Microsoft 365 – the subscription / annual fee plan for Microsoft Office on Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad and Android.
Includes Word 365, Excel 365, PowerPoint 365, Outlook 365 and many other ‘365’ programs, apps and services.
Use the fast list shortcuts in PowerPoint
PowerPoint has, finally, added shortcuts to quickly make bullet or numbered lists without using the ribbon. Here’s the full list of typing shortcuts and how to turn them off. In Word, you’re probably familiar with a list being automatically created if you type * or 1. at the start of a new line. PowerPoint has […]
Dates, time and duration, the truth in Excel
Date handling in Excel can be confusing and it’s not your fault. Microsoft could do a better job. Here’s a quick guide to how Excel handles dates and date arithmetic with the settings you should know. What you see isn’t what’s saved What Excel shows in a cell is only a version of what’s actually […]
Line And Paragraph Numbering In Word
How to number lines and paragraphs in Microsoft Word and format the numbers with a different font, size or color. Plus some ‘wish list’ features that are missing from Word. When you’re discussing a speech or other document ‘in progress’ you might want to number the lines or paragraphs for easy reference “Please change paragraphs […]
Construction Sign 🚧 emoji in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
How to insert the Construction or Roadwork Sign 🚧 emoji into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. Construction, Roadwork or Warning Sign 🚧 symbol can be used in PowerPoint slides and in other Office documents sometimes to mark WIP or “Work in Progress“. Need more than an […]
How to get better results with Bing Image Creation
Make better and faster images with Bing Image Creation, Dall-E and other AI tools using a few simple tricks. Here’s some ideas and comments with plenty of examples. If you’ve tried Microsoft Designer, Dall-E or other AI image makers, Bing Image Creation is nothing new and works the same way. See What is Dall-E and […]
Make your own pictures in a flash with Bing Image Creation
Microsoft has released their version of an AI image maker (like Dall-E) called, imaginatively, Bing Image Creation. We’ll explain how to access and use the preview with some examples of freshly made images and how the Content Warning/Block works. All these images are original, made by Bing Image Creation from a text description like ‘Woman […]
Try out Microsoft Loop, now available to the public
Microsoft Loop is coming for everyone and is now in a public preview of this new way to collaborate online. Here’s how to get into the Loop preview and how to get started exploring this new tech. Loop components are live mini-documents, worksheets or lists that people can collaborate on within other Office features like […]
Copilot might “transform the way we work” but not right now
According to Microsoft, their AI integration Copilot is “A whole new way to work” and will “Transform the way we work”. That’s true, but not as quickly or as well as their overstated hype suggests. Here’s why I’m cautious about the Copilot promises. Microsoft is rushing both publicity and release to keep ahead of Google, […]
Fixing Microsoft Office Unlicensed Product errors
Here’s what to do if you get the dreaded Microsoft 365 / Office 2021 or Office 2019 Unlicensed Product / View only error message. Assuming you have a current Office 2021/2019 or Microsoft 365 subscription (we’ll show you how to check that, below). The unlicenced product warning usually happens if you’ve started Office after a […]
Find more and faster in Word using these tricks
Use these Microsoft Word options to quickly find words and word variations that you might have thought impossible. Finding words that sound the same or past, present and future tenses in the one search or ignoring punctuation to find “its” and “it’s” in one search These options are in the two places you can Find […]
Reversed Question Mark / Irony ⸮ symbol in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
How to insert the Reversed Question Mark / Irony ⸮ into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. Reversed Question Mark / Irony ⸮ symbol has been proposed to denote irony or sarcasm within text. Or for rhetorical questions. It’s never really caught on. The proper name […]
Add a special font for dyslexics to Word and Office
Dyslexie is a special font that’s easier for dyslexic people to read than standard type. It’s free for personal use and easy to include in Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint for Windows or Mac. The font is specially designed, making it easier for the eye/brain to distinguish similar letters. For example, the slight incline reduces […]
Microsoft Copilot reaches new levels of marketing hype
The Microsoft Copilot announcements reach new heights, or lows of Microsoft Hype™ depending on your point of view. We’re used to reading lots of ‘excitement’ from Microsoft that’s impressive sounding but essentially meaningless. Perhaps this pre-announcement for Copilot was mostly about Microsoft wanting to maintain the appearance of being ahead of Google, who made similar […]
What Microsoft 365 Copilot can really do for you – not just the hype
Strip away the hype and vague promises for the upcoming Microsoft Copilot and see what these AI features can do for you. As regular Office Watch readers know, we prefer to talk about products we can use ourselves. Until we can do that, we’ve stripped away the considerable Copilot hype to show a little bit […]
How Microsoft left an Outlook security hole that’s way too easy for hackers
More is coming out about the latest, critical Outlook security bug and how embarrassingly easy it is for hackers to infiltrate an unguarded computer. What Microsoft blandly calls an “Outlook Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability” is truly dangerous and is so easily done that it’s likely to be quickly and widely used. Everyone with Office for […]
Office gets Irish language or Faigheann MS Office an Ghaeilge
Irish Gaelic, Gaeilge or just Irish is available in Microsoft Word Translator and other translate services from Microsoft. Here’s how to download the Irish spell check and other proofing tools. Irish Gaelic is the first official language of the Republic. English is more commonly used and the second official language. Gaeilge is also recognised in […]
