Weekly Computer Tip # 91
4 December 2004

How to control bullet indentations (Microsoft Word)

Today's tip is based on a special request from one of your fellow tip subscribers, my good friend Katie Head. (Katie, as it happens, was the driving force behind me "going it alone" four years ago - the rest is history!) Katie writes: "Something which drives me mad is the way that numbering and bullet points are set up to indent automatically. I know how to change them for a particular document but I have never found a way of actually changing the default. I want my numbers and bullet points to be flush against the left margin - always! Can you help???"

OK, I could have dealt with this on my Question & Answer page (http://www.roem.co.uk/faq.html) but I realised that, like Katie, I constantly seem to be resetting the bullet indents, which - come to think of it - drives me crazy. I'm sure Katie and I are not alone, so let's change those indented bullets back forever. Period. It will take you about 10 seconds to set up, but you are now in charge, not Word!

Here's how:

1. On the Format menu, choose Bullets and Numbering
2. On the Bulleted tab click the bullet style you want to change
3. Click Customize
4. Set Bullet position Indent at 0
5. Under Text position Indent enter the distance you want between the end of the bullet and the start of the text. (I personally like 0.6cm. Uh-oh, 0.25" ;-)
6. Click OK.

That's all for now. Happy Sinterklaas for tomorrow. Mind you, that's probably only applicable to Antoinette, Erik and myself?! But if you're intrigued ... The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has a page dedicated to the good Saint; see http://www.minbuza.nl/default.asp?CMS_ITEM=2BB64B5B44704979BBBC83227D095845X3X50050X18

Until next week.

PS I’m committed to sharing the best of what I know with others so please don’t keep me a secret. If you enjoyed today’s tip, please forward it to anyone you feel may benefit. Alternatively, feel free to reprint it (with full copyright and subscription information) in your newsletters and message boards.

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