Inserting Audio Comments into a Word File

A colleague asked how to insert comments into a Word file. I realized that I didn’t know, so I did a little research. It turns out that it is quite easy. All you need is a microphone and Microsoft’s built-in tools.

You can either insert pre-recorded comments or comment on the fly. Use your favorite audio recording software or the simple Sound Recorder included with the Microsoft operating system at Start → Programs → Accessories → Entertainment → Sound Recorder.

How to Insert an Audio Comment

1. Click Insert → Object.

2. To insert a comment…

a. that has been pre-recorded: Select the Create from File tab and then browse to and select the pre-recorded file.

b. on the fly: Select the Create New tab, select the object type (Wave Sound, for example), and then record the comment.

3. Save the file (with a new name).

That’s it! Easy as can be.

You can also save the .doc file as a single web page (.mht) and preserve the audio snippets.

The caveat is that inserting sound files makes the file significantly larger. I started this little Word document test as text-only, at about 11 KB. After adding two very short comments, the file is 548 KB. You can see how this could get out of hand quickly. Zipping the file compresses it somewhat. I got about a 25% savings in this file. Your results will vary depending on how much text, formatting, graphics, and audio are in the file. Rather than insert several small clips, it may be a good idea to consolidate all of your audio comments into one file.

In any case, it is not only possible, but also quite easy to insert audio commentary into a Word document file.

Happy commenting!