Disabling Track Changes Completely

Monica Porter uses shortcut keys for applying styles and formatting in Word. Once in a while she accidentally turns on the Track Changes feature without realizing it, which causes problems for her. She would like a way to disable Track Changes completely.

The bad news is that there is no way to actually disable Track Changes. The good news is that you probably don't need to disable it. The problem isn't Track Changes, but the shortcut used to enable Track Changes. If you disable the shortcut, then you won't inadvertently turn it on while you are shortcutting away.

The shortcut key that toggles Track Changes is Ctrl+Shift+E. To disable this shortcut key, follow these steps:

1. Choose Customize from the Tools menu. Word displays the Customize dialog box.
2. Click the Keyboard button. Word displays the Customize Keyboard dialog box. (Click here to see a related figure.)
3. In the Categories list, choose Tools.
4. In the Commands list, choose ToolsRevisionMarksToggle. You should see the Ctrl+Shift+E shortcut appear in the Current Keys box.
5. Select the shortcut in the Current Keys box.
6. Click Remove.
7. Close both of the open dialog boxes.

Since the shortcut for Track Changes is now gone, you'll no longer be able to accidentally turn it on.