Microsoft made an announcement this week that the Office 2007 Service Pack 2, scheduled for early 2009, will finally provide users with native support for ODF and PDF.

Its own XPS OOXML format (aka “PDF Killer”), which caused so much controversy with ISO committees and users, has anticlimactically been put on the back burner. Native support for XPS will be included within the next version of the Office suite.

As to the PDF, it seems that since Adobe’s PDF is now standardized, Microsoft can include the native support for the format it had initially mapped out for the Office 2007 suite. But while you’ll be able to create PDFs natively, chances are you still won’t have full access to the heavy duty features which stand alone products like Acrobat and Sonic PDF Creator can offer. So, don’t recycle bin those applications just yet.

By going one step further than the export feature for these major formats, Microsoft is finally opening itself up to adopting and adapting to non-Microsoft ways. With integration for different vendor formats, could Microsoft finally be co-operating?

. . . Or, equipped with a wide user-base, a solid application suite and support for open source and final document formats, could they be pulling out all the stops to overtake its biggest competitors?

If asked to name your number one pet peeve about Adobe Reader or Acrobat, chances are you’d single out the large download size and slow start up speed for both.

Acrobat with all its advanced features is crammed into 320 MB. The Adobe Reader size itself is currently at 22.4 MB from the Adobe download page (and that’s without the Adobe Media Player addition of 12.3 MB). These sizes can mean the difference between a quick couple of seconds or a couple of seconds to get a cup of coffee.

For those of you who are looking to speed up the launch time of your Adobe Acrobat and Reader applications, there’s a handy utility you might want to take a look at—Adobe Reader SpeedUp.

This utility is designed to help speed up your Adobe PDF software by disabling the plugins that are irrelevant, useless or otherwise unneeded. Basically, the less you have to download, the faster your PDF applications work.

Here’s a quick look at what to expect.

When you download the utility, it’ll come in zip file format. So, you’ll need to extract the files into a new individual folder and execute the Reader SpeedUp.exe file, which should start the set up process.

When it begins, the Welcome dialogue box that appears will give you the option of a quick briefer with an included Readme txt file. If you want, you can skip it and begin customizing the functions of your applications by setting up changes in both the Tweaks and Change Settings options at the bottom of the dialogue box.

In the next few steps, you can then view and select the plugins and the SpeedUp Mode you want to enable. Once that’s done, your applications should be launching faster than a speeding bullet—or something near to it.

The utility supports Adobe Reader v.6.0-8.0 and Acrobat v.3.0-8.0, and will also allow you to switch back to your old configurations if needed.

To check it out or try it out, you can find the download on BootBlock.co.uk.

A key issue for both PDF users and Word users alike is the ability to edit. While the PDF user is concerned with preventing it, a Word user demands it. Whether it’s concern for saving the content of a file or for accessing it, Investintech.com tries to assist both.

However, sometimes we get questions and issues that can’t be resolved, which actually make for a good opportunity to clarify a few things about the PDF format itself. For instance, one Able2Extract-PDF-Word user sent in a question that reads:

When a PDF is converted back into a MS Word Document, can the changes that were made to the Word Document (before it was converted to a PDF initially) be seen?

In other words, if you’re not the creator of either the source document or the PDF document itself, could you determine who, when and what changes were made during the original editing of the Word Document?

Unfortunately, no. The PDF preserves only the look-and-feel of Word Documents. It doesn’t preserve anything else. There is no hidden Word data in the PDF file, no information of recorded changes. Hence, there is nothing for a PDF converter to recover. The information which you don’t see on the paper area is lost during PDF creation.

In fact, when you create a PDF file, the actual paragraphs and words you do see aren’t preserved either. All a PDF does is preserve the look and position of each letter individually (that’s why the conversion for PDF back to Word is complicated—our application has to “figure out” which letters combine to make certain words and other elements).

If you think about it, the PDF really is a form of “electronic paper”. That is, it generates the same effect as a printed page held in your hand—just by looking at it, you can’t figure out how many edits or changes were made to it to get it to that final version you hold in your hand. What gets lost in translation, stays lost.

Further details on the upcoming Acrobat 9 have been rising to the surface. And highlighted among the rumoured additions is integration with a new forms data-tracking service.The feature will give companies and PDF form creators an efficient way of handling the inputted data they collect.

