Microsoft Announced a new test that will allow Insiders to use the industry standard zoom keyboard shortcuts in Word for Windows and Mac.
Despite being around for four decades, Word for Windows and Mac still lacks the ability to use the Ctrl +/– combination to zoom in and out of documents. Meanwhile, it’s been available for Word for the web (and browsers) for a while now, making the capability undeniably long overdue. However, this should be coming soon for users of Word for Windows and Mac. According to Microsoft, it is now rolling it out to its Beta Insiders running Windows version 16.0.15831.20174 or later and Mac version 16.67.1113.0 or later.
In addition to the familiar Ctrl +/– combination, the test allows the use of the Ctrl key and mouse scrolling to zoom in and out of documents. Microsoft also added the ability to return to a 100% zoom view using the Ctrl + 0 keyboard shortcut. Aside from these controls, the test involves tweaks to some existing shortcuts, the company said.
Prior to this announcement, Microsoft also released the “Paste text only” keyboard shortcut for Insiders. Like the zoom controls, the Ctrl + Shift + V (Cmd + Shift + V on Mac) shortcut was previously unavailable for Word for Windows and Mac. However, Microsoft explained the reason behind the late introduction of such capabilities.
“While the engineering team continues to work on new features to improve user experiences with updated and more advanced technology, we don’t always have the opportunity to review pre-existing behavior,” said Ali Forelli, Microsoft Word Product Manager. “In the case of keyboard shortcuts, the industry standard has deviated from Word’s initial implementation of these functions. In fact, users expect Ctrl + Shift + V to paste plain text, so when this doesn’t work, the experience can be frustrating. The Word team learned about this issue from users, so we’re updating the keyboard shortcuts in direct response to your feedback. Accessibility is a priority for Word, and we want to make the cut, copy, and paste experience as seamless as possible.”
