Basic Computer Skills

New Mexico Broadband Program
Basic Computer Skills
Module 4
Using a word processing program
Saving and Retrieving a document
Class Goals
Ability to create and edit a basic document in Word

Ability to save, organize, and retrieve a document
New Mexico Broadband Program in partnership with Fast Forward New Mexico 2
Using a Word Processing
Program
Word processing is a system
that allows one to create, edit,
organize, save, and retrieve
documents easily and quickly.
With word processing, you can
begin work on a letter or
memo in one location
Image courtesy of http://www.redlands.edu
and finish working on
it in another place.
Image courtesy of http://www.buytabletnotebooks.com
The convenience of use and the professional quality of

the product makes word processing a great asset for
students, professionals, business people, and anyone
working with written documents.
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Word is the word
processing program used in
most PCs.
It is one of the programs
that you will find in the list of
application software when
you open the Start button.
Microsoft Word
You may see Microsoft Word

in the list of frequently used
programs on the left side of
the start menu.
You can always access Word

by opening All Programs,
using the scroll bar to find
Microsoft Office, and
opening Word.
Open Microsoft Office Word
1. Click on the Start button.
2. Click on All Programs.
3. Find the Microsoft Office
folder in the list of
programs that pops up. 3
Left click on the words
“Microsoft Office.”
4
4. Select Microsoft Office 2
Word from the list of

programs that shows up 1
by left clicking on the
words.
Microsoft Office Word
When you first open Word, a blank document appears

on the screen, waiting for you to type onto it.
This program
has a layout
that is common
to other programs
in Microsoft Office,
such as Excel and
PowerPoint.
To understand Word, we will begin by
understanding this layout.
File Tab
Ribbon
The ribbon lies along the top edge of the page, and contains the
commands used to create settings, adjust layouts, and access
editing tools.
The File Tab is in the upper left corner, and contains commands
for larger actions on the document, such as saving it.
Home Tab
The Home tab presents users with the

program’s most-often-used features.
To create a document, place your cursor in the

“paper,” left click to enter the page, and start typing.
Creating a document
Type whatever you like. It does not have to make sense.
Creating a document
Red underlining may appear. This indicates a possible
spelling error.
Green underlining indicates a possible error of grammar,
spacing, or sentence structure.
Blue underlining suggests an error in usage.
Creating a document
Use the “Enter” key to go to a new line.
Use the space bar to create extra space between words.
See what happens if you use the arrow keys in your document.
Enter key
Spacebar Arrow keys

The Undo Button
If you make a mistake, you

can “undo” the action by
using the Undo arrow. It is in
the top left hand corner of
your window. Clicking once
on the most recent action,
including actions such as
typing, spacing, and erasing.
Editing a document
When we type, we often make errors that need to
be corrected. We also want to make changes in
our work as we develop our ideas
Image courtesy of http://bluecafebooks.com
Editing a document
We can do this easily in a Word document by
adding or removing text.
To add text, simply place your cursor at the location
at which you want to insert a word or words, click,
and type in the words.
Editing a document
To erase text, you begin the same way. Place your
cursor at the point at which you want to erase text.
If your cursor is placed to the left of the text you
want to erase, use the Delete key to erase.
The Delete key erases text
to the right of the cursor
Editing a document
If your cursor is placed to the right of the text you
want to erase, use the backspace key to erase.
The Backspace key erases text

to the left of the cursor
Editing a document
Practice inserting and erasing

text in your document.
Use the undo button as well.
Using the Ribbon
The ribbon provides you with a large assortment of

tools to use. The ribbon is organized so that similar
commands are together.
The Ribbon Groups
Let’s focus on the command groups in the Home Tab.
The Home Tab ribbon contains the commands most often
used in Word.
The names of the groups appear under each grouping and

indicate the general area of the command group.
Using the Ribbon
Most commands are simple buttons and function
as on/off switches. Click the button once and that
command will be active. This means that anything
that you type in your document will be affected by
that command.
Using the Ribbon
To turn the command off, so that it no longer applies to
what you type, click the command button again.
Using the Ribbon
To learn what a command does, place your cursor
over the command. A textbox will pop up,
explaining the command function.
Using the Ribbon
Use several of the commands in the Font Group of
the Home Tab as you create your document. Try
using new font styles, sizes, and text colors.
Try using the bullets and numbering commands in
the paragraph group.
Editing a document
Practice using commands in

your Word document.
Save a Document
Now that you’ve created a document,
you need to know
how to save it.
Position your cursor over the

File tab and left click.
A list of options will appear. Move the
cursor down to “Save As” and click.
Save a Document
• Once you click “Save As,” you will be taken to a
Dialogue Box.
• Dialogue Boxes are the points at which

you choose options.
• The “Save As” Dialogue Box
is used to save your document
in the best way.
Save a Word Document
First, you will need to give
your new document, or
“file,” a name.
Look for the long box near
the bottom of your screen
that appears after “File
name.”
Note that the computer
has already given your file
a name and highlighted it
in blue.
Give your file a new name.
Type the new name into
the textbox.
Because the old name is
highlighted, if you just
begin typing, the old name
will be erased and the
new one will appear I the
textbox.
Lastly, you should check the

