Excel Tip: Quickly Find Named Ranges

The ability to name ranges is a valuable Excel feature, particularly when you are working with complex workbooks.

Naming ranges allows you to assign an easy to remember name to a:

• cell,
  
• range of cells, or
  
• formula.

You can use a named range by referring to its name (ex., Tax Table), rather than having to remember its address (ex., Tables!$A$11:$AF$42) in the workbook.

To quickly find a range, Type F5. The list of all named ranges shows up in the dialog box. When you double click on the name, Excel will automatically take you to the range.

To list all of the ranges in the workbook, as well as their locations,

• Select the Insert Menu,
  
• Select Name,
  
• then Paste,
  
• and Paste List.

For additional information, see Learn Excel Formulas from A to Z - Atlanta Excel Training Class.

PowerPoint Tip: Use Custom Slide Shows to Get More Mileage out of your Presentation

PowerPoint's Custom Slide Shows


PowerPoint's Custom Slide Show feature allows you to use the specific slides from a single presentation in a customized presentation.

For example, I have a workshop on Winning Website Strategies for Small Business Owners. One of the topics in my workshop explores 3 Keys to a Website that Sells. Another offers tips for Selecting the Right Web Development Team. While the full workshop runs for 3-4 hours, the two shorter sections are perfect for lunch and learn presentations.

I could have two or three separate PowerPoint presentations. In the 10 years I've been conducting website strategy workshops, however, I know that information changes rapidly. I do not want the hassle of synchronizing information in two or more presentations. Instead, I use PowerPoint's Custom Slide Shows.

Creating a Custom Slide Show

• Launch PowerPoint and open your presentation.
  
• From the Slide Show menu, select Custom Show
• Click the New button.
• Next to Slide Show Name, type in the name of your show (ex., DPA_Teachers).
• Double-click on each slide you'd like to add to your custom show.
• Once you've added all of the slides, click the OK button.
  
• Click Close.

To use a Custom Show.

• Click the Slide Show menu
• Click Setup Show
• Click the name of the show you'd like to select (ex., DPA_Teachers).
• Run the presentation.

Access 2003 Tip - Format a Number with Leading Zeros

Sometimes, it is important for a number to show up with leading zeros. This is often the case with identifiers such as part numbers of member ids. Here's a trick I recently used while developing an Access Database for a client.

1. Open the table in Design view.
   
2. Make sure the Datatype of the field is set to Number.
   
3. Select the General tab.
   
4. Click on the Format line, and set the format to 00000.

This forces all numbers in that field to show up in 5 digits with leading zeros.
For example:
7 is now 00007,
567 is now 00567,
1200 is now 01200.

Excel Tip - Conditional Formatting.

Excel Tip - Conditional Formatting

This tip comes in handy when you are using Excel for a report. You can set it up so that when values are above or beneath a particular threshold, the data will be formatted in a particular manner.

Here is an example of a way you can use conditional formatting:
You have a spreadsheet you use to track deadlines. You can set the format for the "due date" column so that if the due date is less than 2 weeks away, the cell will be shaded yellow. Once the due date has passed, the date will be underlined and in red. This way, you can quickly see which due dates are coming up, and which deadlines have slipped.

To use conditional formatting:

1. Select the cells you want to format.
2. Click on the Format menu, and select Conditional formatting.
3. Set the format appropriately.

For additional information, see Learn Excel Formulas from A to Z - Atlanta Excel Training Class.