Did you know you can get updates from millions of news websites and industry blogs in Outlook 2007? By subscribing to feeds, you can recieve updated information without visiting all your favorite websites individually.

Here’s how:

1. Find a website or a blog that you want to receive updates from. Look for the little orange icon with the “radio waves” on it like this: (we have one here on our blog, too, on the right side of the page). Click on that. Dont’ worry about what the page looks like, just copy the address out of the address bar at the top.
2. In Outlook 2007, you should have that same orange icon in your inbox folders on the left. It will be labeled as RSS feeds (RSS stands for real simple syndication). Right-click on that and choose to add a new feed.
3. A message will appear, choose to accept the feed.
4. There will be a plus (+) button next to RSS feeds. Click on it to expand it, and you’ll see your feeds listed below it.
5. When a feed updates with new information, it will look and behave like an unread email, and you can navigate and read your feeds just like emails. Unlike emails, however, you may want to delete old feed updates, instead of archive them.

Now you can pore through hundreds of web pages in only a few minutes! You don’t have to visit the web pages, they come to you.

Product(s): Microsoft Office PowerPoint.
Audience(s): Business Professional.
Duration: 60 Minutes
Start Date: Tuesday September 16th 10:00 AM Eastern Time
Fee: FREE!

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Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 enables users to quickly create high-impact, dynamic presentations, while integrating workflow and ways to easily share information. From the redesigned user interface to the new graphics and formatting capabilities, PowerPoint 2007 puts the control in your hands, so you can produce great-looking presentations. Register for this  informative webinar and learn the top 10 ways you can put PowerPoint 2007 to work for you.

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Conditional formatting applies rules to cell appearances for easier viewing and analysis of large numbers. For example, cells with a value of less than 50 percent can be automatically colored red, and cells with a value greater than 50 percent can be automatically colored green. This way, if you’re looking for larger numbers, you can start by looking for the green cells.

In Microsoft Office Excel 2003, applying conditional formatting means going to the Format menu and then manually entering the values and type of format to be applied. In Microsoft Office Excel 2007, you can click Conditional Formatting in the Styles section of the Home tab, and then select the preconfigured rule that you want to apply. You can also choose from predefined formatting options like Data Bars, Color Scales, and Icon Sets. For more advanced scenarios, select Manage Rules from the Conditional Formatting options.

Published on Microsoft.com: February 15, 2008

You work with documents, presentations, graphics, and other files all day. And then how much time do you spend looking for files that you worked on? A couple minutes here and a couple minutes there. On a daily basis, it can all add up.

There is a better way to stop the clutter: manage your files more effectively. Managing files on your computer is a lot like managing paper files. They can be organized using folders and then stored in specific locations for when you need them. And just like paper files and folders, if you don’t have a way to organize them, things can get lost.

Use these tips to help manage your files:

1) Use My Documents.
For many reasons, it’s smart to take advantage of My Documents feature in Microsoft Windows. To open My Documents in Windows, click Start, and then click My Documents. My Documents provides an easy way for you to store your personal documents. By using My Documents, you will be better able to find files, back up files, and keep files separate from programs. By separating document files and program files you reduce the risk of accidentally deleting your documents when you install or upgrade programs.

2) Adopt consistent methods for file and folder naming.
Develop a naming scheme for the kinds of files you create most often and then stick to it.

3) Keep names short.
Even though Windows allows you to use long file names, it does not necessarily mean you should. Long names produce cluttered displays. Brevity promotes clarity.
Let your folders do some of the naming.

4) Separate ongoing and completed work.
To keep the My Documents folder from becoming too unwieldy, use it only for files you’re working on. This reduces the number of files you need to search through and the amount of data you need to back up. Every month or so, move the files you’re no longer working on to a different folder or location—preferably not in My Documents.

5) Store like with like.
Restricting folders to a single document type (or predominantly one type) allows you to take advantage of folder templates in Windows Explorer. This makes it easier for you to find files. For example, with all your graphics in a single folder, it’s easy to use the Filmstrip view and slide show feature in Windows Explorer to find the right picture for your newsletter.

6) Avoid big folder structures.
If you need to put so many subfolders in a folder that you can’t see all of them at a glance, consider creating an alphabetic menu.

