MS Word has a very nice search feature that allows us to make replacements on the fly.
We all know the key combination shortcut to use Search and Replace — Ctrl F. It allows us to search for just about anything in our documents. There is the issue of screen real estate when using this great function however.
The Navigation Pane opens on your screen and takes up valuable real estate and not only that, it can be distracting to some folks (me). When you click on Next that pane is still there.
Now the good news is that you CAN have your search and not have the pane (no pun intended).
Follow the steps below to learn how:
- Use your Navigation Pane as you normally would, specifying what you would like to search for and look for the first occurrence.
- When Word displays the first occurence, click your Esc key or click on cancel. Word will obey and close the Navigation Pane.
- To find the next occurrence, simply click Shift + F4.
It works exactly the same as clicking Next Search Result and it is just as fast without that distracting Navigation Pane!
Always looking for ways to help you work smarter, faster and more comfortably!