Some Important Things First

What if I make a mistake?

As you are working, you will undoubtedly make mistakes. If you make a mistake, you can Undo the mistake by clicking on the Undo button in the Formatting Toolbar, or by pressing Ctrl-Z. You may also click on the Edit Menu and select Undo. This is a neat way to Undo because it tells you there what you are undo-ing. Sometimes, you may have made a series of mistakes and you need to do the Undo several times. In fact, you can Undo yourself all the way back to the very beginning.

Now, if you Undo something, or several things, and you decide that you actually didn’t want to Undo those thing, you can Redo them. Just click on the Redo button in the Formatting Toolbar or press Ctrl-Y. And like Undo, you may also click on the Edit Menu and select Redo. You can Redo as many times as you want (just like you can Undo as many times as you want.

Keep Undo and Redo in the forefront of your mind. (I couldn’t live without them!)

Is there more than one way to do a task?

Yes, in Microsoft Word, there are usually many ways to do the same task. For example, you may be able to use the Menu Bar (sometimes called a drop-down menu) to do a task, or you may be able to click on a toolbar, or you may be able to press a series of keys (sometimes called keyboard shortcuts). Learn all the ways to do a task and then use the one that is easiest for you.

When do I click once and when do I double-click?

You always click just once unless it specifically says to double-click. The more experienced you get with Word, the more you will learn that in many cases, it is faster to double-click to accomplish a task than single-click.

When do I right-click and when do I left-click.

You always left-click unless it specifically says to right-click. Whenever you right-click, a pop-up menu always appears on the screen which gives you options and the ability to do something.

Do I save my work?

You can if you want to. It might be a good idea to save your work both on the floppy disk and on the hard drive so that you learn how to do it. If you need help, holler.

What if something pops on my screen and I don’t know what it is?

That’s what the Esc (Escape) key is for – just press it once. You problem may be solved.

I really wanted to learn how to do _ _ _ _ _ _ in Microsoft Word, but its not in the training packet?

Just ask me what you want to learn. I have resources for just about anything you would want to learn and I will give it to you. (Mail merge, making labels, printing envelopes, …..)

How do I remember all this stuff?

You don’t the first time you do it (or the 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th…). Like anything else, the more you practice, the better you get and the more you remember.

One last thing, there is a real possibility (make that probability) there may be some mistakes in the training material. If you find one, let me know so that I can correct it. Microsoft Word catches a lot of mistakes – but it doesn’t catch them all!