How to turn Keep Track of Formatting on and off

Keep track of formatting is tricky and is much more powerful in Word 2007 than in previous version. (For users of past versions, this relates to the old Char problem.)

It pays to pay attention to it. It is a critical setting almost hidden in the Options setting in the bottom right corner of the Styles Task Pane.

View the settings

1. Click Options from the Styles Task Pane.
   

The critical function on this page is the Select formatting to show as styles: setting. This works together with Keep track of formatting which you will find in Office, Options. They both have to be set to get the required outcomes.

Set Keep Track of Formatting to ON

1. Click the Office button, Word Options, Advanced.
   
2. Tick Keep track of formatting if you want Word 2007 to remember your manual formatting changes and store them as styles.
   

The safest option is to un-tick this, but if you leave it ticked, you can manage what shows in your style list in the Style Pane Options box.

Set Mark formatting inconsistencies to ON

1. Tick Mark formatting inconsistencies if you are disciplined with using styles and want Word 2007 to underline any manually formatted text.
   
2. Leave them both ticked for now and click OK.
   

Set Select formatting to show as styles

These options are disabled if the Mark formatting inconsistencies checkbox is un-ticked.

1. Back in your Styles Task Pane, click Options again.
   
2. With the Mark formatting inconsistencies checkbox ticked, the Select formatting to show as styles: options are enabled and control what you see in your Styles Task Pane.
   
3. Select which manual formatting you want Word 2007 to track (if any).
   

Set Keep Track of Formatting to OFF

1. If you decide you don't want Word to keep track of any formatting, click the Office button, Word Options, Advanced.
   
2. Untick Keep track of formatting.