WordPad overview

With WordPad, you can create and edit simple text documents or documents with
complex formatting and graphics. You can link or embed information from other
documents into a WordPad document.
You can save your WordPad file as a text file, rich text file, text file for MS-DOS, or
Unicode. These formats provide greater flexibility when working with other programs.
Documents that use multiple languages should be saved as rich text files.
Related Topics

Common tasks
The following tasks are frequently conducted using WordPad. Click the Index or Search
tab to search for a specific word or phrase.

Create, open, or save a WordPad document

To create, open, and save WordPad documents, on the File menu, click New, Open, or
Save.
Step-by-step procedure

Wrap text to the window size

The options for wrapping text affect only how text appears on your screen. When printed,
the document uses the margin settings specified in the Page Setup dialog box.
Step-by-step procedure

Print a WordPad document

To print your WordPad document, on the File menu, click Print.
Step-by-step procedure

Change the appearance of a WordPad

document
You can change the paper size, source, and orientation of your printed document.
Step-by-step procedure

Embed or link an object into WordPad

You can embed or link objects into your WordPad document.
Step-by-step procedure
To create, open, or save a WordPad document
You can create, open, and save WordPad documents by clicking the File menu, and then
clicking New, Open, or Save.

Create a new document

On the File menu, click New. Click the document type you want to create, click OK, and
then begin typing. You can also insert the current date and time into your document.
Click where you want the date and time to appear. Then, on the Insert menu, click Date
and Time. Click the format you want.

Open a document
On the File menu, click Open. In Look in, click the drive that contains the document you
want to open. Locate the document, click it, and then click Open. If you do not see the
document you want, you can click a different file type in Files of type. For example,
click Unicode Text Documents to see only Unicode files on the list. Or you can open a
document you opened recently by clicking its name on the File menu.

Save changes to a document

On the File menu, click Save. To save the file with a new name, on the File menu, click
Save As, type a different name in File name, and then click Save. Documents that use
multiple languages should be saved as rich text files.
WordPad automatically saves documents as rich text files, but you can change the default
file type at any time. On the File menu, click Save As. In Save as type, select the
document format you want to set as the default. For example, to always save documents
as text files, click Text Document. Select the Save in this format by default check box,
and then click Save. This saves the current document in the selected file format and sets
the default file format for future documents until you change it again.
Related Topics
To wrap text to the window size
On the View menu, click Options.
Under Word wrap, click the option you want.

Notes

• The wrapping options affect only how text appears on your screen. When printed,
the document uses the margin settings specified in Page Setup.

• You can set different word wrap options for each of the text formats in which you
can save documents.
Related Topics
To undo your last action

• On the Edit menu, click Undo.

Related Topics
To find or replace specific characters or words
You can search for words or characters in your document. You can also search for and
replace words or characters with text that you specify.

Search
On the Edit menu, click Find. In Find what, type the characters or words you want to
find, and then click Find Next. To find additional instances of the same text, continue to
click Find Next. If you have closed the Find dialog box, you can press F3 to continue
searching for the same text.

Search and replace

On the Edit menu, click Replace. In Find what, type the characters or words you want
to find. In Replace with, type the text you want to replace it with. Click Find Next, and
then click Replace. To replace all instances of the text, click Replace All.
Related Topics
To show or hide the WordPad toolbars
You can show or hide the WordPad toolbar, format bar, ruler, and status bar by clicking
the View menu and then clicking the name of the toolbar that you want to show or hide.
A check mark appears next to the command when the toolbar is visible.

Toolbar
The buttons on the toolbar are shortcuts for common file management tasks, such as
creating or saving a file. You can see a description of each toolbar icon by placing your
mouse over it. You can also drag the toolbar to any location in the window.

Format bar
The buttons on the format bar change the format of text, such as making text bold or
underlined. To format text, select it, and then click the appropriate button on the format
bar. You can also drag the format bar to any location in the window.

Ruler
You can use the ruler to set tab stops by clicking the ruler where you want a tab stop to
appear. You can delete tab stops by dragging them off the ruler. To change the unit of
measurement to inches, centimeters, points, or picas, on the View menu, click Options,
click the Options tab, and then click the unit of measurement you want.

Status bar
The status bar provides additional information about the buttons and commands in
WordPad.
Related Topics
To cut, copy, paste, or delete text

• To cut text so you can move it to another location, select the text, and then on the
Edit menu, click Cut.

• To copy text so you can paste it in another location, select the text, and then on
the Edit menu, click Copy.

• To paste text you have cut or copied, click in the document where you want to
paste the text, and then on the Edit menu, click Paste.

• To delete text, select it, and then on the Edit menu, click Clear.

Notes

• You can undo your action by clicking Edit, and then clicking Undo.

• You can select all text at once by clicking Edit, and then clicking Select All.
Related Topics
To create a bulleted list
Click where you want the bulleted list to start.
On the Format menu, click Bullet Style, and then type your text. When you press
ENTER, another bullet appears on the next line.
To end the bulleted list, on the Format menu, click Bullet Style again.

Notes

• You can also create a bulleted list by clicking the Bullets button on the format
bar.

