Sort Your Text

Sorting is one of Word's better tricks. After you understand this feature, you go looking for places to use it. You can use the Sort command to arrange text alphabetically or numerically. You can sort paragraphs, table rows, and columns in cell tables and in tables created by using tabs.

Save your document before sorting. It is just a good idea.

Sorting is not that difficult. First, arrange what needs to be sorted into several rows of text, such as:

USAIndiaAustraliaSpainRomaniaGermany

Word sorts by the first item in each paragraph, so just select all the lines as a block. Then click the Sort button in the Home tab's Paragraph group. Mess around in the Sort Text dialog box if you wish, but most of the time clicking OK is all you need to do to sort your text alphabetically.

Add an Envelope to Your letter

A quick way to print an envelope with every letter you create is to attach the envelope to the end of the letter. After typing your letter, click the Envelopes button in the Mailings tab. When your document already has an address in it, Word magically locates that address and places it in the Delivery Address box in the Envelopes and Labels dialog box. Click the Add to Document button, and you are done.

If Word does not find the address, you can manually type it in the Envelopes and Labels dialog box. Remember to click the Add to Document button to return to your document.

It may not be obvious on the screen, but the first page of your letter is now an envelope. When you are ready to print the letter, the envelope is printed first and then the letter. All you have to do is stuff the letter into the envelope and seal it and then apply the ever-increasing postage.

• Most printers prompt you to manually enter envelopes if that's what they want you to do. After doing so, you may have to press the Ready, On-line, or Select button for the printer to continue.
• Check the envelope as you insert it into your printer to ensure that you did not address the backside or put the address on upside down.
• If you have trouble remembering how the envelope feeds into your printer, draw a picture of the proper way and tape it to the top of your printer for reference.

The Document Map

The Document Map feature is there to help you see the big picture, especially if you use Word's heading styles. Click the View tab and put a check mark by Document Map in the Show/Hide group. A special task pane opens to the left side of your document, listing a quick summary of the various heading styles used.

The Document Map useful in getting a quick overview of how my document is structured. Also, by clicking a heading inside the map, you can instantly jump to that part of your document.

Remove the check mark by Document Map to close that special view of your document.