Tech tips: 3 ways to make life easier in Excel.

Here are three tips that will enable you to reset Excel 2010’s default formatting. Set them once, and never again.

1. Setting Formatting Options for Workbooks, Part 1

Excel does not offer many options that allow you to set formatting defaults for your workbooks. However, you can work around this by modifying the formatting in a blank workbook, then saving it as the default template.

Excel 2007:

1. Open Excel to a blank workbook.
2. Format the blank file with all options desired. For example, set margins, cell color formats, or set up a header or footer. Make sure to remove any values you entered in cells to test formatting unless you want them to appear in every blank workbook.
3. Once your changes are made, click the Office button and choose Save As.
4. From the “Files of type” drop-down list, select “Excel Template (*.xltx)” and change the file name to “Book.”
5. Set the “Save in” location to the XLSTART folder. This folder is typically located in a path similar to C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12\XLSTART.
6. Click Save.
7. Close and re-open Excel. The blank workbook should contain the formatting you previously set.

Excel 2010:

1. Open Excel to a blank workbook.
2. Format the blank file with all options desired. For example, set margins, cell color formats, or set up a header or footer. Make sure to remove any values you entered in cells to test formatting unless you want them to appear in every blank workbook.
3. Once your changes are made, click on the File tab and choose Save As.
4. From the “Files of type” drop-down list, select “Excel Template (*.xltx)” and change the file name to “Book.”
5. Set the “Save in” location to the XLSTART folder. This folder is typically located in a path similar to C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office14\XLSTART.
6. Click Save.
7. Close and re-open Excel. The blank workbook should contain the formatting you previously set.

Watch a video on this tip for Excel 2007.

2. Changing the Default Font for New Workbooks

We all have our quirks; that’s what makes us unique. One of these things can be the font you choose as your default. To change the default font used in new workbooks in Excel, follow these steps:

Excel 2007:

1. Click the Office button in the top left corner.
2. Select Excel options in the bottom-right of the menu that appears.
3. In the Excel options dialog box, under Popular options, scroll down to the section called “When creating new workbooks.”
4. Here you have the ability to set the default font and font size.
5. Click OK.

After you restart Excel, any new workbook you create will be set for the new font properties you chose. Note that existing workbooks will not be affected.

Excel 2010:

1. Click on the File tab.
2. Select Options at the bottom left.
3. Under General options there is a section for “When creating new workbooks.”
4. Here you can select the option to change the font and font size for all new workbooks.
5. Click OK.

After you restart Excel, any new workbook you create will be set for the new font properties you chose. Note that existing workbooks will not be affected.

1. Setting Formatting Options for Workbooks, Part 2

Why does Excel always open up with three blank worksheets? If you’ve found yourself continually deleting those extra two, stop already. Excel offers a way for you to specify the defaults for new workbooks, which includes number of worksheets. Follow the steps below:

Excel 2007:

1. Click the Office Button and choose Excel Options.
2. In the Popular group, navigate to the section titled “When creating new workbooks.”
3. You can change the number of sheets created in a new workbook by changing the “Include this many sheets” option.
4. Click OK after making your selections.

Excel will use your options from now on when creating a new workbook, saving you time when setting up each new file.

Excel 2010:

1. Click on the File tab and choose Excel Options.
2. In the General group, navigate to the section titled “When creating new workbooks.”
3. You can change the number of sheets created in a new workbook by changing the “Include this many sheets” option.
4. Click OK after making your selections.

Excel will use your options from now on when creating a new workbook, saving you time when setting up each new file.

For more on these and to find other tips, visit our tech tip library. Have any Excel or general Office tips to share? Post them in the comments section.

Tips are compiled and written by PC Helps staff.

Have you ever had to plan a meeting for participants across multiple time zones? Outlook can help you out in many cases by allowing you to see more than one time zone or automatically adjusting for different time zones. In this post, we offer tips for time zones and many other issues related to scheduling meetings in Outlook.

Part One: Planning, Changing, Canceling

And, if it’s 4:30 pm in Phoenix, it’s 10:30 am in Sydney — but what day?

