Getting Help with Office on the Web

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Microsoft hosts a wealth of technical support information online; the most obvious way to access it is to choose Help, Office On The Web. Selecting this command takes you to the Microsoft Office Product Updates page (see Figure 3-12), where you can scout Microsoft services, download templates and updates, chat with others about your Word headaches, and learn ways to optimize your Office use.

Figure 3-12. The Microsoft Office Product Updates page gives you a number of links for updates, downloads, technical support information, and more.

Using Microsoft's Knowledge Base

The Microsoft Knowledge Base is a huge compilation of articles on line, written to provide technical support information and provide users with a resource for sleuthing out their own technical problems (see Figure 3-13). To access the Knowledge Base, follow these steps:

1. Connect to the Internet and launch your Web browser.
2. Go to http://www.microsoft.com (you can also choose Help, Office On The Web).
3. Position the pointer over the Support tab in the upper right corner of the screen. (If you've accessed the Knowledge Base from within Word, you will need to click this tab.) When the Support menu appears, click Knowledge Base.
4. On the Knowledge Base Search page, choose the product you want help with (conceivably, Word 2002), choose the way in which you want to search, and type your question. Finally, click Go. After a few seconds, the results are shown in a Search Results screen. The titles of the articles are linked so that by clicking the one you want, you can move to it directly.

Figure 3-13. The Knowledge Base is a kind of tech support encyclopedia on line.

Researching FAQs

The Knowledge Base is considered part of Microsoft's "self support" system; another self-support help option is available in the Word-specific FAQs available on line. FAQs are frequently asked questions about a particular product, operating system, or feature. FAQs are valuable resources in that they compile user-submitted questions and problems and list resolutions offered by tech support in the past. To find FAQs to help with your use of Word (or other Office products), search the Support site for Word at http://www.microsoft.com.

Getting Newsgroup-Style Support

Yet another way to get help and trade tips and tricks with other Word users is available in the Office and Word newsgroups sponsored by Microsoft. You can use your newsreader (available in both Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express) to access list servers that distribute mail discussing topics such as Word issues. Some newsgroups are hosted by Microsoft IT, so you can get real help in a newsgroup if you're willing to participate (and filter out the spam that might come flying your way). Figure 3-14 shows a screen with one of the Microsoft-supported newsgroups.

Figure 3-14. Newsgroups can give you the means to ask your questions directly and benefit from the shared knowledge of other users.