i just did an "erase and install" on my computer, and when i drug everything back to my computer from the external hard drive. however, now i cant open microsoft word. i have an exam on tuesday that I need it for and i dont want to pay for it, HELP!

While most applications in OS X allow you to simply drag them to the applications folder, so do require an installation. You will need to reinstall Word either using the DVD you originally installed it from or the download from Microsoft along with your key.

There are free alternatives, such as OpenOffice.

If you purchased your version of Office online, you can redownload it from Microsoft using your product key (I don't know why the link says "office2010"... but the link is for Office for Mac 2011):

https://www2.downloadoffice2010.microsoft.com/macdl/registerkey.aspx?ref=macdl&c ulture=en-US

They used to have a free 30 trial, but I don't seem to see that anywhere.