Planning a Meeting in Outlook

(Outlook 2002, 2003, 2007)

By Matt Mahoney

The core feature of Outlook is the calendar. This invaluable tool helps you keep track of your appointments and enables you to schedule meetings with colleagues. Here’s how to invite attendees to a meeting.

Outlook 2007:

1. Click the File menu, choose New, and then choose Meeting Request.

2. On the Meeting tab of the Ribbon, click the “Scheduling” button (depending on your mail server configuration, this button may also be called “Scheduling Assistant”), located in the Show group. Then click the “Add Others” button at the bottom (this button may also be called “Add Attendees”).

3. In the “Select Attendees and Resources” window, enter the name of the person or resource you want to add to the meeting, or click a name from the list.

4. Near the bottom of the dialog box, click the Required, Optional, or Resources button to place each name or resource in the appropriate field. Click OK.

5. In the Scheduling tab, you can view free/busy information for the meeting invitees that have made it available.

6. Set the meeting’s start time and end time by using the drop-down arrows near the bottom of the dialog box or by dragging the green and red dividers to signify the start and end times of the meeting.

7. Click the Appointment button in the Show section of the Meeting tab.

8. Review the meeting invitation; type any additional information you might need in the body of the message, then click Send.

Outlook 2002 and 2003:

1. Click the File menu, choose New, and then choose Meeting Request.

2. Click the Scheduling tab, click the “Add Others” button at the bottom, and then click “Add from Address book.”

3. In the “Type Name or Select from List” window, enter the name of the person or resource you want to add to the meeting, or click a name from the list.

4. Near the bottom of the dialog box, click the Required, Optional, or Resources button to place each name or resource in the appropriate field. Click OK.

5. In the Scheduling tab, you can view the free/busy information for the meeting invitees that have made it available.

6. Set the meeting’s start time and end time by using the drop-down arrows near the bottom of the dialog box or by dragging the green and red dividers to signify the start and end times of the meeting.

7. Switch back to the Appointment tab.

8. Review the meeting invitation; type any additional information you might need in the body of the message, then click Send.

Add Attendees to Existing Meeting

(Outlook 2002, 2003, 2007)

By MaryHazel McDermott

When you schedule meetings in Outlook, you need to be aware of a few things. If you need to add attendees to a meeting, you can only do so if you are the organizer or the organizer’s delegate. Anyone can forward a meeting; but if the meeting is changed in any way, those who were forwarded the meeting will not receive the updates. It is better to ask the organizer to add the person to the list of meeting attendees.

Add attendees using the To field:

1. Open the meeting.

2. Click in the To field or click the To button and select additional attendees.

3. Click the Send Update button.

4. Choose to either “Send updates to added or deleted attendees,” or “Send updates to all attendees,” and then click OK.

5. Close the meeting.

Add Attendees using the Scheduling tab:

Outlook 2007:

1. Open the Meeting.

2. Click the Scheduling Assistant button.

3. Type names in the All Attendees column or click the Invite Others button, add people in the appropriate group, and click OK.

4. Choose to either “Send updates to added or deleted attendees” or “Send updates to all attendees,” and then click OK.

5. Close the meeting.

Outlook 2002, 2003:

1. Open the Meeting.

2. Click the Scheduling tab.

3. Type names in the All Attendees column or click the Invite Others button, add people in the appropriate group, and click OK.

4. Choose to either “Send updates to added or deleted attendees” or “Send updates to all attendees,” and then click OK.

5. Close the meeting.

How to Cancel a Meeting

(Outlook 2002, 2003, 2007)

By Matt Mahoney

Canceling a meeting is quite simple in Outlook. Just follow the steps for your version of Outlook below. Please note that only the meeting organizer can cancel a meeting. Attendees can only accept or decline meetings.

Outlook 2007:

1. Open the meeting you want to cancel.

2. Click the Cancel Meeting button, located in the Actions section.

3. Click Send Cancellation to send the cancellation notice. It is very important to send the cancellation notice so that all attendees’ calendars are updated and the meeting is removed.

Outlook 2002, 2003:

1. Open the meeting you want to cancel.

2. On the Actions menu, click Cancel Meeting.

3. Click Send Cancellation and Delete Meeting. It is very important to send the cancellation notice so that all attendees’ calendars are updated and the meeting is removed.

