Wednesday, March 7th, 2007
Click and go in Word
You already know that you can simply double click anywhere in the Word editing window and immediately the cursor appears ready for you to start typing. But clicks elsewhere do practical and timesaving things too:
- Double click a ruler (vertical or horizontal) to open the Page Setup dialog
- When you have a header or footer set up, double click it to go to Header and Footer view
- Double click the indent marker on the horizontal ruler to open the Paragraph dialog
- Double clicking a bullet or number in a list opens the Bullets and Numbering dialog
and, finally for today at least:
- Double click on the column marker in the ruler when you’re inside a table (or double click the table’s move handle) to open the Table Properties dialog.
Labels: dialogs, double click, Microsoft Word, table data
Wednesday, March 7th, 2007
Grouping AutoText entries in Word
Yesterday I explained how to use AutoText entries to speed up entering data. Today, I’ll show you how to organize your AutoText entries into groups on the menu using Styles:
You create or add an entry to AutoText groups on the AutoText menu by saving an AutoText entry formatted using a style with the name you want to be added to the menu. For example, to add an AutoText entry to the Closing group, type the text, select it and format it with a style called closing (or create a style with that name). Then save the text as an AutoText entry.
When an AutoText entry is saved that is formatted with a style a new entry with that style name appears on the AutoText menu or the item is added to the submenu if it already exists. So, to enter something on the closing submenu, format it with a style that you have called Closing before creating it.
Labels: AutoText., Microsoft Word
Tuesday, March 6th, 2007
AutoText in Word
The AutoText tool in Word can help speed up your work by automatically inserting pieces of text and images. Here’s how to use it:
Step 1
To create an AutoText entry, type and then select the text to save and choose Insert > AutoText > New, type the name for the entry and click Ok. You can also do the same thing with images inserted into a document and create an AutoText entry from one.
Step 2
To later use a saved AutoText entry, type the name of the entry. When you have typed sufficient letters to uniquely identify the entry (at least four), Word will prompt you with the AutoText name. Press Enter to insert the AutoText entry. You can also type the name and press F3 or select the entry by choosing Insert, AutoText, AutoText and choose it from the dialog.
tomorrow… how to create your own groups in AutoText to organize entries.
Labels: AutoText., Microsoft Word
Monday, March 5th, 2007
Autonumbering documents in Word
Word does not contain any option for automatically numbering a series of documents with a consecutive number. The solution is to create a macro to do the work for you. Start with a template that has a macro that runs when ever the template is used for a new document. The macro should read a number stored in a file on your drive, add it to your document and then, to prepare the number for the next time it’s required, the number should be incremented by one and be written back into the file.
To create the solution, create a new document (or open an existing one to use as a template) and click where you want the sequential number to appear, and choose Insert, Bookmark, type docNum in the Bookmark name area and click Add.
Save this file as a template by choosing File, Save As, from the Files as type list choose Document Template (*.dot), give the file a name and click Save. With the file still open, choose Tools, Macro, Macros and type the name of the macro docNum and, from the Macros In list choose the template file name for the file you just saved and choose Create.
Type this macro as shown, the sub and end sub lines should be there already:
Sub docNum()
Dim MyString, docNumber
FileToOpen = “c:\windows\docNumfile.txt”
Open FileToOpen For Input As #1
Input #1, docNumber
Close #1 ‘ Close file
ActiveDocument.Bookmarks(“docNum”).Select
Selection.InsertAfter Text:=docNumber
docNumber = docNumber + 1
Open FileToOpen For Output As #1
Write #1, docNumber
Close #1 ‘ Close file.
End Sub
Now choose File, Close and Return to Microsoft Word. With the template on the screen, choose File, Close and answer Yes when prompted to save your changes.
Now open Notepad and type a number 4 or 5 numbers less than the number of the first quote you want to use. So, if you want to start numbering at 200, type 195 so you have a few numbers to use to test the process. Choose File, Save As and save the file as a text file, calling it docNumfile.txt and save it to this folder: C:\windows. Close Notepad
To test the process, choose File, New, choose the template file and click OK. Now run the macro by choosing Tools, Macro, Macros, docnumb, Run. If you have everything right the document number will be inserted in the document.