Yet, as a user who fills those PDF forms out, you may be concerned with a simpler, more fundamental issue: can you transform those PDF forms into fill-able Word Documents?

The Investintech answer is yes. If you have a native PDF containing genuine PDF form elements (radio buttons, checkboxes, text fields, etc.), all our PDF conversion products (Able2Doc and Able2Extract in either Standard or Professional versions) can convert the PDF form to editable Word Documents.

Here’s how:

1. Open Able2Extract or Able2Doc
2. Open your PDF form
3. Select the PDF form pages or content you wish to convert
4. Click on the Word conversion icon in the toolbar
5. When the Convert to Word dialogue box appears, click on Forms. (Note: Unlike the other conversion options where you can choose either Text or RTF outputs, the Forms option will convert to the Word format by default)
6. Select your target directory and Save your file

In sum, this conversion should allow you to click and type within your Word form with the ability to save the inputted data afterwards.

It may seem counter-intuitive to do a PDF Form to Word conversion with newer PDF form, Reader and Acrobat functionalities coming out.

However, if you can’t save your data in the PDF form itself, are sending it to someone without Adobe software, or have a static PDF Form, converting your PDF form to Word may be the solution you need.

Give it a try.

The PDF world this week is buzzing with the release of early details on the next version of Acrobat that were reported on eWeek.com.

With the recent onslaught of Adobe TV, Photoshop Express, the AMP media player and Adobe’s push for an open format for Digital Cinema files, Adobe has been busy. But they still haven’t lost sight of its hallmark product, Adobe Acrobat.

Moreover, they haven’t lost site of the product as a single out-of-the-box solution for your desktop. And the Adobe PDF makers are making the next upgrade just that. From the sparse details, Acrobat 9 is merging separate already existing PDF functionalities into Acrobat.

If you haven’t heard about them yet, the expected upgrade includes:

-Forms creation in the Standard version that can be electronically completed

-Added Acrobat 3D technology in the Professional version

-Forms routing capabilities for data collection through a hosted service provided by Adobe

-A lone Professional version for Mac

-Continued support for real-time document review and markup in shared spaces

-New GUI update

Were any of these on your Acrobat 9 wish list of must-have features?

It looks as if Acrobat 9 is slated to be the PDF product release of summer 2008, fully loaded with PDF capabilities. With separate standalone product functionalities rolled into one, you should expect to get more for your money with this release.

When you want to convert your PDF content, you want it coming out clean and crisp, as accurate as the original file. Yet, imagine for a moment, the possibility that your converted content can turn out better than the original.

Thus, being able to do something like animate static content is definitely a plus. Able2Extract has the ability to do this with its support for PDF to GIF conversion.

Alongside the usual image conversion options, Able2Extract has a Multipage image option available for image conversions. This can be used to animate static images by animating them in a way similar to how a flipbook animates hand drawn pictures.

To animate your static PDF images, follow these steps:

1) Open your PDF or XPS document that contains a multipage image in Able2Extract v.5.0.

2) Select the page, pages or a page range of your multipage image.

3) Click on the image conversion icon in the toolbar.

4 ) In the image conversion dialogue box, select GIF. The GIF conversion options should then be highlighted and accessible.

5) Put a check mark in the Multipage image option.

6)The next GIF option you need to set is the GIF Animation Speed. Select how fast or slow you want your animation to occur in terms of seconds per page.

7) There is a Black and White colour conversion option available as well if you want to colour convert your image.

8 ) Choose your image scaling and DPI resolution preferences.

9) Select the Destination directory where you want to save your file.

10) Then click OK to convert.

The GIF images you create with this method can be opened and viewed in Firefox 2.0 and Internet Explorer 7.0.

If you need more information on what the GIF file format is and what else it can do, you can visit our resource pages for more details. We’ve got articles specifically on image formats and PDF conversion.

It’s tax time and the 2008 deadline is fast approaching.Are you ready?

While now is the time to start worrying about your number crunching skills and your organizational skills, one thing you don’t have to worry about with Adobe around is your record keeping skills—with the help of the PDF file format.

Whether you do your taxes by hand or have someone do them for you, at one point or another, your tax forms will be touched by Adobe technology somewhere along the way. How?

There’s an interesting tax filing web tour over on the Adobe site that shows a behind the scenes look at how LiveCycle ES and other Adobe technology can play a role in your tax filing and tax form reviews.

