how do I get rid of hidden formatting code?

[Guest]

I have a document I am building with text from multiple contributors. I can
see the formatting becoming unstable. What do I need to do to see the
formatting code that trails my document so I can remove it?

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Word doesn't really have any "hidden formatting codes" the way WordPerfect
does, but see http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/General/RevealCodes.htm

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA

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[Guest]

I have a document I am building with text from multiple contributors. I can
see the formatting becoming unstable. What do I need to do to see the
formatting code that trails my document so I can remove it?

What about the trailing information related to formatting that follows as
the end of every document? How can I get rid of that. With every new file I
insert, I am inserting some formatting defaults of the contributing author. I
have had documents become very unstable this way. A few years ago someone
showed me how to display those trailing defaults, but I forget how.

 

[Guest]

If you're talking about non-printing character (i.e. spaces, paragraphs,)
click on the pilcrow on your toolbar (looks like a backwards P).

But if you want to retain your original formatting when you paste the
contributor's work, simply use Edit | Paste Special | Unformatted Text.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

On the Print tab of Tools | Options, clear the check box for "Document
properties," though I wouldn't describe that as "formatting." Perhaps you're
tracking changes and you've got a lot of markup that won't fit on the page
so it's printing at the end?

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA

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all may benefit.

 

[Jay Freedman]

I think it's the old "Recover text from any file" garbage
(http://www.word.mvps.org/FAQs/AppErrors/RecoverText.htm).

JH, when you open the document, make sure the "Files of type" dropdown is
set to "Word Documents" and _not_ "Recover Text from Any File". And if you
do happen to open a document with the Recover Text setting, don't save it.

--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP
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all may benefit.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

Ah, very likely, but only in Word 2000 or earlier, since that setting is not
"sticky" in Word 2002 or above.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA

Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.