Special Edition Using Microsoft® Office XP

Using the Ruler to Set Tab Stops and Indents

Although the Tabs dialog box (refer to Figure 15.14) gives you much greater control over the location and characteristics of tab stops, many people use the Word ruler to set and move tab stops. To set a left-aligned tab stop at 2 inches using the ruler, you might try this approach:

1. Select the paragraphs that need tab stops. (You'll be able to see the results of setting tab stops immediately if you've already put the tab characters in the paragraphs.)

2. Bring up the ruler at the top of the screen by choosing View, Ruler or, if you want the ruler invisible most of the time, just "hover" your mouse directly below the Formatting toolbar.

3. The icon on the far left of the ruler tells you what kind of tab is available: ...