Through a fictional scenario, it shows you:

-How Flex is used to build applications for constructing self serve tax filing and tax review
workflows

-What happens when you enter data into interactive forms or online questionnaires

-Multiple ways of processing submitted forms

-When Acrobat and Reader are used for working on your tax forms

-What security features keep your tax information secure

-The difference between a wet signature and a digital signature on your tax forms

-When and how 2D barcodes are used

-What types of organized forms processing workflows are possible with LiveCycle ES and Flex

Tax Tips and PDF Tips

No doubt, that when the deadline gets close, you’ll want to file those taxes the quickest and easiest way possible. Just remember that it won’t do you any good if you’re careless. So here are a few tax tips and PDF tips to keep in mind.

-Update all your PDF software before you even begin to open or fill out interactive forms.

-If you’re going to use tax-prep software such as TurboTax, H&R Block Taxcut or TaxACT, make sure you know how both desktop and online versions of the software export your returns in the PDF format.

-Stay linked to the IRS gateway page for PDF tax publications and forms for easy access the following year.

-When saving your tax returns as PDFs, make use of strong security features such as passwords and encryptions.

-If you have older versions of tax software that are no longer supported or compatible with other viewing software, check out TaxPrinter, an online service that will help you access old personal fax files by converting them into the PDF format for you.

-When you write a check to the IRS, be sure to write it out to the “Internal Revenue Service”. Three letters, if carelessly written, can easily be made into a “MRS.”, “MR.S--“ or “IRIS”, leaving thieves with access to your money.

Hope that when the April 15 deadline hits, you’ll be ready.

When you think PDF, what comes to mind?—Adobe? Reader? Acrobat? “Oh, no”?

The format has indeed gained such a reputation for being manipulated too easily and frequently in the past that the latter probably came more naturally to you than the others. But this fact hasn’t turned the PDF into a has-been format yet.

In fact, despite the PDF hacks—or in spite of them, users and groups are still looking to the PDF as a digital solution. How come? Why is such a vulnerable format still in the picture? What keeps it going?

Check out The PDF Paradox: How Does A Risky Format Draw Us Into Its Ecosystem?--an article that tries to answer just that by putting the PDF into perspective.

With short glances and spotlights on PDF innovations, uses and technologies, the article goes beyond "Adobe”, “Reader” and “Acrobat” to look at the bigger picture—the PDF ecosystem, where the format takes centre stage.

In news headlines last week Microsoft announced they were licensing Adobe’s Flash Lite and Reader LE technology for their Windows Mobile platform.

With both Flash Lite and Reader LE running on Windows Mobile, users can run Flash content and view PDF files respectively, both of which are common staples of mobile browsing.

On a larger scale, the deal also means that Adobe will have its technology installed on billions of mobile devices and Microsoft will be offering better user experiences for its mobile users.

However, underneath the headlines, news sources are saying that the Adobe-Microsoft deal is a response to the iPhone market and Steve Jobs’ rejection of Adobe’s Flash Lite technology, claiming that it performed too slowly on the iPhone.

Despite the rejection, Adobe is still interested in developing a Flash player for iPhone. However, the company will need more of Apple’s co-operation or risk developing with the iPhone SDK on their own and clashing with Apple.

Already having developed a PDF advertising hybrid with Yahoo! Ads, Adobe has made moves in the past for popular user bases, technology and business models, ones which companies like its new friend, Microsoft, wants in on with a $44.6 billion dollar bid for Yahoo!

How badly does Adobe want a piece of the iPhone user base?

If Adobe is willing to tweak an entire format as part of gaining the advertising market base and pair up with an old rival for a stronger presence on mobile devices, it’ll be interesting to see what Adobe’s next strategy is to get its software on another popular user front.

As computer users, we’ve become overly concerned with turning paper work into digital files that we sometimes forget that there are documents and written content that have never been paper to begin with.

For instance, the RSS feeds you check in with on a daily basis, although treated and read like newspapers, were never meant to be made into newspapers. Or were they?

Whether its Computerworld, TechCrunch, Reuters, or the Investintech blog you subscribe to, as long as it has an RSS feed, FeedJournal can turn it into your own personalized PDF newspaper.

