The Uses of Mail Merge and The Benefits of Label Printing

Mail merge is the batch mailing of letters - using a letter template and a data file or address database. Instead of a business or college creating multiple copies of the same letter to send out in the post, one letter and one data file is created. The letter and data file are merged together - which means the names and address are automatically added to each of the letters and envelopes from the database or data file. Tabs are a very useful tool which is often left unused by most word processing users (Anon., n.d.)

Tabs allow the setup of text on a page in the exact position it should appear in, by allowing the cursor to advance to the next stop or set position. This is achieved by setting up tabs and using the tab key (to the left of the Q key) on the keyboard, to jump from one position to the next, instead of having to use the space bar again and again and again!

Pictures, images or graphics are a very useful way of brightening up a document and making it more appealing and interesting for the end user. Graphics can be added to Word in a variety of ways, including inserting; Pictures, Clip Art, Shapes and SmartArt. When images are added to a document it is important to consider the graphic formatting options available, such as cropping, wrapping, styles, effects and position (Anon., n.d.)

Word-processing software typically includes "wizards" or "help" features to provide automated formatting of common business documents. For example, a letter wizard can assist the user to properly format a business letter, and a résumé wizard can help the user format a professional-looking résumé. Templates are another automated formatting feature. A template is a type of pre-formatted, fill-in-the-blank document that is useful for maintaining a specific format each time a document is created, especially when multiple word-processing operators are involved. A newsletter template, for example, allows a user to entered the text of newsletter articles, headlines, and graphics without having to re-create the newsletter layout for each issue of the news letter. The most-common formatting tasks are typically performed by the user as a document is created. Individual character and word formatting includes selection of type size, type style, and typeface. Size is measured in points, a unit of measure in which 72 points make up an inch. Typically, 11- or 12-point type is used for basic business documents. Newsletters, annual reports, and other such "designed" documents may use type as small as 8 or 9 points for the basic text and as large as 24, 36, or 48 points (or more) for main titles. Type styles, such as italics, underline, and bold, are easily selected using keyboard shortcuts or by selecting them from the basic font menu. Typefaces (typeface refers to the look or design of the type) are available in thousands of varieties, including such commonly known faces as Times Roman, Arial, Helvetica, and Garamond

Text manipulation refers to the "processing" part of word processing. Word processors provide easy methods of deleting, inserting, copying, and moving individual characters, words, phrases, and paragraphs—even entire pages of information—with a few clicks of a mouse button or with such keyboard shortcuts as Ctrl-C to copy, Ctrl-X to cut, and Ctrl-V to paste or insert text. Text can be automatically checked for spelling and for conformance to basic grammatical principles as the text is entered and edited.The find-and-replace feature in a word processor allows the user to search for every occurrence of a particular character, word, or phrase within a document and replace it with new text. Most word processors also include automatic correction and automatic formatting of common errors and mechanical conventions as text is entered from the keyboard. Any word that are misspelled are automatically highlighted to me.