Full Justification in Word 2007

Gabriel wrote about how the ability to make Word do full justification in the same way that WordPerfect did seems to be missing from Word 2007. The Word method of justifying text has traditionally been to add spaces between words to stretch a line, whereas WordPerfect's method was to add or narrow the spacing between letters throughout the whole line. This meant that WordPerfect's method provided a better looking printed page, without spacing gaps that could appear as a result of Word's method.

The good news is that the option to do justification the way WordPerfect did is still alive and well in Word 2007, it is just much more difficult to locate. Follow these steps:

1. Click the Office button in the upper-left corner of the screen, then click on Word Options. Word displays the Word Options dialog box.
2. At the left side of the dialog box, click Advanced.
3. Scroll through the entire list of advanced features to the very end. There you'll see "Layout Options" with a plus sign next to the option.
4. Click the plus sign next to Layout Options. You'll see a huge list of options appear in the dialog box. (Click here to see a related figure.)
5. Scroll through the list of options, locating the one entitled "Do Full Justification the Way WordPerfect 6.x for Windows Does." The layout options are listed alphabetically, so this option will be located near the top of the list.
6. Make sure the check box next to the option is selected.
7. Click OK.