It may sound a bit counter-intuitive, but if you’re simply nostalgic for old school newspaper columns, or just can’t sit down and relax with the morning “laptop” to read your favourite subscriptions, then it’s a site worth checking out. Here’s a quick overview.


There are two versions of FeedJournal to choose from—FeedJournal Reader and FeedJournal Publisher.

After creating a free account with FeedJournal Reader, you can submit the link of any valid RSS, RDF or Atom Feed to your Feed management page. Once the RSS feed is added, you get to select which feeds and which postings you want to publish.

The Investintech Blog With A Newspaper Look!

If you’re looking to create a newspaper of your own content, you can do that as well with a FeedJournal Publisher account (for a monthly subscription). As an author, you can publish your content with each new posting as a separate story, divide PDF articles into sections and even brand your PDF newspaper with your company logo, header and copyright information.

FeedJournal also offers a widget to add to your site, creating a thumbnail view for users that hotlinks to the full PDF file. You can even update your PDF newspaper with your latest postings so users get the most updated content.

Made for hard copy or not, RSS content is just a bit more accessible now. You can check out more details on this at the FeedJournal site.

While Adobe AIR was being released to the public a week ago, Microsoft was also busy with the BRM (Ballot Resolution Meeting) for OOXML. Nothing official was published or decided as the BRM concluded in controversy.

However, with OOXML in the spotlight, XPS is still in the wings.

The XPS format, submitted to ecma International in 2007, is still in review for its own standardization. The format is based on the same Open Packaging Conventions as the Office 2007 OOXML formats--OOXML formats users are currently trying to deal with.

Now, while you might have the .docx and .doc compatibility issue covered by now, are you prepared to handle .xps compatibility issues as well?

XPS documents are like the PDF--in order to work with XPS content, you need to convert it.

If you already have Able2Extract v.5.0, you have both an XPS viewer and converter in one. To convert your XPS document, follow these steps:

1) Open your XPS file in Able2Extract v.5.0, or Able2Extract Pro for scanned XPS files

2) Select and highlight the content you need to convert

3) In the toolbar, click on the format icon you need to convert to (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, HTML, TXT, etc.)

4) Save your file in the Save As dialogue box

Luckily, converting from XPS to other formats isn’t so different from converting regular PDF files. You can check out more on XPS conversion at our XPS Central homepage.

It’s easy to forget the subset standards of the PDF, especially with the recent ISO certification of the PDF 1.7 specification.

You don’t usually hear about these subset standards unless you actually use them. Likewise, you probably don’t see many resources on the subset standards unless you actually look for them. Fortunately, there’s the PDF/A Competence Center (how could I have missed this site?).

In case you’ve never come across the site, the PDF/A Competence Center is an association of tech companies and PDF experts primarily focused upon promoting the exchange and use of PDF-based archives.

If you’re looking for PDF/A basics, FAQs, press releases and technical documentation, the www.pdfa.org website has informative articles and resources for both PDF/A creation and usage. The site is continually updated with specialized forum discussions and news.

In fact, they’ve been advertising the first ever 2-day international PDF/A conference from April 10^th-11^thin Amsterdam. Much like the Adobe PDF and Acrobat Conference, it’ll cover different types of tracks on popular PDF/A topics.

Day One will hold separate knowledge tracks for beginner, intermediate and advanced user levels covering topics such as digital signatures, application scenarios, document scanning, fonts, text and Unicode, PDF/A-2 and the legal implications of using PDF/A.

The industry tracks on Day Two will take a look at the role of PDF/A and best practices to follow in the libraries and public sectors; engineering and manufacturing; and business to customer industries.

You can register online for the event. Or you can get a copy of the flyer here—which you can fill out and submit online.

Every Wednesday night I go to a writing seminar held by Canadian novelist, film critic and journalist, David Gilmour, who is the Writer in Residence at the University of Toronto this year. The seminar is made up of 16 aspiring writers willing to share and discuss their own pieces of fictional prose with tips and advice from Mr. Gilmour himself at the head of the table.

I mention this because these seminar discussions require that we first email our work to the entire group before we meet, some of which are sent in the PDF file format.

After a session one night, while on the topic of opening PDFs, editors, and publishing (people can actually talk casually about such things!), someone mentioned Lulu.com. So I decided to check it out.

It looks like Lulu has just about all the resources you’d need to publish and distribute your PDF content, whether you create your own PDF yourself or have Lulu do it for you. At Lulu, you can publish anything from DVD movies to photo albums.

