Forum Discussion
Visible Margins
As a heavy user of Publisher I am learning my way through Word in view of the upcoming cancelation of Publisher.
One of the first things to strike me is the inability to make margins visible.
Anyone found a way?
I have tried text boundaries but it does not really help.
I know Word is not a graphics package but I do not see much else within Office 365.
A pity there is not another MS product to fill the gap!
Or is there?
As for alternatives to Publisher, Microsoft hasn’t released a direct replacement. They suggest using Word, PowerPoint, or Microsoft Designer for layout tasks, but none of these match Publisher’s desktop publishing capabilities. If you’re looking for something more powerful, you might consider:
- Canva for quick, template-based design
- Affinity Publisher for professional desktop publishing
- Scribus if you prefer open-source tools
4 Replies
As pointed out, there does not seem to be a solution in the Office pantheon.
In versions prior to Word 2013, you could use Text Boundaries to show the margins.
Text Boundaries Display in Microsoft Word
Text Boundaries Workarounds for later versions of Word
The second link is to templates. One of them uses a very thin page boundary to show borders on the screen.
Thanks Charles!
You are welcome.
Today I updated that download with an expanded Read-Me file. I expect that later I will create an Add-In that lets you apply and remove the page boundary with keyboard shortcuts.
As for alternatives to Publisher, Microsoft hasn’t released a direct replacement. They suggest using Word, PowerPoint, or Microsoft Designer for layout tasks, but none of these match Publisher’s desktop publishing capabilities. If you’re looking for something more powerful, you might consider:
- Canva for quick, template-based design
- Affinity Publisher for professional desktop publishing
- Scribus if you prefer open-source tools