7) Use shortcuts and shortcut links instead of multiple copies.
If you need to get to the same file from multiple locations, don’t create copies of the file. Create shortcuts to it instead. To create a shortcut, right-click on the file and click Create Shortcut. You can drop-and-drag the shortcut to other locations.

Published on Microsoft.com: June 30, 2004

You can create shortcuts on your desktop that enable you to open your favorite files and folders by simply double-clicking your mouse.

To add a shortcut from a file to your desktop:

1) Browse through your My Documents folder, and find the file that you want to create a shortcut to.

2) Right-click the file that you want to be able to open from your desktop, click Send To, and then click Desktop.

You’ll see the shortcut on your desktop.

Note: The shortcut icon has an arrow in the lower-left corner to indicate that it’s a shortcut rather than the actual file. You can open a shortcut just like you would any other file by double-clicking it. However, if you delete the shortcut, you won’t remove the file itself.

Published on Microsoft.com: September 7, 2006

You can think of the Ribbon of tools and commands in the 2007 Microsoft Office system as your visual gallery to create professional and visually interesting documents.

In the 2007 Microsoft Office system, there are no dialog boxes for formatting text and images. The formatting tools that you are used to using still exist, but they are integrated into the Ribbon. You can use the new tabs to move across various sets of commands or Ribbons that make up the Microsoft Office Fluent user interface.

Additionally, while you are working on a document, the Ribbon automatically presents you with the right formatting tools at the right time and place. It reveals a visual gallery to help you quickly and easily format documents. For example, if you want to change the positioning of a picture you have imported into a Microsoft Office Word document:

1. Double-click the image. A Picture Tools tab opens a gallery that displays options to choose from.

2. Select the Position option from the gallery on the Picture Tools tab to easily define where the photo will sit within the text.

Published on Microsoft.com: February 14, 2008

You can add your favorite—or most commonly used—commands to the Quick Access Toolbar in the 2007 Microsoft Office system, so that these tools are always easy to find. You’ll find the Quick Access Toolbar next to the File or above the Ribbon.

The default commands on the Quick Access Toolbar are Save, Undo, and Repeat. You can add your most-used favorites by clicking the expandable arrow to the right of the Quick Access Toolbar to open the Customize Quick Access Toolbar menu. Here, you can select the set of commands that you want on the Quick Access Toolbar.

To add commands that aren’t on the list, click More Commands. If you’re adding a lot of new commands to the Quick Access Toolbar, use the Customize menu and click Show Below the Ribbon. This will move your Quick Access Toolbar to below the Ribbon to give it more room to expand.

Published on Microsoft.com: January 30, 2008

When several people use a single computer, it’s convenient to set up a user account for each person to keep everyone’s setup preferences and documents separate. If someone wants to use your computer briefly he or she can use the Guest user account. By default in Microsoft Window XP, this account is disabled, which means that only specifically authorized users can access your computer.
If you have enabled your Guest account, you should disable the Guest account (once your guest has finished using your computer) to improve your computer’s security.

To disable the guest account:

1) Click Start, and then click Control Panel.

2) Under Pick a Category, click User Accounts.

3) Under or pick an account to change, click Guest.

4) On the What do you want to change about the guest account? page, click Turn off the guest account.

Now the Guest account is disabled. As an added safety precaution, and to prevent users without user accounts from logging on, it’s a good idea to add passwords to every account on your computer.

Published on Microsoft.com: September 7, 2006

The notification area is the collection of small icons near your system clock, in the bottom-right corner of your screen. After you’ve used your computer for a few months, the notification area can become cluttered with icons for different programs you may have installed. Each icon takes up space on your Microsoft Windows XP taskbar, which leaves less room for your program buttons. 
Fortunately, you can free up space in the notification area by hiding icons that you don’t use very often.

To organize your notification area:

1) Right-click the system clock, and then click Properties on the shortcut menu.

2) In the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, click Customize.

3) The Customize Notifications dialog box appears. For each icon you want to hide, click the Behavior list, and then click Always hide For each icon you want to always show, click the Behavior list, and then click Always show.

4) Click OK twice.

Your notification area will be much less crowded, giving you more room for program buttons on your taskbar. To show the icons you have hidden, click the left arrow beside the notification area.

Published on Microsoft.com: September 7, 2006