Business wise, Lulu is a more heavy duty publishing site than Scribd is. For one thing, they accommodate both corporate and individual publishing. They’ve also got marketing resources that include sales tools and distribution packages that include ISBNs for your publications.

What’s more, when you set up an account with Lulu, you can make use of their print publishing tools and services that include help for formatting, layout, and binding, and even scanning services for converting hard copies into the PDF format.

As a community of user generated and published content, Lulu has a webpage with user groups and forums you can visit. Moreover, you’ll find the Lulu marketplace where you can where you can get your own publications posted up for sale as a download or printed book. You can also buy, share and browse their database of digital ebooks published by other registered Lulu users.

While this site sounds like the site that can get your work noticed, these are just the basics. For more details visit lulu.com.

You've heard of MS Word. You've used MS Word. And you've experienced all there is to experience with MS Word.



But have you really?

Here's a smorgasbord of 101 tips, tutorials, desktop and online alternatives, books, communities, tools (*inhale*) developer and tech resources, converters, experts, forums, blogs, and miscellaneous--but related, MS Word resources at your fingertips (*exhale*).

Brace yourself.

Tips, Tricks & Tutorials

Looking to improve your MS Word proficiency? This list has all the tips and tutorials you'll ever need.

1.About.com

There's no other way to start than by doing what this article says: "jump in!"

2.MS Word Help Homepage

The number one resource on the processing app itself--Microsoft.com.

3.Allen Wyatt’s Word Tips

A great site with resources on any given Word topic and version starting from Word ‘97 to Word ‘07. This site can update you regularly with RSS feeds.

4.Malektips

A resource for any version of MS Word that you may have.

5.Keyboard Shortcuts

A quick list of handy keyboard shortcuts for MS Word from Helpwithpcs.com.

6.30 Most Used Keyboard Shortcuts

Another shortcut list to supplement the one above.

7.Word 2007

A site dedicated to scrounging up the latest Word 2007 tips and tricks on editing, graphics, tables, references and formatting.

8.Word07.com

Word07.com is focused on tutorials that show you around Word 2007 and how to use it efficiently.

9.MS tips & tricks

A good starting point for all MS Word beginners.

10.Computerworld

A quick and handy MS cheat sheet to help you navigate around the new Interface.

11.Indispensable MS Word Tips

From TechRepublic, these 50 MS Word tips are helpful pointers that help you work around the text in your document. This PDF list is for Word 97/2000/2002(Office XP)/2003.

12.Webaim.org

Here are some tips and how-to’s on making your Word Docs accessible.

13.Bettersolutions.com

This resource for Word functions and features provides help on page layout, AutoFormat, templates built-in wizards, toolbars & menus, and even SmartTags and SharePoint.

14.TeachUcomp, Inc.

TeachUcomp, Inc. has provided classroom-style instruction in over 85 different classes. Check out theirtutorial package covering every aspect of MS Word possible.

15.Word for Mac training

Offered by CustomGuide: Learn on demand. They offer a special training ourse for increasing your Word proficiency on Mac OS, and free test runs before you or your company commit to purchasing.

16.Introduction to Microsoft Word 2007

For any that are interested in online classes, HP offers class sessions for learning your way around the functions and features of MS Word 2007 and how to use them.

Online Alternatives

No MS Word? Try out an online word processing app as a substitute. Most of these sites are free, but require that you sign up for an account.

17.Google Docs

A popular online word processing application integrated with all the Google frills.

18.Zoho Writer

With Zoho Writer you can view, edit and save documents online. Import and export a number of formats and even publish or share your files online with others.

19.ThinkFree

This web-based application gives you a 1GB of space, full editing features, and viewing
options.

20.Glide

An online OS space that also includes useful tools, storage space and creation apps, such as Glide Write.

21.Ulteo

Ulteo is bringing OpenOffice.org to the web. It's still in early beta release as of this writing, but check out the site and keep an eye out for it.

22.gOffice

A word processing application that will cost you a bit per month, but the high quality output is worth it.

23.Docly

What sticks out about Docly is that it's a word processing app and a self-publishing service in one. Create your documents online, copyright and publish them, then share them or sell them to others.

24.AjaxWrite

This web app works exclusively within Mozilla Firefox 1.5 or higher.

