Business Computing Tips
By Karen Fainges

Part 5 of 5 WORD

Date - To insert the current date or time into your document,
click where you want it to go and then go to INSERT then DATE &
TIME in your menu and chose the correct format for what you want
by clicking on it. Clicking on the box marked Update
Automatically, means that whenever you open that document, it
will automatically put today's date in. Then hit OK.

Tables - Tables allow you to sort information on your page. This
information, for example, is in a table. Each small box inside
the table is called a cell. Columns run up and down the page &
rows run across.
To insert a table, go to TABLE then INSERT and TABLE on your
menu bar, or click on the grid with a pencil on it on your
toolbar to draw your table. This is the option I recommend.
First position your mouse (it will now look like a pencil) on
your page where you want the table to start. Then click hold and
drag it down until you have a decent sized box. Then you can draw
lines inside the box to give you columns and rows.
If you make a mistake, there is an eraser next to the pencil on
the toolbar that if you hold over the line you wish to remove and
then click and drag over it, will remove that one line.
To make the edges of the box different formats, change them
with the down arrows next to the boxes beside the eraser.
The first changes the type of line, the next the width of the
line, the next the colour of the line.
If you wish to have a line there, but make it invisible, chose
No Border from the line style box.
After those icons, there are buttons for changing the style of
the table. (Clicking on the small square with a four-headed arrow
in it that appears at the top left hand corner of the table if
you run your mouse over the outside edge, will format the whole
table at once.)
The bucket allows you to choose the colour of the background
behind the writing, no fill gives you the same colour as the
page.
To format the table after drawing it, you can also right click
on highlighted cells to add a few format changes at once. Just
click on the option to bring up all the things you can do. The
first options I have listed here are all under Borders and
Shading.
The next icon with the grid allows you to add extra columns or
rows and make the table fit the contents or the page.
The next one allows you to merge two cells together. First
highlight the cells you want by clicking holding & dragging
across the cells. Then hit the button.
The next allows you to split cells in half.
The next is the alignment of the text inside the cell. Click on
the down arrow to get all the options.
The next makes all highlighted rows the same size. The one next
to that makes all the highlighted columns the same. The fast way
to highlight an entire column is to go to the very top of the
table and move the mouse over the top of the table. A black arrow
will appear pointing down the column, click hold and drag to
select multiple columns, or just click to select one.
The next icon allows you to select common formatting patterns
rather than do it all yourself.
The next changes the direction the text is flowing. Pressing it
once will have it going from top to bottom in the cell, press it
again to go from bottom to top.
The next two sort the table into alphabetical order.
The last one add highlighted cells together and gives you a
total in the cell you were in when you clicked on it.

Templates - If you are frequently doing the same letter, invoice
or something similar, where you only need to change one or two
things each time, it is often easier to set up all the things
that don't change on a template. Then you can just make one or
two changes and have a new document ready to print out.
To make a template, set out the document as normal and then go
to FILE, then SAVE AS. In the box labelled Save as type, hit the
little downward facing arrow and click on the Template option.
Once the template is saves, you can use it by opening the
program, going to FILE then NEW and opening the template from
there.

Text Box - Sometimes you want text in unusual places that you
can't quite manage with normal typing. The easiest way to make
the text go exactly where you want it is to use a text box. Go to
INSERT then TEXT BOX on your menu or there is a white page with
lines and a big A on it on your drawing toolbar. (Normally down
the bottom of the page near the middle). Centre the cross hairs
where you want the upper left hand corner of the box, and then
click and hold and drag it down to where you want the bottom of
the box. Then let go. A box will appear with a cursor in it, just
type normally.
To move the text box, move your mouse over the box until it
turns into a four-headed arrow, then click hold and drag the box
to where you want it to go. Once it is in position, let the mouse
button go.
To make the box larger or smaller, click once on the box to
cause the edges to have shaded dots around them. Then move the
mouse over the box's edges where the little squares are until you
get a double-headed arrow. Moving out your mouse outwards will
enlarge the box, bringing it in towards the middle of the box
will make it smaller.
To get rid of the line around the box, or to make it different
colours etc, move the mouse over the box and right click. Then
choose Format Text box by clicking on the words. Fill is the
inside of the box, & Line is the line around the outside edge.
Click on the various arrows beside the words to see what options
you have available. The tabs at the top allow you to bring the
text box on to of pictures, closer to them and many other things.
Feel free to experiment.

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"It has to be practical, it has to be cheap, and it has to work."
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