Office

An easy way to put common symbols into a Microsoft Word document is to let its AutoCorrect feature do it for you.

Here are some handy examples:

Type (c) to create this symbol: ©

Type (r) to create this symbol: ®

Type (tm) to create this symbol: ™ 

Type -> to create this symbol: →

Type <- to create this symbol: ←

Note: If text isn't replaced with a symbol, you may need to turn on Word's AutoCorrect
feature.  You can do that by following these steps:

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button (in the upper left-hand corner of the ribbon).
2. Click the "Word Options" button.
3. In the left-hand menu column, click "Proofing".
4. Under AutoCorrect options, click the "AutoCorrect Options" button, and then click the AutoCorrect tab.
5. Click the checkbox next to "Replace text as you type".
6. Click the "OK" buttons to exit out of the Options menu.

You can easily alphabetize the text of a one-level bulleted or numbered list in MS Word 2007.

Here's how to do it:

1. Select the items in a bulleted or numbered list.
2. On the Home tab, in the Paragraph group, click the AZ button to choose Sort.
3. In the "Sort Text" dialog box under "Sort by" click Paragraphs, and for "Type" click text, and then click either Ascending (A to Z) or Descending (Z to A).

 

Bad news: the calendar in Outlook 2007 doesn't display holidays, unlike previous versions of Outlook.
Good news: adding holidays to your calendar is easy! Just follow these steps...  read more »

1. Open Outlook
2. Click Tools on the menu bar
3. In the Tools dropdown menu, click Options
4. In the Options dialog box, click the Calendar Options button
5. In the Calendar Options dialog box, click the Add Holidays button
6. In the Add Holidays to Calendar dialog box, click the box next to United States, and then click the OK button
   
7. The Import Holidays window will open
8. When a "The Holidas were added to your Calendar" confirmation dialog box pops up, click the OK button to close it
   
9. Click the OK button to close the Calendar Options dialog box
10. Click the OK button to close the Options dialog box
    

When you're creating a bulleted or numbered list in Word or PowerPoint, you might want an item to appear on the list without a bullet, like this:

• Non- Fiction
• Fiction
  Mysteries
  Romances
  Science Fiction
• Audiobooks

To do this, press the Shift key and the Enter key; this will start a new line without a bullet.

The next time you press the Enter key, the new line will continue the bulleted or numbered list.

You've compiled a big, complicated spreadsheet full of numbers and you want the important ones to stand out. Give conditional formatting a try - it's an Excel technique that changes cell appearance based on rules you set up, like "Turn the cell green if its value is less than 100."

Conditional formatting allows Excel to apply a defined format to cells that meet specific criteria. You can use a different background color, font color or border. The goal is to make important cells stand out so you can find them easier. Excel already does some of this for you. An example is when you format cells with numbers, there are options on how to display negative numbers in red.  read more »

You're working in a long document, but you have to leave for the day. When you come back tomorrow, wouldn't it be nice to open the document, and then quickly return to the spot where you stopped? Press Shift-F5 and you're there! In fact, you can repeat the key combo to go to the last three places in the document where you made changes.

The dialogue box for adding page numbers is found under Word's Insert menu with the Page Numbers option. This box lets you choose where you want the numbers to appear on the page and how they should look. Click into each section to adjust the page numbers for that chapter.

Uncheck the box next to "Show number on first page" in the Page Numbers box. This will remove the page number from the first page of your document. Handy if you've got a cover page.  read more »

1. Open your Word document
2. Click File
3. Select Print
4. Click the Options button
   
5. Check the Reverse Print Order box
   
6. Click OK to close the Print Options window.
7. Click OK to start printing

When you click Excel's AutoSum button from a cell next to a row or column of numbers, Excel automatically sums those numbers.

You don't have to type a formula (=sum()) or drag through the cells. Excel figures out what’s needed and adds the precise summing you need.

Now here's the really nice part. There's a keyboard shortcut that lets you do this without having to change your focus from the worksheet to the toolbar.

In Windows, just press the Alt key and = (the equal sign).  read more »

How do I change the default font for things like page numbers, headers, footers, footnotes, and endnotes?

These are all styles. You can change the attributes of any style for the current document or for all documents based on the current template. If the current template is the Normal template and you select the Add to template option below, all of your ordinary new documents will reflect the style changes that you make.

Word 2000:  read more »