Desperately Seeking Symbols: Finding the Naked Square Box
Applies to: Word 2003
NOTE: This tip is currently being adapted for Word 2007.
The naked square box (
) is computing's universal symbol for "I don't know". With a 65,536-Unicode character grid, sadly, we'll be digging them out of documents for some years to come. This tip shows you how to rapidly locate them with DocXtools 'Discover' feature, but leaving the located symbols' fate to your manual intervention: you'll relish pressing the delete key with each occurrence! Here's how:
To create the 'test' document:
- Create a new, blank document
- Type =rand(10), then randomly insert the naked square box using your keyboard's numeric character entry, usually a function key, followed by typing the character value from your numeric keypad. Our keystrokes where [Fn]-[Alt]-0015.
- Save the document.
To create the rule:
- Close Word, launch DocXamine, and select the Default project.
- Move to Guidelines View.
- Position your cursor in the Rules 'bank' at the upper right corner, right-click and create a New Rule.
- Name and describe the rule as "Symbols: Naked square box found?", and "Naked box detected".
- Add the Condition by clicking on the ellipsis. Move and expand the "Strings" group, and double-click on Document Search String.
- Drop-down and choose the = operator, then type ^u0015 into the Comparison Value box.
- Save the rule, then drag it into your Edit & Print check category. Right-click on the rule, and assign a Significance of Serious.
- Exit DocXamine, launch Word. Open your test document, and launch Discover off the Expert toolbar. Your new rule should trigger, giving you navigation to each occurrence of the symbol.
- Using the Navigation List, move to each occurrence and Del with pleasure!
More about:
Easily expand this rule as other problematic symbol-finds surface. Simply Edit the rule, adding the OR condition to the rule, then including other search strings/character values.
