I'm so tired of Word not remembering that I said I wanted to ignore a spelling suggestion. Why is this so difficult to fix? There are glitches in this software that have been there since I first started using Word more than a decade ago. PLEASE be better. I wouldn't go near your software if I didn't have to use it for work, because little things like this drive me up the walls. I get that Microsoft Word is somewhat ubiquitous to the point that it doesn't need to fix little things, but still, Word has been around too long to not be close to perfect.

Showing numbers on each comment bubble was an absolutely essential feature of Word, and as a professional editor I am really upset to see it is missing from 2016. The workaround of using paragraph numbers within the comments is a terrible substitute, because it makes it harder to have multi-paragraph comments. The comment bubbles are also difficult to distinguish from formatting or insertion/deletion changes, and there aren't different colored bubbles for each commenter as far as I can tell.

Please, please provide options to reinstate the most useful collaboration features. It makes it much more difficult to collaborate in this new version. I'm seriously considering finding a 2011 version, because this is such an impediment on my workflow.

I'm so tired of Word not remembering that I said I wanted to ignore a spelling suggestion. Why is this so difficult to fix? There are glitches in this software that have been there since I first started using Word more than a decade ago. PLEASE be better. I wouldn't go near your software if I didn't have to use it for work, because little things like this drive me up the walls. I get that Microsoft Word is somewhat ubiquitous to the point that it doesn't need to fix little things, but still, Word has been around too long to not be close to perfect.

I have been using Office 2011 for Mac and recently purchased Office 2019 to prepare for Apple’s eliminating support for 32-bit applications. I was shocked at the loss of functionality of the Quick Access Toolbar (QAT) and did an investigation to determine if this was deliberate or an implementation error. Unfortunately, it became obvious that it was by design. The symbols in the QAT are gray and almost illegible. Many commands that had been available to add to the QAT in 2011 are no longer available in 2019. Many of the commands that are still available to add lack a symbol and show up in the QAT as circle. Unfortunately, all the circles look the same. I then purchased a copy of Office 2016 hoping that it was still like 2011, but found that it was the same as 2019. In fact, it is even worse with fewer commands available to add to the QAT. And these are important commands like font type, size, and color. The ribbon is a good alternative to dropdown menus, but they are too cluttered and take up too much real estate to be used for common commands. Apparently Microsoft has decided to downgrade the QAT in favor of the ribbon, but this does not the serve the user well. Since this capability had been implemented previously, there is no reason why it cannot be restored.

Specifically:

1. All commonly used commands in the ribbon should be available to add to the QAT.
2. All commands should have a symbol or brief text that shows up when placed in the QAT.
3. Color and contrast should be restored to the QAT so that it is legible.

PT Sans Narrow and Arial Narrow used to be its own fonts. Recently they became available only as a subset of PT Sans and Arial fonts respectively. Essentially those two fonts are no longer stand-alone fonts. Rather they are a type of formatting that can be applied to each font respectively. These two fonts happen to be the two fonts I use most frequently. Arial Narrow has been my go-to font for years, while PT Sans Narrow is a brand font of my start-up company. This recent change is driving me crazy. The following scenarios illustrate why this is an issue for me:

SCENARIO 1:

 I open a new document and type all the text in ARIAL (not Arial Narrow).
 Then, I decide to bold and/or italicize some of the text.
 Next, I decide to switch the font to ARIAL NARROW (not just Arial by itself). The annoying thing is that I’d usually do so when I’m done and have invested quite a bit of time in deciding when, why, and which text should be bolded or italicized.
 So, I highlight all of the text and switch the font to ARIAL NARROW.
 All of the text becomes ARIAL NARROW but all of the bolded or italicized formatting, which I had meticulously applied earlier, goes POOF. It’s all gone.

SCENARIO 2:

 I open a new document and type all the text in PT SANS NARROW (not just PT Sans).
 Then, much like in SCENARIO 1, I decide to bold and/or italicize some of the text.
 Next, I decide to switch the font to PT SANS (not PT Sans Narrow). The annoying thing is that I’d usually do so when I’m done and have invested quite a bit of time in deciding when, why, and which text should be bolded or italicized.
 So, I highlight all of the text and switch the font to PT SANS.
 All of the text becomes PT SANS but unlike in SCENARIO 1, all of the bolded or italicized formatting, which I had meticulously applied earlier, remains. So far, so good.
 Next, I make a few additional changes to my text before deciding that I want to go back to PT SANS NARROW after all.
 So, I highlight all of the text again and switch the font back to PT SANS NARROW.
 Much like in SCENARIO 1, all of the text becomes PT SANS NARROW again but all of the bolded or italicized formatting, which I had meticulously applied earlier, goes POOF. It’s all gone. Just like in SCENARIO 1.

So, no matter if I begin with PT Sans Narrow and Arial Narrow or another “main” font, I end up frustrated and back where I started. I don’t understand why a decision was taken to turn PT Sans Narrow and Arial Narrow into sub-fonts in the first place or what pain point was it supposed to resolve. What I do know is that it made my life a whole lot of harder.

I am posting here, in hopes that I can get technical support. I chatted today with Microsoft Support, but they were not able to resolve my problem.

While I realize that it is now an unsupported product, I previously purchased Office for Mac 2008 through a HUP program, and have been using it since that time. I am retired now, and this older version is all that I need, as I basically just need simple Word and Excel.

I upgraded my computer's hard drive, and proceeded to reload Office for Mac 2008, using my supplied installation CD, which has its certificate of authenticity.

Upon starting Word, I was immediately presented with a screen where I had to enter my activation key. I did so, but it said the key was not valid. Microsoft Support checked my activation key, and confirmed that it is a valid key, but they say they have no way to help me get my previously purchased product activated...

Can anyone here help with any way for your technical support go get my key activated, so that I can again use the product I previously purchased?

If there really isn't any was to get my current version re-activated, then is there any option to have my product upgraded to a version that they 'can' activate?

Since I previously purchased the product, have the CD, have the Certificate of Authentic, have the still-valid 25 character product activation key, it seems wrong that I am unable to reload it, and that I am being presented with no other option but to buy a new version.

As mentioned, since I have retired, I only need my basic Word and Excel capability, and don't need to spend money to buy an expensive new version.

Can anyone help?