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When you use a computer or typewriter to create text documents, you are word processing. When you use a specialized computer program to create professional-quality documents that combine text and other visual elements in non-linear arrangements, you are desktop publishing. Microsoft Office Publisher 2007 is designed specifically to handle the various desktop publishing needs of individuals and small organizations. Publisher makes it easy to efficiently create a wide range of publications, from simple flyers to complex brochures. Even novice users will be able to work productively in Publisher after only a brief introduction.
In this chapter, you will first learn various ways to create blank publications and publications based on existing content. You will save a publication, open an existing publication, and display different views of it. You will then store standard contact information in Publisher for later use. Finally, you will preview and print a publication.
See Also
Do you need only a quick refresher on the topics in this chapter? See the Quick Reference entries in Getting Started with Publisher 2007.
Important
Before you can use the practice files in this chapter, you need to install them from the book’s companion CD to their default location. See Using the Book’s CD for more information.
Troubleshooting
Graphics and operating system–related instructions in this book reflect the Windows Vista user interface. If your computer is running Windows XP and you experience trouble following the instructions as written, please refer to the Information for Readers Running Windows XP section at the beginning of this book.
When you first start Publisher, you see the Getting Started window, from which you can start a new publication or open an existing one.
Important
What you see on your screen might not match the graphics in this book exactly. The screens in this book were captured at a resolution of 1024 × 768 pixels with the Windows Vista Basic color scheme. The Windows taskbar is hidden to increase the space available for the program window.
The Getting Started window provides several options for starting a new publication, such as the following:
If you need help designing the publication layout, you can base the publication on one of the design templates that comes with Publisher. If none of these templates meets your needs, you can download a sample publication from Microsoft Office Online and then customize it. You can also base publications on your own custom templates.
See Also
For information about creating your own templates, see the sidebar titled Custom Templates, later in this chapter.
If you have an existing publication that is close enough in content and design to be a good starting point, you can save a copy of that publication as the starting point for the new one.
If your content is in a Microsoft Office Word document, you can import the document into Publisher and then lay out the text as you want it.
If you want to manually design the publication, you can create a new blank publication and specify the page size you want.
See Also
For information about creating a blank publication, see Formatting Text for Visual Impact in Chapter 2.
Creating a publication from a blank page is time-consuming and requires quite a bit of design skill and knowledge about Publisher. Even people with intermediate and advanced Publisher skills can save time by capitalizing on the work someone else has already done. In the Getting Started window, you can choose a publication type, preview thumbnails of the available designs of that type, and experiment with different color schemes and font schemes.
Tip
The templates that come with Publisher, as well as those that are available from Office Online, have associated keywords. You can type a keyword in the Search For Templates box at the top of the Getting Started window and then click the Search button (the green arrow to the right of the search location list) to display thumbnails of templates to which that keyword has been assigned.
When you create a publication based on a template, you are not opening the actual template file; instead, you are creating a new file that includes all the placeholders, graphic elements, and formatting of the template. You customize the publication with your own information, typing text and placing graphics and other elements in the placeholders provided. The new file is temporary until you save it.
See Also
For information about saving a publication, see Saving and Closing Publications, later in this chapter.
To import the text of a Word document into a publication, you click Import Word Documents in the Publication Types list and then choose a document design, page size, and column layout. (If you prefer, you can forego the design and choose only a generic page size or a paper format such as those available from Avery.) Publisher converts the document and inserts it into a new publication, adding as many pages as necessary to hold the complete document. You can then add a title and replace any other placeholders that are part of the design, or you can add new elements to suit the purpose of the publication.
In this exercise, you will create a publication based on a ready-made template that comes with Publisher. You will also import a Word document.
Note
USE the Importing document. This practice file is located in the DocumentsMicrosoft PressSBS_Publisher2007GettingStarted folder.
Click the Start button, click All Programs, click Microsoft Office, and then click Microsoft Office Publisher 2007.
The Getting Started window opens.
In the left pane of the Getting Started window, under Publication Types, click Quick Publications.
Tip
If you are already working on a publication, you can display the Getting Started window by clicking New on the File menu (but not by clicking the New button on the Standard toolbar).
Under the publication type heading at the top of the center pane is a list of template categories for the selected publication type, followed by a link to the templates of this type that are available from Office Online. (Clicking the link displays the online templates under the Microsoft Office Online Templates heading rather than opening a separate Internet browser window.) Thumbnails of the available publication templates appear in category order. The right pane displays a larger thumbnail of the selected template, and any available customization options.
In the category list at the top of the center pane, click Classic Designs.
The pane scrolls to display thumbnails of the ready-made classic designs for one-page announcements or cover pages.
Scroll the center pane to see the available designs, and then under Classic Designs, click the Pixel thumbnail.
The selected publication is indicated by an orange frame. A larger thumbnail and the customization options that you can set before you create the publication appear in the right pane.
In the right pane, under Options, click the Layout arrow (to the right of the Large picture at top setting), and then in the list, click Large picture in the middle.
All the thumbnails change to show this layout option.
In the lower-right corner of the window, click Create.
A publication based on the selected template opens in a new Publisher program window.
Tip
You can create a simple publication directly from a Word document. On the Standard toolbar, click the Open button. Then with All Publisher Files selected as the file type in the Open Publication dialog box, locate and double-click the Word document you want to use. The new publication contains the document text but doesn’t have a template applied.
The Publisher program window displays all the tools you need to customize the publication. You carry out most tasks by clicking commands on menus or buttons on toolbars. Common tasks you might want to perform for the current publication are gathered in one convenient place in the Format Publication task pane to the left of the publication workspace.
See Also
For information about menu commands and toolbar buttons, see Introducing Publisher 2007 at the beginning of this book.
In the Format Publication task pane, under Quick Publication Options, click Change Template.
Publisher opens the Change Template window, which looks very similar to the Getting Started window. You can apply a different Quick Publication template to the open publication, or you can switch to an entirely different type of publication.
In the center pane, click Layers, and then click OK.
The fonts, colors, and arrangement of the existing content change to reflect the new template.
Minimize the Publication1 window to redisplay the Publication Types list in the original Getting Started window.
In the Publication Types list, click Import Word Documents. Then in the center pane, under Classic Designs, click Capsules.
Under Options in the right pane, click the Columns arrow, and then click 2.
All the thumbnails change to show a two-column layout.
Select the Include title page check box, and then click Create.
Publisher opens the Import Word Document dialog box so that you can designate the document whose text you want to use.
Troubleshooting
This graphic shows the Import Word Document dialog box that opens on a computer running Windows Vista. If your computer is running Windows XP, navigational dialog boxes such as this one will look and work differently. For more information, refer to the Information for Readers Running Windows XP section at the beginning of this book.
In your Documents folder, navigate to the Microsoft PressSBS_Publisher2007GettingStarted folder, and double-click the Importing document.
Publisher creates a new publication based on the Capsules template that contains the text of the Importing document.
On the page sorter at the bottom of the program window, click the page 2 button.
Publisher has inserted the contents of the imported Word document in two columns on the second page.