When this is working fine, alter the macro so this process of inserting the document number happens automatically whenever you create a new document based on this template. To do this, choose Tools, Macro, Macros, click on docnumb and click Edit. Change this macro’s procedure name by altering this line of code:
Sub docnumb()
to read
Sub AutoNew()
Choose File, Close and Return to Microsoft Word. With the template on the screen, choose File, Close. Say No to saving your changes to this file but answer Yes to save the changes to your template file.
Now test again by creating a new file using File, New, choose your template and click OK. The document number should be added automatically to the new document.
If, in the process of testing you find you go past your starting document number, open Notepad and open the file docnumfile.txt, type a new starting number and save it again.
Labels: automatic numbering, Macro, Microsoft Word
Saturday, March 3rd, 2007
Add a picture to a Visio Stencil
When you repeatedly use an image in Visio, you can add it to a Stencil so it’s ready for use at any time. This is handy for your company logo, for example.
Step 1
To do this, save your logo as a file capable of being imported into Visio such as GIF, BMP or Tif. Open a new blank Drawing and choose Insert, Picture, From File and locate and open your picture. Use the sizing handles to size it to the size you want it to default to when you insert it into a drawing in future.
Step 2
To create the stencil that will contain your logo, choose File, Shapes, New Stencil (metric) or open an existing stencil from your My Shapes collection to use. If the icon to the left of the stencil name does not show a red asterisk in its top left corner, right click the icon and choose Edit Stencil. It will now show a small asterisk indicating it is able to be edited.
Step 3
To add the image to the Stencil, hold the Control key and drag and drop the image onto the stencil. Click in the name area below it and type a name for it descriptive of what the image contains. Right click the Stencil’s icon and choose Save As and give it a name (or, if you’re adding to an existing stencil, choose Save). Again, right click the icon to the left of the stencil name and disable the Edit Stencil option.
Step 4
In future, to locate and use your image, choose File, Shapes, My Shapes and open the stencil containing the shape to use. Drag the shape from the stencil and add it to your document. Create stencil shapes in this way containing your company logo, address details and other objects you repeatedly use on your drawings.
Friday, March 2nd, 2007
Background Graphics in OneNote
One of the improvements in OneNote 2003 SP1 is the addition of background graphics which appear on a separate layer of the note page and which are stable and won’t move.
To create a graphic as a background, insert it onto the page and then right click and choose Set Picture as Background.
To alter the graphic later on, you must promote it back onto the page by right clicking somewhere over the top of it and disable the Set Picture as Background checkbox.
This feature is useful for creating custom stationery and for adding notes over the top of your graphics – the graphic stays more stable and you’re less likely to encounter the situation where your pointers move out of position.
Labels: background, graphic, OneNote, stationery
Thursday, March 1st, 2007
Set the style of Publisher objects
When you repeatedly use a Publisher shape or text box and when you always need to make changes to its format to meet your needs, set the shape so it always looks how you want it to look.
To do this, insert the shape or the text box for which you want to configure the defaults and right click it and choose Format AutoShape or Format Text Box as desired and make your changes. Switch to the Colors and Lines tab and enable the “Apply settings to new AutoShapes” (or “Apply settings to new Text Boxes) checkbox and click Ok. New objects of this type will now take on the selected formatting options.
Labels: defaults, Microsoft Publisher, shapes
Wednesday, February 28th, 2007
Making fixed sized selections in Photoshop
When you need a series of same sized images, you can create an image using a fixed size selection in Photoshop. To do this, choose the Rectangular Marquee tool and selecting the Fixed Size option from the Style dropdown list. Set the width and height in pixels and then click on the image. A marquee of this size appears and you can drag it with your mouse to position it in the correct place and then crop the image. If you simply want to select with the same overall aspect ratio but resize the image later on, select the Fixed Aspect Ratio option and set the ratio of height to width for the selection.
If your selection is not a regular one, for example if you want to cut a piece from a series of images in the shape of Australian, make the selection and save it to a channel in the document by choosing Select, Save Selection. With the document still open, open the images to crop the shape from and load the selection using Select, Load Selection and select the image in which you saved the selection from the dropdown list. Now you can move the selection into position and crop the shape from the image.
Labels: fixed size selection, Photoshop, selection tool
Monday, February 26th, 2007
Smarter editing in Microsoft Publisher
When you’re working with large pieces of text in Microsoft Publisher, you may find it easier to work in Word rather than Publisher. This way you can concentrate on your text without having to deal with layout issues.
