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Track Changes - a useful tool for proofreaders!
By Nick Jones of Full Proof
You've got to love technology. Six years ago I decided to become a proofreader, and thanks to computers, I didn't have to worry about learning all of those confusing proofreading symbols. This was a relief, because I did try learning them at one point and they are not for the faint-hearted! These days, however, those symbols are only really required for editing printed copy. Publishing houses may still use them, but the average business person, budding author or student definitely doesn't - and proofreading and copy editing is needed by all of these types of people, not just publishers. Thankfully, like everything these days, proofreading and copy editing has turned digital. Documents can be received by email, edited on screen in Microsoft Word (other word processing programs are available!) and returned to the customer by email, with all amendments highlighted using the wonderful invention that is Track Changes. Track Changes is simple to use and it has revolutionised the editing process. I will now briefly explain how to use it, so that you can try it out for yourself. Finding Track Changes In Word 2003, click on Tools, then Track Changes. In Word 2007, click on the Review tab, then Track Changes. Whichever version of Word you are using, you can also turn the Track Changes tool on and off by simply pressing Ctrl+shift+e. Using Track Changes With Track Changes switched on, you will notice that any changes you make to the document are now automatically highlighted (in red, usually). If you delete a word, that word will appear in a balloon to the right of the screen which says 'deleted'. If you add a word, it will appear in red, so that you can easily see that it is an addition to the original text. I mentioned that the deleted word will be in a balloon on the right of the page. If your Track Changes settings are configured differently, the word will instead be crossed out. This means that in your Track Changes settings, you have deletion method set to 'strikethrough'. This is an old-school method which personally I dislike because it is messy and confusing. I recommend changing your settings so that all revisions appear in balloons. Inserting Comments As well as tracking your changes, Word also allows you to insert comments into the document. These also appear in balloons and are useful for inserting suggestions or highlighting sentences that require further clarification from the author. Accepting Or Rejecting Changes When the document is returned to the author, they will see all the changes highlighted, providing Track Changes is still switched on. There are various ways that you can accept or reject changes. If you hover over each one and right click your mouse, you can accept or reject them indvidually. Or if you want to accept all the changes in one go, you can do so by clicking on the 'Accept' dropdown in the toolbar and choosing the 'Accept All Changes in Document' option (the same applies for mass rejection of changes - just click on the 'Reject' button and then 'Reject All Changes in Document). Toggling Between Original And Final Versions You can also toggle between the original document, the final version with changes highlighted, and the final version. Whenever you have track changes turned on, there will be a window at the top of the screen which says 'Final Showing Markup'. Markup here refers to the changes and comments that are on screen. If you switch to 'Final', it shows you a version of the document with all the changes incorporated but not highlighted on screen. This is another way of accepting all of the changes in one go, with the advantage that you can always revert back to the original version or the final version showing markup. Confused? You won't be! These instructions are probably rather a lot to take in, and I have no doubt made it sound more complicated than it actually is. The best thing to do is go and have a play around with it yourself and refer back to this guide if and when you need it. You'll probably learn some new tricks along the way too!
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This is a 5 in my book, Nick. Thank you for sharing this valuable information.
The world is looking at our work and we need to present our best efforts.
Best wishes.
Frederick
Proofreaders! I knew nothing about what they did and now I do. This is both an absolutely fascinating and outstanding intel. N.B.: from an SEO perspective, it's a superb job, too. There are lots of jargon keywords & phrases that are seamlessly integrated into the text, providing a great intro to your site.
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Thanks both of you for your kind words. I am glad this information was of interest to you and I'll try to maintain that interest in future intels!
Thank you so much for the thorough explanation it is really handy for me to know when I am doing my papers for Uni plus other things. The instructions are asy to understand and I did not know that this was available in Word. Once again well done Nick.
Cheers
Angela
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Glad to be of help you you Angela! Yes it's one of Word's many talents that the vast majority of people are unaware of!
Wow... I just got back from vacation and this is just what I needed, thanks.
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This intel was contributed by Nick Jones
Nick Jones
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May, 2012
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