Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing tool offered by Microsoft. It is a paid tool that was initially released in the year 1983 and has gone through a lot of modifications to gain the features that it possesses today. It can be used on desktop computers with both Windows and Mac operating systems as well as on mobile phones. It provides you with a large variety of easily accessible options for creation and editing of text documents as well as to read them. The documents created with this application are stored with .docx file extension, however the versions before 2007 create .doc extension files.
Layout of Microsoft Word:
Microsoft Word offers a very user friendly environment to write text, insert images, mention references, review the writing and to customize the layout and structure and for formatting the document. The size of the document can be adjusted according to your requirement and Margins allow you to keep the writings in a pre-defined space. The latest addition is the Read Mode that adjusts the text according to the dimensions of the screen and thus saves user from scrolling the screen to left or right while viewing the files on handheld devices. This feature can be used by selecting number of columns on screen.
Professional Usage:
Microsoft Word is the most preferred choice of users who are responsible for creating professional documents. The feasibility of the software helps them to add new content and edit it. They can easily maintain Table of Contents or index, insert citations, add references as hyperlinks, insert page numbers and can mail the files to concerned officials. Furthermore, the receiver of documents can review the document with Spell Checker, Track Changes, translate it into another language, add comments without affecting the original content of the document and can mark each page as Accepted or Rejected.
Document Privacy:
Microsoft Word improves the safety of your work by making it password protected. You can set passwords for accessing the documents and for editing them. Adding personalized Watermarks and footnotes prove that you are the owner of the document and if anyone tries to plagiarize the content, then you can take necessary steps with the help of these proofs.
Other Features:
The title page of any document plays a major role in leaving an impression about the document, therefore it is a good practice to carefully choose the coloring scheme and writing style of the front page. This can be done by choosing the available Cover Pages or by creating custom styles with the help of WordArt. You can choose attractive styles and select appropriate writing sizes. Addition of SmartArt, tables, shapes, shadow and other graphical effects can also prove to be helpful in improving the document quality.
Conclusion:
Though there are many useful word processing tools available in the digital market that are available for free, however, they have not been much successful in gaining as much popularity as the Microsoft Word application. The availability of large variety of options and the convenience level for users is the major reason why it is being used in every corner of the world.
