Moving and Copying Information

A template can save you time by providing starter content for a document, but that starter content is not your own, unique information. When needed, you can reuse information you’ve created in one file in a new file by moving or copying that information.

Microsoft has dedicated significant effort over time to ensure that the Office applications can accept information from one another so that users can build documents that integrate content created from different applications. For example, you can use an Excel worksheet to perform complicated calculations and then reuse that information in Word or PowerPoint.

This section shows you how simple techniques enable you to work quickly and have consistent content by moving and copying information.

Understanding the Clipboard

The Windows Clipboard enables users to copy information between virtually any two applications, as long as the applications are relatively compatible in terms of the file formats they use. Windows transfers information you copy or cut from a file to the Clipboard, a temporary holding area in the system’s working memory. You can paste the information from the Clipboard into another location in the same file or into another file altogether. The information stays on the Clipboard until you copy or paste something else or shut down the computer.

The top Microsoft Office applications actually work with Office’s own version of the Clipboard, called the Office Clipboard, which improves on the capabilities of the Windows Clipboard. Whereas the Windows Clipboard can hold only one copied or cut item, the Office Clipboard (Figure 3-19) can hold up to 24.

Selecting information

Before you can copy or cut information to place it in the Clipboard, you have to select, or highlight, the information. Most users today prefer to use the mouse to select text or other onscreen content by clicking it or dragging over it. Although selection methods vary a bit between Office applications, here are some basic techniques to know:

• In Word, drag over text to select it. Word also offers a variety of shortcut techniques, such as double-clicking a word to select it, or triple-clicking a paragraph to select the whole paragraph.

• In applications that use text placeholders, such as PowerPoint and Publisher, click the placeholder to select or activate it and then drag over the specific text to select.

• In Excel worksheets and Access tables, drag diagonally over cells to select the group of cells. For example, in Figure 3-20, you can see that the range A4:38 is selected because the heavy black cell selector appears around the selected range and the row and column headings for the selected cells appear highlighted.

  Figure 3-20. Drag diagonally to select worksheet cells.

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• To select another type of item such as a graphic, click it. Black selection handles and a selection box appear around the object. You can Shift+click additional objects to add them to the selection.

Copying

Copy a selection when you want to reuse information from one location in one or more other locations. Copying a selected item leaves the original intact and places a duplicate on the Clipboard. You can use one of three methods to copy a selection that you’ve already made:

• Press Ctrl+C.

• Click the Home tab on the Ribbon and then click the Copy button. (In some Office applications, select Edit Copy.) Figure 3-21 shows the Ribbon buttons for copying, cutting, and pasting.

  Figure 3-21. Check the Home tab to find the tools for copying and moving text.

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• Right-click the selection and click Copy in the shortcut menu.

Cutting

Cutting also places the selection on the Clipboard but removes the selection from its original location rather than make a duplicate. So, when you want to move information from one file to another, you first cut the selection from its original location and then paste it into position in another file.

As with copying, you can use one of three methods to cut:

• Press Ctrl+X.

• Click the Home tab on the Ribbon and then click the Cut button.

• Right-click the selection and click Cut in the shortcut menu.

Pasting

Pasting places an item from the Clipboard into a new location within the same file or in a completely different file or application. For example, Figure 3-22 shows the selection from Figure 3-20 pasted from Excel onto a PowerPoint slide. Pasting finishes the overall activity of either copying or moving information between locations. The method you use to paste in Office depends on whether you need to use the Office Clipboard, which enables you to paste multiple selections or a selection other than the most recent item you cut or copied.

To paste directly:

1.	Click to position the insertion point at the location in which you want to paste the item. Switch to the file first, if needed. In some cases, you might have to click within a text placeholder first. In Excel, click the upper-left cell in the range to paste to.
2.	Perform the paste. As when copying or cutting, you can use one of three techniques to issue the Paste command: Press Ctrl+V. Click the Home tab on the Ribbon and then click the top portion of the Paste button. Right-click the location where you want the selection inserted and then click Paste in the shortcut menu.

Using the Office Clipboard enables you to take advantage of multiple selections that you’ve copied or cut. To paste using the Office Clipboard:

1.	Click to position the insertion point at the location in which you want to paste the item. Again, switch to the destination file first, if needed.
2.	Click the Home tab on the Ribbon.
3.	Click the Dialog Box Launcher button in the Clipboard group. The Clipboard task pane opens at the left side of the window.
4.	Click the item to paste in the task pane. As shown in Figure 3-23, the pasted item appears in the destination location. You can then resize and format it as needed in the destination. Figure 3-23. Use the Office Clipboard to paste multiple selections. [View full size image]
5.	Select additional paste locations and paste additional selections as needed.
6.	Click the Close (X) button on the task pane window to close the task pane.