The Power of Ink in Office 2003

One of the main reasons we use paper instead of a computer is because we can doodle, sketch, and more fluidly communicate ideas on paper than through typing. Much of that has changed now with the Tablet PC. You can now type, doodle, annotate, and do about anything you can with paper all by using your Tablet PC with simple applications that you're already familiar with.

Now your Microsoft Word experience can be as fruitful as a brainstorming session, with ideas generated on the keyboard, and sketches drawn beside the text. You can even include voice annotations and handwritten notes. The power of the pen has finally come to Microsoft Office!

Note

If you try to install Office XP Pack for Tablet PC, it will require you to have an Office XP application. Without Office installed, the add-on will not even attempt to install. You will also need Office XP Service Pack 1. If you have already installed Office 2003, you may not be able to install Office XP Pack for Tablet PC unless you add another application from the XP time frame, such as Project 2002 or Visio 2002.

Almost every member of the Office 2003 suite has the capability to add ink. And where you can add ink, you can erase it. In general, you can add ink to any part of a document, and in Word you can even add ink comments.

The main differences between the different inking styles are as follows:

• Ink annotations can be hidden, and do not require a special box. This is available in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

• Ink drawing and writing requires a special ink box, and is not hidden when the Hide annotations button is clicked. Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Access can use ink drawing and writing.

• Ink comments are available only in Word 2003, and are just like comments used during collaborative writing, where the comments show in the margin and can be hidden.

The inking capabilities for each application will be covered in more detail in each application's section of this chapter.

Note

Ink is powerful in Office, so spend some time getting used to it. Know what tools you have available in each application, and learn how to use them well so you can handle any inking situation with ease.