Introducing Modern Comments in Microsoft Word

Brass Contributor

Jul 12, 2021

If you feel like trying the new macro that restores the old comments without creating a new document, just be aware that it doesn't work with co-authored documents. It works fine though with documents with multiple editors but not co-authored.

I'd recommend creating the following two macros with a separate button linked to each. That way you have one button that doesn't open a new ~~button~~ document (but fails with co-authored documents) and another button that always works (but has to open it in a new document).

For convenience, I'm adding the macro install instructions here for the convenience of future readers.

Sub NewDocumentWithOldComments()
'
' Activates the old comments style by comparing the document to itself
' and opening the result in a new document, thereby creating a duplicate
' of the document. Works with all types of Word docs (as far as tested).
' 
   Application.MergeDocuments OriginalDocument:=ActiveDocument, _
        RevisedDocument:=ActiveDocument, Destination:=wdCompareDestinationNew, Granularity:=wdGranularityWordLevel, _
        CompareFormatting:=True, CompareCaseChanges:=True, CompareWhitespace:= _
        True, CompareTables:=True, CompareHeaders:=True, CompareFootnotes:=True, _
        CompareTextboxes:=True, CompareFields:=True, CompareComments:=True, _
        CompareMoves:=True, OriginalAuthor:="Author", RevisedAuthor:="Author", _
        FormatFrom:=wdMergeFormatFromPrompt
End Sub

Sub SameDocumentWithOldComments()
'
'  Activates the old comments style without having to open a new document.
' Does not work with co-authored documents due to the 
' wdCompareDestinationRevised property not being available.
'
   Application.MergeDocuments OriginalDocument:=ActiveDocument, _
        RevisedDocument:=ActiveDocument, Destination:=wdCompareDestinationRevised, Granularity:=wdGranularityWordLevel, _
        CompareFormatting:=True, CompareCaseChanges:=True, CompareWhitespace:= _
        True, CompareTables:=True, CompareHeaders:=True, CompareFootnotes:=True, _
        CompareTextboxes:=True, CompareFields:=True, CompareComments:=True, _
        CompareMoves:=True, OriginalAuthor:="Author", RevisedAuthor:="Author", _
        FormatFrom:=wdMergeFormatFromPrompt
End Sub

To install these macros...

1. Click on the Macros button in the View pane.

2. Choose View Macros.

3. If you already have macros, you can select one of them and press the Edit button. Then just paste the macro code listed above at the bottom of the Microsoft Visual Basic window that appears, making sure that there is a line between the last macro and these macros that you're pasting in.

4. If you don't have macros...

a) Type a name into the Macro name field (e.g., "MyCustomMacros")

b) Click on the Create button.

c) Delete all text in the NewMacros window and paste in the macro code listed above.

5. Click on the Save button (or File>Save Normal) to save the macro.

Now just install buttons on the ribbon pane and link it to the macros (instructions for this are at https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/create-or-run-a-macro-c6b99036-905c-49a6-818a-dfb98b7c3c9c under Add a macro button to the ribbon).

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Introducing Modern Comments in Microsoft Word