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Using Eyedropper to Match Colors in PowerPoint

While building a PowerPoint presentation, it is common to want certain colors to match within the slide, so that elements of the slide do not look out of place. Anytime we can make a slide more appealing to the senses, makes it easier for listeners to focus the substance of the presentation. As humans are so visual, it can be easy to go overboard with colors. Thus, we do need to make sure we use colors that pull things together, instead of the slide looking so wild that everyone is wondering what happened to it. One way to pull colors together is to use the Eyedropper function to ensure colors match other elements of the slide. We are not necessarily looking for things to be symmetrical, but rather more consistent. This will help others focus on the important parts of the presentation. Eyedropper works great for elements such as text boxes, as well as other items within a slide. Text Box Example Today, we will use text boxes for our example. Below we have a slide in which the text at the top blends too much into the background. The header text needs a background color to make it stand out. We want to use a color that already exists in the background picture, but we do not want the color we use to look out of place. By following the steps below, we can make text color harmonize with the background picture. When using Eyedropper, you must select the item where you want the color changed. In this case, it will be the text box. The Drawing Tools contextual tab will appear. If it is not active, then click it. In the Shape Styles group, click the drop-down menu for Shape Fill, and select Eyedropper. Your cursor will change shape, allowing you to select the appropriate color. As you hover above different areas of the slide, your cursor will change color to give you an idea of what color will be used for your text box. Once you find the color you want for the text box, left-click and the text box color will change to the color you were hovering over. Now the header looks like part of the picture, instead of something that doesn’t belong with the slide. Functions like Eyedropper allow you to create dynamic slides for your presentation, keeping your audience alert, and focused on the presentation. Learn more about the functionality available, as well as how to create presentations that keep your audience engaged with a PowerPoint class from AdvantEdge Training.

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Excel

Sorting by Multiple Columns in Excel

When working with large chunks of data, we sometimes need to sort the data to figure out where we need to focus our attention. This could mean that we need to quickly sort our data by more than one column, allowing us to make decisions on which path to take, without having to create new Excel template in that moment. There are a number of ways to sort data in Excel, but using the Sort command (located on the Data tab of the ribbon) is the easiest, as the sort order you see is the sort order you get. The nice thing about the dialog box used for the Sort command is that it is easy to add, delete, or rearrange sort levels. Other methods of sorting data, ones in which you do not use the Sort dialog box, can cause issues, can be more problematic, especially if you try to undo and redo the sorting at a later time. Having column headers makes the whole process easier, but sometimes raw data downloaded from a database does not give us column headers. The good news is that it does not keep you from sorting your data, as there is an option checkbox for data without headers, but you must know which columns to sort when this happens. Follow the steps of in this video to sort data using multiple columns: Make your life easier and your data less overwhelming. Learn to make Excel work for you by taking a live or online training course with AdvantEdge Training & Consulting.

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Excel

Creating Excel Templates

Creating an Excel template allows a person to reuse a workbook setup over and over, without the need to recreate the wheel every time, nor continuously to clean out old information. By using a template, your workbook is ready and waiting for you to enter data; everything else will happen automatically, when you automate your workbook. Most of the time, when we are told to use a particular template, the file we are asked to use is not an actual template. This is why the person telling us to use the template also reminds us to do a Save As and rename the file, so we don’t overwrite the existing file. That’s the first indication that it is not an actual template. The nice thing about a template is that it forces you to save your newly opened template as a workbook. Thus, it is extremely hard to accidentally overwrite your template. To overwrite a template, you would need to follow a number of steps and rename the updated template with the exact name of the old template. Want to up your skills in Excel? Check out what AdvantEdge Training has available for you in our virtual class room or private onsite group Excel courses.

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