How to show an additional time zone in Outlook

(Outlook 2002, 2003, 2007)

By MaryHazel McDermott

Nowadays, we often work with people in other areas of the country or the world. And then there are the peripatetics, who change time zones on a regular basis. Knowing what time it is when you are setting up a meeting, or even just calling someone, exudes professionalism. Use Outlook’s time zone feature to your advantage.

1. Click the Tools menu, choose Options, and click the Preferences tab.

2. Click the Calendar Options button.

3. Click the Time Zone button.

4. In the Label field, enter a name for the current Windows time zone.

5. Check Show an additional time zone.

6. In the Label field, enter a name for the additional time zone.

7. Choose a time zone from the drop-down list.

8. Click OK three times.

It is a good idea to label the time zones if you need to display more than one. It is better to not change the current Windows time zone unless you travel and need to schedule meetings in the local zone. Also, Outlook is only capable of displaying one other time zone.

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Still, all our readers cared about was learning how to use a secondary axis in Excel, how to change BlackBerry calendar views, and why help desk techs are so surly.

Here’s a list of our top 10 posts from 2009. Read and enjoy.

10. Get It Together: 5 Ways to Stay Organized in Outlook
9. 5 Lessons to Learn Before Outsourcing
8. A Kinder, Gentler Help Desk
7. Top 5 Most-Asked Help Desk Questions
6. 7 Productivity-Boosting iPhone Tips
5. Out of Office, Out of Mind
4. How the Help Desk Earns its Bad Reputation
3. Follow the Format: 5 MS Word Tips for Managers
2. 4 BlackBerry Tips Every Manager Should Know
1. Management Tool Best Practices: 3 Excel Tips that Promise Charting Greatness

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The reports and surveys tell a compelling story. Actual customer feedback is even more powerful.

They are usually exasperated, and often embarrassed. Who wants to admit lack of knowledge, especially if they believe their job is on the line?

The employers themselves, the ones chanting “do more with less, do more with less” at every all-hands and in every company-wide e-memo, are partially to blame. If a corporation doesn’t offer software support, workers must find their own solutions — which usually cost dearly in downtime and lost productivity. If a company does offer how-to support, it’s considered a luxury and its use may be frowned upon. (This recent Dilbert cartoon, sent to me by a colleague, captures it precisely.)

In sour financial times, desktop application support usually is the first to go when budgets are cut. It’s hard to tally its return on investment, and the demand for such support is often hidden.

But the need is there, and even more so now when many companies are operating with fewer employees and the same workload. (See a post I wrote in October titled “Basic Training: Why Workers Need Software Support.”)

The reports and surveys tell a compelling story. Actual customer feedback is even more powerful.

Below is a letter that was sent to us by one of our customers, who was given the job of automating several departmental reports using Access. In her words, the task was “dropped on my plate.”

She and her colleagues were completing monthly updates in PowerPoint, Excel and Access. The updates were tied together but each had its own piece of information, whether it was typing in a completion date or color-coding a text box to show if something was completed on time or was running behind.

She knew there was a way to update more efficiently using Access, but explains, “What I was asking Access to do was far beyond what I could get out of the simple commands and toolbars available.”

Here’s how she solved the problem:

“Not being a guru of Access and needing functionality far beyond the basic options that are built in, I called the help desk. Quickly, I was connected with a pure genius of Access coding and he was able to not only help me build out several nuances, but actually through multiple calls over several months taught me how to do my own coding in Access. The end result was several reports that were exactly what the customer required, even better in both content and visual appeal, that were all generated with a click of the button!”

Her company offers software support, so she was able to find a solution that saved several hundred hours of time in development, plus at least 30 minutes per person per month in update time.

She was given the tools to do more with less, without sacrificing productivity.

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Doing more with less is on everyone’s mind. Here are a few ways to maximize your productivity using Microsoft Office templates.

1. Set the Standard

(Word 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007) by Doug Mosiondz
Creating a document template in Microsoft Word is easy to do – and can save you considerable time if you find yourself creating a lot of documents that all contain the same formatting or styles but different text.

A document template can contain specialized elements such as formatting for fonts, paragraph settings, styles, headers and footers, and even AutoText entries. By default, all new Word documents are based on the Normal template, which is simply a file stored on your computer called Normal.dot (or Normal.dotx for Word 2007). Once you create your own template, however, you can use that as the style guide for new documents instead.

