To quickly create a new document, you can use a desktop shortcut:
- Right-click on an empty area of the Windows desktop.
- Click on New
- Click on the program that you want to start
Repair an Excel File
If you’re having problems with an Excel file, using the built-in repair feature might fix the problem.
For example, doing this repair procedure can help when:
- data validation drop down arrows don’t appear
- there are other signs of corruption, such as frequent crashes, or Excel freezes
Repair Excel Workbook
To repair an Excel workbook, follow the steps below:
- First, close the problem file, but leave the Excel application open
- Next, in Excel, choose Fileâ–ºOpen
- Locate and select the file
- In the Open window, at the bottom right corner, click the arrow at the right side of the Open button
- In the drop-down list, click on the Open and Repair command
Complete the Repair
- When prompted, click the Repair button.
- Then, open the Excel file again, to see if it looks okay
Make a Backup!
I hope the repair was successful, and your Excel file is working correctly now. If so, be sure to make backup copies of your work!
If the repair was not successful, you can follow the same steps, but click Extract Data instead.
You might be able to retrieve all of the data, at least, or parts of the data.
And again, remember to make frequent backup copies of your work!
Find the Mouse Pointer
When working on my laptop, especially with a second monitor plugged in, it’s sometimes hard to find the mouse pointer. Too often, this happens in the middle of a meeting, while I’m trying to demonstrate something to a client.
To make the pointer easier to find, you can use one of the built in features:
- Click the Start button on the Windows taskbar, and click on Control Panel
- Double-click on the Mousecontrol, to open the Mouse Properties dialog box
- Click on the Pointer Options tab
- Add a check mark to Show Location of Pointer When I Press the CTRL Key
- Click OK
- Close the Control Panel window.
The next time you lose the pointer, press the Ctrl key, and circles will flash on the screen, showing its location.
Email Response Templates
If you frequently type the same responses to email questions, you can use an email response template to make things easier.
- In Outlook, create a new email, with the Subject “Standard Paragraphs”
- Leave the To and From boxes blank
- Paste in your most frequently used paragraphs.
- Save the message, and close it.
Next time you need one of the standard responses, open the Standard Paragraphs draft message, copy a paragraph from there, and paste it into your current email.
Compare Phone Plans
To compare phone plans in your area of the USA, you can use the free online tool at the Bill Shrink site (no longer available)
Enter your minutes per month, current monthly fee and zip code, and a ranked list of plans is provided.
Make Meetings Productive
Some great advice is found in Getting Real, by 37signals. For example, they advise against holding meetings, whenever possible, but…
“For those times when you absolutely must have a meeting (this should be a rare event), stick to these simple rules:
- Set a 30 minute timer. When it rings, meeting’s over. Period.
- Invite as few people as possible.
- Never have a meeting without a clear agenda. “
Show Full Menus in Excel
On my own computer, I like to see the full menus in Excel, so I selected that setting:
- On the Tools menu, click Customize
- On the Options tab, add a check mark to Always Show Full Menus
However, when visiting a client, I sometimes have to use another person’s machine, and I don’t like to change their settings.
Temporary Full Menus
If the full menus option has not been turned on, here’s what happens:
- When you click on an Excel menu, a double chevron may appear at the bottom of the menu.
Then, to see the full Excel menu, you can:
- click on that chevron
- OR, wait a few seconds, and the full menu will appear.
Quick Trick for Full Menus
And here’s a way to avoid waiting to see those full menus.
I like to do this, if I’m on someone else’s computer, and not sure if full menus are enabled:
- To quickly view the full menus, double-click on the menu name
Add a Border Line
While typing a document in Microsoft Word, you usually have your hands on the keyboard. To add a line border, you can reach for the mouse, click on the border tool drop-down, then click on a border.
A quicker way to add the line is to type three hyphens (—), then press Enter.
To add a thick border, use three underscores (___) and to add a double border tpe three equal signs (===).
If this technique doesn’t work, choose Tools â–º AutoCorrect Options. On the AutoFormat As You Type tab, add a check mark to Border Lines, in the Apply As You Type section.
Change a Comment’s Shape
To add some visual interest to a worksheet, change a comment’s shape from its default rectangle.
Here are the steps to change a comment shape in Excel 2003:
- Right-click the cell which contains the comment.
- Click on Edit Comment
- Click on the border of the comment, to select it.
- On the Drawing toolbar, click the Draw button
- Click on Change AutoShape, and click on a category.
- Click on a shape to select it.
- When finished, click outside the comment.
In this example, the Cube shape was selected from Basic Shapes. It looks a bit like a “big box” store!
Don’t Change Too Many!
I wouldn’t change the shape of too many comments on a worksheet, or it could be very distracting and possibly confusing.
Just do this for one or two comments, that you want to stand out from the others.
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Clean Up Your Excel Dictionaries
While rushing through a spell check in Excel, you accidentally added an incorrect word to your custom dictionary. Now that it’s in there, how do you get it out?
If you’re adventurous, you can use a text editor, such as NotePad, to modify the dictionaries, which are found in:
C:\Documents and Settings\YOUR_NAME\Application Data\Microsoft\Proof
Or, you can modify the list in Microsoft Word, which I find easier:
- In Word, choose Tools â–º Options
- On the Spelling & Grammar tab, click Custom Dictionaries
- Select a dictionary in the list, and click Modify
- Scroll through the list, and click on the word you want to remove
(to select multiple words, press Ctrl and click)
- Click the Delete button
- When finished, click OK
- Close the dialog boxes