Thursday, September 29, 2011

Microsoft Outlook Help & Support

Microsoft Outlook is one of the most widely used email clients, but most users are unaware of its all features. Outlook is believed to be the best email application for business persons who require managing lots of emails in one go. If you are only using it for sending and receiving emails, you are wasting the caliber of a great productivity tool!

You can use Microsoft Help to keep a track of your to do list with the help of setup rules option. For handling outlook problem we have to need Microsoft outlook Support. The email client offers rules creation option to its users, using which you can perform following functions:

Assign categories to your tasks

If you have a plethora of emails on your task list, you may have found that viewing them all on your screen is too overwhelming to be helpful. However, assigning a proper category to each task allows you to group similar tasks, such as telephone calls or errands, so you can look after several at the same time. You can create your own categories to replace or supplement the default categories supplied with the program.

Enter priorities for your work

Microsoft Support lets you to arrange and view your tasks by category, priority, and due date. Entering this information will allow you to reap the benefits of using an electronic task manager over writing details over paper every time.

Create tasks from an email message

Drag and drop a message from your inbox directly into your task folder and create a new Task. Edit the subject line and other details as required. Save the task, and delete the message or move it to a proper folder. This is the electronic equal to taking a piece of paper out of your in tray, placing it in an action file on your desk, and adding it to your to-do list.

To set-up email rules in Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express, you can consider taking help of computer support resources. They have got the best email support specialists to help you out with everything. Indeed, email support services are gaining in popularity with businesses as they need an effective email management.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1338652

Monday, September 26, 2011

Does Microsoft Threaten Innovation?

Some people who are sworn anti-Microsoft Advocates claim that Microsoft Threatens Innovation. Yet Microsoft pours more money into Research and Development than almost any company on the Planet. Thus such a claim from Microsoft Detractors makes no sense whatsoever.

Microsoft Curtailing Innovation?

No it isn't, innovation is threatened by weakness, if you can do better, do it, more power to you. If Microsoft fails to adapt then someone else will. If you can do better, then do it. No one is stopping you. When the FTC attacked Microsoft helping Steve Case and Company and giving a lift to AOL, what happened then? Not much, AOL was over hyped, shot up like a rocket, crashed and burned investors and over charged consumers, giving them lousy service - a lot of good that did?

Now if you buy a new computer AOL has trial software on your computer and it takes hours to get this stuff off your computer. Thanks a lot FTC? The FTC hurt consumers, they did not help them when they went after Microsoft for giving away FREE Internet Browsers. How can anyone claim that the consumer was damaged? But a lot of lawyers got rich in court attacking and defending the biggest FTC Fraud on consumers in history and they attacked such a great company.

Microsoft Creates an Economic Imbalance Say Anti-Microsoft folks?

What do you mean? Look at all the start-ups, look at Google, look and see it all. Microsoft has created an entire market and expanded the pie and millions are employed as Microsoft Partners or designing add-on software for 10s of thousands of applications. It is unnerving to listen to snivelers or FTC employees who have no clue as to what Free-Market means.

Go read; "Rule Breakers and Rule Makers" and let me tell you NO ONE causes more stagnation in industry than the Regulatory Agencies of the Federal Government and that is the truth. The FTC slowed down Microsoft by 5-years and tried to steal the wind out of their sales to give it to hipsters- Lot of good that did.

The FTC stole the election from the consumers who voted with their dollars and gave it to mal-contents, who could not or would not perform. That is what happened and who cares what the government claims; "We were protecting the consumers" oh BS. The FTC could not even protect them selves from Identity Theft losing data from their own computers and SPAM went up 3000% since the FTC was put in charge of it.

Microsoft is only fixing the mistakes that the government failed to fix, but promised too. I am not buying any of this from Microsoft Detractors, so you need to come clean on the reality. Read "Business at the Speed of Thought" with an open mind, not with hatred. This is not some Tech Trending Futurists wishful thinking novel with an angle and a spin hyping trash. We are talking about reality, not the created reality.

And for goodness sake if the Environmentalists wish to attack Microsoft or use scare tactics of old plastic 286 IBM Clone frames on the beach littered with 5 inch floppies. I do not see those on the beaches of the world, do you? Microsoft is good for the environment, less paper work and more electronic storage means less trees to be cut down.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/555509

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Microsoft Help - Live Support

Microsoft, a software giant, which develops, manufactures, licenses and supports a wide range of software products for computing devices. It has launched a series of operating systems, which includes Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and others. Office 2007, Office 2003, Office XP, and others are the Office suites released by the software giant.

Microsoft help is available from its support website on all its products. While working with its products, if you face any sort of issue you can visit its support website. You will get help on many topics from its support website related to its products. A brief description of Microsoft help is as follows:

Microsoft Help Topics:

Microsoft help is available on all its operating systems, whether Windows 7 or Vista. If you are working with Windows 7, you can get help on many topics like how to get benefitted with its features, keyboard shortcuts, and many more. In case you want to migrate to Windows 7, you can receive a lot of information about how to install Windows 7, what are its minimum system requirements, which edition is best suited for you, and others.

While working with Windows Vista, you can receive help on many topics, such as how to upgrade from Vista to Windows 7, how to share a printer on Windows 7, Vista and XP network, how to enable hibernation mode, how to connect to a wireless network, how to optimize Windows Vista performance, and others.

If you are working on Windows XP, you will get help about, how to upgrade from XP to Windows 7, how to obtain its latest service pack, description about Windows XP Recovery Console, how to restore Windows XP to a previous safe state, how to recover from a corrupted registry, and others.

