How to manage the text: Copying/Cutting and Pasting text

You can copy or move text within a document or between documents. You can also copy text from other sources such as web pages. This is the procedure.

After selecting text, as described previously, you can use the mouse or the keyboard for these operations – they all lead to the same result, choose the way you like best

Cut: from menu Edit → Cut, or press the key combination “ctrl+x”, or press the cut icon on the tool bar

Copy: from menu Edit → Copy, or press the key combination “ctrl+c” or the copy icon on the tool bar

Paste: Edit → Paste, or press the key combination “ctrl+v” or the paste icon on the tool bar

Please note: all the three menus are also available with mouse right click on selected text (picture below)

To cut/copy: select text, put the mouse pointer on selected text, press the mouse right button, this action opens a short list of menus (as in the right picture), then choose Copy/Cut

To paste: put the mouse pointer on desired passage where you want to paste a copied text, press the mouse right button, choose paste

The result of a paste operation depends on the source of the text to be pasted:

• If you simply click on the paste icon any formatting text has (such as bold or italic) is retained.

• Text pasted from websites may be placed into frames or tables.

If you want to make the pasted text look like the existing formatting of the text where it is to be pasted, choose : menu edit ⇒ paste special or click the triangle to the right on the paste icon and then select “Unformatted text” from the appearing menu.

Use the previous example to move the last sentence to the beginning:

"My name is George and I live in London. My wife is Elizabeth and we have two children, Oliver and Mary.
Today is my birthday and I am happy."

Select the last sentence, press cut icon, place the cursor on left of the first word, (“My..” in the example) press paste icon. This is the result:

"Today is my birthday and I am happy. My name is George and I live in London. I'm married with Elizabeth and we have two children, Oliver and Mary."

Note: also in this case you can use the option Undo (as described before) to return to a previous condition.

Another example: copy text from a website. This is the procedure

• open a web site (for example BBC news)
• choose a text to copy ⇒ select (as described) ⇒ mouse right click on selection ⇒ choose copy or press the key combination shortcut “ctrl+c”

then
• open a new WRITER file and save it
• press the triangle on the right of the paste button ⇒ choose “unformatted text”

This is the result and then you can format the text in different ways, as you prefer.
 

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