Whenever I'm composing or viewing a document in Word, I get these annoying little markers on the page. Can't figure out what they are or how to get rid of them, but I was hoping someone here knows what they are and how to get rid of them. Here's a screenshot.
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
Hmmmm. Now I have your cell phone number. Oh, cool, the "user away" message repeats in French!
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Sweeet....gotta start calling Topher at 4AM...
Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :
Oooooh, his home number, too ...
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
Its your phone bill. Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Not when I call collect....
Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
Or from work, bwahahahahahaaah. . .
Posted by Charles Capps (Member # 9) on :
Tools -> Options
View Tab
"Print and Web Layout options" heading
Text boundaries is the one you're looking for.
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
That is a pretty good cover letter, it seems to me. I should get a (second) job.
Posted by Aban Rune (Member # 226) on :
(I don't mean for the following to sound all arrogant and presumptious. I am just going on the assumption that if I've noticed these things, other people might. People who could be offering you jobs. You can never have a CV that's too good.)
You should end it with "faithfully", rather than "sincerely". The latter is only used if you are adressing a specific, named person. "Dear Sir/Madam", "To whom it may concern", and other similarly vague beginnings should have a "faithfully". Or just a "yours". In addition, I don't think that you are suppossed to put in several return carriages before signing off. I'm not sure on that point though, so don't quote me.
Your address should be in the right hand corner. The left hand corner is where the address of the recepient goes. At the moment, the letter looks like it's been sent to you, rather than coming from you. And you don't need to put your name above the address, since it's going to be going at the bottom of the letter.
"Anytime" is one word. And the first sentence of the final paragraph is a bit...messy. And there are a few too many sentences beginning with "I am" or "I have". I know (ha) that's a really tricky thing to avoid, but give it a go.
Your contact information should (hopefully) be on the resume itself, so I don't think you need to put both phone numbers on the covering letter. In addition, it looks like some of the other information could be duplicated from your CV, but since I haven't seen it, I can't say for certain.
With regards to putting two spaces after full stops...I know some secretaries that do that. And I know some that don't. I think it's a holdover from the days of fixed font typewriters. I don't like it personally, but it's up to you.
And finally...don't use Times New Roman. It's the most boring font possible, and makes text appear old-fashioned and ordinary. Use Arial if you must, or Tahoma, or Verunda, or anything else.
Oh, and you're missing a date.
Hope that helps.
Posted by Aban Rune (Member # 226) on :
Oh... we're doing constructive crits too... ok.
You use the word "position" twice in the opening sentance. I would change one of them to something else. For instance, "I saw a posting on YourWebsite.com for a position at your establishment and have a great interest in applying for it. I believe it will be an excellent way for me to broaden my work experience."
Try to break up sentances that cover more than one thought as they easily turn into run-ons.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
"You should end it with 'faithfully', rather than 'sincerely'. The latter is only used if you are adressing a specific, named person. 'Dear Sir/Madam', 'To whom it may concern', and other similarly vague beginnings should have a 'faithfully'. Or just a 'yours'."
I've never heard that before. In fact, I don't think I've ever seen a letter end with "faithully". Maybe it's a British thing.
Anyway, if he's being sincere, I don't see why "sincerely" wouldn't work. To me, "yours" sounds far more personal than "sincerely".
Posted by LOA (Member # 49) on :
And print it on scented stationary... it gives it just that added flair... *nods* Employers like that... they do!!
~LOA Posted by Jay the Obscure (Member # 19) on :
I would not conclude a cover letter with faithfully.
[ June 23, 2004, 02:11 PM: Message edited by: Jay the Obscure ]
Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
Maybe it's the fact there's a letter U in it, you guys seem to have an eversion to that particular vowel. But Liam is correct, when you name the specific person the letter is addressed to, you close with "sincerely." When it's anonymously addressed, use "faithfully."
My wife still uses double-spaces, and she started out as a secretary. I don't bother.
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
Thanks for the crits, folks... And what Charles suggested wasn't the problem.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
I know I'm correct for the UK. Whether I'm correct for the US is another matter. Of course, you're all retards incapable of using debit cards and mobile phones, so I win.