Here’s how:

1. Open a new blank document in Word.
2. Make any desired changes to the font settings, paragraph settings, page layout, styles, header and footer, etc.
3. Click File and select Save As (in Word 2007, click the Office button in the top left corner and select Save As).
4. In the “Save As” dialog box, use the “Save as type” drop-down list to select “Document Template (*.dot).” This will change the “Save in” location to the default location for Microsoft Office templates; to make the template easy to access from within Word, it is best to save to this location.
5. Type in a file name for your template and click Save.

Note: In Word 2007, you will have additional options when saving a document as a template, but choosing the option for “Word 97-2003 Template (*.dot)” will ensure that the template is compatible with earlier versions of Word.

When you are ready to create a new document based on this template, open Microsoft Word and follow these steps:

Word 2000:
1. Click File and select New.
2. In the New window that appears, click the General tab and your document template should be listed.
3. Click the document template, then click OK.
4. A document will open that contains the styles and formatting that were saved to your template.

Word 2002:

Save yourself the time and tedium — create a template.

1. Click File and select New.
2. A “New Document” pane will open on the right side of the window. From the “New from template” section, click “General Templates.”
3. In the Templates window that appears, click the General tab and your document template should be listed.
4. Click the document template, then click OK.
5. A document will open that contains the styles and formatting that were saved to your template.

Word 2003:
1. Click File and select New.
2. A “New Document” pane will open on the right side of the window. From the “Templates” section, click “On my computer.”
3. In the Templates window that appears, click the General tab and your document template should be listed.
4. Click the document template, then click OK.
5. A document will open that contains the styles and formatting that were saved to your template.

Word 2007:
1. Click the Office button, located in the top left corner of the window, then select New.
2. In the “New Document” window that appears, click “My templates” from the list on the left.
3. In the New window that appears, your document template should be listed.
4. Click the document template, then click OK.
5. A document will open that contains the styles and formatting that were saved to your template.

2. Déjà Vu

(Outlook 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007) by Pat Sharpe

If you find yourself retyping the same text in an e-mail message over and over again, save yourself the time and tedium by creating an Outlook template.

If you are using Outlook 2003 and Word is set as your default e-mail editor, you cannot save an Outlook e-mail message as a template. Before following the steps in this tip, check to see if this option is enabled. In the main Outlook window, click Tools, then select Options. From the Options window, select the Mail Format tab, then clear the “Use Microsoft Word to edit e-mail messages” checkbox.

1. Create a new message.
2. Add anything that is going to be the same each time you send the message, such as the subject, the body of the message, and the TO:, CC:, or BCC: fields.
3. In the message window, click the File menu and choose Save As (Outlook 2007: click the Office button and choose Save As).
4. At the bottom of the window, change the “Save as type” drop-down list selection to: Outlook Template (*.oft).
5. When you make this change, the “Save in:” location changes to the Templates folder. This is where it should be saved.
6. Give your template a recognizable name and click Save.
7. Close the message. You will be prompted to save changes. This refers to the message itself, not the template you just saved, so click No.

To use your template:

1. Click on the Tools menu and select Forms, then Choose Form.
2. In the “Choose Form” dialog box, change the “Look In:” drop-down list at the top of the window to “User Templates in File System” (this is “Templates in File System” in earlier versions of Outlook).
3. Click once on the template you want to use, then click Open.
4. Make any changes to the message, if necessary.
5. Click the Send button.

3. You Set the Rules

(Excel 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007) by Ronnie Merritt

Excel does not offer many options that allow you to set formatting defaults for your workbooks. However, you can work around this by modifying formatting in a blank workbook, then saving it as the default template.

1. Open Excel to a blank workbook.
2. Format the blank file with all options desired. For example, set margins, cell color formats, or set up a header or footer.
3. Once your changes are made, click File and choose Save As (Excel 2007: click the Office button, then choose Save As).
4. From the “Files of type” drop-down list, select “Template (*.xlt)” – Excel 2007: select “Excel Template (*.xltx)” – and change the file name to “Book.”
5. Set the “Save in” location to the XLSTART folder. This folder is typically located in a path similar to C:\Documents and Settings\User name\Application Data\Microsoft\Excel\XLSTART, where “User name” is your login user name.
6. Close and re-open Excel. The blank workbook should contain the formatting you previously set.