In case, you are operating on Windows 2000, you will receive help on many topics including, how to obtain its latest service pack, virus protection and security patch information for Windows 2000, how to configure Automatic Updates, how to edit Boot.ini file, how to troubleshoot shutdown problems, and others.

MS has established its Help centers across many cities of the world and also has its gold partners in major countries of the world.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3740176

Friday, September 16, 2011

Revealing Microsoft Entourage Help

Microsoft Entourage is an e-mail client developed by Microsoft for Mac OS. It can retrieve e-mail with the use of POP, IMAP, etc. With the use of Microsoft Entourage, you can easily create and organize your projects, because of its Project Center.

While working with Microsoft Entourage, you can face any technical issue like, display problems while opening a document, how to rebuild your identity database, error messages while installing an update, etc. You can resolve your technical issues related to Microsoft Entourage on your own, in case you have the proper knowledge. But if you do not have the knowledge, then you can contact any technical service provider for Microsoft Help.

If you are facing any problem, with this e-mail client on the same computer, then you can use its identity feature. You can perform the following steps in Microsoft Entourage 2001 to create a new identity:

STEP 1: On the File menu click on Switch Identities.

STEP 2: Click on Switch, when you are prompted to close all connections and windows for the current identity.

STEP 3: Click on New in the Select an Identity dialog box.

STEP 4: Type a name for your identity, in the Identity Name box, and then click OK.

STEP 5: Click the Base Initial Settings On box or use the default settings, and then click on OK.

While performing these steps, Set Up Assistant will appear to help you with account information, like e-mail addresses and server names for your new identity.

If you want to create a new identity in Microsoft Entourage versions X and 2004 follow these steps:

STEP 1: On the Entourage menu, click on Switch Identity.

STEP 2: Click on Switch, when a message box appears warning you that Entourage will close all connections and windows for the current identity.

STEP 3: Click on New, in the Select an Identity dialog box.

STEP 4: Type a name for your identity, in the Identity Name box, and then click OK.

When you are working with the above mentioned steps, Entourage Setup Assistant will appear to help you with account information, like e-mail addresses and server names for your new identity.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3832475

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Benefit from Microsoft Office?

Where is Microsoft Office today?

Today Microsoft Office has evolved from a group of private productivity products to a more complete and integrated system. Building on the well-known tools that a lot of people are familiar with already, the Microsoft Office System includes servers, services, programs and solutions meant to work as one to help deal with a broad range of business dilemmas.

What's my benefit for getting Microsoft Office?

A Microsoft Office System gives you a building block for solutions that helps:

It gives business users enhanced access to data, and therefore they can get better insight and take actions that are more valuable. And it improves an organizations capability to expect, handle, and react to changes in the market. Further it is allowing teams and organizations to work jointly with swiftness and quickness. And finally, the most important, it improves individual efficiency and enables more business users to contribute in the all the time more challenging environment around them.

What is Microsoft Office?

The servers, services, programs and solutions, which put together, forms the Microsoft Office System, are:

Office Editions is the successor to Microsoft Office XP, and the foundation of the Microsoft Office System.

Microsoft Office Access is the Office database management program, and offers an enhanced ease of use and an extended ability to export, import, and work with XML data files.

Microsoft Office Excel is the Office spreadsheet program, and includes support for XML plus features that make it easier to analyze and share information.

Microsoft Office FrontPage is the Office Web site creation and management program, which delivers powerful features plus controls to help you design superior Web sites.

Microsoft Office InfoPath is the Office information gathering as well as management program, which streamline the process of gathering information.

Microsoft Office OneNote is the Office note-taking plus management program, which enables you to organize, capture and reuse notes on a laptop or desktop computer.

Microsoft Office Outlook, which is the Office personal information manager plus communication program, provides a integrated place to manage calendars, e-mail, contacts and other personal or team information.

Microsoft Office PowerPoint is the Office presentation graphics program, which allows you to produce an impact in person or online.

Microsoft Office Project enables organizations to line up business initiatives, resources and projects for improved business results.

Microsoft Office Publisher is the Office business publishing plus marketing materials program, which makes it easier than ever to produce, design, and publish expert marketing and communication materials.

Microsoft Office Visio is the Office business plus technical diagramming program, which helps you transform ideas plus conventional business data into diagrams.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/105088

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Online Technical Support On The Worldwide Web

Do you feel like stuck in every time your computer freezes or shows unexpected error messages? Do you find the existing online technical support services not reliable or too expensive to fit into your budget? Or do you not find the right answers to your computer-related queries that help you keep your PC/antivirus/Blackberry phones or applications etc. up and running? So many issues, so many solutions, but how to choose the right one is the problem. There are also larger number of websites that claim to offer great, reliable, and low-priced online technical support to PC users over the phone or internet. However, when you do a reality check for the services, you tend to feel like "bugged" or "not good". (But not anymore, we are here to 'Help You' and take care of all your PC-related technical problems and provide you with a one-stop solution)

The 24/7 live and reliable online technical support not only assures you of a fix for your problems but also the essential "Peace of mind" without costing heavily on your pocket. These support services believe in making claims but in proving that only we can help you. They offer certified support for a vast range of products and applications including

• PCs and laptops (any make)
• All antivirus software
• All malware and adware software
• Microsoft Windows OS
• Macintosh OS
• All Printers
• All wireless (Wi-Fi) routers
• Blackberry Smartphone and iPhones
• Internet applications
• Windows Live Mail
• Microsoft Outlook Express and Microsoft Outlook
• XBOX 360 and PlayStation 3 (PS3)
• PC optimization
• PC data backup and recovery
• Miscellaneous devices* and applications

