watermarks. Although default watermark types are provided, you can create watermarks with your own custom text or image. Choose the watermark size, font, colour, etc.

Go to Page Layout > Page Background > Watermark. Select one of the default watermarks such as “Confidential 1”, “Do not copy” or “Urgent 1” or click on Custom Watermark to open the “Printed Watermark” dialog box. Choose from various options to create your own watermark.

Look for private data

Before sending a file you can remove any content that you do not want another person to view. This includes revisions you've made to the document, hidden text and document properties.

First make a copy of your document by clicking on Microsoft Office button > Save As. Assign a name to the backup copy. Click the Microsoft Office Button > Prepare and then select “Inspect Document”. In the dialog box, check off the boxes indicating the information that you want the Document Inspector to look for. Click “Inspect”. Evaluate the results after the inspection is complete to decide which information to remove. Remove the hidden information you want to get rid of by clicking “Remove All”. Click “Close” and save.

Quick Tips	Jump to previous work When re-opening a large document, hit Shift-F5 to jump directly to the last spot you were working on.	Translate words, even sentences Go to Review and click “Translation ScreenTip to set a language”. Let your cursor hover over a word to translate it or select a full block of text and click “Translate”.
Compare docs You don't need two windows to compare documents in Word 2007. Go to Review > Compare, and click “Compare” one more time. Enter two document names and see the difference.
Change case Use SHIFT+F3 to toggle between uppercase, lowercase, and sentence case on selected text.	View document in full screen Full Screen Reading automatically maximizes the window, hides the title bar and ribbon and provides as little visual clutter as possible to distract you from what you're reading. Go to View > Document Views > Full Screen Reading.	Navigate with thumbnails Add a left pane displaying thumbnails of your document by going to View > Show/Hide > Thumbnails. To navigate through your document, click on a thumbnail image to jump to the desired page.	Change window colour Change the background colour of the Word window (set to blue by default) to black or silver instead. Click the Microsoft Office Button > Word Options > Popular. Click the “Colour Scheme” down arrow, and select the colour you want. Click OK to save the change.