CUSTOMIZING WORDPERFECT

WordPerfect can be customized in so very many different ways. Recently, it was noticed that someone had customized her screen to orange and black for Halloween and red and green for Christmas. So it never hurts to experiment with colors, fonts and anything else that might "tickle your fancy" and help you with the sometimes boring world of "word processing."

1. Screen Color Changes

Screen color changes do not affect the way your work prints out, only the way it appears on your screen. WordPerfect 6.0 and 6.1 include predesigned color schemes for text mode and graphics mode. To change screen colors in 6.0 and 6.1, press Setup (Shift=F1_, (2) Display, then either select either (1) Graphics Mode Screen Type/Colors or (2) Text Mode Screen Type/Colors. Press (2) Color Schemes, highlight one of the color schemes and press (1) Select. Press Exit (F7) twice to return to your document.

To change screen colors in 5.1, press Setup (Shift-F1), (2) Display, (1) Colors/Fonts/Attributes, (1) Screen Colors. To select the foreground color for normal text, type the letter matching the color at the top of the menu and press (Right Arrow). Type the letter of the background color. Continue this process using the arrow keys to move the cursor to the attributes you want to change. This feature has been nice in that you can have different colors on each screen and can always determine immediately which screen is being viewed and/or edited.

2. Fonts

To change your Initial Font in 6.0/6.1, press Font (Ctrl+F8), Setup (Shift=F1), (1) Select Initial Font. Select either (3) Current Document Only or (4) All New Documents. Select the font and size you want, then press Exit (F7) three times to return to your document. When you change the initial font, you can still use the Font (Ctrl+F8) feature to use different fonts within your document.

To change the Initial Font in 5.1, press Print (Shift-F7), (S) Select Print, (3) Edit, (5) Initial Base Font. Select the font you want and press (Enter), then exit (F7) three times. To change the Initial Font for the current document only, press Format (Shift-F8), (3) Document, (3) Initial Base Font. Select the font you want and press (Enter), Exit (F7). When you change the Initial Font, you can still use the Font (Ctrl-F8) feature to use different fonts within your document.

3. Menu Bar

Some individuals prefer using the Menu Bar (also called pull-down menus) instead of using the function keys. Others never use the Menu Bar.

The Menu Bar in 6.0/6.1 is displayed by default. If you prefer the "clean screen" approach, you can hide the Menu Bar by pressing Screen (Ctrl+F3), Setup (Shift+F1), (1) Screen Options and (1) Pull-Down Menus to deselect the checkbox. Press Exit (F7) twice. (Ironically, a quicker way to hide the Menu Bar is to choose Pull-Down Menus from the View Menu.)

The Menu Bar in 5.1 is hidden by default. To display the Menu Bar all the time in 5.1, press Setup (Shift-F1), (2) Display, (4) Menu Options. Press (8) Menu Bar Remains Visible, (Y) Yes and Exit (F7). You can access the Menu Bar with (Alt=).

4. Reveal Codes Window

Some people want the Reveal Codes window to take up half the screen as it does in 5.1. Others want the Reveal Code window to take up only a quarter of the screen as it does in 6.0/6.1. You can customize the Reveal Codes window to exactly the right size for you.

To change the size of the Reveal Codes window in 6.0/6.1, press Screen (Ctrl+F3), (6) Reveal Codes Window Percentage. Type the percentage you want (such as 50 to take up half the screen) and press (Enter), Exit (F7).

To change the size of the Reveal Codes window in 5.1, press Setup (Shift-F1), (2) Display, (6) Edit-Screen Options and (6) Reveal Codes Window Size. Type 5( or a different number of lines) and press (Enter), Exit (F7).

Notes from the Editors

We have found from personal experience that reading various publications always adds to your ability to customize your documents for either a more personalized look to your documents or a custom, professional look to brochures, documents, or other items that you want to prepare either for personal use or business use.

One of the favorites is the WordPerfect Magazine. This is probably one of the best value dollars you can spend for adding to your knowledge. If you follow some of their tips, you will gain much and everyone around you will think "you are wonderful" when you prepare some special document with graphics, new fonts, and other customizing features.

The other best value dollar found, in our opinion, is the WordPerfect Disk of the Month. There are so many macros, graphics and genuine "how-to" items included on each disk, you will do well to review and "play" with them all before the next disk hits your desk.

Try them, you will like them.

We would still like to receive any comments or suggestions you might have in the preparation of this column and we really would like to hear from the readers of this column. Vi and Luanne

Luanne Womack, PLS, is a legal assistant with the firm of Simon, Anisman, Doby & Wilson, P.C., in Fort Worth, practicing primarily in the area of bankruptcy. She serves on the Division's Board of Directors form District 3 and is the Board Liaison to the Publications Committee.

Viola (Vi) Davis, PLS, is a legal assistant and LAN administrator with the Fort Worth firm of Wallach & Moore, P.C. and the Editor of TPJ,etc.