Then, when you have finished settling your text, import it into a Publisher text box by clicking in the text box and choose Insert, Text file and browse to locate and import your file.
On the other hand, you can edit a piece of text in Word from inside Publisher if you right click a text frame in Publisher and choose Change Text, Edit Story in Microsoft Word to export it to Word. When you’re done, choose File, Close & Return to return to Publisher.
Labels: editing, Microsoft Publisher, Microsoft Word, text
Sunday, February 25th, 2007
GimpSHOP – all about layers, layer palettes and masks
GimpSHOP is Gimp with a great front end that makes it work much like Photoshop which you can find free for downloading here: GimpSHOP.
GimpSHOP, like any good photo editing program supports layers, and layer masks. These features aren’t always simple to get your head around but when you do, you’ll find they’re invaluable tools to use for photo editing tasks. Here, step by step, is how to work with them:
Step 1
To display the Layers palette press Shift F7 or choose Window, Layers. To add a new layer choose Layer, Duplicate Layer. There are no adjustment layers available in Gimp or GimpSHOP so this process keeps your original photo layer safe in case you need to use it later on.
Step 2
To adjust the levels in the image to improve its tonal range, choose Image, Adjustments, Levels and drag the sliders on the Input area of the dialog to adjust the contrast. The sliders under the chart should be moved inwards so they appear under the ends of the chart. The middle slider adjusts the midtones. Click Ok to apply this to the layer.
Step 3
To see how you can apply an effect or adjustment to this layer and blend it with the layer below, first create a duplicate of the top layer by choosing Layer, Duplicate Layer. Apply the edge detect filter by choosing Filter, Edge Detect, Edge and choose the Sobel Algorithm with the default value. This gives a new layer which is predominantly black and which displays the coloured edges in the image.
Step 4
Now, in the Layers palette, select the Divide blend mode from the dropdown list. Blend modes control how the top layer interacts with the layers below. Drag the opacity slider to the left to reduce the opacity of this layer so that some of the layers below show through thus mitigating some of the effect created by blending the layers together.
Step 5
To edit the effect the top layer gives to the image, use a Layer mask. Choose Layer, Mask, Add Layer Mask and choose White (full opacity) and click Ok. You should see no change in the image. Now select black or grey as the paint colour and paint the image to show part of the layers below through the image, thus effectively removing the effect of the blended edge filter. Paint with white to reapply the layer effect.
Step 6
The Layers menu offers tools for viewing a layer mask, applying it permanently to the layer, deleting it and making a selection based on it, etc.. You can also use the menu to configure the size of the thumbnail images by clicking by choosing Preview Size and then choose a view size from the list.
Labels: gimp, GimpSHOP, layer mask, Layers, Layers palette
Saturday, February 24th, 2007
Microsoft Word – Working with normal.dot
Whether you realise it or not, you use a template evert time you work in Word.
Normal .dot is a special Word template which is used as the basis of all new documents created when you click the New Blank Document button on the Word toolbar. Not only does Normal.dot contain the basic formatting for most of the documents, it also contains macros, toolbars, auto text, and styles. Macros which are stored in Normal.dot are accessible to all documents created using the Normal.dot template. Because so much information is stored in Normal.dot you should back it up regularly so that you do not lose the data in the file if it becomes corrupt.
For special documents which have settings that are peculiar to the document type and different to other documents, create your own custom templates. To do this, create a new blank document and place in it all the information and settings you typically use in this type of document. For example, for a memorandum insert the word memorandum, the To, From and Date lines, and perhaps even a signature. Set up the document with the printing setting for your printer (trays and paper etc), and set the font and font size for the Normal style, and page margins. Save the document as a template by choosing File, Save As and, from the Save As type list choose Word Template (*.dot), give the file a name and save it.
You can include styles in a template by clicking the Styles and Formatting button on the Formatting toolbar and create or alter the styles in the document to suit your needs. Resave the template so that the Styles are included in it. These styles will be available to all new documents based on that template.
When you have a template with Styles, Auto Text, Macros, or Toolbars that you want to use in another template, copy these from one template to the other. Choose Tools, Macro, Macros, Organize. Open one template in the left pane of the Organizer and the other template in the right hand pane and use the Copy button to copy elements from one template to the other. This is handy for sharing styles, macros, etc. amongst other users – you can copy the template to a disk and distribute it with the attached elements in it.