What can be more irritating than not getting the right technical support at the time when you need it the most? The motto of this support services is to let you experience the world-class technical support service that guarantees you satisfaction. Online technical support service providers have a team of certified professionals that instantly resolve your issues online and leave you with only comfort and peace of mind. That's not all, some of them offer the lowest-priced service that is far lower than Microsoft Support, Dell Support, HP Support and Symantec.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5901821

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Microsoft Windows Registry Repair - A Tool to Maintain Your PC


Is maintenance important where your computers are considered? The answer to this question is a huge yes, because this is very important if you want to see your computer running properly and efficiently and giving you results as it used to do so when it was new. You might be laughing at this suggestion. But the fact still remains and there is something that does this job for you too. This is called the Microsoft windows registry repair program. This will take care of the computer completely once you assign it to do so.

But the question is why this registry is so important? The answer is very simple. The reason why your computer works with so much accuracy and professionalism is because there is something that controls these operations. This behavior of controlling the computer's work is done by the registry. All the information, in connection with the behavior of the computer that is the software installed, information about the hardware devices, the drivers etc are stored in the registry in the form of values. When this part of your system becomes populated with too many unnecessary values, you need the help of the Microsoft windows registry repair too.

The use of registry is used to a very large extent in Microsoft's operating systems and this is why you need to maintain these too using the Microsoft windows registry repair. When ever you do anything on the computer say installing and uninstalling programs, opening a particular application, using the browser to surf etc. there are several of these registry values that are made and modified. In course of time, the computer lands in a huge confusion as there are a lot of values that needs to be handled and this leads to errors, making your PC unreliable and slow. The only answer to this problem is to use Microsoft Windows registry repair.

There are several Microsoft windows registry repair that are available online; you only need to be extremely cautious about the choice you make.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3234769

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Help Options in microsoft office Applications

There are times everyone gets stuck in a Microsoft Office application and can't remember how to do something. That is when they look to office buddies for help. If no one is around to ask, then that is where the Help feature in every Office application comes in handy. Just look up what needs to be done using Help as the guide since the information it finds will be specific to the application being used. Help is easy to use because it works pretty much the same in every Office application. Learn the many methods for calling up help to find the one that works best in order to work with that method regularly.

The most well-known way to get help is with the Office Assistant. This is an animated character which seems almost as good as talking to a live person about a question. When this character pops up during work, simply click on it to ask a question and then click on the "search" button to find an answer. It is easy to drag the Assistant around the window to move it out of the way when working. Or right-click on the Assistant and choose Hide from the pop-up menu to remove it from the display. This will take it off the screen, but t can be brought back from the Help options or"?" icon.

Instead of the assistant, use the question mark "?" icon since it is the easiest to remember for getting help because a question needs to be asked and answered. Click on the "?" icon to enter search criteria in the open text field and then click the "search" button to begin looking for answers.

"Ask a question" is a little feature that many users miss. It is located in the upper right-hand corner next to the Close Window "X". It looks and acts like a search bar in most internet search engines. Simply type in the search criteria and then hit the enter key on keyboard to start the search. Users who are already comfortable doing on-line searches may prefer this method for getting help.

Also, the menu, tab, or toolbar option with the word "Help" is available. This usually has a sub-menu for help for the beginner or people who like to easily find reference materials. This option will bring up a help window with what appears similar to a reference book. It should offer a table of contents and an index, in newer versions of Office if may give the optional answer wizard (which is the program behind the "?", Assistant, and Ask). This option also will let the user see the version of the software application being used by selecting "About", which is helpful when on the phone with customer support.

Article Source: http://goo.gl/q8Tww

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Microsoft PC Help


Microsoft PCs have long been a staple for consumers to turn to when they need a computer. Partly because of the huge market share Microsoft enjoys, there are many types of problems that can occur in the Windows operating system, simply because so many people use it in so many different ways.

Time Frame

Problems affecting Microsoft PCs can occur at any time; whether the operating system was just installed, or if the computer has been running for years. In general, the more use a computer gets, the more likely it is that it may develop problems, due to user error, file corruption, program problems or other issues. Problems themselves may also have time frames for when they occur, if they occur at certain dates or times, or happen on regular intervals.

Effects

Microsoft Windows problems can have a variety of effects on a computer, ranging from minor annoyances to serious system catastrophes. Minor problems can have effects such as data loss, program crashes and unexpected rebooting. Moderate problems have effects like virus infection, program corruption and data corruption. Major problems include effects such as operating system failure, blue screen errors and hardware breakdowns.

Misconceptions


Although Microsoft PCs do have many problems that can go wrong with them, they are no more prone to errors than any other operating system, such as Linux or Macintosh. The major difference between Microsoft and other operating systems is that Microsoft has such a large market share that anything that can go wrong with a Microsoft PC most likely will, simply because there are so many people using them. This does not mean that Microsoft PCs are any more dangerous to use than other types of computers.

Prevention/Solution

Common problems that plague Microsoft PCs can be avoided by following a few simple tips. First, always have an antivirus program running on your computer, and ensure that it is up to date and use it frequently. Install an anti-malware program as well, and run it at regular intervals. Perform disk defragmentation, disk cleanup and other maintenance utilities on your computer often to keep it performing well.


Read more: http://goo.gl/3nzkH

Friday, August 5, 2011

Microsoft Help Topics


Microsoft Corporation was founded on April 4, 1975, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, by Bill Gates and Paul Allen. The company quickly grew, dominating the home computer operating system market. In the mid-1980s, it took over with MS-DOS, and the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems quickly followed. Microsoft's help topics are as vast as its product line.

