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The task pane is a feature Microsoft introduced to Word and some of the other Office components within the past few years; if you are working with a version previous to Word 2002, then this feature will not be available to you. When you first open Word, the task pane appears down the right side of the window; the default view is the new document menu.
Experienced users will be tempted to close the task pane, as there are better ways to access the document commands without taking up valuable screen space. On closer inspection, however, one will realize that this feature offers great benefits that can’t be accessed any other way. At the top of the task pane, there is a downward pointing arrow beside the X that closes the pane. Clicking on the arrow will provide you with other task pane options.
For example, you can choose to view the clipboard – it will display up to 24 of the last elements you cut or copied and will allow you to insert any of these things in your document. You can also use it to display document formatting, to open a search wizard, or set up a mail merge document, among other things. Understanding its functionality can greatly increase your productivity in Word.
If you do decide to turn off the task pane, click the X in the top right corner of the task pane. If you don’t want it to appear automatically when Word opens, uncheck the box beside Show at startup at the bottom of the pane. To display the task pane at a later time, select Task pane from the View menu.
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