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Revision Balloons

Use these instructions for Windows desktop Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024, and Word 2021. Similar controls exist in Word 2016 and 2019; that does not establish support for those versions with current High Tech Forms templates.

Revision balloons put tracked changes in the margin and can shrink the printed form or change its pagination. For revision-tracked forms, including JOA/COPAS and IADC, display revisions inline instead.

Show revisions inline

  1. Open your form in desktop Word.
  2. Select the Review tab.
  3. In Tracking, set Display for Review to All Markup rather than Simple Markup or No Markup.
  4. Select Show Markup > Balloons > Show All Revisions Inline. If the ribbon is collapsed, expand Tracking first.
  5. Keep Insertions and Deletions selected in Show Markup so the contract's revisions remain visible.

This changes how revisions are displayed; it does not accept or reject them. Do not use Accept All Changes or Reject All Changes to remove balloons. Doing so changes the document's revision content.

Check the printed result

  1. Select File > Print and inspect every page in the preview.
  2. When the form must show revisions, leave Print Markup enabled under Settings. Turning it off can hide the contract's changes rather than merely removing balloons.
  3. Check for reduced text, an extra margin area, or an extra page before printing or creating a PDF.
  4. If comments or formatting balloons remain, review the Show Markup options. Do not delete comments or suppress required contract revisions just to make the page fit. Contact support if the layout is still incorrect.

These settings may need to be checked again when you open another document or use a different computer.

Older Word versions

Archived Word 2002–2013 balloon instructions are retained for older documents only. Current templates are not backward-compatible with very old Word versions. The presence of historical instructions is not a compatibility promise.

Microsoft reference

Microsoft: using modern comments, including displaying revisions inline.