Windows 7



Windows 7, the latest release of the Microsoft Windows operating system for personal computers, gets high traffic for help topics on sound problems, network connection problems and invalid windows product keys. All three of the top Windows 7 help topics have links to tutorials to help the consumer identify and correct the most common problems.

Windows Vista



Windows Vista, another operating system designed for personal computers by Microsoft, has commonly searched help topics about support ending for Windows Vista Service Pack 1, updating a driver for hardware that isn't working properly and sound issues. To inform customers that support for Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is ending, Microsoft created a help topic and informed customers of the end date.

Internet Explorer


Windows Internet Explorer, a series of graphical Web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Windows operating systems starting in 1999, has popular help topics for IE9 (the latest version) that include installing or uninstalling the browser, pages rendering incorrectly and website features not working.

Windows Live



Windows Live is the brand name for a set of Microsoft software products and services that are Web-based applications accessible from a browser. Help topics include recovering a hacked account, entering characters shown in the security image and forgotten password and sign-in problems.


Read more: http://goo.gl/UwNfa

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Disable Help & Support in Windows XP

Microsoft Windows XP is a computer operating system popular in 2010 that has many services and processes that run by default when the computer starts. These default services can be useful, but they can also use up system resources. Turning off Windows XP services that you do not use can potentially increase performance. One such service is the Help and Support service, which allows the Help and Support Center to run. Advanced users who do not need help and support with their computer or plan to find help and support online may wish to disable this service.

Instructions

 Click "Start," right click "My Computer" and then click "Manage."
         

Click the plus (+) sign next to "Services and Applications," then click on "Services" and click the "Standard" tab.
        

Scroll through the list of services and locate "Help and Support."
        

Double click on "Help and Support," and where it says "Startup Type" change the dropdown field to "Disabled." Click "Apply," and then click "Ok."


Read more:  http://goo.gl/ZKir9

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

How to Contact Microsoft About a Problem ?

Perhaps you come home stressed from a long day at work, and to top it all off, you find out that your Xbox isn't working. Perhaps your Zune is malfunctioning as well. Or your computer is giving you technical difficulties. Whatever the situation may be, the most logical choice is to contact Microsoft for help. Their technology experts can help you fix your problems and answer questions about Microsoft services and products.

Instructions

Contact the Microsoft Customer Service and Support Department

Before you contact Microsoft, see if your the answer to your problem is answered in the Microsoft Help and Support Knowledge Base (see Resources); many problems can be fixed without the use of a Microsoft customer-service representative by doing a little research.
   
To contact them about a problem, use the Microsoft Help and Support Contact Us website (see Resources) to obtain the customer-service email you need for a specific product (e.g., Zune, Xbox, Windows XP, etc.).

Read more:  http://goo.gl/9faLd

Monday, July 11, 2011

How to Fix Help Support in Windows XP

Help and Support is a useful feature in most versions of Microsoft Windows, including XP. Help and Support contains a library of topics pertaining to many aspects of the computer, such as networking, printing and Windows updates. You can get to this utility by clicking the Help and Support icon on the Windows XP Start menu. However, if Help and Support is missing from the Start menu, does not respond when clicked or an error message appears saying the program could not open, take steps to repair the feature.

Click the "Start" button and then click "Run." A small window titled "Run" will open just above the Start menu and taskbar.

Type "regedit" into the "Open" box and click "OK" or press the "Enter" key. The Registry Editor will open.


Click the triangular button to the left of "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE" to expand this registry folder. Find and expand the following folders in order: "SOFTWARE," "Microsoft," "Windows," "CurrentVersion" and "App Paths."

Locate "HELPCTR.EXE" in the "App Paths" folder. If it is missing, right click "App Paths." Point to "New" and select "Key." Type "HELPCTR.EXE" into the "New Key" field and press "Enter."

Select "HELPCTR.EXE" in the left pane and then right click "(Default)" in the right pane. Select "Modify" and type (or copy and paste) "C:\WINDOWS\PCHealth\HelpCtr\Binaries\HelpCtr.exe" into the "Values" box. Click "OK" to finish fixing Help and Support and restart the computer.

Read more: http://goo.gl/jqPOq

Friday, July 1, 2011

Resolve Microsoft Operating System Problems With Tech Support

Microsoft is the leading provider of the Windows Operating Systems. Microsoft Windows is the series of software operating systems. Windows have dominated the personal computer market in the world. Windows had approximately 91% of the market share of the client operating systems for usage on the internet. The most recent client version of Microsoft operating system is Windows 7. The most recent mobile Operating system version is Windows phone 7. Earlier versions of Microsoft Windows Operating systems include Window 2000, NT, XP and Windows Vista.

Operating System is the system software that provides the communication between user and the computer. It acts as an interface between the computer hardware and user. It manages the computer resources such as processor time, memory, data and input/output devices.

Microsoft has done an amazing job on its operating system. Everyday tasks have become easy to accomplish. They have made their operating systems user friendly for sure. It is not an easy task to choose the appropriate operating system for your computer.
You need to be very careful while making a choice.

If you are looking for speed then you may consider older operating systems from Microsoft. Windows XP is still widely used and is considered to be the fastest of their operating systems. Most of todays software is also compatible with Windows XP as it has a huge install base.

