Microsoft Word 2002 Upgrade

Task panes are dynamic windows that pop up in response to specific actions you're performing within a document, such as paragraph formatting or using mail merge options. Similarly, smart tags are icons that appear when you perform a particular task--simply hover your mouse over them and a drop-down menu of options will appear.

Smart tags really come into play in Word 2002, greatly expanding your options. For example, you can now place your mouse over a contact name in a letter and the menu allows you to send that person an e-mail, open their entry in your contact book in Outlook, refer to outstanding schedule commitments, and so on.

Other exciting innovations include the ability to select multiple, unconnected chunks of text (so you can cut and paste two unconnected paragraphs in one go), and the Reveal Formatting task pane, which lets you see all the formats and styles on a given selection. Use the Drawing Canvas to position pictures within a document, check out the Diagram Gallery to add business diagrams, or insert professional clip art from the Clip Organizer.

While there is only so much you would want to change in a word processing package, which is designed for simply and quickly writing documents, Microsoft has managed to improve upon an already well-executed application. --John Rennie--This review refers to the full version

Amazon.com Product Description
Microsoft Word 2002 gives users the tools they need to streamline the process of creating, sharing, reviewing, and publishing their important documents. Word 2002 makes it easier for users to discover and use existing functionality and provides intelligent new ways for users to work with their documents. Word 2002 now makes it easier for users to share and review documents with others without changing the way they currently work. Discover and use more of the new and existing functionality in the application. New tools such as task panes and smart tags are shared throughout the Microsoft Office suite. Built into Word 2002 is improved technology for working with formatting, styles, bullets, tables of contents, and more.

AutoCorrect Options smart tags provides an easy mechanism for users to control and modify automatic behavior that takes place within Word. Undo an automatic correction, choose to not have that correction take place in the future, or access the AutoCorrect Options dialog box. With Name, Address, and Date smart tags, Word 2002 recognizes names, addresses, and dates. When an item is recognized, the user is provided with a Smart Tag that allows them to obtain additional information from the Web or other Office applications. Additional Smart Tags will be available on the Office Update Web site and can be extended by organizations and third parties to offer unique document solutions. Word 2002 now gives users the ability to translate words in their document (available languages are determined by language dictionaries that are installed) or to access a translation service on the Web. This service provides entire document translation as well as additional languages. Word 2002 now increases user productivity by supplementing traditional mouse and keyboard execution with voice commands. Users can dictate text, make direct formatting changes, and navigate menus using speech and voice commands. (Note: Speech is currently available for U.S. English, simplified Chinese, and Japanese.) The Word Count toolbar allows users to easily update the word count in a document without having to go to the Word Count dialog box. Additional improvements in Word Count allow users more flexibility in whether headers and footers are counted in their document.

After trying Word 2002, our office is switching to FrameMaker 7.0. The learning curve was much gentler than we expected, and the power to create simple documents and complicated tech manuals that number correctly is beyond price. The new version of Word finally forced us to change and we'll never look back.


A Few very useful Features..   January 11, 2003
Joshua Brown (Muncie, IN, US)
9 out of 9 found this review helpful

The only reason I decided to dish out 70 bucks for this was the speech recognition. I originally had Word 2000, there weren't very many advancements in this that I absolutely needed, except for the speech recognition. That is amazing, I would pay even more then 70 bucks for it. You can even extend it so that you can use it in nearly any Windows product. Great Idea!! Pretty much elimiinates the need for a keyboard. The training sessions for it are very simple and only take a few minutes. If you take all of the training sessions it will boost accuracy up to 95% (so they say) a great buy for people who are writing long reports and need a lil help with it.


Upgrade Sure--But Only If You Use WORDS For A Living   December 15, 2002
Martin Asiner (jersey city, nj United States)
14 out of 16 found this review helpful

Most people who use a word processor use it for tasks not directly related to their full-time profession. The vast majority of students and office workers need no more than an easy to use program that allows for such mundane tasks as file creation, deletion, and editing. The original WORD processor allowed that in spades. However, when one is tempted to upgrade at considerable cost to the rather esoteric features found in the 2002 upgrade, then one ought to examine exactly what use one might expect to get from these additional features. Then a cost-versus benefit ratio is a good idea. In my case, I am a teacher who needs an easy to use processor and the original WORD was fine. As I examined the various extras listen on the blurbs (plus reading the generally negative reviews from Amazon.com), I realized that the cost was high but I decided to take a chance anyway. Bad idea. After a few weeks, I got bogged down in the surprising complexity of the upgrade. Most of the enhancements are really for those writers who do far more than merely write. If you feel you fall into this vanishingly small percent of power users of WORD, buy the upgrade. But be prepared for a program that is not user friendly.


Marketing-driven update--just get OpenOffice.org/StarOffice   November 10, 2002
17 out of 18 found this review helpful

I've used Word on and off since 1991, and have in the last several years (when the job market permitted) used required use of Word as a screen for writing jobs I wouldn't apply for. It was great in 1995 and has bloated horribly since then. OK, not a terrible product, but not fabulous, and this upgrade's just another way to get a few more bucks out of us for no particular reason, without enough improvements.

What's your alternative? Not getting it. You don't actually need Word to make or read Word files. Download OpenOffice.org for free or StarOffice on this site, and use its word processor to read and create Word format files, if you need to.

If you still want this Word upgrade, well, then you must love it more than I do. :)


Not Quite Ready for Prime Time   September 16, 2002
Mark K. Mcdonough (Reston, VA USA)
13 out of 14 found this review helpful

I wouldn't rush right out and buy this upgrade. I'm running it on a brand new very snappy Dell workstation with XP and buckets of RAM and it crashes on a regular basis, as in several times a day. And upon crashing it goes through a confusing routine in which it apparently tries to save changes to the default normal.dot template, which is going to drive people who don't even know what the normal.dot template is crazy. Yes, there are some nice enhancements here, but the overall experience reminds me of running Word97 on Windows 95 -- "Save your work!"