All about Microsoft Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, Microsoft 365, Office 2021 and earlier versions.
Law & Order title card in PowerPoint and Word
Here’s how to make a lookalike for the Law & Order TV show title card in either PowerPoint or Word. Last week we showed how to make the Law & Order opening screen image and how to use that look in slides or documents. Many readers asked why Office-Watch.com didn’t do the main title card. […]
Law & Order titles and sound in PowerPoint and Office
One way to open a PowerPoint presentation could be to copy the opening of the Law & Order TV shows. Here’s how to get the same look in your PPT slides or Word documents plus the distinctive sound. The same formatting can be used in Word, maybe as a callout to highlight some text. But […]
Can’t edit a document in Teams? Try these workarounds
Sometimes a document can’t be edited in Teams for no good reason. Here’s some things to try and workaround the problem. Teams uses SharePoint to manage documents and sometimes the technology doesn’t behave the way it should. A document that you should have full access to, can only be viewed. Before becoming overly frustrated with […]
Free and secure conversion of .doc .xls or .ppt to the newer Office formats
Here’s how to convert an older .doc .xls or .ppt into a safer and smaller .docx .xlsx .pptx even if you don’t have Microsoft Office. Any smart computer user is wary of documents received in the old .doc .xls .ppt formats because they are regularly used to transmit viruses. The new document formats are much […]
Life Saving use for a collaborative spreadsheet
Spreadsheets aren’t just for numbers and money, they can also be used to save lives when saved online and collaborating with other people. Lismore is northern NSW, Australia has been struck with massive floods leaving many people stranded in their homes, some trapped against rising waters. The emergency services were overwhelmed so it was left […]
Adding Footnotes to Pictures in Word
How to add footnotes just below a photo in Microsoft Word The trick is similar to adding Footnotes to a Word table. Use Endnotes, instead of Footnotes (assuming you don’t use Endnotes elsewhere in the document). Add a Continuous Section Break and change the Endnotes settings to put them at the end of the section. […]
More powerful Excel Autofill using Series
Microsoft Excel Series allows users to automatically insert a list or series of values. You probably know the easy ‘drag and drop’ method but there’s a lot more possible with linear, growth, dates and autofill. All possible with the fill handle or with more control via the Series dialog. Whatever the reason, some people may […]
Send a full size, original image by WhatsApp for Android
Make WhatsApp send and receive the original, full size picture on Android devices for editing and viewing on larger screens. Usually, WhatsApp sends a small version of an image not the full size original but there’s a simple workaround. Find out more at Make WhatsApp send full size, original photos iPhone too! Send a full, original image […]
Send a full, original image by WhatsApp for iPhone
Usually, WhatsApp sends a small version of an image not the full size original. Here’s how to send the proper picture on iPhone for editing and viewing on larger screens. In short: send the image using the Document option instead of Camera! Also for Android! Send a full size, original image by WhatsApp for Android […]
Add an iCalendar .ics to an Outlook calendar but be careful
Inserting an .ics iCalendar item into Outlook is typical Microsoft Office. Seemingly easy if you believe the simplistic ‘help’ from Redmond but a little more involved in practice. iCalendar .ics files are small text files which contain an appointment or event. It’s a common standard so they can be used by Outlook or any other […]
Pound £ symbol in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
Type the Pound Sterling £ currency symbol into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook. Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac. £ symbol is easy on a UK keyboard but for other keyboards there’s no specific key for Pound. Pound is used for British Pounds Sterling and also other ‘pound’ currencies like the […]
Immersive Reader returns to OneNote
Immersive Reader, as seen in Word and older versions of OneNote, is returning to the latest releases of OneNote It’s a worthwhile tool to use, designed for those with dysgraphia or dyslexia, but perfect as well for those wanting to improve their reading experience. Here we’ll be using OneNote for the Web as an example, […]
Latest Samsung phones degrade Microsoft Office
Samsung phones have a hidden service which is slowing down Microsoft Office apps including the mobile apps for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and the Office ‘all in one’ app. Inside some of the new S22 Galaxy smartphones is a Games Optimization Service, or GOS. Cynical techies know to be wary about anything labelled ‘Optimization’ because […]
Play “Find the mouse pointer” in Windows 11 and Windows 10
There’s a simple and unobtrusive way to find a missing mouse pointer in both Windows 11 and Windows 10 using the Find My Mouse utility. Sometimes that mouse cursor seems to disappear. Nothing catches your eye when you moving the mouse around. There is a nice and easy solution using the PowerToys for Windows 11 […]
Check Accessibility problems as you work in Word, Excel and PowerPoint
Now you can see on the status bar if there’s accessibility problems as you work with your Word, Excel or Powerpoint documents. Tucked away on the Accessibility Pane is a option to run the accessibility checker as you work, instead of only on request. Keep accessibility checker running while I work Turning this on doesn’t […]
Ukraine flag & colors in Word, Excel or PowerPoint
Find and add the Ukraine flag or national colors into Office documents, Word, Excel or PowerPoint, then use some Office picture tools to enhance the image. Ukraine Flag Image There are many, many copies of the Ukraine flag available. We’ve opted for the Wikipedia site because it has an SVG scalable version (preferred) and PNG versions for older […]