Forum Discussion
Using Tab stops in Word vs. Word Online
- Err, I think not - HTML CSS and esp. HTML 5 is perfectly able to lay out text on pixel boundaries. Like Google docs has always been able to do as shown here: https://i.imgur.com/oOGwY9z.png - and that's in Edge, not some magic in Chrome.
It's a limitation in the rendering engine used by Microsoft's online Office products - full stop.
It is not Microsoft. Tab Stops do not exist in HTML. When viewing your document in a Browser HTML is being used to render the page. Therefore you cannot see any Tab Stops. Your issue is with W3C not Microsoft.
It's a limitation in the rendering engine used by Microsoft's online Office products - full stop.
I know this is an old thread now, but I'm adding this post for anyone else who comes here looking for more information on why Tab stops aren't working in Word for the Web.
Helios Comms is correct, this is a product limitation that has existed since SharePoint 2010 and Office Web Apps 2010. This same behavior for Tab stops will exist in Office Web Apps Server, Office Online Server, and Office for the Web (in the cloud with SharePoint Online).It is possible to use the Tab key at the start of a line to indent a new paragraph, but otherwise Tab stops will not render in Word Online's Edit mode.
That said, the Tab stops do still exist in the word file, even if they aren't visible when editing in the browser. Word Online's view mode vs edit mode render differently because their purposes are different. If you take the word file and open it in "View" mode in the browser, or open the file in the locally installed Word Client app, the Tab stops will be visible.
