The whole purpose of Microsoft Word is to let you type text and make it look pretty so you can print or send it for other people to read. So the first step in using Microsoft Word is learning how to enter text in a Word file, called a document. In every document, Word displays a blinking cursor that points to where your text will appear if you type anything. To move the cursor, you can use the keyboard or the mouse.

Moving the Cursor with the Mouse

When you move the mouse, Word turns the mouse pointer into an I-beam pointer. If you move the mouse over an area where you cannot type any text, the mouse pointer turns back into the traditional arrow, pointing up to the left. To move the cursor with the mouse, just point and click the left mouse button once. The blinking cursor appears where you clicked the mouse. If you have a blank page or a blank area at the end of your document, you can move the cursor anywhere within this blank area by following these steps:

1. Move the mouse pointer over any blank area past the end of a document. Word defines the end of a document as the spot where no more text appears. To find the end of a document, press Ctrl+End.

• In a new document: The end of the document is in the upper-left corner where the cursor appears.

• In a document with existing text: The end of the document is the last area where text appears (including spaces or tabs).

2. Move the mouse pointer over any blank area past the end of the document.

Notice that a Left, Center, or Right Justification icon appears to the right or bottom of the I-beam mouse pointer.

3. Make sure the correct justification icon appears next to the mousepointer.

For example, if you want to center-justify your text, make sure the Center Justification icon appears at the bottom of the I-beam pointer. Getting the Left, Center, or Right Justification icon to appear in Step 3 can be tricky. The Left Justification icon appears most of the time. To make the Center Justification icon appear, move the mouse pointer to the center of the page. To make the Right Justification icon appear, move the mouse pointer to the right edge of the page.

4. Double-click the mouse pointer. Word displays your cursor in the area you clicked. Any text you type now will appear justified according to the justification icon displayed in Step 3.

Moving the Cursor with the Keyboard Moving the cursor with the mouse can be fast and easy. However, touch-typists often find that moving the cursor with the keyboard is more convenient and sometimes faster too. You can move the cursor with both the keyboard and the mouse.

Viewing a Document Word can display your document in one of five views, which can help you better understand the layout, margins, and page breaks in your document:

 Print Layout: Displays page breaks as thick, dark horizontal bars so you can clearly see where a page ends and begins. (This is the default view.)

 Full Screen Reading: Displays pages side by side so you see.

 Web Layout: Displays your document exactly as it would appear if you saved it as a Web page (looks similar to Page Layout view).

 Outline (also called Master Document Tools): Displays your document as outline headings and subheadings.

 Draft: Displays the document without top or bottom page margins where page breaks appear as dotted lines.

Switching between views Microsoft Word gives you two ways to switch between different document views:

 Click the view icons in the bottom of your document window.

 Click the View tab and then click the view you want to use, such as Print Layout view.

Print Layout and Web Layout views look nearly identical, while Draft view displays your document without displaying page margins to make it easier for you to view and edit data. The two most unusual views are Full Screen Reading and Outline views.

Using Full Screen Reading view Full Screen Reading view makes documents appear side by side like the pages of a book. To “turn the pages” of a document displayed in Full Screen Reading view, choose one of the following:

 Click the Previous Screen or Next Screen button.

 Click the Jump to a Page icon.

To exit Full Screen Reading view, choose one of the following:

 Press Esc.

 Click the Print Layout button.

Using Outline view Outline view divides a document into sections defined by headings and text. A heading represents a main idea. Text contains one or more paragraphs that are “attached” to a particular heading. A subheading lets you divide a main idea (heading) into multiple parts.

 Collapse headings to hide parts (subheadings and text) temporarily from view.  

Rearrange headings to move subheadings and text easily within a large document. Moving a heading automatically moves all subheadings and text. Instead of cutting and pasting multiple paragraphs, Outline view lets you rearrange a document by just moving headings around. To switch to Outline view, click the Outline View icon at the bottom of the document window (or click the View tab and then click the Outline icon).

Defining a heading

Outline view considers each line as either a heading or text. To define a line as either a heading style (Level 1 to Level 9) or text, follow these steps:

1. Move the cursor on the line that you want to define as a heading or text.

2. Click in the Outline Level list box and choose a heading level, such as

Level 2. Word displays Level 1 headings in large type to the far left margin. Level 2 headings appear in smaller type that’s slightly indented to the right, Level 3 headings appear in even smaller type that’s indented further to the right, and so on.

To create a heading quickly, move the cursor to the end of an existing heading and press Enter to create an identical heading. For example, if you put the cursor at the end of a Level 3 heading and press Enter, Word creates a new blank Level 3 heading.

Promoting and demoting a heading After you define a heading (such as a Level 1 or Level 3 heading), you can always change its level, such as changing a Level 1 heading to a Level 2 heading or vice versa. When you raise a heading from one level to another (such as from Level 3 to Level 2), that’s promoting. When you lower a heading (such as from Level 4 to Level 5), that’s demoting. A Level 1 heading cannot be promoted because Level 1 is the highest heading. Likewise, a Level 9 heading cannot be demoted because Level 9 is the lowest heading. To promote or demote a heading to a different level, follow these steps:

1. Using either the mouse or the keyboard, move the cursor to the heading you want to promote or demote.

2. Choose one of the following methods:

   •  Click the Outline Level list box and click a level (such as Level 2).
   •  Press Tab (to promote) or Shift+Tab (to demote) the heading.
   •  Click the Promote or Demote arrow.
   •  Move the mouse pointer over the circle that appears to the left of
   the  heading, hold down the left mouse button, drag the mouse
 right  or left, and then release the left mouse button.

You can convert a heading to a Level 1 heading quickly by just clicking the Promote to Heading 1 arrow. Promoting or demoting a heading moves any subheadings or text attached to the promoted or demoted heading.

Moving headings

You can move headings up or down within a document. To move a heading, follow these steps:

1. Using either the mouse or the keyboard, move the cursor to the heading you want to promote or demote.

2. Choose one of the following methods:

   •  Click the Move Up or Move Down arrow.
   •  Press Alt+Shift+↑ or Alt+Shift+↓.
   •  Move the mouse pointer over the circle that appears to the left of
   the  heading, hold down the left mouse button, drag the mouse up
   or  down, and then release the left mouse button.
 

If you collapse a heading before moving it, you can move any subheadings or text underneath that heading.