Table 1 below defines the 15 built-in building block types and shows how the associated galleries are accessed. Most of the built-in building block galleries are accessed and employed using a gallery control or a combination of menu/gallery controls on the Ribbon user interface. Despite that distinction, you are able to customize and define your own custom building block entries in any one or all of the 35 galleries. Of the 35 building block types, 15 are built-in and 20 are custom types. Each gallery can be subdivided into custom categories containing multiple building block entries. This collection is comprised of 35 building block types (or galleries). The key difference is that there is a much larger and richer collection of pre-defined building blocks installed with Word right out of the box!! The definition of AutoText provided above works equally well for building blocks.
Word comes with a number of predefined AutoText entries, and you can add as many as you like." An AutoText entry can store anything a Word document can contain, such as formatted text, pictures, and fields. You can, for example, create a library of boilerplate paragraphs for business letters, or keep a handy selection of headers and footers. "AutoText is a way to store parts of a Word document for re-use. In the first article link above AutoText is defined as: We are both simply trying to provide plenty of information and help for you to peruse.īuilding blocks are very similar to AutoText. Don't be annoyed if you find your self in a loop. Note: Charles has put together a comprehensive treatment of AutoText in his linked article including links to other web resources on the subject including some of my own. For more on employing AutoText in general see Charles Kenyon's: AutoText and AutoCorrect in Microsoft Word and my AutoTextList tips page. The focus of this article is on managing building blocks and their relationship to the AutoText feature found in previous editions of Word. I use the term "document parts" to describe the collection of document properties, fields, and AutoText that existed in previous Word versions along with the new collection of building block galleries and their associated building blocks.
Introduction to Building BlocksĮmploying a collection of document parts to create professional looking documents is even easier with Word 2007 - 2013. Additional, I will address some enhancements/changes to building blocks in Word 20. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this information.In this Microsoft Word Tips & Microsoft Word Help page I will discuss building blocks components introduced in Word 2007 and provide a few tools for enhancing their use. Please Note: Since the web site is not hosted by Microsoft, the link may change without notice. (File> Word Options>Display>Check/Uncheck Show These Formatting Marks ) We may show/hide the non-printing character.
In tables you will see one additional character, the universal monetary symbol (¤), which displays variously at various point sizes and magnifications but upon close inspection is seen to be a circle with four lines radiating from the corners More accurately control the look of your document and what it contains. You can quickly tell, for instance, when you have inserted two spaces between words or added an extra carriage return. As far as I know, the non printing character is much easier to understand spacing when the characters are displayed.