AutoCorrect: The New Shorthand
If you want to speed up your work and improve the accuracy
of your typing, you might try using Word’s AutoCorrect feature. It can store
and paste up to 255 characters.
To access this function,
Using AutoCorrect in Word 2007
To access this function,
1. Click on the Office button in the upper left corner of
the screen. A screen pops up.
2. Click on Word Options at the bottom right.
3. From the menu bar on the left, click on Proofing (third option from the top). Then look for the first heading on the page and click on the box labeled "AutoCorrect Options." The AutoCorrect dialog box then appears. Here is a screen shot of the AutoCorrect dialog box, ready for entry of a new item:
2. Click on Word Options at the bottom right.
3. From the menu bar on the left, click on Proofing (third option from the top). Then look for the first heading on the page and click on the box labeled "AutoCorrect Options." The AutoCorrect dialog box then appears. Here is a screen shot of the AutoCorrect dialog box, ready for entry of a new item:
Argue Is Not a Dirty Word: Taking a Stand in Your Thesis Statement
By Kayla Skarbakka, Writing Consultant
Like many high schoolers across the country, I was assigned
in my junior year to write a paper for the National Peace Essay Contest, a fantastic program that promotes education and
conversation about peace and conflict resolution. My year, the contest’s theme
was reconstruction. I chose my topic (the Croatian War of Independence),
conducted my research (involving a bit too much Wikipedia—hey, I was 16!),
drafted my essay, and submitted to my teacher, feeling pretty darn confident.
I got the essay back the next week with a middling grade and
a big red X in my introduction, next to my thesis statement, which was
something like “Reconstruction is a complicated process that can take years to
complete.”
“But it’s true,” I complained after class.
“It also doesn’t say anything,” my teacher told me. “Where
do you stand? What do you have to
say?”
On Choosing Your Words Carefully
By
Tim McIndoo, Dissertation Editor
In
scholarly or research writing, evidence is presented to substantiate an
argument. To make an argument cogent requires precision. Precision means choosing
the right words and then properly assembling them into a sentence. Throughout your
paper or study, you are offering your readers characterizations, descriptions,
explanations, interpretations, and analyses. If they are inaccurate or imprecise,
you will misrepresent and perhaps fail to make your case. Here are seven common
word-choice issues, in alphabetical order.
ability /
capability
Some
words look similar and have the same root but have different meanings: ability refers to people and means a
natural skill, talent, or expertise; capability
suggests qualifications or credentials and points to a maximum. While John’s ability to read is below grade level,
his capability of succeeding in school remains good.
Writer’s Workshop #3: Cut It Out!
By Hillary Wentworth, Writing Consultant
I admit it. I’m one of those people who delays cleaning just
to see the great pile of dust I can sweep up with my broom. I also compile long
to-do lists just to strike things off. It’s that satisfying swipe of getting
things done. Are you with me?
I approach my own writing with the same philosophy: write it
all out in glorious, long sentences, and then rip it to shreds. Some of us
write with such delicacy and heart that we become too close to the material. We
write a paragraph and it becomes our baby, our friend; we cannot see it any
other way. My suggestion, though, is to view the paper analytically, like a scientist.
In fact, pretend it’s someone else’s writing entirely.
To achieve this sense of detachment you might need to write
a paper and then forget about it for a day or two. Then, when you have your
scientist cap on, sit down at your desk and read. If you have access to a
printer, flip through the physical pages and grab a pen to cross out words. If
you don’t own a printer, read on the computer with the Track Changes button
engaged. When you delete a word, a strikethrough line will appear. See how many
extra words you can remove.
The Argument for Articles
By Rachel Grammer, Writing Consultant
As I wandered through tourist traps and tea shops of a
foreign city a few years back, I stumbled across this sign. The grammar geek in
me had to smile. Would you like to ride on camel? A nice experience, isn’t it? Even as I chuckled, I knew that the
omission of the word a in the sign
represented one of the greatest challenges of learning the English language:
the use of what we writing nerds call articles.
Articles are actually not arbitrary.
Despite the seemingly arbitrary nature of articles, there
are grammatical rules that govern their use. The category of articles generally
consists of three words: a, an, and the. While these are small words, they
can make a world of difference in writing. Articles do have a purpose and can provide clarity. Allow me to explain.
Articles give specificity and number.
Articles fall into two categories: Definite and indefinite.
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