Datasheet

15
Chapter 1: Hello, Word!
Surrounding the text-composing area is a host of goobers that are as bewil-
dering as an exhibit in a modern art museum, as intimidating as the cockpit
of a jet fighter, and almost as dangerous as a plate of sushi. Despite their
intimidating presence, those items exist to help you write. The following list
gives you a quick top-to-bottom explanation. Use Figure 1-1 for reference.
And, please: Do not memorize anything!
✓ The title bar lists the document’s title, or merely Document1 until you
give the document a title by saving it to disk. (See Chapter 8 for informa-
tion on saving documents — very important!)
✓ The File tab replaces the traditional File menu of older Windows pro-
grams. Clicking the File tab replaces the contents of the Word window
with a full-screen menu full of commands and their descriptions. To
return to the Word window, click the File tab or any other tab on the
Ribbon. Speaking of which:
✓ The Ribbon contains all Word commands, which appear as buttons,
input boxes, and menus. The Ribbon is divided into tabs (refer to Figure
1-2). The commands on the Ribbon are separated into groups. Some tabs
may appear and disappear depending on what you’re doing in Word.
And the commands in groups change as you change the window’s size.
✓ The Ruler may or may not be visible. When it’s visible, it helps you set
margins and tabs. The View Ruler button (refer to Figure 1-1) shows and
hides the Ruler.
Below the writing area dwells the status bar. This informative strip of graphi-
cal goodness contains trivial information about your document as well as the
following ornaments:
✓ Document information lists optional data that’s specific to your
document.
✓ The View buttons specify how the blank page appears in the window
(also refer to the next section).
✓ The Zoom thing specifies how large or small your document appears
inside the window. (See Chapter 29 for more information on zooming.)
Don’t fret over these things! What’s important now is that you recognize the
names so that you don’t get lost later.
✓ You can hide the Ribbon if you would rather have more room to write:
Use the Expand the Ribbon button (refer to Figure 1-2).
✓ The Windows taskbar, located at the bottom of the screen, is a part
of Windows itself and not Word. However, as you open documents in
Word, buttons representing those documents appear on the Windows
taskbar.
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