25.WebWriter

Like most of the online suites here, Peepel takes a collaborative online approach, but also uses RSS Feeds with its word processing app WebWriter to keep you on track with the changes made to your documents.

26.iNetWord

Contains numerous designer Web page templates, the ability to publish to Web, and collaborative features that include folder sharing.

27.ZCubes

"ZCubes is your web Kaleidoscope that handles over 50 file-formats and works on over 20 different operating systems and platforms. Work, play, research, create, think, browse, organize, and have fun with ZCubes. Loaded with an incredible 2000+ features, your creativity may be your only limitation!"-- see it in action for yourself.

28.GreenDOC

Associated with Google Adsense, GreenDOC allows you to generate revenue from your own published documents with link ads.

29.Buzzword

The powerful Word processor that runs in Flash with functionalities for formatting, endnotes, commenting, tables, and page numbering.

Desktop Alternatives

If you experience technical difficulties with Word, there are a number of other word processing applications that work just as well. Most of these word applications are also packaged in productivity suites like MS Office.

30.Writer

Writer is the word processing component of Open Office.org 2.3 that saves your work in the ISO standard ODF format.

31.Abiword

A GNOME-related project, Abiword is a fully cross-platform word processor.

32.Jarte

Highlight: Jarte is completely compatible with Windows Vista, and can support MS .docx files.

33.StarWriter

The word processing application from theStar Office 8 Productivity Suite that lets you create, convert and collaborate your documents.

34.IBM Lotus Symphony Docs

Comes packaged with the IBM Lotus Symphony Suite.

35.Corel Word Perfect X3 (Standard Edition 2007)

A full-fledged word processor that comes with the Corel Word Perfect X3 Office Suite.

36.Ability Write v.4

The word processing application from the Ability Office Suite. Advanced features for version 4 include PDF creation, formatting options, drag and drop editing and spell checker. It also has full Word doc importing abilities.

37.MarinerSoftware

MarinerSoftware has a diverse selection of word processing software for bloggers, writers, podcasters, and screenwriters for both Mac and Windows.

38.PagePlus X2

A great desktop publishing suite from Serif that’s compatible with Vista. It has everything you need to work with personalizing templates, editing graphics, and creating PDF slideshows.

39.Nevrocode

Both a desktop and web based word processor. You can download documents to your desktop as Word, OpenOffice, RTF, PDF, HTML or zip; invite others to edit and view your docs via email; and publish your documents as web pages or blog posts.

Books

Mastering MS Word is a big task. Hard copy resources can help cut that task down. Included with the titles are some user reviews to give you a sneak peek inside.

40.Microsoft Office Word 2003 Quick Steps by Martin S. Matthews (Author), John Cronan (Author), Lisa McCoy (Author)

A quote from the book’s description: “Follow along and learn to format text, add graphics, use templates, track and merge comments, create mailing labels. . . .”

41.Word 2003 Bible by David Angell (Author), Peter Kent (Author),Brent Heslop (Editor)

One highlight of this book: “I especially like the fact that it is the only book I have found that addresses the subject of field codes in some depth.”

42.Access 2007 VBA Bible: for Data-Centric Microsoft Office Applications by Helen Feddema (Author)

Learn to write Visual Basic code and put together powerful solutions.

43.MS Office 2007 For Dummies by Peter Weverka (Author)

Everyone’s heard of the popular “Dummies” series. If you haven’t, here’s one user review: “Writing is clear and logical. The Index and the logical organization of chapters make it easy to locate any information needed easily.”

44.Office 2007: The Missing Manual by Chris Grover (Author), Matthew MacDonald (Author), E. Vander Veer (Author)

Here’s a source to help with you with the look and feel of MS Word alongside the other Office apps. As one user puts it, the book “Focus[es] heavily on not just the use of the apps but the difference with the "ribbon" changes of the 2007 versions.”

45.Word Hacks: Tips & Tools for Taming Your Text (by Andrew Savikas)

What’s inside: “time-saving hacks on taming document bloat, complex search and replace, Tables of Contents and indexes, importing and exporting files, tables and comments, and even using Google as a dictionary!”

46.Using Office Home and Student 2007 (Special Edition ) by Ed Bott (Author), by Woody Leonhard

A manual for more than just Word.

