Microsoft Word Return From Hyperlink On Mac
Note
Office 365 ProPlus is being renamed to Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise. For more information about this change, read this blog post.
For a Microsoft Word 98 Macintosh Edition version of this article, see 211955.
Microsoft Word Return From Hyperlink On Mac Free
Summary
This article answers the most frequently asked questions about creating and using hyperlinks in Microsoft Word 2002 and in later versions of Word.
More Information
Nov 10, 2012 A clear and concise tutorial to teach you how to add Links WITHIN your MS word document. Example: Table of contents linking to chapters / headings inside the same document for easier navigation. Mar 19, 2020 The shortcut to return from a hyperlink jump is Alt+left-arrow, which by default is assigned to the command WebGoBack. This is the same at least as far back as Word 2003.
When I type a file address with spaces in it, Word replaces the address with a hyperlink after I press SPACEBAR. How can I finish typing an address that includes spaces before Word converts it to a hyperlink?
To ensure that Word will recognize an address that includes spaces as a single hyperlink, enclose the address in quotation marks. If the address is not enclosed in quotation marks, Word creates the hyperlink when you press SPACEBAR.
How do I turn off automatic hyperlinks?
To turn off automatic hyperlinks, follow these steps, as appropriate for the version of Word that you are running:
In Microsoft Office Word 2010 and 2013, follow these steps:
On the File menu, click Options.
Click Proofing, and then click AutoCorrect Options.
On the AutoFormat as you type tab and on the AutoFormat tab, click to clear the Internet and network paths with hyperlinks check box, and then click OK.
Click OK to close the Word Options dialog box.
In Microsoft Office Word 2007, follow these steps:
Apr 29, 2013 Using the Word Organizer in Office 2011 for Mac I am an unpaid volunteer and do not work for Microsoft. 'Independent Advisors' work for contractors hired by Microsoft. Microsoft word for mac styles.
- Click the Microsoft Office Button, and then click Word Options.
- Click Proofing, and then click AutoCorrect Options.
- On the AutoFormat as you type tab and on the AutoFormat tab, click to clear the Internet and network paths with hyperlinks check box, and then click OK.
- Click OK to close the Word Options dialog box.
In Microsoft Office Word 2003 and in Microsoft Word 2002, follow these steps:
- On the Tools menu, click AutoCorrect Options.
- On the AutoFormat as you type tab and on the AutoFormat tab, click to clear the Internet and network paths with hyperlinks check box.
- Click OK.
How do I change the display text or image of a hyperlink after it has been created?
You can change the display text or image for a hyperlink in the same way that you edit any text or image in your document.
To follow a hyperlink, press and hold CTRL, and then click the hyperlink.
For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
279090 Cannot click to activate hyperlink
How do I remove a hyperlink without losing the display text or image?
To remove a single hyperlink without losing the display text or image, right-click the hyperlink, and then click Remove Hyperlink.
To remove all hyperlinks in a document, press CTRL+A to select the entire document and then press CTRL+SHIFT+F9.
Note
Performing this operation converts all fields, not just hyperlinks, to plain text.
How do I change the underlying Uniform Resource Locator (URL) for a hyperlink?
To change the underlying URL for a hyperlink, follow these steps:
- Right-click the hyperlink text or image, and then click Edit Hyperlink.
- In the Edit Hyperlink dialog box, type or select a URL from the Type the file or web page name box.
- Click OK.
How do I create hyperlinks to locations within the same document?
To create a hyperlink to a location within the same document, use one of the following methods:
- Use a drag-and-drop operation. To do this, follow these steps:
- Save the document.
- Select the word, phrase, or image that you want to use as the destination for the hyperlink.
- Right-click and hold down the mouse button while dragging the selection to the new location; then, release the mouse button.
- Click Create Hyperlink Here.
- Create a bookmark, and then create a link. To do this, follow these steps, as appropriate for the version of Word that you are running:
- In Word 2007 and in Word 2010 and 2013, follow these steps:
- Save the document.
- Select the text or the image that you want to use as the destination for the hyperlink.
- Click the Insert tab.
- In the Links group, click Bookmark.
- In the Bookmark name box, type a unique name for the bookmark, and then click Add.
- Move the insertion point to the location in the document where you want to create the hyperlink.
- Click Hyperlink in the Links group.
- Click Bookmark.
- In the Select Place in Document dialog box, select the bookmark that you want to use as the destination hyperlink, and then click OK.