Which Operating Systems fulfills your needs?
Is it Windows 7, Vista or XP? The answers are quite complicated and it depends on many factors. Windows Vista had its own problems, start from the beginning. Similarly, Windows 7 is the latest and most flexible Microsoft operating system to date, but PC users have a lot of reasons to stick with Vista or Windows XP until Windows 7 is producing their lack of drivers for many hardwares. To make sure that you end up buying the right Operating system for your computer, you can take help from the remote service providers who will assist you optimize your PC with the right operating system software.

Read more: http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Resolve-Microsoft-Operating-System-Problems-With-Tech-Support-/2606329#ixzz1Qqu

Monday, June 27, 2011

Microsoft Word 2003 - Create Wonderful Borders and Stationery in No Time

Microsoft Word 2003 has this great and foolproof functionality to create borders and shades with which you can whip up your own stationeries and fliers in no time.

For example, let's say you have an import-export business and you'd like to create a stationery that visually signals a world-wide involvement.

1) Create a blank new document (File > New > Blank Document).

2) Select Format > Borders and Shading... from the main menu. (Word menu options that display a dialog box are always followed by an ellipsis -- three dots).

3) In the PREVIEW box on the right, click the left top button, displaying a selected TOP BORDER.

4) From the ART drop-down list at the bottom center, select the WORLD GLOBE clip art.

5) To make each individual shape smaller or larger, use the WIDTH field.

6) To have a FRAME all around your stationery made up of the same clip art, select BOX option from the SETTING list on the left.

7) Under the top border, type in your business name, contact info, and all the other relevant information.

8) To add a background color to your text, use the SHADING tab.

9) Save your document as a Document Template (.dot) and you are done.

Try all the other options in the ART drop-down list. I especially like the STARS and other GEOMETRIC borders further down the list. They make an eye-catching graphic addition to your document that will never fail to grab interest.

Borders and Shading is great to create garage sale flyers and small business brochures too. Try and find out for your self all the endless ways in which this functionality can help you design your own marketing materials.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/240204

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Creating images to customize the Ribbon in Word 2007 and Word 2010

For time immemorial, Word had toolbars (also known as command bars) at the top of the screen, with buttons to invoke commands. In Word 2007 that all changed. Microsoft introduced the Ribbon to replace toolbars.

Developers of templates and tools can customize the Ribbon by adding new tabs, groups, buttons, menus etc to the Ribbon. Those new controls can have custom images. This article identifies issues in creating images used to customize the Ribbon in Word 2007 and Word 2010. For lots of images of the Ribbon, see Word 2007 and Word 2010: Ribbon tutorial.

1- Image size

There are two sizes of images used in customizing the Ribbon:
  • large: 32 x 32 pixels
  • normal: 16 x 16 pixels.
In Word 2010, we can allocate an image to a group, as well as to an individual control. Group images are always displayed at 16 x 16 pixels. Generally, using a 16×16 image on a large control looks terrible. In some cases, a 32×32 image on a normal-sized control will look fine. But sometimes it will look ghastly. So it's important to produce all images for custom controls in two versions: at 32 x 32 pixels and at 16 x 16 pixels.

2 - Image format


It is possible to use .jpg, .jpeg, .gif, .wmf, .bmp, .ico or .png files to customize the ribbon.

Some formats work better than others. For example, if you use an .ico file, and you need to unenable a button to show that it is not relevant in some circumstance, then Word can't show the button as 'greyed out'.

The best format is png, with a transparent background if the image does not cover the entire square of 32×32 pixels or 16×16 pixels. It's a bit trickier for the developer to use a .png file because you have to use GDI+ to load it. But it's worth it for the image quality and transparency that png provides. For tehnical information on image format see RibbonX Image FAQ by Eric Faller at Jensen Harris's blog.

3 - Background transparency

It's fine if the image for a button covers the full square. If the image does not cover the full square, the background needs to be transparent. And that's one reason that a .png file is good for images for the Ribbon.

A black or white background looks terrible.

The alternative to a transparent background would be to match the background of our button image to the colour of the ribbon itself, so it 'blends in'. But that is not possible, for two reasons:

  • the background colour of the ribbon in Word 2007 is different from the ribbon in Word 2010 (and if we're developing for 2007, we can reasonably expect the client to upgrade to 2010 one day, and we wouldn't want to have to re-create all the images)
  • in both Word 2007 and Word 2010, the user can change the overall colour scheme, so a button made to 'match' one colour scheme will look poor if the user chooses a different colour scheme.
So transparent backgrounds are essential.

For more technical information about transparency for ribbon images see Preserving the alpha channel when converting images by Andrew Whitechapel.

4 - Look and feel

Custom images look best if they match the general look and feel of the built-in images.
There are two reasons for this:
  1. I want the tools I create to look like they belong, not like a bad house extension. I'm building an add-in, not an add-on! The images on my custom tools should look like they come from the same school as the built-in images.
  2. If I'm creating custom controls on the Ribbon, I will first look to see if there is a built-in image I can use. Microsoft has provided hundreds of them, and there is often something appropriate for my needs. If I can't find something built-in, then I'll create a custom image. So I might create a menu with half a dozen buttons, and those buttons may have a mix of built-in images and custom images. Therefore, to look like it all fits together, I find it works best if the custom images have the same look'n'feel as the built-in images.

