How-to go full screen in Word 2013 (to make it Metro-style)

[bardigolriz]

Word is usable on the Surface RT. The size of the touch targets is acceptably reasonable, and I can't remember ever hitting the wrong target in my use. And, I've used it quite a bit. Yes, I'd prefer if it was Metro-style, but not if it severely compromised on its feature set, which I suspect it would have for Windows 8. In the meanwhile, there is a way to strengthen its Metro characteristics: full-screen document editing.

In the Office team's credit, the interface chrome has been reduced in Office 2013 with the minimised ribbon. But, stripping all the interface away makes me feel I'm writing and not working on a document. Unfortunately, it's not an accessible option and requires some digging around. This I don't understand.

You can assign the full-screen toggle to the Quick Access Toolbar by opening its customisation menu and selecting the "More Commands..." option.

Select the "All Commands" option from the "Choose commands from:" menu, and then scroll down to select "Toggle Full Screen View", before touching/clicking the "Add" button.

Once added, you'll see its icon on the Quick Access Toolbar.

You can also assign a keyboard shortcut to act as the full-screen toggle. Open the "Word Options" popup by selecting "Options" from the "File" tab. Select the "Customize Ribbon" option, and then the keyboard shortcut's "Customize..." button at the bottom left.

Select "All Commands" and "ToggleFull" from the lists on the left and right.

Press a new shortcut key, before assigning it.

If you're using a keyboard, you can press "Escape" to snap out of full-screen view. However, there's no "Esc" key on the on-screen keyboard. So, make sure you assign a shortcut consisting of keys available on the on-screen keyboard. This is important. Otherwise, you won't be able to leave full-screen view if you're using the on-screen keyboard.

Happy writing.

This was a post from my blog focusing on Microsoft's devices and services' UX/UI found at http://mtrostyle.net. Check it out if you've a moment. If you enjoyed reading this how to, would appreciate it if you spread the word on the Interwebs. Catch me @mtrostyle or RSS.