4. Making it Your Own

(Word 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007) by Jeff Bowman and Eric Clevinger

If you have a certain way or style of creating your Microsoft Word documents, coming up with a routine to make sure all of your settings are the way you want them every time can be time-consuming. Adjusting line spacing, fonts, margins, and other settings for each and every document is not only a time-waster; it’s downright bothersome. Fortunately, there is a solution, and it’s called a template.

Creating a new template is one solution (see earlier tip), but you may want to consider the alternative – modifying Word’s Normal template to change the default font, paragraph and page layout settings.

In the “Font” and “Page Setup” dialog boxes (and the “Paragraph” dialog box in Word 2007), you’ll find the seldom-used “Default” button. Part of the reason it’s rarely used is because people think it rolls the settings back to default. In actuality, it sets the current settings as the new defaults. Here is how to use the Default button to change the Normal document template:

Word 2000, 2002, 2003:
1. Click Format and select Font.
2. Set the font formatting as desired.
3. Click the Default button in the bottom left corner of the Font dialog box.

Word 2007:
1. Click the Home tab on the Ribbon.
2. Click the Font dialog box launcher button, located in the bottom right corner of the Font group.
3. Set the font formatting as desired.
4. Click the Default button in the bottom left corner of the Font dialog box.

When you click the Default button, you will be asked to confirm your settings to be a part of NORMAL.DOT. This is the “normal” template that is used for every new document and where all default settings are stored. When you click Yes, every setting you have changed will take effect and be the default for new documents. The Default button is also available for the “Page Setup” dialog box, and, in Word 2007, the “Paragraph” dialog box.

Now when you create a new Word document, it will default to the font and page setup settings you specified. Making the adjustments here will enable you to spend less time reformatting each document to match a standard for a project or company, and more time actually adding content.

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Often callers want help clearing enough space to send the e-mails that are waiting in the Outbox; they have no time to go over proper mailbox maintenance – deadlines are looming, meetings have started.

But with a tiny bit of set up and smattering of occasional maintenance, you will rarely, if ever, get another “mailbox full” warning. In the next few posts, I will cover the basics of keeping a tidy mailbox – using views, archiving and auto-archiving, and using rules to handle repetitive tasks.

Part 1, Room with a View:
The View menu is one of Outlook’s secret weapons. It allows you to arrange, filter and sort your mailbox contents every which way. You can view mail by size, date, flag status, attachment, and more. Also, Outlook has half a dozen built-in filters that make your mailbox more digestible.

The View menu is one of Outlook’s secret weapons.

View | Arrange By
Did you know that in addition to the actual mail messages you send, a copy of each file you attach also remains in the Sent folder? If you send (and receive, for that matter) PowerPoint presentations or image files on a regular basis, this can sap a substantial portion of your mailbox size.

For a quick fix, use the View | Arrange By | Size menu option to arrange whichever folder you are in by message size. If you have Show in Groups selected (very handy, also under View | Arrange By), you will be able to quickly identify the largest items. If you need to save particular messages but not the attachments (you likely already have those stored on your hard drive or on a network), you can strip the file from the message. To do so, open the mail, right-click on the attachment icon and choose “remove.” Close the mail and save it when prompted. No more space-hogging sidekicks.

If you need to save the mail and its attachment, create a folder in one of your PSTs and manually drag the largest files over. To create a new folder, right click on the PST, and then choose New Folder.

Other useful Arrange By items include: category, conversation, from, to, flag status and more. You can also choose custom fields (View | Arrange By | Custom).

View | Current View
This submenu takes mailbox-viewing one step further by filtering mail according to your criteria. For example, if you want to see only unread messages, go to View | Current View | Unread Messages in this Folder. You can select from a half-dozen filtered views or create your own using the Customize option.

Note: Current View uses filters to organize mail. Remember to clear the filter when you are finished, otherwise you may overlook important messages. Remove the filter by selecting View | Current View | Messages.