5 - Colours for ribbon images

 t is very easy to create very ugly customizations for the Ribbon.
The first time I created a substantial custom tab on the Ribbon was for a project I was converting from Word 2003 to Word 2007. Where possible I used my existing command bar (ie toolbar) button images. In some cases I created new ones.
The effect was horrid. Brightly coloured buttons that worked OK in Word 2003 looked garish and out of place in Word 2007.
I think there are two reasons for this:
  1. By default, the colour scheme for Word 2007 is blue. And not just one blue, but a significant gradient of blues. Bright colours on top of the blue just didn't work.
  2. In Word 2003 and before, a toolbar was one-dimensional: buttons were all the same size, and sat in neat horizontal rows. While we could use combo boxes and text boxes on old-fashioned toolbars, it was rare. The Ribbon is more complex. It's in two dimensions; buttons are not all the same size; and there is a wide variety of controls: buttons, menus, boxes to type in, tick boxes etc. The Ribbon is complex enough. Adding a variety of colours just looked messy.
I had to re-think.
By observation, and by using an on-screen colour picker, I discovered that the built-in Ribbon controls use a very small palette of generally muted colours.
My aim is to make my custom controls look like they belong in Word. So I generally try to use images that fit the general look'n'feel of the built-in controls.

Source: http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/word-development/customize-ribbon-word-2007-2010-creating-images.html

Friday, June 17, 2011

Microsoft prepares to 'Kinect' to PCs running Windows 7

The PC may be finally liberated from the mouse and the keyboard.

On Thursday, Microsoft began recruiting developers to build software that will bring motion and voice control to computers that run Windows 7. "The challenge and opportunity really is letting your imagination become free of constraints of the past," said Anoop Gupta, a distinguished scientist at Microsoft Research in Redmond. Until now, he said, "We've thought how do we interact with the keyboard and mouse? Now you can step away."

The company released a software kit for developers to write programs that connect the Kinect motion sensor to a PC. Microsoft hopes this will bring Kinect, built initially for the Xbox 360 video-game system, to hundreds of millions of people who use PCs. With the Kinect for Xbox, people can play video games by moving their bodies, without using a handheld controller. Microsoft has sold more than 10 million units of the $150 Kinect since it was introduced in November. The company claims it is the fastest-selling device in consumer-electronics history.

Microsoft has been touting the Kinect's central feature — a natural user interface — as the next evolutionary step in computing. A natural user interface uses voice and motions to control computers, most of which are now tethered to the mouse and keyboard. Tablets and smartphones pushed it a step further over the past few years by introducing touchscreens that can be controlled with finger pokes and swipes. Even before Microsoft introduced the developers kit, hobbyists have already been experimenting with the Kinect for purposes that have nothing to do with Xbox video games, such as controlling surgical robots.

At its MIX conference in Las Vegas in April, Microsoft said that the motion-sensor technology would be coming to computers that run Windows 7. At that announcement, Microsoft showed several demonstrations on stage, including navigating 3-D maps of the universe from the Worldwide Telescope with hand movements, using a walking navigation service that helps people with impaired sight, and steering a motorized recliner on wheels with gestures. The company plans to release a commercial version of the development kit later, but did not give a date for when it would be available. (The noncommercial version is for experimentation and the commercial version will be targeted at companies that want to sell products that work with Kinect.)

On Wednesday, Microsoft invited 35 developers from around the country to Redmond for Code Camp, a hackathon in which participants spent 24 hours building a new application on Kinect. One group made an application to fly a drone helicopter with voice and motion. Another group built a video conferencing app so the Kinect camera would sense in a meeting who was talking and automatically zoom the camera in on the speaker. Another Code Camp application was the Kinductor, a program to teach someone how to conduct a virtual orchestra. By standing in front of the Kinect, a student conductor could learn how to move one arm to control tempo, the other to control dynamics, and even target on screen a specific section of an orchestra, such as the violins. The music responded accordingly to the conductor's motions. "This will open up development that people have never seen before," said Jeff Garra, a developer from Zaaz in Seattle who helped develop Kinductor in 20 hours this week. "It's not just limited to the PC. You can use it for security, to help with physical therapy and to teach people, for example

News Source - http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2015343377_microsoftkinect17.html

Monday, June 13, 2011

Microsoft Windows File Extensions and Their Association

In windows operating system groups file extensions play an important role. All the files that exist in windows operating systems have certain extensions. Most of them which you remember are .sys, .dll etc. These are all the system files. Windows operating system understands the files by their extensions and uses appropriate programme to open the files for the user. For example when you open Microsoft help, Windows help it has a certain extension and it exists as a file and then operating system uses Microsoft explorer to open the file for you.

There are thousands of file types which exist and so are their extensions. But for windows all these extensions are not same certain programs are needed to be associated to the files. For files which are pictures and have extensions like .jpeg and .bmp windows opens either Windows fax and picture viewer or Microsoft Paint for these files. One of the major problems and end user faces is de-association of file extensions or improper association of file types. Various viruses or spywares might affect your computer by changing the file associations which could lead to system failure. Microsoft support, Microsoft help, Windows support has got lot of end users calling for system failure and that most commonly is caused by file associations changed by spywares.

All the settings for the file associations are managed by registry and if there are changes happening that happen in registry. One should make sure to consult Tech support or Microsoft support or Windows help prior to making any change in registry. Various spyware removal programs while removing spywares on your computer might affect the file associations. The safe way is to first take a back up of either registry or make a system restore point so that you can return back to the state where you have all the file associations intact. Most of the spyware removal programs promise to remove spywares but you should be sure of the right programme for you. Consult HP support, Dell Support, Microsoft support or any third party Tech support prior to installing and configuring these programs.

Norton and other antivirus vendors also provide Tech support for the removal of the spywares and viruses. They also install their self developed products for the removal of spywares and viruses.

Source: http://goo.gl/OtDng


Why To Choose Microsoft Office 2010 ?

