If you are a member of the Microsoft 365 Insider program, you get the chance to check out improvements and changes in the Office lineup of productivity apps before they are released to the general public. Today, Microsoft announced that Insider members will be able to use new and automatic typography features and improvements that have been added to both the Word and Outlook apps for Windows.
In a blog post, Microsoft stated:
The first set of these research-backed refinements brings intelligent, adaptive justification, kerning, and OpenType ligatures to Read Mode in Word for Windows and the Reading Pane in Outlook for Windows. These updates will be applied automatically, without major layout changes, only when our layout scoring algorithm determines that they will improve the layout.
Microsoft added that these new features are optional and can be switched off at any time.
Word users can open an existing document, and then click on the View option, followed by the Read Mode selection. They can then use the Zoom slider, located in the lower right corner of the screen, to adjust the text in the document.
Word users who want to turn off these features can do so by clicking on File > Options > Advanced > Reading Mode. They can then clear the Advanced Typography in Reading Mode checkbox. They can also individually clear the boxes for Use Smart Justification and Use Hyphenation.
In Outlook, the new typography features are set up as the default via the Reading Pane. Users can access it by clicking on View > Reading Pane > Right or Bottom. As with Word, Outlook users can clear the checkbox for Advanced Typography in Reading Mode, along with the Use Smart Justification and Use Hyphenation checkbox. This can happen by clicking on File > Options > Mail > Editor Options > Advanced > Reading mode,
Microsoft 365 Insiders in the Beta Channel can update to Version 2312 (Build 17116.20000) or later to get access to the new Word and Outlook automatic typography features.