03 Taking charge of your text

Adding text within existing text

If you have opened an existing document that already contains some text then you will be able to move the blinking cursor to anywhere in relation to the text and type. Move the cursor by using the arrow buttons on the keyboard or use the mouse to position the pointer and click the left mouse button.

The keyboard shortcuts listed below are also helpful when moving through the text of a document:

Selecting text

You may want to change the look of some text, or move it or delete it. You will first need to select the relevant text. It may be a single letter, a word, a line of text, a sentence, a paragraph, a page or even the entire document.

To select the text, move the blinking cursor to the beginning of the text by using the mouse or the keyboard. Then, if using the mouse, click and hold down the left button on the mouse and move (drag) the mouse over the desired text while keeping the left mouse button depressed. If you are using the keyboard, hold down the SHIFT key (bottom left key, with an arrow pointing upwards, located above the CTRL key) and use the arrow buttons to highlight the text.

The selected text will be shown in white and highlighted in black like this.

The following table contains shortcuts for selecting a portion of the text:

If you decide you don't want the selected text to be selected, use the mouse to left click anywhere outside of the selection on the page, or press any arrow key on the keyboard.

Deleting text

To delete text:

1. Place the cursor with the text to be deleted.
2. Use the BACKSPACE key (above the RETURN or ENTER key with an arrow pointing to the left) to delete text on the left of the cursor.
3. Use the DELETE key to delete text on the right of the cursor.

To delete a selection of text:

1. Highlight the entire selection of text using any of the methods described above.
2. Press the Delete or Backspace keys.

Undoing a command

If you have performed a command but changed your mind about it you can undo the command.

To undo a command using the menu bar:

1. On the menu bar click on Edit
2. In the pop-down menu click on Undo.

To undo a command using the standard toolbar:

1. Click the Undo button:

To undo a command using the keyboard:

1. Hold down the CTRL key on the keyboard.
2. Quickly press the Z key.
3. Release the CTRL key.

Redoing a command

If you have undone a command but changed your mind about it you can redo the command.

To redo a command using the menu bar:

1. On the menu bar click on Edit.
2. In the pop-down menu click on Redo.

To redo a command using the standard toolbar:

1. Click the Redo button:

To redo a command using the keyboard:

1. Hold down the CTRL key on the keyboard.
2. Quickly press the Y key.
3. Release the CTRL key.

Using the Formatting toolbar

The formatting toolbar appears on the screen below the standard tool bar (if you cannot see it, click on View in the menu bar, use the mouse to highlight Toolbars and then click on Formatting):

The formatting toolbar is the easiest way to change many attributes of text:

• Style Menu - The text can be shown in various styles by making selections from the menu. Click the arrowhead to the right of the style box to view the list of styles available
• Font Menu - Click the arrowhead to the right of the font name box to view the list of fonts available. Scroll down to the font you want and select it by clicking on the name once with the mouse.
• Font Size - Click on the white part of the font size box to enter a value for the font size or click the arrowhead to the right of the box to view a list of font sizes available. Select a size by clicking on it once. A font size of 10 or 12 is best for paragraphs of text. The higher the number for the font size, the larger the font will be.
• Font Style - Click on B to set the selected text in bold, click on I to set the selected text in italics and click on U to underline the selected text.
• Alignment - Text can be aligned to the left, centre, or right side of the page or it can be justified across the page.
• Numbered and Bulleted Lists - Lists are explained on the page Adding a List to your Text.
• Increase/Decrease Indent - Change the indentation of a paragraph in relation to the side of the page.
• Outside Border - Add a border around a selection of text. Click the arrowhead to the right of the border box to choose how where to place a border in relation to selected text.
• Highlight Colour - Use this option to change the colour behind a text selection. The colour shown on the button is the last colour used. To select a different colour, click the black triangle next to the image on the button and then click on the colour you prefer.
• Text Colour - This option changes the colour of the text. The colour shown on the button is the last colour chosen. To select a different colour, click the arrowhead next to the image on the button and then click on the colour you prefer.

There are more formatting options available in the Font box.

To open and use the Font box:

1. Click on Format on the menu bar.
2. Click on Font and the Font box will appear on the screen:
   
   



3. Select the font, font style and text size.
4. Preview the text and when you are happy with it click on OK.

Using the Format Painter

A handy feature for formatting text is the Format Painter located on the standard toolbar:

If, for example, you have formatted a paragraph heading with a certain font face, size, and style and you want to format another heading the same way, you do not need to manually add each attribute to the new headline. Instead, use the Format Painter.

To use the Format Painter:

1. Place the cursor within the text that contains the formatting you want to copy.
2. Click the Format Painter button in the standard toolbar. The pointer will then have a paintbrush beside it.
3. Using the mouse, select the text you want to add the same format to and then release the mouse button.

To add the formatting to multiple selections of text, follow the above steps but in step 2. instead of clicking the Format Painter button once double-click it. The format painter then stays active until you click on Format Painter again or press the Esc key on your keyboard to turn it off.

Exercises

1. Open a new document and type in the following text (the font is Times New Roman):

If you are new to computers, you might find the thought of learning how to use Word a bit off-putting. There really is no need to worry. When you have completed the course you won't know why you were so worried about Word in the beginning. With a good tutor, a friendly environment and support from other learners, you will soon be able to use Word with confidence.

2. Use the mouse or the Shift and arrow keys to select the entire first sentence of the paragraph and delete it.



3. Undo the deletion by clicking on the delete button.



4. Use the font style icons on the formatting tool bar to:
   
   
   1. set the first sentence in bold
   
   
   
   2. set the second sentence in italics
   
   
   
   3. underline the last sentence.

It should look like this:

If you are new to computers, you might find the thought of learning how to use Word a bit off-putting. There really is no need to worry. When you have completed the course you won't know why you were so worried about Word in the beginning. With a good tutor, a friendly environment and support from other learners, you will soon be able to use Word with confidence.


5. Select the entire paragraph and use the alignment icon on the formatting toolbar to centre the paragraph. It should look something like this:
   If you are new to computers, you might find the thought of learning how to use Word a bit off-putting. There really is no need to worry. When you have completed the course you won't know why you were so worried about Word in the beginning. With a good tutor, a friendly environment and support from other learners, you will soon be able to use Word with confidence.



6. Select the entire paragraph again and use the alignment icon on the formatting toolbar to justify it. It should look like this:

If you are new to computers, you might find the thought of learning how to use Word a bit off-putting. There really is no need to worry. When you have completed the course you won't know why you were so worried about Word in the beginning. With a good tutor, a friendly environment and support from other learners, you will soon be able to use Word with confidence.

7. Save the document in your folder with the name 'Formatted Document'.



8. Close Word.

Back to Handouts