The importance of Microsoft Office suite to the corporate is definitely significant. The same is applicable to a common PC user as well. Are you still using MS Office 2003? The world has changed a lot. Switch to Microsoft Office 2010 and enhance your productivity. This office suite not only has got an outstanding look but also renders stunning performance. In this article we will discuss about some of the most common reasons for switching to Microsoft Office 2010. Explore the article learn more about this.

Managing your files, presentations, spreadsheets and charts has never been so easy. With Microsoft Office 2010 you get the improved features of Word, Excel, Access, Outlook, Publisher, FrontPage and PowerPoint. In this version, Outlook is even made more sophisticated. Comprising Social Connector feature for SharePoint, LinkedIn or Facebook it is even more powerful.

Microsoft has first launched the Ribbon in Microsoft Office 2007 and with this latest edition you will get a much improved ribbon. Here you get more tools for editing documents and pictures or images. The Broadcast Slideshow feature makes PowerPoint gets exceedingly creative and technologically advanced. New content auto-highlight, version support and author bar color-coding as well as faster synchronization, real-time changes display, etc. are some of the other notable features.

Do you work more with accounts and financial records? Well, Microsoft Office 2010 makes your job easier with the Microsoft Excel. This advanced application integrates Slicers, PowerPivot and Sparklines. All these allow the user to manage data easily in cells more accurately and precisely. With the enhanced macro support one can accomplish more tasks seamlessly.

Microsoft OneNote makes the job of the virtual hosting clients easy with the collaboration features and remote accessibility features. Added features are Outlook task creation, improved search functions and link integration, and math equations support, etc.

When it comes to the benefits, the list is truly endless. The application also supports ISO/IEC 29500, ISO/IEC 29500:2008, Open Document Format 1.1 as well as ECMA 376, and Office Open XML. If you face difficulties to install this outstanding software application on your computer contact an online computer repair company for Office 2010 installation.

The software has been exclusively designed and apart from installing it on your desktop or laptop, you can also reap its full benefits by installing it on your smartphone. So, from the discussion it is quite evident that Microsoft Office 2010 could boost your output considerably.



Source: http://goo.gl/yjR4P

Friday, June 3, 2011

Microsoft Great Plains Dexterity Customizations

Microsoft Business Solutions is on the way to popularize it's ERP systems implementation. Right now such products as Microsoft CRM and Small Business Manager (cheap version of Microsoft Great Plains, based on the same Great Plains Dexterity runtime and DYNAMICS.DIC dictionary) are targeted to self-implementation by in-house IT group. This is short article, written in question/answer/FAQ style to give IT Director/Controller balanced top level information on Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains implementation. If you have decided on Microsoft Great Plains as main accounting and ERP system you need to know some technical details on Great Plains installation and implementation and what is going on behind the scenes. As of right now the current version is Microsoft Great Plains 8.0. Plus you probably should know about programming language of Microsoft Great Plains - Great Plains Dexterity

If you are developer who is asked: how do we customize Great Plains with its native programming language - Great Plains Dexterity - read this and you will have the clues on where to look further.

The history of the Dexterity. Great Plains Dexterity - is proprietary programming language and technology, designed back to earlier 1990th with the goal to build platform independent graphical accounting package - Great Plains Dynamics. Dexterity itself is written in C (following popular those days hope - that C will provide platform independence). You can install Dexterity from Great Plains 7.5 CD #2. Obviously it requires a lot of learning / training, but it allows your custom piece be seamlessly integrated with Great Plains interface.

1. Native Dexterity Cursors. Dexterity was designed as platform independent programming language and so if you want your code to be operable on all currently supported databases - you use Dexterity ranges and loops to manipulate the records

2. Great Plains Dexterity with SQL Stored Procs Nowadays, most of Great Plains installations are moved to SQL Server - so you can use Dexterity for custom forms drawing only and make the buttons run SQL stored procedures.

3. COM Objects calls. Beginning with version 7.0 Dexterity supports COM objects - you register them as libraries in Dexterity. Refer the manual. This technique allows you to call such nice things as web services across the internet.

4. Dexterity Forms - if you like VBA and are comfortable to do all the business logic in VBA - you can use Dexterity as new forms creator/editor. This is OK - but you have to purchase VBA/Modifier and Customization Site Enabler from MBS.

Source: http://goo.gl/o6m6S

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Microsoft XP Support Via Remote by Expert

I have been having issues with my Windows XP for a while and I decided to go online to figure what really was the best way of getting online XP support. I really wanted to hear from my peer group as to what they had in their experience as users found to be the best form of XP support.

Before I really get into what I found from other online XP help users, I found recommendations from some (obviously tech savvy) users suggesting that I take a tutorial on Microsoft's website. I don't know about this...to feel comforted and helped you need to feel that someone is out there thinking of your problem. Just wandering through tutorials may somewhat explain a feature or two of windows XP but is certainly no substitute for online XP support. A tutorial is certainly not going to help me when I need to troubleshoot a Windows XP error. Online XP support may be of better use. Hey, its not that my mind is made up but I know what I want out of my XP help; live full time support for windows XP from qualified and trained professionals.

We have grown as a business and one of the first things we need to do is upgrade the version of windows XP that we use. There are choices to be made for which I need qualified advise. Also, Microsoft Windows XP professional I am told has many features like data recovery options and networking tools which are recommended for small business. I believe that there are also higher versions for the product for companies that process more data; how much is more? I wonder? I really need some concrete advice and not scanty piecemeal suggestions. I need someone who will advise with authority and responsibility not only on Windows XP support but also other computer support issues that are always coming up on a daily basis.

