| Grammar: Are You Typing the Same Thing Over and Over Again? Run a Macro!
|
|
|
By Jan K
There are many words or phrases that you probably type again and again, whether it is simply your name or the name of your company, a phrase that you use repeatedly in a school or research paper, or some other string of words that is repeated frequently in one or more documents. Instead of actually typing it, you can run a macro!
A "macro" is a keyboard shortcut that you can use to tell the computer to insert
something else. Let's say that you are writing a romance novel and your main character is Lady
Symthe-Weatherby of Droogansvale. That's a lot of typing and although your fingers would
eventually learn the pattern of keystrokes such that you could type it in your sleep, it is still
a lot of keystrokes. By recording a macro, you can use a simple command to instruct the computer
to insert Lady Symthe-Weatherby of Droogansvale into your document.
Now,
you're probably reading this thinking "Oh sure, someone who really knows computers can 'run a
macro' but I'm lucky that I can even open a blank Word document and save it so that I can find
it again. I'll never be able to learn how to do macros. I'll just keep on typing the whole
thing. That's just going to be the easiest thing for me to do. Right?"
WRONG!!! You can record a macro and then use it with ease! It is really much easier than
you think. In fact, I've made it even easier---I've done an illustrated tutorial that will show
you exactly what to do! So, before you go any further, go to the illustrated instructions:
http://readingroom.janktheproofer.com/howtomacro.doc
The
instructions will open in a new window for your convenience. These instructions contain several
pictures, so it might take several (long) seconds for the page to open. Once the page does open,
then allow a few extra second for all the pictures to appear.
Following along
with the illustrated instructions, here's how you record and run a macro:
1.
Open a new Word document. On the toolbar, click on Tools, and then click on Macro. If you don’t
see the word Macro, click on the little arrows on the bottom of the drop-down list, and then you
should see it.
2. When you click on Macro, click on Record New Macro.
3. Now you will get a Record Macro window. The computer will automatically select
a macro name for you. You can use this or change it to whatever you want to name it. Click on the
Keyboard icon.
4. The next step is to assign the keyboard command that you are
going to use. For this example, I’ve used ALT+7 as the command (shortcut). In the Press New
Shortcut Key field, hold down the ALT key (which should be located on your keyboard just under
the letter Z) and hit the number 7 (see the red arrow in the illustrated instructions). ALT+7
will appear in the shortcut key window. Click on Assign (green arrow in the illustrated
instructions). Then click on Close (blue arrow in the illustrated instructions).
5.Now your screen gives you a tiny window underneath the cursor (see the illustrated
instructions).
6. Type in the word, name, phrase, or whatever it is that you
want the computer to automatically insert when you hit ALT+7. For this example, type in Lady
Smythe-Weathersby of Droogansvale. You must actually type it in, you cannot “copy and paste” when
you are recording a macro. Once you have finished typing, hit the black box in the little macro
window to Stop Recording.
Note: You can use any combination of ALT and a
letter or number, or CTL+ALT and a letter or number. If the computer tells you that it has
already been assigned (there are some pre-existing shortcuts, like CTL+B to make text BOLD), then
choose another number or letter.
7. Now the macro is recorded. To test it, hit
Alt+7 (that is, press down the ALT key and hit 7). You should now see Lady-Smythe-Weathersby of
Droogansvale a second time on your screen.
8. Congratulations! You have now
recorded a macro, and you’ve tested it! The macro will always be available to you unless you edit
it or delete it…but that’s a topic for another tutorial!
For more tutorials,
many with easy-to-follow illustrated instructions, go to:
http://freecontent.janktheproofer.com/#Tutorials:/
About the Author
Jan K., The Proofer is a freelance proofreader and copyeditor. Visit
http://www.jansportal.com for more information about Jan’s
proofreading and copyediting services and Jan's other free resources. Please visit Mom's Break
(
http://www.momsbreak.com/ ) for free
printable crafts and projects. © Copyright 2005. All rights reserved.
|
|
 |
| Posted on Friday, October 10 @ 21:21:45 EDT by Rose |
|
 |
|
| |
Sponsor Advertisement
SEO Link Directory
Want More Exposure? Looking for one way Backlinks? Get SEO Text Link Advertising for $1.00.
|
Options
Syndicate Article
Related Links
Article Rating
|
Gail Bell
Austin W
Print Version
Send To A Friend
Discuss Article
My-Blog
Related Articles
Search Articles
Stories Archive
Subscribe Newsletter
XML News Feed
Contact US
