Using Non-Printing Notes

Word has a text attribute that has been around since the early days of Word for DOS. Hidden text is an attribute that allows you to enter information that you can easily suppress. You can turn it off so it does not appear on the screen, or you can turn it off so it doesn't print. To format text as hidden, follow these steps:

1. Select the text you want hidden.
2. Select Font from the Format menu. Word displays the Font dialog box. (Click here to see a related figure.)
3. Click on the Hidden check box. (The check box isn't hidden; it is named "Hidden.")
4. Click on OK.

Hidden text shows on the screen with a dotted underline. Unfortunately, this is easy to miss as you are reading the document on the screen, so it is a good idea to use a text color to highlight your hidden text. For instance, it could be green as well as hidden. In this way, your notes and messages are much harder to miss. You can even define a character or paragraph style that has the hidden attribute set, along with the color attribute to make the text more noticeable.

You can control whether hidden text is displayed or printed. To control the display of hidden text on the screen, follow these steps:

1. Choose Options from the Tools menu. Word displays the Options dialog box.
2. Make sure the View tab is selected. (Click here to see a related figure.)
3. Clear the Hidden Text check box if you don't want it displayed, select the check box if you do want it displayed.
4. Click on OK.

Controlling the printing of hidden text is an entirely different matter. Word allows you to control whether hidden text is printed with your document. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Select Options from the Tools menu. Word displays the Options dialog box.
2. Make sure Print tab is selected. (Click here to see a related figure.)
3. Click on the Hidden Text check box. If the check box is selected Word prints hidden text.
4. Click on OK.