Button for Leaving Full-Screen Mode

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 21, 2020)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Marilyn wrote about a missing button that she normally sees when using word in full-screen mode. The button allows her to exit full-screen mode and start using Word, once again, in normal mode.

This button is actually on a special toolbar that appears only when Word is operating in full-screen mode. You can try the following steps to get the toolbar back:

Go to full-screen mode.
Press Alt+V. Word displays the normal View menu.
Choose the Toolbars option.
Make sure the Full Screen option is selected. (This displays the Full-Screen toolbar.)

The toolbar, with its button, should now be visible. If it is not, it could be because the toolbar has somehow been moved "off screen" so it is no longer visible. In that case, you can run the following macro to get it back.

Sub ShowFullscreen()
    ActiveWindow.View.fullscreen = True
    With CommandBars("full screen")
        .Visible = True
        .Position = msoBarBottom
    End With
End Sub

Of course, many people don't even care about the Full-Screen toolbar. They consider the toolbar to be counter-productive to the purpose of full-screen mode since it occupies some of the available screen, usually in an area that obstructs what you want to see. These folks know that the easiest way to get out of full-screen mode is to bypass the button and simply press the Esc key.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (327) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

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