Make Word Writing Easier

If you don't use Microsoft Word, you can skip this post. If you use it for any writing or editing tasks, a visit to The Editorium might make your life easier. The website was founded in 1996 by Jack M. Lyon, a book editor who got tired of working the hard way and started creating programs to automate editing tasks in Microsoft Word. Now you might be saying, "Hey, I'm not an editor. I'm a writer!" I hope you edit your own work before you try to sell it or send it to a publisher. So, you might find some help on Lyon's site. His latest additions include:

ListFixer converts automatic numbers and bullets into fixed numbers and bullets-or vice versa-for lists in the active document, all open documents, or all documents in a folder. It also applies fixed numbers and bullets to selected paragraphs, so you can number lists with real numbers in a flash. If you're tearing your hair out over automatic lists, you need ListFixer!

DEXter makes indexing in Word a snap. If you're tired of messing with XE codes and bookmarks, you need DEXter-the first truly professional indexing program for Microsoft Word documents.

Lyon also publishes a free newsletter, often mentioned in publishing circles. That was how I learned about his intriguing macro to create an "exclude" dictionary for the MS Word Spell Check facility. It allows you to also find frequently confused words to see if you've used the correct one (words like "they're" and "there" and "their").