• To create an indented paragraph in a bulleted list, press SHIFT+ENTER.

Related Topics
To change a font type, style, or size
Select the text that you want to change.
On the Format menu, click Font.
Click the options you want.

Notes

• You can specify the font for new text by changing the font settings before you
begin to type.

• You can select all text at once by clicking Edit, and then clicking Select All.
Related Topics
To indent a paragraph
Click anywhere in the paragraph you want to format.
On the Format menu, click Paragraph.
 Under Indentation, type a measurement of how far to indent the paragraph.

Note

• You can indent all of the paragraphs in a new document by changing the format
options before you begin to type.
Related Topics
To change the alignment of a paragraph
Click anywhere in the paragraph you want to format.
On the Format menu, click Paragraph.
In Alignment, click a position.

Note

• You can set the alignment for a new document by changing the format options
before you begin to type.
Related Topics
To set or remove tab stops in paragraphs
Select the paragraphs for which you want to set tab stops.
On the Format menu, click Tabs.
In the Tabs dialog box, do the following:

• To set a tab stop, type the measurement for a new tab stop in Tab stop
position, and then click Set.

• To delete a tab stop, click it in the list, and then click Clear.

• To delete all tab stops in the selected paragraph, click Clear All.
 Notes

• You can also set tab stops by clicking the ruler where you want to set them. To
delete tab stops, drag them off the ruler.

• To change the unit of measurement to inches, centimeters, points, or picas, on the

View menu, click Options, click the Options tab, and then click the unit of
measurement you want.
Related Topics
To print a WordPad document
On the File menu, click Print.
On the General tab, select the printer and preferences you want, and then click Print.

Notes

• You must have a default printer set in the Printers folder. For more information,
click Related Topics.

• To see how your document will look before you print it, on the File menu, click
Print Preview. In Print Preview, you can click Close to return to the document.
Related Topics
To change the appearance of a WordPad document
On the File menu, click Page Setup.
In the Page Setup dialog box, do any of the following:

• To change the paper or envelope size, click a size in Size.

• To change the paper source, click a tray name or a feeder in Source.

• To print the document vertically, click Portrait; to print the document

horizontally, click Landscape.

• To change the margins, type a value in any of the Margins boxes.

 • To change your printer settings, click Printer.

Note

• To change the unit of measurement to inches, centimeters, points, or picas, on the

View menu, click Options, click the Options tab, and then click the unit of
measurement you want.
Related Topics

Linking or embedding an object into

WordPad
You can use linking and embedding to exchange information between documents created
in different programs.
Embedding means inserting information, such as text or a graphic, into another document
in another program. The embedded information, or object, becomes part of the new
document. To edit an embedded object, double-click it; the program in which the object
was created opens. When you finish editing the object and return to your document, the
document reflects all of the changes you've made; but, the original object remains
unchanged. To embed information, use Copy and Paste on the Edit menu.
Linking means inserting information, such as spreadsheet data, that retains a connection
to the information stored in another file. Use linking when you want the information to be
updated dynamically as the data in the source file changes. To link selected information,
use Copy and Paste Special. Some programs do not support linking. If linking isn't
available, Paste Special does not appear on the Edit menu.
Use embedding when you want to edit the information separately from the source file or
if you think the source file will be unavailable.
To embed or link an object into WordPad
On the Insert menu, click Object.
Click Create from File, and then type or browse to the path and file name in File.
To embed or link the object, do one of the following:

• To embed the object, make sure the Link check box is cleared.

• To link the object, select the Link check box.

 Notes

• You can also embed or link an object from another document using Copy and
Paste or Copy and Paste Special, respectively.

• To create a new object, click Create New, and then click an object type. When
you are finished creating the object, click outside the object to return to WordPad.
Related Topics
To edit linked objects
Click the object to select it.
On the Edit menu, point to the type of object you have selected (for example, Midi
Sequence Object or Bitmap Image Object), and then do one of the following:

• To modify the object within the WordPad window, click Edit or Edit
Package. When you are finished, click outside the object to return to the
WordPad document.

• To modify the object in the program in which it was created, click Open
or Activate Contents. When you are finished, click File, and then click
Exit to return to the WordPad document.

Notes

• You can also double-click the object to open, run, or activate it, depending on the
object type.

• The commands that appear on the Edit menu depend on the object you selected.
Related Topics

Help viewer overview

The Help viewer is the window you are looking at now. It is used to provide Help that is
specific to certain Windows XP programs and features, such as Notepad, Paint, and the
Language bar.
You can adjust the size of the Help viewer or hide the navigation pane if you need to
place the Help viewer beside the program you are using. You can change the fonts and
colors displayed in the right pane of the viewer if you need to make the text larger or
more readable.
For more comprehensive Help about Windows XP, click Help and Support on the Start
menu. Help and Support Center provides Help topics on all Windows features, a tour of
Windows, articles on major new features, product updates, and Remote Assistance.
For immediate help in dialog boxes, you can display pop-up Help about a particular item

or control. Click ) to display the next Help

topic in a previously displayed sequence of topics.

