Microsoft Office
Get the most out of Microsoft Office with these and tips and tutorials for making Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and other Office apps work for you and your organization.
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Use Word's Go To feature to browse common elements
Word's Go To feature has two modes of navigation. You can use it to access an element once, or you can browse common elements, one by one.
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Display the total number of emails in an Outlook folder
To the right of each mail folder, Outlook displays the number of unread messages. With a few clicks, you can change that number to the number of total messages in the folder instead.
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A quick way to return the latest date in a subset in Excel
Identifying the latest entry for a subset doesn't have to be difficult - use a pivot table.
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Grant yourself access to Word's horizontal and vertical rulers
Word's ruler is a bit unpredictable - now you see it, now you don't. Learn how to control its seemingly unruly behavior.
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Modify a style at the template level
You can modify a style on two levels: for the current document only or for all new documents based on the underlying template. Make sure you make the right choice.
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Sum only negative values in a given range using SUMIF()
Summing only the positive or negative values in the same range of values only sounds difficult. Fortunately, the SUMIF() function can handle both.
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A quick way to create a list of sequential numbers in Word
Creating a list of sequential numbers isn't as difficult as it might sound at first. If you can create a table, you can create a list of sequential numbers.
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Two useful Word shortcuts for quickly deleting text
Editing text is tedious work. Use these two shortcuts to delete whole words instead of single characters.
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Automatically start an Office program when you turn on your computer
If you begin your workday in the same Office app every day, let Windows start that app for you.
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The right way to create a Word template
Sometimes it's tempting to take shortcuts, but fight the urge when creating a new Word template.
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How to change a Word document's default tabs
When Word's default tab stops of every half inch don't get the job done, change the default setting!
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How to filter an Excel 2007 and 2010 data set for the current week
Use Excel 2007 and 2010's built-it date filters when they're adequate. When they're not, try helper columns and date functions.
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Word: How to format just the numbers in a numbered list
Formatting a list is easy. Formatting just the numbers is more difficult, unless you know this quick trick!
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Three ways to control Excel's cursor movement during data entry
Inputting data is seldom anybody's favorite chore but controlling the way the cursor moves certainly eases the task.
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Quick tip: Find Excel's XLStart folder fast
We seldom need the XLStart folder, so when we do, we can never remember the entire path. Instead of searching, use this quick Excel tip instead.
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Quickly print multiple Word articles
If printing is your only task, don't open Word files one by one when you can print multiple documents from Windows Explorer.
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Two ways to add checkbox controls to a Word document
Use a customized bulleted list or a content control to insert checkboxes into a Word document, depending on how you are going to use it.
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How to add a drop-down list to an Excel cell
Drop-down lists can greatly facilitate data entry. Here's a look at how to use Excel's data validation feature to create handy lists within your worksheets.
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Transpose Excel data from rows to columns, or vice versa
When you need to flip-flop data in an Excel worksheet, don't waste time doing it manually. Excel offers a handy Transpose option that will quickly take care of the task.
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Use SUMIFS() to sum by multiple conditions in Excel
Excel's SUMIF() lets you sum values, conditionally. It's new sibling, SUMIFS() lets you sum values by multiple conditions.
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Four ways to insert an em dash in a Word document
When you need an em dash, you can let Word enter it for you the easy way. If that approach doesn't suit your needs, try one of three manual methods.
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Add horizontal lines to a Word document
Susan Harkins shows you two easy ways to insert a horizontal line into a Word document.
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Use COUNTIFS() to evaluate multiple count and criteria ranges
Excel's COUNTIFS() function is flexible enough to handle different ranges and data types.
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A quick and dirty way to compare columns of Excel data
Using this little-known feature in Excel, you can quickly compare one column of data to another.
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Use a custom format in Excel to display easier to read millions
Use a custom format in Microsoft Excel to reduce the number of digits in a large number without losing its scale.
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How to use Excel 2010's new conditional formatting with references
Excel 2010's new referencing option makes conditional formatting more powerful than ever before!
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The secret to unhiding column A in an Excel worksheet
After you hide column A, it might seem like it's gone forever. Fortunately, there are two simple tricks for unhiding it.
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Use Word's Vertical Alignment settings to center a page
Centering text vertically isn't difficult; you just have to know where to look!
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Two ways to build dynamic charts in Excel
Users will appreciate a chart that updates right before their eyes. In Excel 2007 and 2010 it's as easy as creating a table. In earlier versions, you'll need the formula method.