1) The majority of the documents in this portal are in PDF format, so make sure that you have Acrobat Reader™ (version 4.0 or later) installed on your computer. If it is not already installed, you can download the program free of charge here: www.adobe.com.

2) On this portal's Home Page, click on your area of interest. You'll then see a list of GSDL assessments. Click on an assessment title and you'll be shown a list of available educational documents which are available for viewing. Each listing is a link, so simply click on the document title. The file should launch in a new Adobe Acrobate Reader window screen with a toolbar across the top and bookmarks on the left-hand side.

NAVIGATING AND USING PDF DOCUMENTS

3) To move from page to page, you either use the right-left arrows that fram the page numbers on the bottom panel (status bar) or the up-down arrows on the sidebar at the right.

4) For other navigation options and more information on using Acrobat, refer to the Reader Guide in the Acrobat Reader™ program, located in the upper pull-down menu under "Help."

SOME ADVANTAGES OF USING PDF DOCUMENTS

Ability to copy and paste text and graphics

With the Text Select Tool (click on the "T" icon in the tool bar at the top of your screen, or type "v" on your keyboard), you can select text anywhere in the document and copy and paste it into other documents. Highlight the text you want to copy with your mouse, then choose "Copy" from the "Edit" menu on the top of the screen (or press and hold "Command" as you type "c" on your keyboard). Open the new document and select "Paste" from the "Edit" menu on the top of the screen (or press and hold "Command" as you type "v" on your keyboard) to insert the text.

It is also possible to cut and paste graphics into other applications suchas Microsoft Powerpoint™ and Microsoft Word™. Next to the "T" icon, find the graphics icon--an icon showing a dotted box containing a small white square and black circle. Go back to the document and position your cursor outside any corner of the graphic you wish to select. Click and hold the mouse, dragging the cursor diagonally over the graphic to enclose it within the dotted rectangle that appears. Then copy and paste the graphic into the new document using the same commands as for text (see above).

Be aware that some graphics may not reproduce clearly due to their resolution, or due to the native application in which the graphics were made. Future technology updates will improve the clarity of these images.

Ability to search the document

You can locate key words anywhere in this resource CD-ROM by clicking on the icon with binoculars (the "FIND" command) found in the tool bar at the top of your screen. Type in the word you want to find. The search will start from whatever page is currently open or selected in the document.

To track the search, watch the page numbers progress in the bottom panel (status bar) as the search engine scans each page for the word.

To continue the search after the search engine highlights an occurrence of the word in a document, select "Find Again" from the "Edit" menu at the top of your screen, or click on the "Find" icon from the toolbar and select "Find Again" from among those options.

Ability to magnify and reduce the page view

You can increase or decrease the page view, making the text and graphics in the document appear larger or smaller, based on your needs. To magnify or reduce the page view, click on the small plus or minus signs, located on the toolbar under the HELP menu.

You can also magnify the size by clicking on the magnifying glass in the upper tool bar and then clicking on the document page. Each time you click on the document page the view will be magnified.

Ability to print the document

To print a document, first select File > Page Setup from the pull-down menu to set general printing options. These options will vary depending on your printer specifications.

Then click the "Print" button in the toolbar (the icon near the upper left showing the small printer), or choose File > Print from the pull-down menu. Specify the printer, page range, number of copies, and other options, and click OK.

Important: Remember to specify the Page Range before clicking "OK" if you do not wish to print the entire document!

By selecting specific text or graphics before printing (see # 1), you can print only highlighted sections from a single page of the document. First select the text or graphic you want to print. Then print the document, making sure the Selected Pages Or Selected Graphic (Windows) or Selected Thumbnails/Graphic (Mac) option is checked in the Print dialog box before clicking "OK." This is a default setting on many printers.