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4.2.1. Key Features of OpenOffice.org Writer
You may already be familiar with many of the features of this application so only a few of them are included here.
Writing. OpenOffice.org Writer offers a variety of useful features to help you create basic text documents as well as long and complex or multi-part documents that may include components such as bibliographies, reference tables and indexes. Some of these features are:
• Spellchecker: The spellchecker feature facilitates error-free writing by enabling you to check your entire document, including the header, footer, index entries and footnotes, for spelling errors. It even allows you to identify a misspelled word from a specific selection of the document, lists suggested words for replacing the misspelled word and provides you the option to add a new word to the existing user dictionary.
• Thesaurus: The thesaurus helps you enhance the quality of your writing and make it more effective by allowing you to find a more appropriate synonym for a selected word.
• Autocorrect: Autocorrect is a software function that enables you to reduce your typing effort by automatically correcting common spelling and typing errors. This feature also allows you to automatically apply correct formatting to the text or insert special characters by recognizing particular character usage.
• Hyphenation: You can use the hyphenation feature to insert hyphens in words that are too long to fit at the end of a line. It searches the entire document and suggests hyphenation that you can either accept or reject.
• Mail merge: The Mail merge feature allows you to create multiple personalised form letters, labels, envelopes, faxes and e-mail messages by using a form letter template and an address database.
Designing and Structuring. OpenOffice.org enables you to design and structure your text document by using an assortment of features, including:
• Style and Formatting window: The Style and Formatting window is one of the common features available in the OpenOffice. org package that can be used consistently in all the applications included in the package. You can use this window to create, assign and modify styles for paragraphs, lists, individual characters, frames and pages.
• Navigator: Provides you with an outline view of the entire document and allows you to quickly navigate inside the document. You can also use Navigator to track the objects and elements that are already inserted and to insert new elements into the document.
• Indexes and Tables: Enable you to insert an index, a table of contents or a bibliography reference in your text document. You can also customise the inserted tables and indexes by defining their structure and appearance.
Desktop Publishing. The following features can help you create professionally styled documents, such as brochures, invitations and newsletters:
• Text Frames: Acts as a container for text and graphics and can be placed anywhere in a document. You can also use these frames to apply a multi-column layout to your document and render a professional look and style to it.
• Graphics: Allows you to insert a graphic object into your text document from a gallery, a file or any other OpenOffice.org application.
• Tables: OpenOffice.org Writer also enables you to create or insert a table into a text document.
Drawing. The drawing functions make it easy for you to create many types of drawings and graphics directly in your text document. You can use the Drawing bar to add various shapes, lines, text and callouts to a current document.
Drag and Drop. This unique feature allows you to drag objects from one location to another in the same document, from one OpenOffice document to another and from the Gallery to your OpenOffice document.
The Help Function. This is a complete reference for your Writer.