There is now a thick black line that appeared in my Word 2010 document that I did not request or want. I do not know how it got there. It will not disappear even when I press the delete button. This type of thing is constantly happening for me in Word 2010. I just want it to go away. When I press Enter it moves down, but will not be deleted.

See http://word.mvps.org/faqs/formatting...tridofline.htm.

__________________
Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional

The black line of which you complain isn't something new in Word 2010. Word has had this feature for around 20 years.

__________________
Cheers,
Paul Edstein
[Fmr MS MVP - Word]

The instructions for removing the black line were for 2007. I have Word 2010.

I am trying to write a lease contract for the first time in Word. I find it irritating when a program tries to "help" me with fixes and features that I do not want or ask for. I have a business to run, so I do not have time to spend time as a computer hobbyist and learn every facet of Word. I just want to type words and lines and have them appear on the screen. I do not think that is unreasonable. From talking to other business owners I know that I am not alone in that opinion!

Do you keep your business accounts with the same attitude? Why regard using a business tool like Word differently? You will undoubtedly cost yourself more in the long term by not taking the time learn to use it effectively than you'll ever save by ignoring them.

__________________
Cheers,
Paul Edstein
[Fmr MS MVP - Word]

What people like you do not understand is that things like Word, Excel, etc are TOOLS. They are meant to SAVE me time and trouble for the user. They are the MEANS not the END. I DO know the basics like copy, paste, spell check and others. However, I often press buttons like the hyphens here and unexpected and unwanted things occur. You erroneously think that is just fine. I do NOT because I have a real job to do.

If the problem was an automatic border (I don't know if you ever confirmed or denied that), turning off the AutoFormat As You Type options will help. Click File tab | Options | Proofing | AutoCorrect Options | AutoFormat As You Type. For more, see the article I linked to previously.

Also, just to be clear, I don't work work for Microsoft, and neither does Paul.

__________________
Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional

Stefan, yes it was an automatic border. Thank you for being the one to actually help me by answering the question, and for the follow up. This happened when I was putting in lines like these __________ into a contract to be filled in later. I have later tried to duplicate the error in Word 2007, but I was not able. In my unprofessional opinion Word 2007 and before are far more “forgiving” than Word 2010.

Consider using table cells with fixed dimensions when you want to create simple form. Add and remove borders as desired.

As far as AutoFormat As You Type is concerned, the defaults remain unchanged since Word 97. If you used Word in a corporate environment, perhaps settings have seen modified by group policies...

__________________
Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional