Customize keyboard shortcuts for word.

Q. Call me old-fashioned, but I hate the mouse. I'd much rather use keyboard combinations to activate commands. However, some of the Word commands I frequently use don't have key combinations. Any ideas?

A. You can create your own or even change the existing default combinations.

Here are the steps: Click on Tools, Customize and Keyboard, evoking this menu:

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Then, select a category (under Categories) and an available command (under Commands) for which you want to create a keystroke shortcut (or the shortcut you would like to change if it already has one).

For example, if you want a shortcut to command Word to jump to the next comment in a document, find that action in the Commands list and highlight it. It also is more fully identified under Description. If the Current keys box is empty, that task has no assigned keys. You can assign keys to it by pressing the keys of your choice; they will appear under Press new shortcut key. Then click on Assign and Close.

If you're not happy with one of them, just change it.

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STANLEY ZAROWIN, a former JofA senior editor, is now a contributing editor to the magazine. His e-mail address is [e-mail].