Office and Windows XP Tablet PC Edition

Office 2003 was built with the Tablet PC in mind, so it not only recognizes that it's running under the Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, but it also adjusts the Office features and interface to take advantage of the Tablet PC. Some of these adjustments are relatively trivialsuch as displaying the Task pane at the bottom of the screen instead of the right sidebut others are more profound, as you'll see in this chapter.

Understanding Ink Integration

One of the biggest changes you get with Office 2003 running on the Windows XP Tablet PC Edition implements ink integration. This means that a new object type called Digital Ink or, simply, Ink becomes part of the Office system, like the AutoShape and Text Box object types, for instance. In fact, Ink objects are part of the Office drawing layer that holds AutoShapes, text boxes, WordArt, pictures, and so on, and you can format ink like other drawing layer objects by changing, for example, the text color and line weight.

From a collaboration point of view, ink enables you to mark up Office documents using the digital pen. You can do the following in Office 2003:

WordYou can annotate a document directly, which means either writing notes in the margin using your own handwriting or adding highlighting, diagrams, proofreader marks, or other symbols. Also, you can create an ink area called a canvas that enables you to write text and symbols anywhere inside the area. Finally, Word also supports ink inside comments.
ExcelYou can annotate an Excel worksheet directly by adding highlights, arrows, or handwritten text.
PowerPointYou can annotate a PowerPoint slide to emphasize key points, record feedback, or jot down ideas that come up during a presentation run-through.
OutlookIf you use Word as your email editor, you can send handwritten notes as messages, or you can spruce up a conventional message with your signature or other ink.

Using Office XP on a Tablet PC

If you're running Office XP, the programs don't automatically recognize when they're running on a Tablet PC. If you want to use your Tablet PC's capabilities in Office XP, you need to download the Microsoft Office XP Pack for Tablet PC, which is available here:

 http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx? familyid=33790048-269B-4838-AB9E-74B64626A494

Entering Text with the Tablet PC Input Panel

Besides ink integration, Office (any version, not just 2003) also supports non-ink input with a digital pen. Windows XP Tablet Edition comes with a tool called the Tablet PC Input Panel that you use to enter text and other symbols with the digital pen instead of the keyboard. The Input Panel uses three views to enable you to enter your text; the view you use depends on the text you want to enter.

Using the Writing Pad

If you want to write a word or two or a short phrase, use the Writing Pad view. As you can see in Figure 9.1, this view displays a large box in which you handwrite words and phrases with the digital pen. When you're not writing, several keys appear to the right of the Writing Pad. Tap these keys to enter nonhandwritten characters such as a Tab or a Space, editing keys such as Bksp (Backspace) and Del (Delete), and navigation keys such as Enter and the left- and right-arrow keys.

Figure 9.1. Use the Writing Pad to handwrite words or short phrases.

Special Characters for Internet Addresses

The Writing Pad keyboard displays extra shortcut keys if you're entering an Internet address. If you tap inside Internet Explorer's Address bar, the Writing Pad keyboard displays shortcut keys for http://, www., .com, .org, . (dot), and / (slash).

To use the Writing Pad, first position the insertion point within the document at the spot where you want your text to appear. Then use the digital pen to write the word or phrase. As you complete each character, the Input Panel recognizes it and displays the recognized characters below, as shown in Figure 9.2. If the recognized text contains an error, click it to see a list of possible alternatives, as shown in Figure 9.3. To change an individual character, either write the correct character over top of the existing character or hover the pointer over the character and click the arrow that appears to see a list of alternative characters. Click OK when you're done. When the text is accurate, click Insert to add it to your document.

Figure 9.2. When you handwrite your text in the Writing Pad, the Input Panel displays the recognized characters.

Figure 9.3. Click the recognized text to see a list of alternatives or to correct individual characters.

Automatically Inserting Text

Rather than clicking Insert, you can get the Input Panel to recognize and insert your handwritten text automatically. Click the Tools and Options button (pointed out in Figure 9.1) and then click Options to display the Options dialog box. In the Writing Pad tab, activate the Automatically Insert Text After a Pause check box, and then use the slider to set the length of time (in seconds) after which Input Panel inserts your text.

Watch for Leading Spaces

If you elect to have the Input Panel insert text automatically, note that this method has an annoying habit of inserting a leading space along with your text. If you're using the Input Panel to enter a formula in a worksheet cell and Excel doesn't recognize the formula, a leading space in the cell may be the culprit.

Using the Character Pad

If you want to insert just a few characters, use the Character Pad, which Microsoft added to the Input Panel in the Windows XP Tablet Edition 2005. This view displays a series of placeholders, each of which is designed to hold a single character. You write the character in the placeholder and after a second or two the Input Panel converts the written character to text, as shown in Figure 9.4. To correct a character, either write the correct character over top of the incorrect one, or hover the digital pen over the character and then click the arrow that appears. The Input Panel displays a list of alternatives (see Figure 9.4). When the text is accurate, click Insert to add the text to your document.

Figure 9.4. Use the Character Pad to handwrite text one character at a time.

Using the Onscreen Keyboard

The Onscreen Keyboard view displays a graphical representation of a typical keyboard, as shown in Figure 9.5. After positioning the insertion point in your document at the spot where you want new text to appear, you input text by tapping the keys with your digital pen. The Input Panel inserts the characters directly into the document, just like a regular keyboard. Here are some techniques to bear in mind when using the onscreen keyboard:

To access the function keys F1 through F12, tap the Func key. The onscreen keyboard reconfigures its layout to display the function keys along the top row. Tap the Func key again to return to the standard layout.
To insert an uppercase letter or an "upper" symbol such as ? or :, tap the Shift key and then tap the symbol you want.
To input shortcut keys, tap whatever combination of Ctrl, Alt, and Shift you require, and then tap the letter, number, or symbol that completes the shortcut. For example, to input Ctrl+O, tap Ctrl and then tap O; similarly, to input Alt+Shift+P, tap Alt, tap Shift, and then tap P.