Copy a Help topic

In the Help viewer, right-click the topic you want to copy, and then click Select All.
Inside the topic, right-click again, and then click Copy.
This copies the topic to the Clipboard.
Open the document into which you want to paste the topic.
Click the place in your document where you want the information to appear.
On the Edit menu, click Paste.

Notes

• If you want to copy only part of a topic, select the part you want to copy, right-
click the selection, and then click Copy.

• Words that are links to other topics and step numbers are not copied to the
Clipboard.
 Print a Help topic

• Right-click the topic, and then click Print.

Notes

• To print a pop-up topic, right-click inside the pop-up window, and then click
Print Topic.

• To print all topics within a book, on the Contents tab, click the book. On the Help
toolbar, click Options, click Print, and then click Print the selected heading
and all subtopics.
Related Topics

Modifying the Help viewer

You can hide the left (navigation) pane of the Help viewer to make the window smaller,
adjust the size of the window from any side or corner, and change the fonts and colors
used in the Help window.
Changes you make to the Help viewer do not affect the Help and Support Center window.

Hide or show the Help navigation pane

• On the Help toolbar, click Hide ( ) to

display the navigation pane.
 Change the size of the Help window

• To make the navigation or topic panes narrower or wider, point to the divider
between the two panes. When the pointer changes to a double-headed arrow (

), drag the side.

Change fonts in Help

On the toolbar, click Options, and then click Internet Options.
On the General tab, click Fonts.
In the Fonts dialog box, click the options you want, and then click OK.
On the General tab, click Accessibility.
Under Formatting, select the check boxes for the options you want, and then click
OK twice.

Notes

• This procedure changes the fonts only in the right (topic) pane of the Help viewer,
not in the navigation pane, which contains the Contents, Index, and Search tabs.

• This procedure also changes the fonts used to display Web pages in Internet
Explorer.
 Change colors in a Help window
On the toolbar, click Options, and then click Internet Options.
On the General tab, click Colors.
In the Colors dialog box, clear the Use Windows colors check box.
Click Text or Background and then click the color you want. Click OK when you
finish.
On the General tab, click Accessibility.
Under Formatting, select the Ignore colors specified on Web pages check box, and
then click OK twice.

Notes

• This procedure changes the colors only in the right (topic) pane of the Help
viewer, not in the navigation pane, which contains the Contents, Index, and
Search tabs.

• This procedure also changes the colors used to display Web pages in Internet
Explorer.

Important

• If you choose text and background colors that are similar, the Help text can
become unreadable.

• If you are using the high-contrast black color scheme, you may not be able to read
the text in Help viewer because the background blends closely with the font color.
To fix this, on the General tab, click Accessibility, and then select the Ignore
colors specified on Web pages check box.
Related Topics
Using Help viewer keyboard shortcuts
If your mouse is unavailable or if you prefer to use your keyboard, you can use the
following keyboard commands to navigate within the Help viewer. These shortcuts apply
to the Help viewer only, not to Help and Support Center.
To expand the headings below using the keyboard, press F6 to switch from the Help
navigation pane to the topic pane. Press TAB to select the desired keyboard shortcut
heading, and then press ENTER to expand the listing.

Help Viewer keyboard shortcuts

Press To
ALT+SPACEBAR Display the system menu.
SHIFT+F10 Display the Help viewer shortcut menu.
ALT+TAB Switch between the Help viewer and other open windows.
ALT+O Display the Options menu.
ALT+O, and then
Hide or show the navigation pane.
press T
CTRL+TAB Switch to the next tab in the navigation pane.
CTRL+SHIFT+TAB Switch to the previous tab in the navigation pane.
UP ARROW Move up one topic in the table of contents, index, or search results list.
DOWN ARROW Move down one topic in the table of contents, index, or search results list.
PAGE UP Move up one page in the table of contents, index, or search results list.
PAGE DOWN Move down one page in the table of contents, index, or search results list.
F6 Switch focus between the navigation pane and the topic pane.
ALT+O, and then
Refresh the topic that appears in the topic pane.
press R
UP ARROW or
Scroll through a topic.
DOWN ARROW
CTRL+HOME Move to the beginning of a topic.
CTRL+END Move to the end of a topic.
CTRL+A Highlight all text in the topic pane.
ALT+O, and then
Print a topic.
press P
ALT+O, and then
Move back to the previously viewed topic.
press B
ALT+O, and then
Move forward to the next (previously viewed) topic.
press F
ALT+F4 Close the Help viewer.

Contents tab keyboard shortcuts

Press To
ALT+C Display the Contents tab.
RIGHT ARROW Open a book.
LEFT ARROW Close a book.
BACKSPACE Return to the previous open book.
UP ARROW or DOWN ARROW Select a topic.
ENTER Display the selected topic.

Index tab keyboard shortcuts

Press To
ALT+N Display the Index tab.
UP ARROW or DOWN ARROW Select a keyword in the list.
ALT+D or ENTER Display the associated topic.
 Search tab keyboard shortcuts
Press To
ALT+S Display the Search tab.
ALT+L Start a search.
ALT+D or ENTER Display the selected topic.
Related Topics
•