Category Archives: Microsoft Office

Outlook 2016 Blue Bar Vanishes

Posted on by July 20, 2018
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A client recently told me how much she hated Outlook 2016 because it made new emails too hard to distinguish from older ones she had read. I was surprised since on my copy, this is not a problem. I found two settings that made a difference. Setting the Font Color for unread messages helps to make them stand out: On the View menu, select View Settings on the Current View group. Select Conditional Formatting Select which message types to change. Unread messages is what you want. Click the Font button and select a font/font color from the Font Menu. Click … Continue reading →

To Avoid Embarrassment, Create a Rule in Outlook to Delay Sending All Messages for 2 Minutes

Posted on by April 28, 2016
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We have all hit the Send button a little too soon, and then wished we could somehow retrieve the message. If you create a rule in Outlook that delays sending all email by 2 minutes, you can simply delete the message from your Outbox if you make a mistake.  Here’s how: File tab / Manage Rules and Alerts New Rule Start from a blank rule / Apply on messages I send Don’t select anything in the Select Conditions window.  When you hit OK, it will warn you that the rule will affect all messages, which is OK. In the Select … Continue reading →

Learn to Use the Format Painter!

Posted on by July 1, 2014
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Copy Formatting Once To copy the formatting of a block of text and “paint” another block of text with it: Highlight the text whose formatting you want to copy. Click the Format Painter icon once. Your cursor will display a paintbrush. Highlight the text you want to “paint.” Word will format the text. The paintbrush icon will disappear from your cursor. Copy Formatting to Several Blocks of Text If you want to “paint” several blocks of text with a format, you can “stick” the Format Painter to your cursor by double-clicking it. Highlight the text whose formatting you want to … Continue reading →

Customizable Ribbon in Office 2010/2013

Posted on by June 30, 2014
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In Office 2007, the Ribbon could not be customized. In Office 2010, you can customize the Ribbon to add new buttons, new tabs or new groups.  You can also rename the existing tabs and groups to suit your needs. To add a new tab or group to the ribbon: Click the File tab. Click Options to open the Word Options screen. Select the Customize Ribbon category on the left. … Continue reading →

Screen Capture Tool in Office 2010/2013

Posted on by June 30, 2014
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All Office 2010 and 2013 applications now include a screen capture utility to help you quickly capture any area of the desktop screen. The tool will automatically take screenshots of all open applications on your desktop (that are not minimized), and let you insert them directly into your document. Inserting a Full Screen Screenshot To insert a full screen screenshot: Click Screenshot in the Illustrations group on the Insert tab of the Ribbon. The application will display thumbnails of all open applications that are not minimized. Click the thumbnail you want to insert the screenshot in your document at the … Continue reading →

Enable or Disable Protected View in Office 2010/2013 Apps

Posted on by June 30, 2014
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Protected View is a safety feature in Office 2010/2013 that lets you view a document, but prevents it from running macros that might contain malware.  By default, it opens any document downloaded from the Internet in Protected View.  The same is true for any document attached to an email message, or any document in your browser cache. You can turn off Protected View for any of these options by clicking File / Options / Trust Center / Trust Center Settings… / Protected View.   … Continue reading →

Access Your Microsoft Templates Folder Easily

Posted on by June 30, 2014
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The location of the Templates folder varies in different versions of Windows, so here is a quick way to access it even if you don’t know where it is: Click the Start button or open the Run… box: Type:  %appdata%\Microsoft\Templates Your Templates folder will open in Windows Explorer. The folder contains the normal template used in Word, any custom or downloaded PowerPoint templates, and custom Excel, Outlook, and Publisher templates. … Continue reading →