Next post: Exchange vs. PST, auto-archiving 101. (Jen Darr)

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Tip No. 1: How to Filter Incoming Mail
Say, for example, you receive a daily report that you will not read or deal with on your phone and would prefer to just handle it back at the office. Can you create a filter for that?
Of course you can. Here’s how:

1. Click on the Messages icon to open your messages, then click the trackwheel or Menu button and select Options.
2. Select Email Filters.
3. Click your trackwheel or Menu button, select New and then type a filter name.
4. You have several fields you can filter on: From; Sent To; Subject; Message; Sent directly to me; CC to me; BCC to me; Importance; Sensitivity.You can choose more than one option here. For example, to take care of your daily report problem, create the following filter:

From: coworker@domain.com
Subject: Daily Report
Action: Do not forward

This will affect any emails from colleagues with “daily report” in the subject.

5.  Click your trackwheel or Menu button and save the filter. By default, it is enabled and will function immediately with any new incoming messages.

If you want to temporarily allow filtered messages, simply click on the filter name to uncheck in the filter list. Take note, however, that filtering works only if your BlackBerry is activated on a BlackBerry Enterprise Server; to access filters with BlackBerry Internet Service you must check with your wireless carrier. (PC Helps E-Tip #9, Vol. 97.)

“Calendar views are often a source of frustration, no matter what device or software you use. ”

Tip No. 2: Change Calendar Views in a Snap
Calendar views are often a source of frustration, no matter what device or software you use. Here are some quick and easy ways to navigate your BlackBerry calendar:
While in the calendar, click your trackball, and select from the following views:

“View Day”: summary for the day, showing appointments by their times.
“View Week”: seven-day summary view, showing appointments by their times.
“View Month”: shows every day of month, showing appointments by day.
“View Agenda”: Lists your upcoming appointments in detail view.

You can also use the following shortcut keys:

“D” switches to day view.

“W” switches to week view.

“M” switches to month view.

“A” switches to agenda view.

“C” creates a new appointment in detailed mode.

“T” goes to today (keeping the current view).

“G” goes to a specific date.

Press any of these keys to switch between the views. Note that shortcut keys will work only if you have “Enable Quick Entry” in Calendar Options set to “No.” (Researched by Joel Reeves)

Tip No. 3: Conference Me In
You’re on the road, on the line with a client, and you need to patch in your assistant. Here’s how you use conference calling with your BlackBerry:

1. Call the first person from your BlackBerry.
2. During the call click the trackwheel or Menu Key and select New Call (sometimes listed as 3-Way Call or Conference Call).
3. Type a phone number or select a contact to call and press the Send key.
4. Finally, when both parties are on the phone, you click the trackwheel or press the Menu key and “join” the two callers from the menu.

You can repeat the process to add multiple people, depending on your wireless plan. Check with your carrier to see if it’s available. (JR)

Tip No. 4: High-Priority E-Mail Notifications

You want to make sure you know when high-priority e-mails come in, and the standard notification doesn’t quite command your attention.  To set up special notices, start at the home screen, go to Profiles, then Advanced. Here you can create a new profile or modify your current one.  Set the desired notification for Level 1 Messages and save. Note: High-priority message notices will work even if you have disabled those for other types of messages. (Researched by Nkoli Ukpabi)

Got any BlackBerry tips to share? Send them my way, and I’ll be sure to give you props if we publish them.

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Trick No. 1: Add Narration To Your Show

Adding narration can be helpful if you plan on e-mailing your show or posting it to the web. Follow these steps, and remember to rehearse timings before finalizing.

1. Go to slide 1 and click Slide Show tab | Record Narration.
2. Make a note of the free disk space and max record time in the current recording quality section to ensure you have enough free disk space for narration. You also must choose whether to link or embed the file in this dialog. Note: If put a check in the box next to “link narrations in…,” you will need to include the narration sound file when e-mailing the presentation. If you do not check the box, your narration will be embedded into the presentation, which will markedly increase your PowerPoint presentation file size.
3. Click “Set Microphone Level” to modify recording level.
4. When you are ready to begin recording, click OK.
5. Read the text that accompanies the first slide into the microphone, and then click on the slide to advance. Add your narration to the second slide, and then click on the slide to advance to the next. Repeat this process until you are finished. After the last slide, a black Exit screen will appear. Click anywhere on it to wrap up.
6. When you are prompted to save your slide timings, click Yes. A sound icon will appear in the bottom right corner of each slide that includes voice narration.
7. Press F5 or click Slide Show | From Beginning to launch your presentation.
Note: Your computer must be equipped with a sound card, microphone and speakers for you to record and hear narration.

