Since being in the IT industry for almost a decade, I thought I have seen most of the strange happenings that comes with doing support. Well I recently ran into something new.
I was at a customers site checking a few reported problems some of the users were having. I came across a user who reported that when she was writing an email some of the letters or words would appear to be different colors. But when it was sent everything looked normal to the receiver of the email.
After some research, I was able to find a cause (just as important as the resolution) and a cure for this apparent problem. This annoyance is caused Microsoft’s Clear Type Fonts. Depending on your monitor, and font settings with Microsoft Office 2007, Windows will try to make all the letters and words appear readable and distinguishable. For example, depending on what font is being used, a lower case "L" may look like the number 1 (one) or a zero (0) look like the letter O.
If you are running Windows XP or an older Windows OS, there is a download from Microsoft that can be installed that will allow you to adjust your Clear Type Font settings. If you are running Vista or Windows 7, the settings application can be found in the control panel and no extra download is required. The link to the download is here if this is an annoyance for you.
This only seems to be an issue with Microsoft Office 2007. If it appears in other places, I’m sure the settings can be adjusted with the download from Microsoft. If you are running Vista or Windows 7, check the control panel.
So if you thought you were seeing colors when writing that email, you were and no one spiked your coffee in the morning. If you need help downloading or configuring your system, send me an email or call the CCS Retail Systems Support Department at 800-672-4806
Have a Great Day
-Bryan 