keyboard problem. Not overwriting highlighted text

Factual Questions
1

My keyboard just started doing this and I suspect I toggled some function off and don’t know how to turn it back on.

If I highlight some text in Word, and then type a correction; the highlighted text doesn’t disappear and is not replaced by my new text. So if I incorrectly type

“Help me solve this problem.”

and I want to replace the word “solve” with “fix”, I highlight “solve” and type “fix”. But this is what I end up with.

“Help me fixsolve this problem.”

The only way I can get rid of the word “solve” is to highlight and delete. Interestingly when I type on this Straight Dope window…it all works as it should.

Can one of you tell me how to get this feature back to working properly?

Its a Dell keyboard.

2

See if there is an “insert” key, and press it.

3

Se if there is an “insert” key, and press it.

4

Is this only in Word? Sounds like you’ve activated Track Changes. At the bottom of the Word window, in the status bar, you should see REC TRK EXT OVR. I’m betting that TRK is now black (on). Double-click to turn it off.

Does that help?

5

but that overwrites things that I’ve typed without highlighting…so I currently have it set to instert text in a sentance without highlighting. If I push that button than it will type over anything I’ve written without highlighting.

I want to type over highlighted text AND insert text in the middle of a sentence if nothing is highlighted…which is what I’ve been doing successfully for 15 years now.

6

In Word 2003, go to Tools, Options, then Edit tab. Check the box for “Typing replaces selection.”

In other versions, I don’t know, but this exactly reproduces your problem.

7

That will do it

I knew there was some little button somewhere like this

Thanks