Where is AutoFormat?

For several versions of Word, one of the handy formatting features of the program was the ability to "auto format" some text. You could select text (or an entire document) and choose Format | AutoFormat, and Word would "clean up" the selection and apply some formatting for you based on criteria you a specify.

At first blush, it would appear that the AutoFormat feature has been removed from Word 2007. There is no longer a Format menu, and a careful examination of the available ribbon tabs doesn't show the feature anywhere.

The reason is because the folks at Microsoft, in their infinite wisdom, have decided that AutoFormat is one of the lesser-used program features, and so it doesn't deserve a place on the ribbon. You can, however, still access the feature by following these steps:

1. Click the Office button, then click Word Options. Word displays the Word Options dialog box.
2. Make sure the Customize option is selected at the left side of the dialog box.
3. Using the Choose Commands From drop-down list, choose Commands Not In The Ribbon.
4. Scroll through the list of available commands and choose AutoFormat. (Click here to see a related figure.)
5. Click the Add button. The command is moved to the list at the right of the dialog box.
6. Click OK. The command now appears in the Quick Access Toolbar, to the right of the Office button and just above the ribbon.

You can now access the AutoFormat feature any time you desire.