“file type” for your new
document. Make sure it is
being saved as a Word
Document type.
To save, left-click on the
“Save” button in the lower
right hand corner of the
screen.
Editing a document
Practice saving your file on

your computer.
Saving a File
Never close a file until you have saved the changes
you have made.
Saving to a portable storage device
When we are not able to finish a

document, or may not come back to the
same computer to continue our work, we
need to save our files on something other
than the hard drive of that computer.
Portable storage devices
For this, we use a portable

storage device. The most
common portable storage
device is a “flash drive.”
Flash drives are sometimes

referred to as thumb drives.
Portable storage devices
A flash drive allows you to

store information rapidly
and move it from one
location to another.
Saving to a Flash Drive
To save to a flash drive, first
insert the flash drive into
your computer.
Next, follow the same first
steps that you used to save
your file to the hard drive.
Click on the File Tab and

scroll down to “Save As.”
Left-click once.
When the dialogue

box opens, use the
scroll bar on this side
menu to move down
to Computer and
click on Removable
Disk. Scroll bar
Click on the Save

button to save
your file on the
flash drive.
Look for the name of the saved document on the top
of the screen to check that it was saved.
Close button
Retrieving a Document
• In order to use or complete or use a
document, we need to be able to find it
once it is saved. How do we retrieve a
document?
• We know our files are stored in the
Documents library, so if we look in
Documents, we should
find our file.
Retrieving a Document
Remember, to access the Libraries, click the Libraries icon
on the Taskbar.
The icon for the Libraries looks like a set of folders held up
by a metal bookend. If you click once on this icon, you will
open the Libraries’ folder.
Documents Library
When you have

opened the
libraries, double-
click on the
Documents
Library to open
this folder.
Documents Library
The computer will list the

Word documents that are
created and stored in your
Documents library.
Select yours and open by
double clicking over the
words.
Retrieving a document
If you do not make any changes to the document,
you may simply close it and it will be automatically
resaved in the original form.
Close button
Editing a document
Practice locating and

opening the file that you
saved on your computer.
Close the document after
you have opened it.
Retrieving Documents
What if your file is

stored on a flash drive
and not in the
Documents Library?
We cannot retrieve it by
going to the Documents
Library, because it is
not stored there.
First, we need to insert
the flash drive again.
Then, we go to the Start

menu and open
Computer, since this is
the location that shows
us information about
other devices.
What if your file is

stored on a flash drive
and not in the
Documents Library?
We go to the Start
menu and open
Computer, since this is
the location that shows
us information about
other devices.
Retrieving your Documents
Double click on the

Removable Disk icon or
text to see a list of all
the files on the flash
drive.
You should see the

name of your document
listed in the dialogue
box.
Retrieving your Documents
Select yours and open

by double clicking over
the words.
Retrieving a document
If you do not make any changes to the document, you
may simply close it and it will be automatically
resaved in the original form.
Close button
Editing a document
Practice locating and opening

the file that you saved on your
removable disk.
Close the document after you
have opened it.
Organizing documents
Computers are very
helpful if we can locate the
material we need quickly
and easily.
When our computer gets

full of letters, memos,
photos, and videos, finding
what we want is not
always easy. Image courtesy of http://www.traditionalhomeorganizer.com
Organizing your documents
To make sure we can find

the information we keep
on our computer, we need
to organize it well.
We can save our documents as single
items or in folders.
Organizing your documents
To organize our
documents, we need to
sort our files into
folders, just as we would
for hard copies of
documents.
To create a folder, open the Document
Library and click on “New folder” in the menu
bar above the Documents Library listing.
When you do this, a new folder is automatically created
and will appear highlighted in your list of documents.
Type a name for

the folder. It will
automatically
appear in the
highlighted box.
If you want to save a file into the folder, follow the
same steps that you did when saving to the Documents
library. When you open the Documents library, look for
your folder.
To save a file to a folder, you must first open the folder. To
open a folder, left click once to highlight, then click the
“Open” button in the lower right corner.
Once the folder is open, click Save.
Saving a document in a folder
Practice creating a folder

and saving your document in
the folder.
Close the document after it
is saved in the folder.
You can also sort documents into folders by
clicking and dragging them into the folder.
Saving a document in a folder
Practice moving
documents into folders
on your computer.
Review
Opening a software program

Creating a document
Using ribbon commands
Editing, saving, and retrieving a file
Creating and organizing folders
Turning off your computer
Follow these steps to turn

off a computer correctly.
1. Close all windows.

2. Click on the Start Button
3. Click on Shut Down.
4. Wait for computer to
power down.
5. Turn off monitor or close.
We appreciate the time you spent with us.
We hope to see you at the next training!
These materials were created collaboratively by the

New Mexico Department of Information Technology, Fast Forward New Mexico,
and the New Mexico State Library, under grants provided by the
National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
These materials are not to be used for profit.
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New Mexico Broadband Program

Ability to create and edit a basic document in Word

The convenience of use and the professional quality of

You may see Microsoft Word

You can always access Word

Word from the list of

When you first open Word, a blank document appears

The Home tab presents users with the

To create a document, place your cursor in the

Type whatever you like. It does not have to make sense.

Spacebar Arrow keys

If you make a mistake, you

Image courtesy of http://bluecafebooks.com

The Backspace key erases text

Practice inserting and erasing

The ribbon provides you with a large assortment of

The names of the groups appear under each grouping and

Practice using commands in

Position your cursor over the

• Dialogue Boxes are the points at which

Lastly, you should check the

Practice saving your file on

When we are not able to finish a

For this, we use a portable

Flash drives are sometimes

A flash drive allows you to

Click on the File Tab and

When the dialogue

Click on the Save

When you have

The computer will list the

Practice locating and

What if your file is

Then, we go to the Start

What if your file is

Double click on the

You should see the

Select yours and open

Practice locating and opening

When our computer gets

To make sure we can find

Type a name for

Practice creating a folder

Opening a software program

Follow these steps to turn

1. Close all windows.

These materials were created collaboratively by the

Connecting you to a world of opportunities

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