Microsoft KB Archive/290115

= OFFXP: Control How and When the Office Assistant Appears =

Article ID: 290115

Article Last Modified on 1/31/2007

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Access 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Excel 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft FrontPage 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Outlook 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft PowerPoint 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Publisher 2002 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Word 2002 Standard Edition

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This article was previously published under Q290115



For a Microsoft Office 97 version of this article, see 158065.

For a Microsoft Office 2000 version of this article, see 199766.



SUMMARY
When you run any of the programs included with Microsoft Office XP and you use a lower screen resolution (800 x 600, for example), or if you have many windows open, or if your screen is very cluttered, you may find that the Office Assistant is too obtrusive. This article describes how to control how and when the Office Assistant appears.



MORE INFORMATION
All of the programs in Microsoft Office XP include the Office Assistant; it is available to help you with questions or problems with Office programs. To ask the Office Assistant a question, click its character, and then type your question. If the Office Assistant is not visible, click Show the Office Assistant on the Help menu.

The Office Assistant appears by default when you start an Office program. To make the Office Assistant appear only when you have a question, follow these steps:  Right-click the Office Assistant. On the shortcut menu, click Options.  On the Options tab, select the check boxes that are appropriate for your needs. The functionality of each check box is described in the following table.   Check box              Functionality ---

Use the Office        If selected, turns on the Office Assistant Assistant             Wizard. If not selected, turns off the Office Assistant.

Respond to F1 key     If selected, pressing F1 displays the Office Assistant and prompts for a question. If                         not selected, pressing F1 displays the Help topics for the current program.

Help with wizards     If selected, the Office Assistant asks if you want help whenever you use a wizard. Display alerts        If selected, all alerts are shown in &quot;word bubbles&quot; by the Office Assistant. If not selected, alerts are shown in normal dialog boxes.

Search for both       If selected, searches for both programming and product and           product Help topics while you work with Visual programming help      Basic for Applications in your program. when programming

Move when in the way  If selected, the Office Assistant moves away from the insertion point when you type. If not selected, the Office Assistant may hide or                         obscure what you are trying to edit.

Guess Help topics     If selected, the Office Assistant guesses the Help topics you want to see, based on                         your actions.

Make sounds           If selected, turns on sounds for the Office Assistant.

Using features more    If selected, shows tips for features you may not effectively            know and suggestions on how to better use features you know.

Using the mouse more   If selected, shows tips about how to use the effectively            mouse to get your work done more quickly.

Keyboard shortcuts     If selected, shows the shortcut keys you can use to get your work done quickly.

Only show high         If selected, shows only tips that are considered priority tips          important, such as those that alert you to                           time-saving features. Show the Tip of the    If selected, shows a Tip of the Day when an   Day at startup          Office program starts, as an easy way to get familiar with features.  If you want the Office Assistant to appear only when you need to ask a question, clear the Help with wizards, Display alerts, and Guess Help topics check boxes. Make sure that the Respond to F1 key check box is selected. Click OK.

When you press F1, the Office Assistant appears and prompts you for a question. You can also display the Office Assistant by clicking Show the Office Assistant on the Help menu.

To make the Office Assistant disappear, you can either
 * Click Hide the Office Assistant on the Help menu.

-or-


 * Right-click the Office Assistant, and then click Hide.

