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# How To Create and Save a Document

When you launch AbiWord, it starts with a blank document. You can type into this document, just like any other. If you want to create a new document, press the 'New Document' button on the top toolbar (this is called the standard toolbar). This is the button that looks like a piece of paper.

Once you have a blank document, you may type whatever you want into that document. However, the words you type are not saved to disk until you tell AbiWord to save them. You should save frequently while you are typing, because you can lose any unsaved work if your computer crashes.

To save a document, press the 'Save' button on the standard toolbar. This is the button that looks like a floppy disk.

After you save your document, the 'Save' button appears faded until you type some more. This is because the document is unchanged, so there is no point in saving it.

The first time you save a document, you must choose a place to save it, and a name for the document. When you press the 'Save' button, the Save Dialog will open automatically. Click on the link to see the help file for the dialog.

When you have finished editing, you should close AbiWord. Select 'Quit' from the file menu. AbiWord may ask if you want to close all of your AbiWord windows and exit the program:

Press 'Yes' to exit. The warning appears if you have more than one AbiWord window open. If you do not, AbiWord simply exits.

If you have not saved all of your changes, AbiWord will prompt you to do so:

You should save your changes unless you have decided that you don't want them. Any changes that you do not save are lost for ever.

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