To attach a template with its styles and so on, to an existing document choose Tools, Templates and Add-ins, Templates tab and click Attach. Select the template to add, enable the Automatically update document styles checkbox if you wish to apply the styles in this template to the document in preference to the styles currently applied and click Ok.
Labels: Microsoft Word, template
Friday, February 23rd, 2007
Excel – trapping invalid data
There’s a term that I love called GIGO – garbage in garbage out. When you’re designing an Excle worksheet to solve a business problem you need to make sure that your data is correct or your worksheets won’t give valid results.
Luckily, Excel’s Data Validation tool helps you prevent incorrect data being added into your worksheet.
To set up a validation rule and to configure what will happen if incorrect data is entered, start by selecting the cells to which the rule should apply. Choose Data, Validation, Settings tab. Now, for example, to limit the data being entered to a whole number less than 200, select whole number from the Allow drop down list. When the Data area appears, choose Less Than and then in the Maximum area type 200.
To configure a user message to tell the user what is required, click the Input Message tab and type a title and a piece of explanatory text telling the user the limits to the type of Data you’re expecting them to enter. This appears as a tooltip entry when any of the cells configured with the data validation rule is selected.
You can also specify what should happen if a user enters an incorrect value. To do this, click the Error Alert tab and select the type of indicator from the Style list. If the user enters incorrect data and if you have chosen the Stop style they will have two choices – Retry and Cancel and the invalid data cannot be entered into the cell. The Warning and Information styles both warn about the incorrect data but still allow it to be entered.
Once you’ve chosen the style, enter the Title and the Error Message which the user will see if the data in not correct. Click Ok and you can now test the rule.
Labels: cell entry, data validation, Excel 2003, incorrect entries
Friday, February 23rd, 2007
Music your way with Pandora
As a kid, when I visited the library, I’d tell the librarian the authors I liked and they’d suggest others who wrote similar books. Sometimes I didn’t like what they recommended, most of the time I’d find a new author and a swag of new books to consume. When it comes to music, these days my music librarian is Pandora the face of the Music Genome Project.
The concept of Pandora is simple, you tell it a musician or piece of music that is typical of the music you want to listen to and it creates an entire online radio station for you, based on information it knows about the music you’ve chosen. It finds, in its collection, songs that have similar characteristics to the music you like and it sereves them uup to you one at a time. Within minutes you’er sure to find new artists and bands you never knew existed. Pandora has a great feedback system too, you get to tell it if the choice it has made for you is music you like or that you don’t like – smply click the thumbs up or thumbs down button and it takes note of your opinion. If it’s thumbs up it continues to play the song, if you don’t like it, Pandora moves forward to the next song.
You’re not limited to one station either. If Monday mornings are Leonhard Cohen and Fridays party time, you can create different channels to match your mood by seeding the channel with a single type of music., In fact that’s an important feature of Pandora, it works best when you keep different moods separate in different ‘stations’.
While the music is playing you can get on with your day or, if you have the Pandora site still visible, you’ll see the album art for the current track and ask Pandora why that track was played. You can use the Menu option to move the track to another station or to buy the track from Amazon or iTunes. You can also select Backstage to learn more about the artist that you’re listening to.
Pandora is free and fun to use. You can create up to 100 stations so that should keep you entertained for some time. The music library there is not exhaustive but it is expanding and you don’t need anything special to listen to the music apart from a web browser and the flash player add-in which you probably have already. To enjoy the service you will need a broadband connection as it doesn’t support dial-up connections.
Find Pandora here and, if you like, listen to my stations here.
Thursday, February 22nd, 2007
Excel – finding duplicates
Excel’s conditional formatting option has lots of handy uses including highlighting cells that contain duplicate data.
To do this, highlight the range to investigate, for example, a series of entries in column C starting with cell C1. Now choose Format, Conditional Formatting, select Formula Is and enter this in the formula area:
=COUNTIF($C:$C,$C1)>1
Click Format and then select a pattern and color to use and click Ok.
Now duplicate entries in the column will be indicated with the shading you’ve provided. You can copy and paste this formatting down to other cells in column C to include them.
Labels: conditional formatting, Excel 2003, finding duplicates