January is Gone

I hope that this last day of January finds you doing well and that you enjoy the tips in this issue of the newsletter.

—Allen

WordTips (ribbon) for 31 January 2026

Renaming Custom Styles to Be Built-In Styles

Word allows you to rename a custom style, provided that the name you want isn't already in use. If the name you want is used by a built-in style, then you can't use it to rename a custom style. This tip looks at how you can get around this problem by copying style information from a custom style to a built-in style.

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(Thanks to Mitchell Lazarus for contributing to this tip.)

Condensing Figure Caption References

Word can automatically add captions to your figures. You can then reference those captions from within your document. If you want to reference a range of figures, however, you'll need to rely on some fancy usage of fields.

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These Autos are Amazing!

Word provides four "auto" tools that can make developing documents faster, easier, and more consistent. When you put AutoText, AutoComplete, AutoCorrect, and AutoFormat to work for you, you've harnessed some serious tools. Uncover the secrets of these tools!

Checking Bilingual Documents

Do you routinely work with multiple languages in your documents? If so, you may appreciate the suggestions in this tip, as they can help you check spelling and grammar faster than ever.

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Opening a Text File and Template from the Command Line

Word includes a command-line syntax that you can use to open files and do other operations. If you want to load a text file from the command line and have Word use a specific template with that file, you might have a hard time getting it done. If you apply the techniques in this tip, you can get just what you want.

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WordTips YouTube Channel

Do you like to learn visually? Make sure you check out the WordTips YouTube channel. New videos are added weekly. (I typically try to add them on Tuesdays and Thursdays.)

New video: Converting a Table to Text
Word includes a powerful table editor that allows you to create and work with tables easily. At some point, however, you might want to convert the contents of your table into plain text. Here's how to do it.

New video: Changing the Height of a Font
Scaling the width of a font is easy to do with Word's formatting capabilities. Scaling the height of the fonts is not so easy but can be accomplished. Here's how.

Help Wanted

This section is for those having problems making Word behave. If Word is giving you fits, feel free to submit your own Help Wanted question.

If you have a solution for the problems below, click the link after the problem to send us your answer. (All responses become the sole property of Sharon Parq Associates, Inc., and can be used in any way deemed appropriate.) If your response is used in a future issue, you will be credited for your contribution to the answer.

Jumping to the Last Insertion Point Location

I can use Shift+F5 to return to the last place in the document where I made an edit. What I need is a way to return to the last place the insertion point was located, not the last place an edit was made. Is there a way to go to the last insertion point location?
—Andy Mundy (provide an answer for this Help Wanted question)

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