Communities, Blogs, Forums

It can be hard to maneuver and learn everything there is to learn without the right support system. This list of community sites, blogs and forums will get you in touch with other MS Word users.

47.The Microsoft Office Word Team’s Blog

It is exactly what they say it is: "All things Microsoft Office Word, from the Word team".

48.The World of Office

Linked is a posting from The World of Office blog. Find out 10 great Microsoft tips and tricks you never thought of.

49.Blogtoplist.com

Blogtoplist.com is a handy website to bookmark where you can find blog postings specifically devoted to MS Word.

50.Cnet.com

You might also want to try out the Cnet.com forums on MS Office and Word.

51.Tek-tips Forums

This is a tech forum where you can ask your questions on MS Word, talk to other members, and get notifications on any responses posted to your questions.

52.Ask Woody Forum

You can click through to the Woody Lounge area via AskWoody.com, a site created by MS Office manual writer and expert, Woody Leonhard. With a number of topics and over 20, 000 loungers, this forum is one of the best resources on MS Office and Word.

53.The New Paperclip

The Office Paperclip has a blog! A fun easy-to-read site with lots of tips and tricks for Word 2007.

54.Word Community

A community for Word 2007 and 2003 users. The Word community space not only acts as a way to contact other Word users, it also acts as a learning resource with links to demos, training, question forms, webcasts and more.

Word Tools

Sometimes your Word experience is only as good as the tools you use. Here’s a listing of diverse tools that can enhance your Word user experience.

55.Word Viewer

This is the most basic tool needed to interact with Word Docs. It will allow you to open and view Word Docs in Read Only mode.

56.MS Word Mobile

Open, view, and edit documents while on the go. This plug in is compatible with the latest 2007 version.

57.MS Word Templates

If you need templates, this webpage has all the templates you could ever need.

58.Blogger for Word

Once this free plug-in is downloaded, you can publish directly from word to your Blogger account.

59.Textism

Use Textism, a word HTML cleaner that removes MS tags from Word Docs, next time you need the basic document formatting in tact.

60.Recovery Toolbox for Word

If you have corrupted data in your Word Docs and templates, check out this data repair tool.

61.AbleBits

Checking each and every individual link in your documents can be tedious. This tool from Ablebits makes it easier by removing the broken links for you.

62.Formula Builder for MS Word

Here’s an MS add-in for creating formulas in Word docs.

63.Wordware v.10.0

A software app that comes with 45 productivity tools for Word. Included are tools for URL management, file backup, managing personal information, extracting web links, keeping a daily journal and a built-in CD player.

64.Accent WORD Password Recovery

It’s great coming up with that picture perfect, impenetrable password. But being unable to access your own docs because of it, isn’t. Compatible with Windows 95/98/ME/NT/XP/Vista and 2000, Accent WORD helps to recover all your Word passwords.

65.Fore Words

Now there are tools such as this one (by Cro-Code) that focus on helping you craft eloquent prose in your documents. This tool keeps track of word frequencies and repetitive phrases for you as you write.

66.Remove Hidden Data Tool

This Word tool from Microsoft.com deletes anyhidden data that are added to your documents, whether from comments or tracked changes.

67.MS Word Translation Tool

Wordfast from ProZ.com is an essential tool that makes translating Word documents easier for the translator.

68.EndNote Templates

Need help managing and citing references with EndNote? Here’s a handy list of bibliographic templates for use with EndNote 6 and higher with MS Word.

69.Business Templates and Images

HP has a great resource of templates for your business brochures, flyers and newsletters. These templates are specifically for MS Word.

MS Word Document Converters

MS Word content is always needed in another format no matter how “widely used” the Office Suite is. So a separate category on Word converters seemed appropriate.

70.Online Conversion

Convert all your documents to MS Word without buying or downloading any software with ACI’s Online Conversion Service.

71.Open XML/ODF Translater Add-ins for Office

Have the best of both formats by using this translator from sourceforge.net.

72.Solutionsoft

A simple Word to HTML converter for converting to webpages.

73.Save as PDF plug in

The most talked about plug in for PDF creation functionality right within MS Word 2007.

74.Easy MS Document Word Conversion

The Wordcnv website has a handful of document converters that are focused primarily on accessing and extracting data from MS Office documents.

75.Sonic PDF Creator v.2.0

Create PDFs from Word documents with the same ease as Acrobat, but without the price.

