Opening Document Files

You can open recently used document files in Windows using the Documents menu on the Start menu. You can also open Office documents as you open other files using Windows Explorer or My Computer. You can open document files from within an Office program as well by clicking the Open button or by choosing File | Open.

The Basics of Opening Documents from Within an Office Program

To open an existing document, click the Open button, which appears on the Standard toolbar, or choose File | Open. When the Office program displays the Open dialog box, follow these steps to open the document file:

Callouts

1.      Use the Look In drop-down list box or the Places bar to select the document file’s storage location. If the file you're looking for isn't in the default folder, activate the Look In drop-down list box to display a list of your drives. Click the drive that contains the document file you want, and then double-click folders and subfolders until you locate your file. Alternatively, you can start looking through the folder hierarchy by clicking the Up One Level button next to the Look In drop-down list box.

2.      When you find the document file, double-click it or select it and click Open.

TIP: To modify your search further, you can enter the filename into the File Name drop-down list box. Refer to "Searching for Lost Document Files" later in this chapter for more information on this feature.

NOTE: You can also typically use the File menu to reopen any of the four document files you used most recently. They are listed at the bottom of the File menu. Just click a file to open it. Chapter 4 describes how you can add more documents to the File menu.