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Short URL: http://scripts.sil.org/RTL_in_MSOffice

Right-to-left scripts in Microsoft Office

Bob Hallissy, 2003-12-05; 18168 reads

    Introduction
    System requirements
    Installation
    Download
    Support

Introduction

The ability to display right-to-left (RTL) and other complex scripts is built into the standard editions of Microsoft Office since Office 2000. Additionally, the ability to handle RTL scripts is not dependent on underlying Windows support, so it works even on English editions of Windows 9x. All of this is a significant change from previous Office products for which Microsoft made customized editions of the applications for different areas of the world.

This document template provides helpful hints on use of RTL scripts in Word 2000, Word 2002 and Word 2003. Included are general instructions for getting such scripts to work correctly, known bugs and weaknesses, and various tips and tricks. There are also some macros that may be helpful when working with RTL scripts.

Although written primarily for users of Arabic Based Scripts (ABS), users of other RTL scripts such as Hebrew will find the material helpful.

System requirements

This template requires Microsoft Word 2000 or later for Windows. These macros do not work on Word 97 for Windows or Word 98 for the Macintosh.

Installation

The macros and documentation are supplied in a single a Word template file packaged in a .ZIP archive. After unpacking the archive, the easiest way to use the template is to copy it into the Office Startup folder. Any template that is located in the Office Startup folder is treated as a Word “add-in”, and macros and toolbars in such a template are always available, just as those in the Normal template. The path to this folder is typically something like C:WindowsApplication DataMicrosoftWordStartup or C:Documents and Settings<your login name>Application DataMicrosoftWordStartup.

(For Word 2002 and later, one easy way to effect this kind of install, and always get it into the correct folder, is to open Word, click Tools / Options / File Locations, select Startup and click Modify . You’ll see a dialog that permits you to browse for the startup folder. Now, from Windows Explorer, simply drag this .DOT file onto the center of the dialog and drop it. Nothing will appear in the dialog, but you will have moved (or copied) the file to the correct directory. Now cancel the dialogs and restart Word).

If you've installed it properly, the ABS Macros toolbar should be visible:

ABSMacros Toolbar

Start by clicking the ? button at the end of the toolbar.

Download

ABS Macros Template
Bob Hallissy, 2003-07-07
Download "ABSMacros_1_10.zip", ZIP archive, 145KB [3079 downloads]

Support

As this program is distributed at no cost, I am unable to provide a commercial level of personal technical support. I am interested in hearing from you, however, and will try to resolve problems that are reported to me. You can send feedback to me here.

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