Word 2007 - Tutorial One

noreply@blogger.com (I. L. Reeves, Legal Technology Specialist) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 23:10:00 +0000

Appearance
There are aesthetic differences between earlier versions of MS Office that will be the focus of the next several blog entries. Today, let's discuss the MS Office button, ribbon and quick access toolbar.

The MS Office Button:

The Microsoft Office Button is located in the upper left hand corner of all Office 2007 Application windows. It replaced the File menu of older versions, and is where the FileOpen, etc. are located. An indepth discussion of the features available through the Office Button and customizations will be posted tomorrow.

The Ribbon:

The ribbon is made up of three units-tabs, groups and commands.

Tabs - there are six tabs across the top, each one corresponding to an active area. This is where you locate former toolbar menus such as Format, Insert, etc.

Groups - The tabs are seperated into several groups of related items. The Style group is located within the Home tab.

Commands-commands can be buttons, drop-down lists, or boxes.

Quick Access Toolbar:

The Quick Access Toolbar is located to the immediate right of the Office Button. By default, it is a small area above the Ribbon and is where you will find the Save, Undo, and Repeat commands. It is customizable and can be relocated to the area just below the Ribbon.

Document Inspector - Managing Metadata in MS Office 2007

noreply@blogger.com (I. L. Reeves, Legal Technology Specialist) — Tue, 06 May 2008 01:00:00 +0000

The management of metadata (hidden or unhidden data information within an electronic document or file) is quite important. In recent years, law firms and legal service companies are paying closer attention to how and when metadata is controlled. Microsoft provides a quick way to view and strip metadata in Office 2007 with "Document Inspector". The Document Inspector feature is easily accessed by clicking the Office ButtonPrepareInspect Document. The options of information available for inspection or removal are:

Comments, Revisions, Versions, and Annotations
Document Properties and Personal Information
Custom XML Data
Headers, Footers, and Watermarks
Hidden Text

Once inspected, the removal process is a simple "all or nothing" so select carefully. I commend Microsoft for making it easy to strip metadata in it's Office 2007. Third party add-ins that provides application integration are also available. Metadata Assistant by Payne Consulting integrates smoothly with various document management softwares, time and billing applications and other applications specific to the the legal community. Furthermore, Metadata Assistant is available in
Enterprise (http://www.payneconsulting.com/products/metadataent/) or
Retail editions(http://www.payneconsulting.com/products/metadataretail/). This specific add-in can be modified to meet firm needs.

Charles Kenyon also provides useful information on his website (http://addbalance.com/usersguide/metadata.htm)

Other metadata management tools are:

Metadata scrubber
http://www.beclegal.com/products.aspx?id=64

Remove Metadata by Sobolsoft
http://www.sobolsoft.com/removemetadata/
Metaviewer & Metadiscovery by Pinpoint Labs
http://www.pinpointlabs.com/free_tools/metaviewer/
ImageProperties .NET by Element-IT Software (specifically for image files)
http://www.element-it.com/ImageProperties.aspx

--Comments and concerns welcome

Legal Technology & Software Applications

Word 2007 - Tutorial One

Document Inspector - Managing Metadata in MS Office 2007