Easy way to get UTC / GMT current time in Excel
Finding out the current UTC / GMT time in Excel is possible with a little VBA magic. We’ve included a full working example. Excel has two functions to give you the current date TODAY() or current date and time NOW() but it’s the local time as set on your computer. Often the worksheet needs either […]
Get the local time zone offset into Excel
Finding out the computers local time zone offset in Excel is possible with a little VBA magic. We’ve included a full working example of how to get the ‘nn hours from GMT’ setting from Windows into Excel. The need for the current UTC/GMT time and offset is becoming more important as Excel improves its external […]
Compass 🧠symbol in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
Insert a Compass 🧠symbol into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. Compass 🧠uses Segoe UI Emoji In Windows, the Compass 🧠symbol is in the font: Segoe UI Emoji. Depending on the app and use, it’ll appear in color or black. The symbol can […]
Cool Excel Year Planner now available for download
A clever and different year planner with a progress thermometer is now available for download as an Excel workbook. The days remaining in the year are visible with weekends shaded and each day of week shown. At the bottom is a clever use of Excel’s Chart features to make a progress ‘thermometer’ for the year. […]
Average / Mean options in Excel
Excel statistical functions have many Average / Mean options including Average with IF for filtering or mean with extreme values excluded. by David Goodmanson In a world which has more and more data, statistics are really important. They help you distill lots of numbers down so that you can see the overall pattern. And yes, […]
Converting Google Docs to Microsoft WordÂ
Google Docs can be handy for sharing and working on documents with other people, but sometimes you just really need that file in Microsoft Word. No problem – it’s actually really easy to convert them. All you have to do is download the file and save it as a Word doc, Excel sheet or PowerPoint deck. If the Google Docs File is Open […]
8 simple ‘Prohibited’ symbols for smoking, phones, kids and more in Word
Some ‘not allowed’ or ‘prohibited’ symbols, they can be used in Word, PowerPoint, Excel or Outlook. No Smoking, No Phone, No Children, No Drinking, No Pedestrians, No Bicycles, Not Drinkable Water or Mute. The Unicode symbol list includes red circle with diagonal to stop, smoking, children under 18, Mobile Phones, Littering, Pedestrians, bicycles plus no […]
Bulk conversion of old Office documents to new formats
How to bulk convert old documents (.doc .xls .ppt) into the newer Office formats (.docx .xlsx .pptx etc.). Microsoft has never produced a simple bulk conversion tool for the masses, much to the annoyance of users and network administrators. Redmond probably made that choice for their own self-interest but some of the reasons also serve […]
Omega upper Ω or lower ω symbols in Word and Office
Type the Greek letter Omega in upper case Ω or lower case ω in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. Omega (uppercase Ω / lowercase ω) is the twenty fourth and final letter of the Greek alphabet. It is used to often denote the last or ultimate […]
The best ways to get Microsoft Forms results into Excel
Here are the best ways to get results from Microsoft Forms into an Excel workbook. Sadly they aren’t the elegant and efficient ways available in modern Microsoft Excel 365, 2021 or 2019 for Windows. We’ll explain how to get Microsoft Forms results into Excel for better filtering and analysis. Then we’ll explain how Microsoft could […]
Named Ranges and Objects in the Excel Name Box
I said there are at least six tricks with the Excel Name Box and that’s before you get into using named rangers and objects. The Name Box lets you select a cells and give them a name or jump to an existing named range. It’s the same as going to Formulas | Define Name | […]
Six clever tricks (at least) in Excel’s Name Box
I found at least six uses for the Excel Name Box beyond just displaying the current cell address. The Name Box is an unassuming little box at the top of your Excel worksheet that you may not have thought about much, but it has a powerful range of uses for selecting and moving around a […]
Limitations of Word Sort feature for name sorting
Microsoft Word’s Sort feature is OK but has its limitations. We humans insist on variations of the simple ‘first and last’ name that confuse a computer. Here’s some name sorting traps and workarounds. For short lists, it’s probably enough to do a Word surname sort then manually adjust the list for any anomalies. Longer lists […]
Full CONVERT() measurement list for Excel
A full and searchable list of the measurements and multiplier prefixes available for Excel’s CONVERT function. This is a table of the abbreviations used in the Excel CONVERT() function. The basic units inbuilt to the function are all listed plus some of the common measures available using the Multiplier prefixes. Below that are a list […]
Converting SVG into JPG, PNG or other raster image format
Converting SVG icons into JPG is essential for older Word and Office versions that don’t have native icon/SVG support. Here’s some options for conversion or sourcing alternatives. SVG’s are great with many advantages for Office 365 and Office 2021/2019 users. Not everyone has the latest Microsoft Office or shares documents with others who have earlier […]
Type Phi uppercase Φ or lower φ in Word and Office
Insert the Phi uppercase Φ, and Phi lowercase φ / φ symbols in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Outlook.  Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac.   Phi (uppercase Φ / lowercase φ / φ) is the 21st letter of the Greek alphabet. The uppercase symbol has various uses, such as the cumulative distribution function of standard normal deviation in statistics. The lowercase symbol has […]