Transform a choppy, amateurish presentation into polished and professional pitch.

Trick No. 2: Loop a Recording

This is a frequent request, but not as easy to set up as it should be. Usually, when you add sound to slides, it plays until you segue to the next slide. The resulting transition is often choppy and amateurish, depending on the type of sound you are using. Follow these steps to loop your music, which will make for a much smoother, natural presentation.
1. Go to the slide where your sound will begin.
2. Click the Insert tab | Sound | Sound from File.
3. Choose the sound file and click Insert. When prompted to choose how you want the sound to start in the show, select “automatically.” (A speaker icon will now appear in your slide.)
4. Click on the speaker icon, which will bring up a Sound Tools contextual tab at the top of the window.
5. In the Sound Options section of the Sound Tools | Options tab, put a check in the box next to “Loop Until Stopped,” and choose “play across slides” from the dropdown next to “Play Sound.”
6. Click Slide Show, From Beginning or press F5 to view your slide show.

Trick No. 3: Org Chart 101

Hierarchies are important, and at some companies they can become quite labyrinthine. It’s no help that Microsoft’s organization charts tend to have a mind of their own – until Office 2007′s SmartArt came along. It’s easier to use than previous versions, and offers countless design possibilities.
1. Click on the Insert tab of the Ribbon, choose Smart Art, select Hierarchy on the left, then select a design in the center, and click OK.
2. Double-click on a shape or click in the text entry box to the left to enter text in the existing shapes.
3. To deselect a shape, click on a blank area within the chart. To deselect the entire chart, click somewhere else in the document.
4. To add new shapes, select the shape they should connect to, then click on the Add Shape button the SmartArt Tools Design tab or press Enter in the text entry box.
5. To delete an unwanted shape, select the shape and press the Delete key.
Formatting choices that affect the positioning of shapes can be found on the SmartArt Tools Design tab of the ribbon. Choices for text within the chart and the individual shapes like border and fill can be found on the SmartArt Tools Format tab of the Ribbon.
Note: To promote shapes in the text entry box, press the Tab key; to demote shapes press Shift+Tab.

Trick No. 4: Animate Your Bullets

Have just a few points but lots to say about each of them? Animate your bullets. Here’s how:
1. In the Slides section on the Home tab, choose Title and Content from the Layout dropdown menu and enter your text.
2. On the Animations tab, in the Animations section, choose the style of animation you want (fade, wipe, fly in, custom) and choose “by 1st level paragraphs” for bullet-by-bullet animation.
3. To adjust the effects, click on Custom Animation on the Animations tab of the Ribbon. A task pane will appear on the right side of the screen.
4. Select any or all of the bullet points to modify, and click the Change Effect button in the Custom Animation pane. The options here are limitless. You can change speed, direction, entrance, exit, motion paths and many other attributes.
5. Click Play at the bottom of the task pane to preview.

Trick No. 5: We Love Shortcuts

Shortcuts are great for getting things done in less time. Here are some of the more popular and useful ones:

Bold: Ctrl+B
Change case (toggle for title case, lowercase and all caps): Shift+F3
Copy: Ctrl+C
Delete a word: Ctrl+Backspace
Demote a paragraph: Alt+Shift+Right Arrow
Find: Ctrl+F
Insert a hyperlink: Ctrl+K
Insert a new slide: Ctrl+M
Italicize: Ctrl+I
Open: Ctrl+O
Open the font dialog box: Ctrl+T
Paste: Ctrl+V
Print: Ctrl+P
Promote a paragraph: Alt+Shift+Left Arrow
Repeat your last action: F4 or Ctrl+Y
Save: Ctrl+S
Select all: Ctrl+A
Start a slide show: F5
Undo: Ctrl+Z

Have any PowerPoint tips to share? Post them in comments, or send them in an e-mail. (Jen Darr)

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