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For many Word users, the term macro strikes fear in their heart, mainly because they do not fully understand Word macros and have most likely never created their own. Fortunately, creating and running macros isn’t too difficult, and the resulting efficiency is well worth the time spent learning to use them.
Simply put, a macro is a series of commands that is recorded so it can be played back, or executed, later. There are a couple different ways to create Word macros: The first, and easiest way, is to use the macro recorder; the second way is to use VBA, or Visual Basic for Applications. Further, Word macros can be edited by using the VBE, or Visual Basic Editor. Visual Basic and the Visual Basic Editor will be addressed in subsequent tutorials.
There are over 950 commands in Word, most of which are on menus and toolbars and have shortcut keys assigned to them. Some of these commands, however, are not assigned to menus or toolbars by default. Before you create your own Word macro, you should check to see if it already exists and can be assigned to a toolbar.
To see the commands available in Word, follow this quick tip to print out a list or follow these steps:
1. On the Tools menu, select Macro and then Macros… from the submenu; you can also use the Alt + F8 shortcut key to access the Macros dialog box
2. In the drop down box beside the Macros in: label, select Word Commands
3. An alphabetical list of the command names will appear. If you highlight a name, a description of the command will appear at the bottom of the box, under the Description label
If the command you wish to create already exists, you should not create your own Word macro for it. If it doesn’t exist, you should proceed to part two: planning your Word macro.
Next: Planning your Word macro
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