When you open Word 2010, the first thing you’ll see is a blank canvas that looks like a white
sheet of paper – this is a new blank document.
But what if you had another document in front of you that wasn’t blank, maybe something
you’ve already been working on?
How would you open a new file?
Start by clicking the File tab to go to the Backstage View, and then from there, click
New.
You can either open a blank document (which is highlighted automatically),
or a sample template that’s installed on your computer,
or a template downloaded from Office.com.
A template is just a file that’s already been designed or outlined, to help you save
time and create a document that looks professional.
We’re going to go over them in detail in a later lesson, so this time, let’s select
the blank document here, click Create, and it will open in a new window.
To open an existing document that’s already saved to your computer, click File to return
to the Backstage View.
If the document you’re looking for is something you’ve worked on recently, you might be
able to find it under Recent, where your most recent files are listed here on the right.
Otherwise, the easiest way to open any file is to click Open, which takes you to the files
and the folders on your computer.
Now select the file you’re looking for, click Open, and it appears in a new window.