em-dash?

[Geoff Hart <ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca>]

Peggy Lucero wondered: <<How do I create [an em dash] in WORD 2002 on a 
laptop.  The only way I've done this is with a keyboard that has the 
number pad.>>

Your laptop probably has an embedded keypad that can be activated by 
pressing an Fn key or something similar, though whether that will 
actually let you key in the alt-0150 code is another matter. The 
easiest way to insert any symbol in Word is to open the Insert menu and 
select Symbol. Then simply choose the desired symbol from the list of 
displayed characters in a given font; not sure what Word 2002 calls 
this, but it's probably something like "normal characters" or "any 
font". (You can also choose the actual font you're using.)

If you've got the "Autocorrect while you type" feature [sic] enabled, 
typing two hyphens (--) will also automatically generate an em dash. 
And if you don't like Word's "insert character" feature, you can always 
use the Character Map utility buried somewhere deep in your Start menu 
(often under "System tools" or "Accessories").

--Geoff Hart   ghart -at- videotron -dot- ca
(try geoffhart -at- mac -dot- com if you don't get a reply)