There are two methods to compare documents available in Word 2010:
- The Compare function which automatically compares or combines versions
- Side by Side view which allows you to compare documents
The Compare Function
To compare two documents:
- Open the Review tab, select Compare and then Compare …
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Choose the two documents you wish to compare. They do not need to be open. Click OK
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The screen will now be split into 4 sections
- The Comparison
- Original Document
- Revised Document
- Changes Detected
- You can now review and accept changes as with any tracked change, then save the resultant Compared Document, if required
To combine two documents:
- Open the Review tab, select Compare and then Compare …
- Choose the two documents you wish to compare. They do not need to be open. Click OK
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The screen will now be split into 4 sections
- The Combined Document
- Original Document
- Revised Document
- Changes detected
- You can now review and accept changes as with any tracked change, then save the resultant Combined Document, if required
View Side by Side
To compare two documents manually:
- Open both documents
- Scroll each document to the same location
- Open the View tab, in the Window group and click View Side by Side button
- The screen is split in two and the documents scroll from the current location simultaneously
- Both documents are fully editable
- Both documents scroll together, but this can be switched off by clicking the Synchronous Scrolling button in the Window group on the View tab