- Click OK to close the Insert Hyperlink dialog box.
- In Word 2003 and in Word 2002, follow these steps:
- Save the document.
- Select the text or the image that you want to use as the destination for the hyperlink.
- On the Insert menu, click Bookmark.
- In the Bookmark name box, type a unique name for the bookmark, and then click Add.
- Move the insertion point to the location in the document where you want to create the hyperlink.
- On the Insert menu, click Hyperlink.
- Click Bookmark.
- In the Select Place in Document dialog box, select the bookmark that you want to use as the destination hyperlink, and then click OK.
- Click OK again.
- In Word 2007 and in Word 2010 and 2013, follow these steps:
What is the difference between a relative hyperlink and an absolute hyperlink?
An absolute hyperlink uses the full address of the destination document. A relative hyperlink uses the address relative to the address of the containing document. This is also known as the hyperlink base.
For example, suppose that a document has the following address:
C:My Documents1999 report.doc
This document has absolute and relative hyperlinks to a document that has the following full address (and absolute hyperlink):
C:My DocumentsAprilSales.doc
The relative hyperlink contains only the relative address to Sales.doc. The relative address is as follows:
AprilSales.doc
Use a relative link if you want to move or to copy your files to another location, such as a Web server.
When I click a hyperlink in Word, I receive a message that indicates that no program is registered to open the file. What do I do to open the file?
You receive this message when Windows is unable to find the program that is associated with the type of document that is specified in the hyperlink path. This information is encoded in the extension of the hyperlink address.
To view the hyperlink, turn on the Tool Tips option, and then position the mouse pointer over the hyperlink.
To locate the Tool Tips option, use one of the following procedures, as appropriate for the version of Word that you are running:
- In Word 2010 and 2013, click File, click Options, and then click Display.
- In Word 2007, click the Microsoft Office Button, click Word Options, and then click Display.
- In Word 2003 and in Word 2002, click Options on the Tools menu, and then click the View tab.
To correct this problem, install the program that is associated with the document type that is specified in the hyperlink.
The file name extension is the group of characters that follow the last period in the address. The following table lists some of the Office document types and their file name extensions.
| Document type | File name extensions in Office 2003 and in earlier versions of Office | File name extensions in the 2007 Office programs |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Access database | .mdb | .accdb |
| Microsoft Excel workbook | .xls | .xlsx, .xlsm, .xlsb |
| Microsoft PowerPoint presentation | .pot | .potx, .potm |
| Microsoft Publisher publication | .pub | .pub |
| Microsoft Word document | .doc | .docx, .docm |
What is a hyperlink?
A hyperlink is defined as “an icon, graphic, or word in a file that, when clicked on with the mouse, automatically opens another file for viewing.”
If you were around (and paying attention) back when the World Wide Web was in its infancy, you heard a lot about the exciting possibilities of “hypertext,” which is the basis for the Web. When you surf the Web with your Web browser, the “http” that begins the URL displayed in your browser’s address bar or status bar stands for “Hypertext Transfer Protocol,” and HTML, the language used for Web pages, is “Hypertext Markup Language.”
The whole idea of hypertext is that you don’t have to read it linearly, like a book. It contains “hyperlinks” that, when clicked, instantly transport you somewhere else—another point in the same document or Web page or another document or Web page. This is rather like turning from your current page in a book to the notes or index at the back of the book, or finding a page number in a table of contents and turning to that page, or finding a reference to another book and going and getting that book, except that the process is automated and instant.
Although hyperlinks were originally created for use on the Web, they have become increasingly common in Word documents, especially those intended to be read onscreen. When you insert a table of contents (TOC) in Word 2000 or above, by default the TOC entries are hyperlinked to the corresponding headings in the text. In any version of Word the page numbers in a TOC are hyperlinked to the corresponding pages. Cross-references are also, by default, inserted as hyperlinks.
How to create a hyperlink
In Word a hyperlink consists of (at least) two parts: the display text and the field code. The display text is what the reader recognizes as a hyperlink, but the field code is what makes the computer actually jump to somewhere else. Word provides several ways to create hyperlinks.
Note for Mac Users: This article uses WinWord keyboard shortcuts. On the Mac, Alt+F9 is equivalent to Opt+F9. For Tools Options, substitute Word Preferences.
