Buzz
Microsoft Publisher is an Office application that allows you to create professional documents like newspapers, postcards, flyers, invitations, and advertisements using pre-made templates. After selecting a template, you can easily add text and images as desired, then save and print your creation.
Steps
Select a Template
Launch Microsoft Publisher. Once the application opens, a Catalog window will appear on the screen. The Catalog window offers a wide variety of publications and templates that you can use to design documents, including newspapers, advertising materials, signs, greeting cards, letterheads, envelopes, banners, and more.
Look at the left column and click on the type of publication you want to create. A variety of templates for the selected publication type will appear in the right-hand pane.
Scroll through the templates in the right-hand pane to choose one. For example, if you select 'Newsletter' as the publication type and the content is aimed at children, try the 'Kid Stuff Newsletter' template.
Select a template, then click on 'Start Wizard' in the bottom-right corner of the Catalog window. Once the Catalog window disappears, the template will open in the Publisher window.
Create Document
Click 'Next' in the left pane once the Publisher template wizard starts. The wizard will guide you through the process of formatting your document.
Follow the instructions provided by the Publisher wizard to create your document. This process will vary depending on the type of publication you are working on. For instance, if you're creating a newsletter, the wizard will ask you to choose a color scheme and decide whether you want the recipient's address printed on the document.
Click 'Finish' on the last tab of the Publisher wizard. The wizard will minimize, and you can now begin adding text and images to your document.
Click on the section of the document where you want to add content. The document will contain various placeholders for images or text. In most cases, Publisher will replace the example text and images in each template to give you a general idea of how to draft and format your document. For example, with envelopes, Publisher will insert a dummy address in the appropriate text box, which you can replace with real information.
Type your content or insert images into each placeholder as desired. You can also add additional placeholders to the document if needed.
Add More Placeholders
Click on the 'Insert' tab and select 'Draw Text Box'.
Position the cursor at the location you want to set as the top-left corner of the text box.
Drag the cursor diagonally downwards and to the right until the text box reaches the desired size.
Click inside the text box and begin typing your text.
Insert Image
Position the cursor where you want to insert an image into the document.
Click on the 'Insert' tab and select 'Picture' under the Illustrations group. The 'Insert Picture' dialog box will open.
Click on the folder in the left pane that contains the image you want to add to the document.
Open the selected folder in the right pane of the dialog box.
Select the image you want to insert and click 'Insert'. The image will be added to your document.
Crop Image
Click on the image in the document that you want to crop. A border will appear around the image to indicate the selection.
Click on the 'Format' tab and choose 'Crop' under the Picture Tools group.
Place the crop handles on the edges or corners of the image that you wish to crop.
Drag the crop handles toward the part of the image you want to trim or remove.
- Hold down CTRL while dragging the middle handles to crop equally from both sides.
- Hold CTRL + Shift while dragging the corner handles to crop evenly on all four sides while maintaining the image's aspect ratio.
Save Document
Click on 'File' and select 'Save'.
Enter a name for your document in the 'Save As' dialog box.
Choose the location where you want to save the document. If you don't, Publisher will save the file in the default working directory.
Click 'Save.' Your document will now be saved.
Print Document
Click on 'File' and select 'Print'.
Enter the number of copies you want to print next to the 'Copies of print job' field.
Check the selected printer next to the 'Printer' field. In most cases, the default printer settings will automatically appear in this field.
Specify the paper size you're using for printing the document under the 'Settings' section.
Select a custom color and then click on 'Print' to send the document directly to the printer.
