PowerPoint: Running an Intro Presentation before the Main Event

SCENARIO: While you are waiting for your slideshow presentation audience to file into the room – you’d like to run a few introductory slides…looping over and over until you’re ready to run the main presentation. At which point, you’d like to just tap a key and the main presentation starts.

 

SOLUTION: Create a few slides that you want to have repeat as your before-show-fill-in – and have them set to LOOP until you press a key – then they automatically fall out of the loop…and your main event (presentation) starts.

 

Full tip: PowerPoint tip

Categories: PowerPoint

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Outlook: 7 Keyboard Shortcuts worth Their Weight in Gold

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m the keyboard/shortcut queen. (Queen/fanatic – it’s a fine line). There’s a reason for this…it is fast(er) and I think that, as we get older – it keeps us sharp.

 

Most of the most-used Office keyboard shortcuts make sense and are easy-peasy to remember (think [CTRL] O for Open, [CTRL] S for Save, etc.)

 

Some keyboard shortcuts aren’t quite as straightforward but are worth the effort ([CTRL] W (think weeeeee, we’re done) to close a document, [CTRL] mouse-wheel to Zoom, etc.)

 

The following Outlook keyboard shortcuts fall into the second category. Don’t whine – stretch that brain and just learn them. They’re worth it.

 

Full tip: Outlook tip

 

Categories: Outlook

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Outlook: I like Big Print…I cannot lie

If you are often scanning your Inbox – header (sender) by header…it might be helpful to make your header text BIGGER than the preview text that is included with it.

 

Full tip: Outlook tip

Categories: Outlook

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Excel (Intermediate): Look Behind the (Equation) Scene

Scenario: You have a big huge spreadsheet – lots of equations. One particular equation that you are observing up in the Formula Bar…you’d like to analyze it a bit closer. You’d like to confirm the values that it is using – without having to look directly at or go to any of the cells that it is referencing.

 

You know that whenever the cell pointer is sitting on a cell – you can see the true contents of the cell up in the Formula Bar (just below the ribbon).

 

Without having to actual go to (or look at) one of the cells being reference in the equation – you’d like to know what’s is real value is.

 

Full tip: Excel tip

Categories: Excel

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Word: 1 Trick; 1 Life Saver

 

Full tip: Word tip

 

Categories: Word

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101: Know Your Operating System

Are you a user (good) or a muggle (not good)? A lack of basic general computer knowledge is the biggest hurdle that separates real users from the walking disasters. You will never be proficient or comfortable in any a program if you don’t have adequate computer knowledge.

 

So…from time to time I am going to devote a Tip to understanding your computer. Geeks: take a break – or pass it to your parents (sorry Mom!) or sister (tee hee). I’m going to call these tips “101”. These 101 tips will not be for the geeks out there…they’re for ANYONE who ever uses the wordy “thingy” when asking for help. (shudder)

 

Full tip: Operating System tip

Categories: Computers 101

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PowerPoint: The Quiet Hero – the Selection Pane

The PowerPoint SELECTION PANE makes it so much easier to work on slides that contain numerous graphic and text (box) images. How?

 

Full tip: PowerPoint tip

Categories: PowerPoint

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Windows: Assigning a Static Drive Letter (Advanced-ish)

 

Ok – I LOVE this tip. I use it and it has saved me a whole lotta hassle.

 

Here’s the scenario:

You have a USB or portable hard drive that you use on a regular basis. So often, in fact, that you have added a number of its folders to your Windows Favourites (see Tip #122) – for quick access.

 

BUT…if you unplug that drive – and then plug it in again…Windows very often will have assigned a different drive letter to it….making those lovely Favourites shortcuts you created useless.

 

Well…you can assign an unchanging (known in the computer world as static) drive letter to that portable drive so that whenever you plug it in to one of your USB drives (and it doesn’t matter which one) it always uses the same drive letter. I know…you are probably doing the Happy dance right now!

 

Full tip: Windows tip

Categories: Windows 10

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Excel: Easier Data Entry

 

The next time you are finding yourself having to type a bunch of records into a spreadsheet – here are two ways to make the job go faster/easier.

 

Full tip: Excel tip

Categories: Excel

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Excel: Cleaning Up Badly-Imported Dates

 

When importing data from another source, sometimes you get a mangled mess that prevents you from using Excel’s great functions to analyze that data.

 

DATES are a good example.

 

If imported data makes your dates look something like 20150409 you won’t be able to perform date calculations on that data.

 

A really quick way to clean up dates? TEXT-TO-COLUMNS.

 

Full tip: Excel tip

Categories: Excel

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