AutoFormat and AutoFormat As You Type
The AutoFormat As You Type dialog includes a check box for “Internet and network paths with hyperlinks.” If you have this box checked, then whenever you type a text string that Word recognizes as an email address, URL, or file path, it will automatically be converted to a hyperlink. If you have the same box checked in the AutoFormat dialog, such strings will be converted when you run AutoFormat over text that has already been typed.
In Word 2000 and earlier, both these dialogs are accessed via Tools AutoCorrect.
In Word 2002 and 2003, the Tools menu entry is called AutoCorrect Options.
In Word 2007, access this dialog via Office Button Word Options Proofing AutoCorrect Options..
In Word 2010 and above, the path is File Options Proofing AutoCorrect Options..
Figure 1. The AutoFormat As You Type dialog.
Note: You may wonder what type of text Word will automatically recognize as something that should be a hyperlink. Word will “recognize” as an email address any “word” that contains the @ symbol, even if the “email address” is an expletive such as !@#$%. It will recognize text as an URL if it begins with “www.” or “http://” I have not been able to determine what it recognizes as a file path, though the presence of a colon and slashes might be assumed.
Insert Hyperlink button
On the Standard toolbar in Word 2003 and earlier there is an Insert Hyperlink button (see Figure 2). In Word 2007 and above, this button is in the Links group on the Insert tab of the Ribbon. If you select (or even just click in) a recognizable email address, URL, or file path and click this button, Word will convert the text to a hyperlink. The keyboard shortcut for this command is Ctrl+K. In Word 2007 and above, this shortcut opens theInsert Hyperlink dialog (see below).
Figure 2. The Insert Hyperlink button
Insert Hyperlink dialog
The Insert Hyperlink dialog, however, gives you the most control over the hyperlinks you insert. There are at least two (and often three) parts to every hyperlink: (1) the display text, (2) the underlying URL, email address, or file path, and (3) the ScreenTip (see Figure 3).
Figure 3. The Edit Hyperlink dialog (identical to Insert Hyperlink)
When you create a hyperlink using either of the methods described above , the display text and underlying link are the same, and there is no ScreenTip. To access these features you must either use Insert Hyperlink or Ctrl+K to open the Insert Hyperlink dialog or right-click on an existing hyperlink and choose Edit Hyperlink to open an identical dialog. If you have text selected when you press Ctrl+K or choose Insert Hyperlink, it will be placed in the “Text to display” box. If you use Edit Hyperlink, the existing hyperlink becomes the default “Text to display,” but of course you can change it.
In Word 2007 and above the Hyperlink command, which opens the Insert Hyperlink dialog, is on the Insert tab; the Edit Hyperlink dialog may be accessed by right-clicking on an existing hyperlink as in previous versions.
The hyperlink created in Figure 3 will be displayed on screen as shown in Figure 4.
Figure 4. Hyperlink in document
The underlying field code for the hyperlink can be seen by pressing Alt+F9 or checking the box for “Field codes” on the View tab of Tools Options. It is shown in Figure 5.
Figure 5. HYPERLINK field code
Note that the “display text” does not have to be text. You can use an icon or picture as a hyperlink. Just select the picture in your document and open the Insert Hyperlink dialog. The “Text to display” box will be dimmed (grayed out) and will display <<Selection in document>>.
Word’s Help topic “Create a hyperlink” includes detailed instructions for creating hyperlinks to a variety of targets using this dialog.
Microsoft Word Return From Hyperlink On Mac Free
When hyperlinks go wrong
An understanding of the above issues should go a long way to helping you figure out what’s happening when hyperlinks don’t look or behave as you think they ought to.
Hyperlinks don’t look like hyperlinks
Although you may be used to seeing hyperlinks as blue and underlined, they can be formatted in many different ways and may even look like ordinary text. For example, TOC entries and cross-references, even when they are hyperlinks, do not have the distinctive hyperlink formatting.
The Hyperlink character style in Word 2003 and earlier is defined as “Default Paragraph Font + Underline, Font color: Blue” (see Figure 6). Like any other style in Word, this style can be modified, so the hyperlinks in your document could be, for example, red and not underlined (as on this Web page)—or any other formatting you desire. In fact, in Word 2007 and above, the formatting of the Hyperlink style varies depending on the theme applied. For example, in the Aspect theme, the Hyperlink color is a shade of green (RGB 107,157,37). Note that there is a separate Followed Hyperlink style (defined as “Default Paragraph Font + Underline, Font color: Violet”) that is automatically applied when a hyperlink has been followed; if you want your hyperlinks always to look the same, you will need to modify this style as well.
