Apple IIgs - Manual (Page 10)

Page 10 of 84 II gs
Printed: Thursday, July 25, 2002 12:14:50 PM
you press a combination of keys that tells the application to save your document. (The manual
that came with the application will explain exactly how to save your work.)
Once you've saved your document on a disk, it's OK to quit the application and turn off the
computer's power. When you flip the power switch, the copy of the document that was stored
electron-ically in the memory of the computer is lost, but you can retrieve a copy of the
document from the disk any time you want to work on it.
Formatting a Disk
Before you can store documents on a blank disk, the disk has to be formatted, or initialized.
(The terms are used interchangeably.) Formatting a blank disk magnetically divides the disk
into numbered parking spaces where information can be stored and retrieved.
Some applications have a formatting option on a menu within the application. Other applications
expect you to format disks by using the System Disk. You'll learn more about formatting in
Chapter 4 and in the system disk guide.
Making a Backup Copy
Once your document is safe on a disk, you can rest easy. It's just like having a paper copy of
your document in a file cabinet. The only reason you wouldn't be able to get it back is if you
lost the disk or left it in your shirt pocket through a wash-and-dry cycle. This doesn't happen
very often, but it always seems to happen the day before an important deadline with work that
is irreplaceable. That's why it's a good idea to save the same document on two separate disks
(or on three or four separate disks if the document is really important).
Some companies go so far as to store backup copies of important disks in a safe off the
premises. The least you should do is keep your backup copy far enough from the original so that
one cup of coffee can't reach both in one spilling.
You can make backup copies in two ways. You can save the document while you're using the
application program, eject that disk, then save the document again on a second disk. Or you can
copy the document onto a second disk after quitting the application by using the System Disk.
You should also make backup copies of your applications. However, don't be surprised if you
can't duplicate every application you buy. Many manufacturers copy-protect (make it impossible
to copy) their disks to protect themselves from software pirates, who illegally duplicate and
distribute their applications. If you can't copy an application, the manufacturer generally
provides one backup copy or tells you how to replace a damaged application program disk at a
nominal cost.
Editing a Document
To edit a document that's stored on a disk, start up the application you used to create the
document (a word processing application for a letter, a spreadsheet for a budget, and so on),
and then instruct the application to get the document from the disk on which you saved it. (The
manual that came with the application will tell you how to do this.) At your request, a copy of
that document is loaded into the memory of the computer, and a portion of the document
(whatever can't) appears on the screen.
If you make changes to the document, and like what you've done, you have to save the revised
version of the document on the disk. (If you forget to save it, your original document will
still be on the disk, but it won't include any of your additions or changes.)
If you save the revised document without changing the name, the revised document replaces the
original document on the disk. Almost all applications warn you that there is already a