Photoshop Elements Help is available several ways, each one useful to you for different circumstances.
LiveDocs Help on the web
Help in the application
Help PDF
Links in the application
The two forms of Help that will be most useful to you are LiveDocs Help on the web and Help in the application. Help in the application is a convenient first step in getting help because it’s built into the application and does not require an Internet connection. It covers most concepts and many tasks in an abbreviated form. LiveDocs Help on the web contains in-depth coverage of all concepts and tasks and requires an Internet connection. If you want to know more about a topic in the application Help, you can jump easily to the LiveDocs Help on the web; just click “This page on the web” at the bottom of any topic.
The search feature in Help works by searching the entire Help text for topics that contain any of the words typed in the Search For box. These tips can help you improve your search results in Help:
If you search using a phrase, such as “shape tool,” put quotation marks around the phrase. The search returns only those topics containing all the words in the phrase.
Make sure that the search terms are spelled correctly.
If a search term doesn’t yield results, try using a synonym, such as “web” instead of “Internet.”
If you find a topic you may want to view again, bookmark it for easy access later.
To print a topic from Help, use the Print command in the browser.
LiveDocs Help on the web is the most comprehensive and up-to-date version of Photoshop Elements Help. It is the recommended choice if you have an Internet connection.
Once you are in LiveDocs for Photoshop Elements, you can navigate from the side panel in any of the following ways:
Choose a different product from the pop-up menu.
Use the Search field to search within Photoshop Elements Help.
Browse all topics in Photoshop Elements Help using the contents or index.
Help in the application provides easy access to summarized information on common tasks and concepts. Help in the application can be especially useful if you are new to Photoshop Elements or if you aren’t connected to the Internet.
To access the Photoshop Elements Help in the application, use the F1 key on your keyboard or choose Photoshop Elements Help from the Help menu.
If you are connected to the Internet, you can click “This page on the web” on any page in the application’s Help to go to the corresponding page in LiveDocs.
Help is also available as a PDF that is optimized for printing; just go to Photoshop Elements Help PDF. This is the best way to access the most comprehensive Help when you don’t have an Internet connection.
There are some links within Photoshop Elements (for example, in the Guided Edits section, there are “Tell me more...” links for each of the guided tasks). Clicking these links will take you to the corresponding topic in either LiveDocs Help or Help in the application.