Microsoft® Office 2008 for Mac® Bible

Chapter 5. Word Basics

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Exploring the Word window

• Working with document files

• Changing views

• Assigning document properties

• Protecting documents

By far, way far, Microsoft Word is the single most popular word-processing program in use today. It's the go-to program for creating anything related to text, including letters, manuscripts, proposals, newsletters, blogs, memos, tables, and so on. Not only can you create documents of all kinds, you also can share them with others across e-mail, networks, the Internet, and more. Microsoft Word truly is the workhorse of the Office suite, allowing users amazing versatility in creating documents that range from the very simple to the very complex, from one-page letters to hundred-page reports. Whether you're creating a simple flyer or building a detailed thesis paper, Word offers you dozens of tools and features to create a professional-looking document in no time flat.

Microsoft Word 2008 for Mac is the latest version of the Office productivity suite, on par with Office 2007 for the PC. Before this, the last big version of Word was Office 2004 for Mac. If you're new to Word, or just trying to get up and running fast with this latest version, this chapter is the place to start. Here, you'll find detailed information about the new and improved interface; learn how to open, close, and save document files; see how to change the way you view text onscreen; and learn about the various ways to add data behind the scenes to a document or protect ...