We don’t usually write about Microsoft apps here on igamesnews, but if you use Word on your Mac, you’ll love these two new shortcuts coming to the app.
In the latest beta of Microsoft Word for 365 Insiders (build 16.67.1113.0 or later), users will get new keyboard shortcuts for zooming so you no longer have to use on-screen buttons. To say the shortcut is late is a bit of an overstatement, because almost every productivity app ever, including most of Microsoft’s, uses keyboard shortcuts for zoom.
The typing is familiar, and one you’ve probably already tried in Word to no avail. In an upcoming update, the common Command-Plus (+) and Command-Minus (-) keys will zoom in and out respectively. Each press will increase or decrease the zoom by 10% and Command-Zero (0) will reset the view to 100%.
The other change involves an age-old feature that’s been getting a shortcut for a long time. If you’ve ever needed to paste a bit of text into a Word document, you may have noticed that all the formatting comes with it and you’ll have to surgically change everything – text size, color, bold, etc. Microsoft has an “Clear Formatting” option in the Edit menu, or you can press the Eraser pop-up button, but the standard Command-Shift-V keystroke didn’t work for pasting plain text. Also, Command-Option-C will copy the current formatting to your document and Command-Option-V will apply it to the text you have selected.
Now it’s OK. Microsoft added simple typing to the latest beta version of Word in one of the most overdue features in app history. Just press Command-Shift-V to paste the text without images or links. As Microsoft clearly says, “pasted content matches the formatting of neighboring text, rather than retaining its original font size, color, etc.” Genius.
Microsoft hasn’t said when the features will make their way to the full version of Word, but we expect them to arrive in the spring. In the meantime, just know that good things are on the way.
Microsoft Word is part of Office for Mac and is available with a Microsoft 365 subscription for $69.99/£59.99 per year or $6.99/£5.99 per month. A subscription-free Home & Student version is also available for $149.99, though it likely won’t get this feature until the next update later in 2023 or 2024.
