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Tricks of the trade
Knowing the ins and outs of these popular apps can make computer time easier and more productive.
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For golf course superintendents, the personal computer has become as important a tool to their careers as the greens mower, irrigation system or cup cutter. On a daily basis, superintendents are using their computers to plan work schedules, finalize maintenance budgets and track chemical usage.
Among the most popular products used on the personal computer is the collection of programs in Microsoft Office — Word, Outlook, PowerPoint and Excel. You’ve probably learned a lot about these applications through the simple method of trial and error. It’s a great way to pick up knowledge about a program, but what’s even more helpful is when friends or coworkers pass along tips they’ve learned.
Here are some of my favorites — and most useful — tricks and tips for Microsoft Office for you to try.
Tip No. 1: Record yourself in PowerPoint
If you’re rehearsing a PowerPoint presentation and want to know how long it takes to complete, or maybe you want to automate your presentation, there’s a quick and easy way to do it. Go to Slide Show/Rehearse Timings. Rehearse your presentation as you would normally, and PowerPoint will tell you how long each slide visit lasts through the entire presentation. It’s a great timesaver and you’ll be surprised how quickly the time goes when you’re rehearsing. You can also use these timings to automate your presentation — this will free you up from having to manually advance your slides.
Tip No. 2: Quick charts in Excel
Charts are a great way to visually represent what can be complicated and difficult-to-understand budget and trend information. If you need a quick and easy chart, Excel can do the hard part for you. Select the information in the spreadsheet, and hit the F11 key on your keyboard (the “F” keys are on the very top row of your keyboard). Voila! Instant column chart.
You can also adjust this chart by right-clicking and choosing one of the many formatting options available to you. “Chart Type” and “Chart Options” are two areas where you can add some visual interest to your chart. Using F11 also creates the chart for full-page printing. Don’t forget that the chart will also reflect any changes made to the data, so once you create the chart, it will change as your information changes.
Tip No. 3: Delegation in Outlook
Need help managing your to-do list? Sending tasks to an employee? It’s easy to do with Outlook. Just create a new task, fill in all of the pertinent details and then click “Assign Task.” You’ll get updates on the progress of that task, and notices when it is completed. You can set priority, due dates and even get status updates as the project progresses. Another great advantage to using tasks is that you can set them to recur just like calendar appointments. This is great for those yearly and monthly tasks that tend to get lost in the shuffle.
Tip No. 4: My own dictionary in Word
Certain terms you use every day might not be in the Microsoft dictionary — especially in a technical industry like golf course management (“Poa” or “paspalum,” anyone?). Add these and other words to the dictionary by choosing “Add” in the spell check. You can manually add words to the custom dictionary by going to Tools/Options/Spelling and Grammar/Custom Dictionaries/Modify and add your words in the dialog box. This will save time and help you produce perfect documents every time. Just be sure you’ve spelled them right!
Tip No. 5: Time-saving templates
Every Microsoft Office application has built-in templates you can use to save time when creating documents you need. Check the templates out by going to File/New and choosing “Templates” from the “New From Template” section on the “New Document” task pane. You’ll be surprised how many templates are already available — from budget templates in Excel to tracking databases in Access. You can also search for and download new templates from Microsoft at http://office.microsoft.com (click on Templates). You can also visit GCSAA’s Web site at www.gcsaa.org/education/exctemplates.asp and download Excel templates created just for superintendents.
I’ve shared some of my favorite tips here, but if you’re interested in more, visit www.gcsaa.org/resources/tipsandtricks.asp. This site is updated regularly with new tips, tricks and ideas to help you save time and money when working on computer projects.
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