Lately, we've discussed a few Paste Special helpful tricks. Did you know that you can change Word's default Paste setting? Doing so may eliminate the need for some of those pasting tricks! By default, Word 2007 and 2010 retain the source formatting when you paste content. Most people probably paste within the same document or from one Word document to another so that default probably makes sense. On the other hand, pasting chores involving foreign sources, such as the Internet, usually require an extra step because you can't just press Ctrl+V. Instead, you must select Keep Text Only or Paste Special from the Paste dropdown list (in the Clipboard group on the Home tab).
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If you find yourself taking this extra step more often than not, change your default paste setting as follows. This particular option is flexible. You can control the pasting default for the current document, between Word documents, when there's a formatting conflict, and even between different programs (such as Internet Explorer).
You're not stuck with a one-setting-fits-all solution. Changing this default setting could save you a lot of aggravation with your paste tasks.
Word 2003 doesn't give you this much control, but you can garner a bit of control. From the Tools menu, choose Options, and click the Edit tab.
In the Cut And Paste section, click the Settings button. The options aren't as powerful as in 2007 and 2010, but a little bit's better than no control at all. Related Topics.
I've got a question about Word for Mac 2011 (which I'm using on my new MacBook Air). If anyone can help me resolve this I'd be really happy! I have figured out how to make a keyboard shortcut to Paste Special - Match Destination formatting.