.. _Create a Text Component:

***********************
Create a Text Component
***********************

.. tags:: educator, how-to

#. Under **Add New Component**, select **Text**.

#. Select the template.

   The rest of these instructions assume that you selected **Text**, which
   creates an empty Text component with the :ref:`visual editor<The Visual
   Editor>` selected.

   An empty Text component appears at the bottom of the unit, and the Text
   component opens in the visual editor.

#. Enter and format your content. You can :ref:`review the HTML markup<Work
   with HTML code>`.

#. To enter a display name for the component, select the Pencil icon next to
   the title in the top left corner of the visual editor. Changing the
   display name from it's default value to a unique, descriptive display name
   can help you and your learners identify course content quickly and
   accurately. If no title is present, the platform shows "Text" as the name
   of the component when in Studio.

#. Select **Save**.

When you use the visual editor, you can also perform the following tasks.

* :ref:`Add a Link in a Text Component`
* :ref:`Add an Image to a Text Component`
* :ref:`Import LaTeX Code<import latex code>`

.. _Text Component Templates:

========================
Text Component Templates
========================

When you create a Text component, you select from a list of templates and
editor types, including the following:

* Text
* Announcement
* IFrame Tool
* Raw HTML

The **Text** template loads the Visual Editor with no pre-canned text.

The **Announcement** and the **IFrame Tool** templates load the Visual Editor
with pre-canned text that instructs the user how to format Announcements,
or how to use IFrames.

The **Raw HTML** editor type uses the raw HTML editor by default. All other
options use the visual editor by default. There is no way to switch between
Visual and Raw editor types once selected.

.. seealso::
 :class: dropdown

 :ref:`Working with Text Components` (reference)

 :ref:`Paste without Formatting in a Text Component` (how-to)

 :ref:`Add an Image to a Text Component` (how-to)

 :ref:`Add Link to Website Course Unit or File` (how-to)

 :ref:`Work with HTML code` (how-to)

 :ref:`Work with Latex Code` (how-to)