DMP can display cue cards in several different formats. It can display handwritten cards that you have scanned into a bitmap file, 5 x 7 cards formatted in Word, and long-format scrolling cards. We recommend long-format cues saved as a .RTF file. Most word processors (even Wordpad) can save files as Rich Text Format (.RTF) files.
Scrolling
The best layout to use on the laptop is to write the dance out in linear fashion – the way it is danced. That might mean Intro first, Part A, Part B, Interlude, Part A again, Part B (meas 1-8), Interlude again, Part A a third time, followed by the Tag. That usually won’t all fit on the screen at once, of course, so if you are using the Basic Edition you will have to scroll the cues as you cue, but it still makes it MUCH easier to keep your place in the dance.
You can use Microsoft Word or any other word processor that can save files in .RTF (Rich Text File) format. Remember to NOT save it as .DOC – the .RTF format is how DMP knows to treat it as a “scrolling” cue card.
Karaoke Cue Cards (Advanced Edition) 
One way to make it even harder to loose your place in the dance is to let DMP keep track of it for you. If you use the scrolling cue card format, DMP can automatically highlight the correct line as you cue, scrolling the cues as necessary. You can also start the music at any point in the dance by clicking on the appropriate figure in the cue card. (You will have to record the timing for each dance beforehand, however.)
For more details, See also...
Other formats - (discouraged)
Word template
When I wrote DMP, Sandy had prepared many of her cue cards in a two-column format using Microsoft Word, so of course the program supports this format. If you use Microsoft Word, DMP will support any layout you come up with, as long as it fits in a 5x7 inch space. You can even edit the file from within DMP.
Scanned
So that you (and Sandy) don’t have to go back and spend (many) days typing in all the cue cards that you already have on paper, DMP can display scanned cards, too. I would recommend scanning them at about 150 DPI, scaled to 5x7 inches. You might have to experiment to find the best settings for your particular cue cards. Be sure to save them in BITMAP (.BMP) format so DanceMaster knows what to do with them.
Color / formatting
You can use color in your cue cards to help you differentiate between parts of the dance and/or cues and hints. (Unfortunately, cue cards tend to loose their color in the current version of DM. I hope to rectify that someday.)
Next: Installation and set-up.