Will your word processing document end up on a printed page? Yes? Then work with it in that format onscreen.
Using Print Layout view, you’ll see how the document will look in print, including headers, footers, watermarks, and other relatively sophisticated formatting choices.
This helps you quickly spot any potential page-related formatting problems onscreen, instead of on the printed page. And this fact alone ought to help you cut down on the number of formatting-related revisions you need to perform.
Different versions of word processors offer different ways to enact Page Layout view. (I still use the View menu to choose Page Layout.) Search for “page layout” in your word processor’s online help for more details and instructions.
Other useful ways to view documents
Draft and web layout view work well if you plan to publish your work on the web.
Outline view comes in handy if you need to rearrange sections of your document.