A common difficulty users face has to do with the automatic hyperlinks that are created at the most inopportune times. But there is relief. You can disable this feature either permanently or temporarily.

Word 2003

To make the change permanent,

1. Go to the Tools menu
2. Choose “AutoCorrect”
3. Click on the “AutoFormat As You Type” tab
4. In the “Replace As You Type” section, deselect the Internet and Network Paths with Hyperlinks options.

Word 2007

To make the change permanent,

1. Click on the Microsoft Office Button and select “Word Options”
2. Click “Proofing” then “Autocorrect Options”
3. Select the “AutoFormat as you type” tab
4. Clear the check box beside the “Internet and network paths with Hyperlinks” option.

For both releases, to keep the option enabled but temporarily disable it for newly created hyperlinks, press Ctrl-Z immediately after the link is generated.

Note: If your document has already been created and contains hyperlinks that you wish removed, either right-click on the link or press Ctrl-K with the link selected and choose “Remove Hyperlink.” You can also use Ctrl-K to ADD a hyperlink to text within a document.