Figure 6. The Hyperlink character style
If you expect hyperlinks to be blue and underlined and they’re not, there are several possibilities:
They’re not active hyperlinks (see next section).
The Hyperlink style has not been applied.
The Hyperlink style has been modified.
The Followed Hyperlink style is in effect instead.
The hyperlinks are cross-references or TOC entries.
If hyperlinks look like Figure 5 above, then you are seeing the field code instead of the field result. You can select or click in the field code and press Shift+F9 to toggle the display of that single field or press Alt+F9 to toggle all the fields in the document or clear the “Field codes” check box on the View tab of Tools Options.
Hyperlinks aren’t clickable
If a hyperlink, despite looking like a hyperlink, doesn’t do anything when you click on it, there are three possible causes:
It isn’t really a hyperlink. It may just be plain text with the Hyperlink character style applied. Press Alt+F9 to see if there is an underlying HYPERLINK field code.
You are viewing the field code (see Figure 5) instead of the field result.
You are using a version that by default requires you to press Ctrl while clicking in order to follow the link. If you have ScreenTips enabled, you should see a ScreenTip such as the one shown in Figure 7.
Figure 7. Hyperlink ScreenTip as seen in Word 2002 or later
To turn on the display of ScreenTips:
Word 2003 and earlier: Tools Options View: Show: ScreenTips.
Word 2007: Office Button Word Options Display: Show document tooltips on hover.
Word 2010 and above: File Options Display: Show document tooltips on hover.
This safety feature, introduced in Word 2002, was intended to make it easier to edit the display text of hyperlinks. If you prefer to revert to the behavior of previous versions, clear the check box for “Use CTRL + Click to follow hyperlink” at the following location:
Word 2003 and earlier: Tools Options Edit
Word 2007: Office Button Word Options Advanced: Editing options
Word 2010 and above: File Options Advanced: Editing options
The link goes to the wrong place
This usually means that the display text of the hyperlink doesn’t agree with the underlying link. As noted above, current Word versions make it easier to edit the display text of a hyperlink; you can do this directly in the document because, by default, clicking on or in the hyperlink doesn’t send you haring off across the Internet to the referenced URL.
But changing the display text doesn’t actually change the hyperlink, just the text that is displayed. This may be obvious to you if the display text is different from the underlying URL, but if they are the same, it may not occur to you. In order to change the target of the link, you need to change the HYPERLINK field code as well. You can do this either through the Edit Hyperlink dialog or directly.
To give you a real-world example, some time ago mvps.org moved to a new server, and all the site addresses were changed. So a page at the Word MVPs’ Web site that used to be, say, http://mvps.org/word/FAQs/AppErrors/ProbsOpeningWord.htm became http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/AppErrors/ProbsOpeningWord.htm. In the reference document that I use to keep track of frequently referenced articles at this Web site, I had to change all the links. Using Find and Replace, I could replace “mvps.org/word” with “word.mvps.org” in each link, and this worked great—for the display text. But when I hovered over the links, the ScreenTips showed that the underlying hyperlinks were unchanged. In order to change them, I had to display the field codes (using Alt+F9) and run the Replace operation again.
To my surprise, even this was not effective. The ScreenTips still showed the old URLs. What? Aha! I hadn’t updated the fields. By selecting all the fields (Ctrl+A to select the entire document) and pressing F9 to update the fields, I solved the problem.
The bottom line is that if you want to change the target of a hyperlink, you must do it in three steps:
Change the display text (if it is the same as the target).
Change the underlying HYPERLINK field code.
Update the field.
Paul DeBrino has reminded me of another issue that causes Microsoft Word to change and perhaps break your hyperlinks, by altering the link from an absolute to relative path or vice versa, when saving your Word document.
After creating a hyperlink in Word, hovering over that hyperlink displays your intended path. However, once you click Save, Word may change the link to a path that is relative to the Word document’s location, a virtual path that begins with …/
To prevent Word from changing your hyperlinks, take the following steps:
Click Tools Options (in Word 2007, Office Button Word Options; in Word 2010/2013, File Options).
On the General tab, click the Web Options button (in Word 2007 and above, this button is at the very bottom of the Advanced section of Word Options).
In the Web Options window, click the Files tab.
Clear the check box for “Update links on save.”
Click OK to save your preferences.
This article copyright © 2006, 2008, 2011, 2013 by Suzanne S. Barnhill, with thanks to Daiya Mitchell for her helpful comments.