Microsoft Office/Create and Edit a Document

A header is the top margin of each page, and a footer is the bottom margin of each page. Headers and footers are useful for including material that you want to appear on every page of a document such as your name, the title of the document, or page numbers.

Starting Microsoft Word

To open Microsoft Word: First click on your "Start" button. Next click on All Programs. You will probably need to scroll to find the Microsoft Office program menu. When you do click on Microsoft Word this will start the program. Note: Microsoft Word 2016 is the most recent perpetual version released.

(Since Office 2016, the apps do not lie in the Microsoft Office folder; to open Word, you'll have to look at 'W'. In Windows 7, this is before the listing of folders.)

Alternatively, look on your Desktop for an icon shortcut to Word, click this (or if this doesn't work, double-click).

Basic Rules for formatting text

To change the formatting of text, highlight the text you wish to change and then choose your formatting options. You may want to increase the font size, change the font color, change the font design. To change the formatting, including the font size, font, color, and many other properties.

right click on the selection and choose what you'd like to change
use the toolbar (1997 - 2003 versions) or
Select the options on the Format Menu to change

Word 2007 and later uses tabs and ribbons to interface (interact) with users. To change text formats, be sure you have clicked the Home tab and are using the options found in the Font grouping.

If you change the formatting options without any text being selected, then these options will apply to any further text entered after that point in the document.

Parts of Word Screen

Parts of the Word Screen
Parts	Function
Title Bar	Displays the program name, and the name of current document displayed or being edited.
Menu Bar	Contains the names of the command menus currently available.
Standard Toolbar	Contain buttons that provide shortcuts for the most commonly used Word Features, such as opening and printing document.
Formatting Toolbar	Contains buttons and drop-down lists that you use to modify the appearance of selected text.
Ruler	It shows the width of your text, as well as any indents or tabs.
Document Window	Displays the documents you create and edit.
Insertion Point	It is blinking vertical line at the upper left corner of a new document.
Endmark	It indicates the end of the document.
Scroll Bars	It is one of the main ways to navigate through a document. Appear along the right side and bottom edges of the document window. Each scroll bar contains two scroll arrows and scroll box, which you can use to move vertically and horizontally through a document.
Status Bar	Displays the necessary information about the active document such as page.
Minimize Button	It is used to temporary hide word (to shrink it to an icon on the taskbar).
Maximize Button	It is used to enlarge MS-Word to full screen.
Close Button	It is used to exit or quit MS-Word.

Entering Text

When you start MS-Word for Windows, you see a blank area. (This blank area is called a Normal Template). To work effectively with Word, you must understand that every Word Document is based on template.

The Blinking Vertical Line that marks the insertion point, the location where text you type will be inserted into the document and where certain editing actions will occur.
The horizontal line is the end-of-document marker.

There are a number of different views available for working on the text, available on the View menu. The simplest is the 'Normal' view, while the most complex view, but the best for working on heavily formatted pages is the 'Print layout' view.

Menu Structure

When you work with MS-Word for Windows, you give it commands to instruct the program to carry out the desired tasks. Commands are usually entered by means of menus. MS-Word for Windows has three types of menus:

The Main Menu is displayed in the menu bar, on the second line of the screen.
A Pull-down Menu is a list of commands associated with each choice on the main menu. When you choose a command on the main menu, its pull-down menu is displayed.
A Context Sensitive Menu is pop-up screen when you right-click the mouse. Wherein it shows a list of commands to work with.

Dialog Boxes

When MS-Word for Windows needs additional information to carry out a command, it displays a dialog box. Dialog boxes contain a number of components, but mainly contain only some of these components.

Components of Dialog Box

A dotted outline or highlight bar indicate the current dialog box item.
The title bar gives the name of the dialog box, which is the command used to display the dialog box.
A text box is used to enter and edit text information.
A list box displays a list of items from which you can choose. If the list is too big to display at one time, a vertical scroll bar lets you scroll up or down the list.
The command buttons to either confirm or cancel the dialog box.

Working With A Document

MS-Word is used by people with widely varying levels of skill and experience, and there are often several different ways to do some tasks. Most commands are available through the Menu and sub menus. For frequently used commands, there are often iconic shortcut buttons on the Tool bars that can be selected with the mouse. For people with better keyboard skills or experience, there are keyboard shortcuts, often using the Control (CTRL), Shift (SHFT) or Alternate (ALT) keys on the PC and Command or Option keys of the Macintosh.

Create a New Document

Choose File ➪ New from the menu bar.
- This may ask you to select which document template to use for the new document.
Click the New Blank Document button of the tool bar.
Press CTRL + N on the keyboard. (Depress and hold CTRL, Press and release 'N')

Open an Existing Document

Choose File ➪ Open from the menu bar.
Click the Open button on the toolbar.
Press CTRL + O on the keyboard.

NOTE: Each method will show the Open dialog box. Select the drive the file was saved on, choose the file, and click the Open button.

Save a Document

Select File ➪ Save from the menu bar.
Click the Save button on the toolbar.
Press CTRL + S on the keyboard.

Navigate to the location where you would like to save the document. Make a note of the drive where the document is saved for future reference. To save an existing open document under a different name, select 'File ➪ Save As'.

Renaming a Document

To rename an existing, but not open, Word document while using the program,

Select File ➪ Open (or press CTRL + O on the keyboard) and find the file you want to rename.
Right-click on the document name with the mouse and select Rename from the shortcut menu.
Type the new name for the file and press the ENTER key.

Working with Multiple Documents

Several documents can be opened simultaneously if you are typing or editing multiple documents at once. All open documents are listed under the Windows menu. The current document has checkmark beside the filename. Select another name to view another open document or click the button on the Windows taskbar at the bottom of the screen.

Closing a Document

Selecting File ➪ Close from the menu bar
Click the close window icon if it’s visible on the menu bar
Press CTRL + W or CTRL + F4 on the keyboard.

Exiting Word

Choose the File ➪ Exit on the menu bar.
Click the Close button align with the title bar.
Press ALT + F4 on the Keyboard.