herbert,
thanks for the link to the tutorial - seems to be a good start. will work on it together with a book i ordered on linux.
you will not believe it: i actually figured it out how to save files that i work on in abiword (the full version, the main advantage being that i can save it in .doc format, i have to admit)
directly onto my sd-card.
the exact steps for installing and using abiword (for those who care):1) install abiword as described here:
http://olpcnews.com/forum/index.php?topic=1020.0 (very easy, takes about 20 seconds)
2) open the normal write activity and press ctrl+n to start abiword. advantage: you do not have to destroy the write activity which can be used by kids but you have the add-on abiword with more possibilities and the ability to save documents in different "normal" formats and to directories where you want to have them.
3) write something.
4) to save this directly onto an external media device such as an sd-card or usb-stick, click on file, save as.
5) in this pop up enter a name for the file at the top. click on the little triangle to open "browse for other folders", under "Places" DOUBLEclick on file system (wait, it takes some time until it opens, that was my mistake being too quick in the past), go to the folder named "media" (you probably have to scroll down a bit!)
6) DOUBLEclick on media: it will show your external media devices (mine show up not with a name but numbers like513E-525B), again double click on it and it will show you the files on the sd card/ usb stick.
7) use the "Save file as type" command to save file in different formats, such as abiword, doc, etc.

click on save.
now you have your newly created file on your sd-card or usb stick! when using abiword you can now access those files directly through the icon open.
problems that remain:
a) funny enough this newly created file does not show up when you now go to the journal and from there on to the sd-card icon on the bottom. it only shows up after you have either rebooted or removed and put the sd-card back in. not a real problem as you can access the file through abiword and on other computers when using the card there.
b) i would love to be able to find a way that the default saving would save my files in abiword in a certain format (for example .doc) and always on the external device. every single time i saved different files i had to go through the process of saving as .doc and telling it exactly where to save. a default setting would make live easier.
c) as for b) i would like to find a way to set a default setting for saving record activities directly on my sd-card as well.
hope this helps
klaus