And Aban is right. But I don't think it's a case of using the word "position" twice. Rather, you are repeating yourself. Say it out loud. "I saw a posting for a position and I would like to apply for that position. You also mention that you are applying for the job in order to gain work experience, yet four lines later say that it's with the aim of paying for your tuition fees. I'd put both reasons together, otherwise it sounds like you've suddenly remembered the fees thing and stuck it in.
Something like "I would like to apply for the position of _____ that I saw advertised on ______, with the aim of broadening my work experience and paying for my tuition costs."
Then move on to "I graduated from blah blah blah...while there, I was able to blah blah blah". Provides more structure.
GPA stands for "grade point average", right? If so, you've written "[I] have a grade point average equivalent to a B- average". I'm not totally sure on American grammar usage around that abbreviation, but howabout "I attained a B- GPA and became better prepared for university"? (this also puts the two events in a more chronological order).
This also might be an American thing, but do you say "you can contact me at 534 etc", rather than "you can contact me ON 3424 etc"?
Oh, and turn of flush indenting. Put that with Times New Roman in the "never ever use" box.
Show us the letter before you send it off, so that we can make sure it's perfect.
(I've just been fiddling with Word. The thing Charles says produces a similar effect, except that a box also appears on the page. I can't get just the corner marks to come up. Could you show us your option-view window?)
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
No one here would use "on" in that context, except for, possibly, scary East Coast residents. For instance, we say "in line" rather than "on line." And yet Willow says she met her boyfriend "online" and Buffy is all "On line for what?" And where did a girl from southern California pick up that usage, Mr. I Graduated from Wesleyan? FOUL.
Posted by Jay the Obscure (Member # 19) on :
Why not end with:
Thank You For Your Consideration, Signature
Yes, yes. I know his name is not Signature.
quote:GPA stands for "grade point average", right? If so, you've written "[I] have a grade point average equivalent to a B- average". I'm not totally sure on American grammar usage around that abbreviation, but howabout "I attained a B- GPA and became better prepared for university"? (this also puts the two events in a more chronological order).
Why use B- at all. A B is a B, you don't need the minus.
Posted by Ultra Klackrent Zlatan Magnus (Member # 239) on :
Don't forget when Buffy was all "I was on PMS" and then, uh, Willow was all "I was at PMS" and then, uh, Charisma Carpenter was all "I was in PMS."
I sure hope Beast does not get on the PMS, too.
Posted by Nim the Fanciful (Member # 205) on :
He seems to be among the PMS already.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
We'd say "I am at "certain address", but I am on "certain phone number". Possibly for the crazy reason that you live AT home, and you go ON the phone.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Yeah, but you also say that you live IN a street, so...
Posted by Fleet-Admiral Michael T. Colorge (Member # 144) on :
How do you do the screen capture again to get images of your desktop?
Posted by Harry (Member # 265) on :
Euh..
Print Screen?
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
Here's the Options/View menu.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
Okay, I'm out of ideas. Is there a way to reset all the options in Word to default?
And are you using a Mac, or StyleXP, or something else?
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
Style XP. And I haven't changed much in the way of settings, so I'm not sure how it happened.
Posted by Mucus (Member # 24) on :
Question: Does it show up when you print the document out?
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
Nope.
Posted by Elim Garak (Member # 14) on :
quote:Originally posted by Topher: Its your phone bill.
Heh heh. Not mine! Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
We should all agree to call him between 3 and 5AM on July Fourth.
Or we each call him at 4:15am each night for a month (each Flarite taking their turn). We could each use a cliche' line such as "Do you have Prince Albert in a can?" Or "Is Jenny there? No? Is this 867-5309?".
Posted by Capped in Mike (Member # 709) on :
You can reach Jenny at 867-5309.
see, I say it right...
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
I've wondered for years; what exactly does "Do you have Prince Albert in the can?" actually mean?
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
It was originally a reference to a brand of tobacco, I think. (The kind of thing you'd keep in a can. Or tin, if you insist.)
Which looked like this. Though I gather they didn't all have a pocket knife promotional give-away.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
Right. But now it seems to be used as some sort of toilet joke. Or am I missing the point. I know that "the can" = "the loo".
