How to Save a File in Mac OS X Lion

By Bob LeVitus from Mac OS X Lion For Dummies

1 of 11 in Series: The Essentials of Working with Folders in Mac OS X Lion

Saving a file in Mac OS X Lion works pretty much the same way in any application you use to create documents. This example uses TextEdit, but the process would be very similar in Microsoft Word, Adobe Photoshop, Apple Keynote, or almost any other Mac OS X application.

If you’re going to follow along, please launch the TextEdit program now (it’s in your Applications folder), and type a few words on the Untitled page that appears after you launch it.

When you choose to save a file for the first time (by choosing File→Save or pressing Command+S), a Save sheet appears in front of the document that you’re saving:

In the Save As field, type a name for your file.

When a Save sheet appears for the first time, the Save As field is active and displays the name of the document. The document name (usually, Untitled) is selected; when you begin typing, the name disappears and is replaced by the name you type.
If the Where pop-up menu lists the location where you want to save your file, choose that location, and proceed to Step 5; if not, click the disclosure button (the one with the little triangle to the right of the word Untitled).

In a basic Save sheet, the Where pop-up menu acts as a shortcut to the Documents, Desktop, Applications, Home, iDisk, and Computer folders.

If you switch to expanded view by clicking the disclosure button, the Where pop-up menu shows the path to the folder the file will be saved into.
To begin navigating the expanded Save sheet to find the folder where you want to save your file, choose among views by clicking the Icon, List, Column, or Cover Flow view button.

If you can’t find the folder in which you want to save your document, type the folder’s name in the Search box. It works just like the Search box in a Finder window.
Select the folder where you want to save your file in the Where pop-up menu.
If you want to create a new subfolder of the selected folder to save your file in, click the New Folder button, give the new folder a name, and then save your file in it.

The selected folder is where your file will be saved.

The keyboard shortcut for New Folder is Shift+Command+N regardless of whether you’re in a Save sheet or the Finder.
In the File Format pop-up menu, make sure the format selected is the one you want.
If you want to turn off the display of file extensions (such as .rtf, .pdf, and .txt) in Save sheets, select the Hide Extension check box.
Double-check the Where pop-up menu one last time to make sure that the correct folder is selected; then click the Save button to save the file to the active folder.