Microsoft Word is a tool that we use almost daily. Whether for work or studies, we usually create documents with this editor. Even though there are some functions that are usually problematic for many users. One of them is indexing, which is always a problem. But we have a way to create an index simply and automatically in the document editor.
Here we explain how it is feasible for us to create an index in Microsoft Word. From this dynamic, if you are going to have to create one in a specific document, it will not be complicated. The steps we have to follow in this case are really simple.
Titles in the document
One aspect that we have to take into account when we are going to create an index in Word is the format of the titles. The normal thing is that the document is divided into several sections, which usually begins with a title. It is essential that the title or the sections it contains are correctly formatted. Otherwise, they will not be displayed correctly in the index that we are going to create.
This means that if it has a title or section, the title is used in the proper format in the document, in this case Title 1. In the photo we can see how this format or style is applied. This is essential when using an index in Word, since it allows the index to display beautifully, with all the sections that are available in it. It will save us a lot of time when setting it up. So we have to do this before we start. So, we are ready for this step.
Create index in Word
Then it is time to create an index in Word. Before doing it, it is essential to place the cursor at the beginning of the document. Since the index will be entered where we have the cursor, so if it was in the middle of the document, the index is created there. Therefore we put the mouse at the beginning of everything and we are ready to start.
The first thing we will do then is click on the references section, in the menu at the top of the screen. Then we press in the option called Table of contents. By doing this, a contextual menu will appear on the screen, where we will be able to select the type of index that we want to use in the document. There are a couple of types available, so it's a matter of selecting the one that looks best to you for the document you've prepared.
Once selected, you will see that the index is entered directly into the document. Since we have already used the titles correctly, the index will display beautifully, so we will not have to make changes to it. As we introduce additional titles to this document in Word, they will also be added to this index without us having to do anything to do so. Therefore it is really convenient in this sense to use this index. It enables us to have a document that we can use directly to present or send it.
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Word offers a couple of index formats. Even though users have the opportunity to customize it. If you go back to the table of contents section, in the context menu there is there is an option called customize. This section offers a number of additional alternatives, with which to customize this index. A couple of alternatives are added as a preview or if we want the page number to be shown, as an example. This is already something that each user must select based on their taste or what they consider best with their document. In this way, we already have an index in our document.
