Word 2000 in a Nutshell

Name

Help → Microsoft Word Help

Synopsis

Word offers two basic interfaces to the help system: the traditional help window and the disreputable Office Assistant. Both offer access to all of the same help files.

The Office Assistant

Unless you performed a custom installation of Word and specifically chose not to install the Office Assistant, that little animated paper clip (see Figure 12-1) was likely your first introduction to Word’s online help.

Figure 12-1. Clippit, looking innocuous, but he’s annoyed more people than Word itself

Turn the Office Assistant Off

Some people love it and some people hate it, but the one thing about the Office Assistant Microsoft did right was to give users a way to turn it off. Right-click the Office Assistant and choose Options from the shortcut menu. Remove the check next to “Use Office Assistant” and you’ll be bothered no more. To use the assistant but not have to look at it all the time, choose Hide from the same shortcut menu. The assistant reappears when it has something to say.

Help → Microsoft Word Help opens the Office Assistant, which promptly asks what you would like to do (Figure 12-2). If the Office Assistant is already displayed, click it once to get the same effect. Enter a topic, some keywords, or even a complete question, click Search and the Office Assistant shows you up to twelve topics that match the query (click See More to view the ...