PowerPoint Animation Tip

Animations in PowerPoint can get your point across, when not overdone.  With PowerPoint 2007, it is easy to add sound to an animation and now users have the ability to edit the volume of the particular sound.

Once an object has been added, select it and click on the "Custom Animation" button in the "Animation" group on the "Animations" tab.

Select an animation from the "Add Effect" button and make any settings needed for the specific animation.

Once added, simply double-click on the animation in the "Custom Animation" wizard on the right side of the screen.

This window allows users to add sound and set some other specific settings.

Click on the "Sounds" drop down to select a sound.  Once the sound has been selected, simply click on the "speaker" icon to the right of the drop down.  Edit the volume by clicking the slider up or down.

Once set, click on the "OK" button to save the changes and return to the PowerPoint presentation.

Excel Cell Reference Tip

By default, Excel uses the "A1" format when referring to cells.  This means that the "A" is the Column and the "1" is the Row that is being referred to.  Most Excel users understand this; but some spreadsheet programs do not use this referencing.

Instead, other programs use the "R1C1" format when referencing cells.  Excel allows for this format as well.

To specify the format you want to use, follow these steps.

Excel 2007:

Click on the "Office" button and select the "Excel Options" button.

Select the "Formulas" tab on the left menu.

Check the "R1C1 reference style" checkbox in the "Working with Formulas" section and click the "OK" button to save the changes.



Excel 2003:
Click on the "Tools" menu and select the "Options" menu item.  Follow the above instructions from here.

Excel 2010:
Click on the "File" tab and select the "Excel Options" button.  Follow the above instructions from here.

Notice the Column Headers are now numbers instead of letters.



NOTE:  If you prefer the "A1" formatting and need to change Excel back to this preference, simply follow the above steps and uncheck the "R1C1" checkbox.

Outlook Printing Tip

How many times have you clicked on the "Print" button in Outlook only to have 4 or 5 or more pages print?  And you really only wanted the first page of the e-mail - you know, the part that showed on your Preview Pane.

I've spoken of this tip before in relation to Word and Excel; but it also applies to Outlook.

Click and drag the mouse to highlight the area you want to print.

Click on "File | Print"and in the Print Dialog window, click on the "Selection" option within the "Page Range" area.  See the image below.



Click on the "Print" button to print.  Only the highlighted selection of the e-mail will print.  This tip can save you a lot of wasted paper and ink.

NOTE:  Depending on the version of Outlook, you will need to double-click to open the e-mail prior to highlighting and selecting "File | Print."

Outlook Archive Tip

When Outlook is first setup, the default Auto-Archive is 6 months.  This means that e-mails dated 6 months ago will automatically be moved into the "Archive" folder.

This saves space in your .PST file; which is the file that contains your e-mail account information - all e-mails in the user account folder.

There are a few ways to change the Archive settings; however, for most people, Auto-Archive is probably best.

But, what if you send and receive a hundred or more e-mails a day?  This could add up to quite a bit of e-mails in your folders and can slow Outlook down.

Simply change the "Auto-Archive" settings to a smaller time period.  Follow these steps to do so.

Click on the "File" menu and select the "Options" menu item.

Click on the "Other" tab.

Click on the "AutoArchive" button.

Ensure that the "Archive or Delete old items" is checked.

Once it is checked, select any of the options below to setup the AutoArchive to the time period you want.



Click on the "OK" button to save the changes and exit the window.

Click on the "OK" button to close the "Options" window and return to Outlook.

Excel Quick Tip

If you've ever needed to copy information in an Excel spreadsheet (who hasn't, right?), then this Quick Tip will become one of your favorites.

Let's say you have information in Cell A5 that needs to be copied into Cell A6.

With the cursor in Cell A6, simply press "CTRL + D."

It's that simple!

How Green is Your Excel?

Have you seen the little green triangle in the upper left corner of a cell in Excel?

What is this green triangle?

It simply tells you that something is wrong with the formula in the cell.  It may not create an error message; but when you click on the green triangle, you'll see a yellow exclamation point.

Click on the drop down next to the yellow exclamation point and Excel will provide some possible answers.

If you have Excel 2007 or 2010, the yellow exclamation point provides you with a "trace error" function which helps follow the formula to find out where there may be a mistake.

Understand these "smart tags" like the green triangle and you'll be able to correct errors without a lot of frustration.

Outlook Quick Tip

Would you like more room on the Outlook Desktop?  If so, did you know you can turn the Navigation Pane On or Off, as needed?

Simply press "ALT + F1" to toggle the Navigation Pane On or Off.

Turn it "Off" when you need more space or turn it "On" when you need to see folders.

It's that simple!