And it's not interesting, but we do say can. And tin. Usually can for drinks, tin for other stuff.
Posted by Ultra Klackrent Zlatan Magnus (Member # 239) on :
A Prince Albert is also A PIERCING IN THE PENIS FRONTHEAD.
When I touch my fronthead and my testiclates.
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
Well, the joke is old. Originally, you would, I imagine, call up the local tobaccanist or tobacco enthusiast and ask "Pardon me, sir or madam, but do you have Prince Albert in a can?" And they would either consult their stock or check their left front pocket and respond "Indeed we do sir, how much do you require?" or "I do so, yes," depending on the public/private split. Then, the killer: "Well, you had best release him!" Followed by laughs.
I'm not sure anyone uses the joke in a non-ironic way today. Prince Albert is also slang for some sort of genital piercing, so I guess you could get some milage out of that.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Eight six seven five three oh ni-ee-ine.
Posted by Balaam Xumucane (Member # 419) on :
I tried my imagination, but I was disturbed.
Sure looks an awful lot like text boundaries to me.
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
Text boundaries.
Posted by Aban Rune (Member # 226) on :
I use PageMaker for all my letters and whatnot, so I'll be of no help on the tech issues, but they look like the markers for the edge of the page. On the first image you posted, the ruler turns grey after it passes that mark. But back to formatting:
A) Don't let the heathens disuade you from using flush right. I almost always use it when designing literature. They're just jealous of your (our) coolness.
B) Whoever it was last page that mentioned GPA already meaning average is correct, so don't double up, but you can't have a GPA of a B. You'd have a "GPA of 3.XX" or a "GPA equivilant to a B". A GPA is a number.
C) I tend to leave anything personal out of business letters. For instance, tell them you want to broaden your experience, but leave out the part about needing money for school. They don't care. They know you expect to be paid money and as long as you're not buying porn or drugs on their computer, they probably don't care what you do with it. That's just my opinion, though.
Posted by Dat (Member # 302) on :
Yeah, Aban's right. Don't tell them you need money for school. That just makes them think you would only be there with them only when you are going to school or as long as you need financial assistance for school. They want you to stick around.
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
Well I've already removed that part from my letter. And it probably doesn't matter anyways seeing as where I'd only be able to work for 2 months now and no one would hire me for just 2 months. Posted by Aban Rune (Member # 226) on :
You don't have to mention that part. Unless, I guess, they ask you how long you're planning on working there, should you get the job.
When I took a job at the library in Columbus between my junior and senior years, I neglected to mention the fact that I had no intention of working after the semester started. But they had a high turnover anyway, so it didn't really surprise anyone.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
You could always lie. They can't force you to stay, after all.
And although everyone is entitled to their opinion, Aban is wrong about the right flush. Dead wrong. It's only used by idiots and 15 year old kids playing with all the buttons in Word. Seriously, don't use it. You're not writing a column in a national newspaper.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Erm, have you ever actually looked inside a book?
Posted by Capped in Mike (Member # 709) on :
that's where i found my dried flowr. it's pretty.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
quote:Originally posted by Topher: Text boundaries.
Go to Page Setup and change the margins there.
I have to help people all the time with Word. It's a good program overall (unlike the hated Publisher).
Posted by Topher (Member # 71) on :
I changed the margins and they're still there.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
quote:Originally posted by TSN: Erm, have you ever actually looked inside a book?
Books are different. They tend to have less characters per line, use indented paragraphs, and don't put carriage returns between paragraphs. You can't use them as an example of what is correct to use in a letter.
Posted by Aban Rune (Member # 226) on :
I don't know about letters, but I've seen just as many brochures and other literature designed with fully justified columns as I have seen with ragged right. I just tend to like it better. I see alot of examples of brochures that leave the text ragged when it really should be justified.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
Brochures are also different. You're correct, anything with columns in should have the text justified. But it doesn't apply to letters.
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
I wasn't saying it applied to letters. I was just referring to your statement that only idiots use left and right justification.
Posted by Fleet-Admiral Michael T. Colorge (Member # 144) on :
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