When you think of hyperlinks, you probably think of Web pages, right? But if you're using Word 97 or 2000, or WordPerfect 8, you can think again. The same interactive navigation aids that you use to hop around in cyberspace can come in very handy when you design a document intended for reading on a computer screen. They can help your colleagues and readers quickly skip to specific sections of the document, including elements such as tables, charts, or graphics. Creating such interactive documents involves just two steps: first, you create bookmarks to text and objects you want to link; second, you set up the hyperlinks to jump to those bookmarks. You can bookmark anything you like in a document, then link to it. Here's how:

Word 97 and 2000

Select the text (for example, a chapter heading) or object you want to bookmark. If it's a graphic, click it once; if it's a table, click in the upper left cell, select Insert-Bookmark or press <Ctrl>-<F5>, and type a distinctive name for the bookmark (such as Figure1, Table1, or Chapter1) in the 'Bookmark name' field of the Bookmark dialogue box. No spaces are allowed in bookmark names, and there's a 255-character limit. To finish, click Add.

To create a hyperlink to a bookmark, type the desired text for the link, such as See Figure 1. Then select the text, and choose Insert-Hyperlink or press <Ctrl>-K. In the Insert Hyperlink dialogue box, click Browse (Word 97) or Bookmark (Word 2000). Select the desired bookmark from the list that appears, and then click OK twice to return to the document. (Note: in Word 2000, you'll also have other choices for the jump, such as to the top of the document or to headings.)

Here's how to use hyperlinks in Word:

1. To jump to a hyperlinked bookmark, click the reference to the link (for example, "See Chapter 3").

2. To return to your previous cursor location, click the back arrow on the Web toolbar.

3. If the Web toolbar isn't visible, right-click any toolbar and select Web.

WordPerfect 8

To bookmark text or an object, position the cursor where you want the bookmark. You can't bookmark images in WordPerfect, so position the cursor near the image. Select Tools-Bookmark, and click Create in the Bookmark dialogue box; then, in the Create Bookmark dialogue box, type a distinctive name for the bookmark and click OK.

To create a hyperlink to a bookmark, type the appropriate reference text, such as "See Table 2". Select the text and then select Tools-Hyperlink. In the Hyperlink Properties dialogue box, click the arrow to the right of the Bookmark field, and select the bookmark for the link. Click OK.

To use hyperlinks in WordPerfect 8:

1. To jump to a link, click its reference.

2. To return to the previous cursor location, click the back arrow on the Hyperlink Tools toolbar, or press <Ctrl>-G and double-click Last Position in the Go To dialogue box.

3. If the Hyperlink Tools toolbar is not visible, right-click any toolbar and select Hyperlink Tools.