76.Able2Extract v.5.0

A PDF to Word converter with a lot more options and features than your regular document converter. A version for scanned PDFs is also available.

Word Experts

When manuals, tips and tutorials can’t help, contacting the right Word experts might. Or, perhaps you’re a Word expert yourself, looking to do the helping. In either case, have a try at the following websites.

77.AllExperts

AllExperts.com is a site where you can just about any question on any topic. Why not MS Word?

78.Microsoft Office Specialist

If you’re looking to become a certified MS Word expert yourself, MS gives you the 411 on how to get certified.

79.Experts Exchange

Quick responses, an original source of tech information, unlimited access to IT experts and 1000 zones of interest--one being MS Word.Although this forum will cost you, they have a free trial option available.

80.oDesk

Looking for a community of free lance Tech experts? Looking to freelance your own MS Word skills? oDesk is the site to check out.

81.Kasamba

Get in touch with an MS word expert with credentials and experience. The Kasamba "live person" community lets you choose the MS word expert that gets to answer your question.

82.Word MVP Site

This site links you to a roster of specialized Word experts. This community is full of knowledgeable volunteers helping MS Word users because they want to.

Technical & Developer Resources

Taking your MS Word knowledge to the highest level can be overwhelming without the right developer and tech resources. Here’s a starting list of basic resources for developing with MS Word.

83.MSDN Magazine

If you’re looking to create your own ribbon customizations, here’s an article to help get you started.

84.

Word

Developer

Center

A good place to start when developing for Word is the MSDN Word Developer Portal. It has the resources needed to develop, build, and deploy Word-based solutions.

85.MS Office Word 2007 Developer Reference

From MSDN, here’s an essential quick link to detailed information you’ll need before you start developing your own Word based solutions.

86.Office Open XML Formats Architecture Guide

Linked here is a webpage with information on Microsoft’s new OOXML format.

87.XML in Office Community

This webpage has it all when it comes to Word and XML: blogs, videos, new groups, user groups and top rated articles, downloads and tutorials.

88.Manipulating Word 2007 Files with the Open XML Object Model

A detailed 3 part article for advanced developers on Word 2007 files and OOXML from the MSDN library.

MS Word Technology

Is MS Word interoperability important to you? Of course, it is. And it's the raison d'etre for this next list.

89.Office 2008 For Mac

With Office Word 2008 for Mac just released, you’ll need a resource of help. Just click here.

90.Open Office for MS Word users

Different apps have different key functions. How do you know what’s what from one application to the next? This page has a listing of MS Word 2003 functionality and their equivalent in Open Office.

91.Crossover Linux

Not satisfied with a Windows OS, but love the apps? Crossover Linux is a support system software that lets you get those familiar MS applications on the Linux OS.

92.CDEV Computing

This company specializes in templates and macros for MS Word. They offer custom Word Document services and even free Word utilities.

93.MS Word Solutions Directory

Everyone’s looking for a Word based solution, but not everyone knows where to look. Start here. Linked is the homepage for Word solutions developed by companies using Microsoft Office.

94.Syncfusion

Just one resource for .NET developers looking to integrate Word document creation and functionality within their applications.

Miscellaneous

And last but not least, is the miscellaneous category where you can find a mish-mash of MS Word related resources.

95.Writeroom

A simple, stripped down text writer for Mac. You can also download the Darkroom Windows version for the .NET frameworkand the jDarkRoom Java version .

96.Qjot v.5.8

A portable WordPad replacement that can literally fit in the palm of your hand like a real pad. Qjot’s 900kb size means that it can fit on any portable USB key!

97.MS Word 2007 Introduction Quick Reference Guide (Cheat Sheet of Instructions, Tips & Shortcuts - Laminated) by Beezix Inc.(Author)

A handy resource right at your fingertips-- and under 5 bucks.

98.TechTrax

Just for interest's sake, an article by MVP, Greg Chapman, on using Word as a system management tool.

99.Word Perfect to Word

An article worth taking a look at if you need to import WordPerfect Files into Microsoft Word.

100.iOrganize

The iTunes for organizing all your notes and ideas.

101.Google Notebook

If you’re online and need to jot down a few things--reminders, ideas, some contact information, or even a few lines of poetry, try out Google Notebook.

Now that you've got 101 links to explore and get better acquainted with, you can honestly say that you really know MS Word.