New marginal comment interface: how does it work?

Question

I find that Microsoft's last system maintenance update replaced the user interface for marginal comments in Word 365 Professional with a new one that is much clumsier -- and impossible to figure out. How does this thing work?

I created two notes in a new document, then decided to combine them. No problem editing the first note after I created the second one. After editing the first one, I find that I can't delete the second one -- I can't even change its contents. There's no "edit" button. No dot-dot-dot menu in the upper right corner. Nothing in the context menu when I right-click the note. Nothing at all when I right-click the little icon that represents the comment when it's closed.

Do I have to create a new document and copy everything except this note to get rid of it?

Answer 1

You can always view the full content of each comment, including formatting, in the Revisions pane. See my previous reply in this thread.

Answer 2

Display the Revisions pane by clicking the Reviewing Pane button in the Tracking group on the Review tab. You should be able to edit all comments from that pane. In addition, you can right-click a comment and then choose the Delete option, if you wish.

To temporarily turn off modern comments, click File > Options > General and clear the check mark next to "Enable modern comments."

For more on the new interface for comments, see https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/using-modern-comments-in-word-edc6ae71-0a2d-49fe-8faa-986f1e48136a.

Answer 3

The Modern Comments interface has been the source of many complaints here. However, this is a user-to-user support forum.

Are you using the New Experience?

(If you are, the Styles on your Home tab will be wider and somewhat less useful.)

If there is a megaphone icon on the right side of your title bar, click on it and a Coming Soon pane will open. Scroll down to the switch to turn the new experience on/off and turn it off if it is on.

Restart Word.

Does this help?

Use the Feedback mechanism in Word to complain.

How do I give feedback on Microsoft Office?

https://www.theregister.com/2021/05/20/word_modern_comment/

https://sharepointmaven.com/2-ways-to-disable-modern-page-comments/ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/using-modern-comments-in-word-edc6ae71-0a2d-49fe-8faa-986f1e48136a

Answer 4

I never heard of Modern Comments or New Experience, but I found the "megaphone" hieroglyphic and determined that New Experience is turned off, so turning it off will not help.

I will certainly complain to Microsoft, although I'm skeptical that it will help.

After I asked my initial question I discovered that the new marginal comment interface is an abomination in more ways than I imagined possible. The most monstrous one is that it disables all types of formatting except boldface, italic, and underline. Paste formatted text into a marginal comment, and it strips the formatting off.

What will happen to pre-existing marginal notes that contain formatted text? If Word strips the formatting from those too, it will be destroying information I have saved in the past and may need in the future.

Later -- I wrote a detailed analysis of the new UI, which I was unable to send because the feedback feature has a length limit and chopped it off in the middle. I had to settle for giving Microsoft the digital equivalent of a Bronx cheer. Which will be useless, of course. But at least it made me feel better.