What I have understood from various users and articles on the Internet on the subject of XP support is that getting a holistic tech support contract is probably my best option. A good tech support company will not only provide online XP support but also be there for other issues. It is not feasible for me to be on top of issues like network security and virus and other critical updates. Someone needs to watch these issues like a hawk and my hawk or remote XP support is going to come from a good tech support company. Given that tech support companies work with multiple users, they are really on the ball with regard to Windows XP updates and the like.

I travel a great deal for my business and often use the remote file access feature of Windows XP and I have on more than one occasion had issues with this feature. With Microsoft XP support I should be able to continue my work while a qualified technician looks at my problem. Moreover, as I understand it, my job history is kept on record, thus making it easier for any troubleshooting to be done without my having to explain everything all over again.

Microsoft XP tech support is the way that I going to be running my business now. Leaving the everyday business of updates, downloads, firewalls, feature enhancements and drivers to the Online XP tech support professionals.

Really, after all my research and checking and cross checking, it's best to get Online XP tech support from the professionals. Windows XP tech support is responsible and accountable at the end of the day simply because it is their core business. Just as mine is to help you get your taxes done in time.

Source: http://goo.gl/aRq43

Friday, May 20, 2011

Revealing Microsoft Entourage Help

Microsoft Entourage is an e-mail client developed by Microsoft for Mac OS. It can retrieve e-mail with the use of POP, IMAP, etc. With the use of Microsoft Entourage, you can easily create and organize your projects, because of its Project Center.

While working with Microsoft Entourage, you can face any technical issue like, display problems while opening a document, how to rebuild your identity database, error messages while installing an update, etc. You can resolve your technical issues related to Microsoft Entourage on your own, in case you have the proper knowledge. But if you do not have the knowledge, then you can contact any technical service provider for Microsoft Help.

If you are facing any problem, with this e-mail client on the same computer, then you can use its identity feature. You can perform the following steps in Microsoft Entourage 2001 to create a new identity:

STEP 1: On the File menu click on Switch Identities.

STEP 2: Click on Switch, when you are prompted to close all connections and windows for the current identity.

STEP 3: Click on New in the Select an Identity dialog box.

STEP 4: Type a name for your identity, in the Identity Name box, and then click OK.

STEP 5: Click the Base Initial Settings On box or use the default settings, and then click on OK.

While performing these steps, Set Up Assistant will appear to help you with account information, like e-mail addresses and server names for your new identity.

If you want to create a new identity in Microsoft Entourage versions X and 2004 follow these steps:

STEP 1: On the Entourage menu, click on Switch Identity.

STEP 2: Click on Switch, when a message box appears warning you that Entourage will close all connections and windows for the current identity.

STEP 3: Click on New, in the Select an Identity dialog box.

STEP 4: Type a name for your identity, in the Identity Name box, and then click OK.

When you are working with the above mentioned steps, Entourage Setup Assistant will appear to help you with account information, like e-mail addresses and server names for your new identity.

Source: http://goo.gl/H7sOI

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Microsoft Exchange Server Support

When I keyed in the words exchange support to read a little more about the various options available in the market, two warning statements or rather two sets of warning statements struck me as rather interesting. The first strongly cautioned that one should stay away from the least expensive contractor following the axiom that paying for peanuts gets you monkeys! Interesting advice as normally lower quotes tend to get ones attention.

The second bit of warning/advice was that in the event that before one actually bought Microsoft exchange server software one should get extensive training. The MS server as I understand is a very useful tool in that it enhances communication and protects and improves communication, a vital business tool. MS Exchange can also be very effective in stopping spam. It also has the ability to grow with the business. What I found odd was that normally, one looks at training and tutorials post acquisition of a product. In the case of the MS exchange server, it seems the opposite.

In order to better understand the product there are several options available to users. First, there are internet tutorials on MS Exchange that would benefit, in my mind the more techs savvy amongst us. Alternatively, one could look at joining a Microsoft Exchange ASP and software certification and training course. The point that is really being driven home here with regard to the MS exchange server really is that this application is as good as the mind that manages it. Therefore, all those employees that would be using the MS server should enter in depth tutorials to manage the same

Let's go back to the first warning that I mentioned that was with regard to an externally hosted exchange server. I believe that there are many vendors in the business for this service and I am told that their service features are fairly standard. At the end of the day for a business what really matters is the quality of the customer service and the smooth functioning of the server, i.e. the up time.

For a business that chooses to go for an externally hosted exchange, you have to be thorough in your vendor selection. Check the exchange server support helpline turnaround time whether it is by e-mail or by return phone calls. Also, another element is the quality of the exchange support. Does it make any sense to you or your business or is it only adding to the clutter? Try chatting online with exchange server staff, see if their tone and quality of advice is something that works for you. The MS exchange is a vital life line of your business, you must choose a MS exchange support vendor who comes well recommended by your peers. Manufacturer website and Industry magazines also provide useful rating services that could prove helpful in your selection of a MS exchange server. Use the free trial periods to the fullest before finalizing your support vendor.

The second warning, piece of advice that I mentioned earlier is something that I am going to pass up. Really, if I have to invest this kind of time and money on training, I really am going to be in trouble. I will get my own exchange but I will call in the experts to manage it for me. I need full time exchange server support from what I have understood about the product and who better than a qualified tech support company. They can look after the installation of the exchange server; troubleshoot as and when required as well as look at any updates and fixes.

Sources: http://goo.gl/NaLgZ