How to Compare the Formatting of Separate Text Selections in Microsoft Word 2003

When creating documents that utilize a variety of different font and text formats in Microsoft Word 2003, it can sometimes become arduous to compare them manually. The formatting options menu will actually allow users to reveal the formatting on a portion of text. Users can select another portion of text and compare the formatting differences.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Reveal the formatting. Click on “Format” and then select “Reveal Formatting.”

2. Highlight the first set of text for comparison. Use the mouse cursor to highlight the first section of text that you wish to compare. The reveal formatting task pane will show the text formatting of this highlighted text in the “Selected Text” field.

3. Set the formatting to compare the text. Check the box labeled as “Compare to Another Selection.”

4. Select the second set of text. Highlight the second portion of text that you wish to compare to the first.

5. Compare the formatting. In the “Formatting Differences” section, it will compare and display any differences in formatting between the texts. If there are no differences, this box will remain empty.

Tips & Warnings

• Using this feature will clutter the view of your document, and so some users may find it to be confusing.