Finding Lost Microsoft Office Programs (Word & Excel)
Sue Coffin called to say that when she tried to launch Microsoft Word from the application list under Start>All Programs it was not there. She said Excel was also missing, and worried that a recent bug had destroyed her Microsoft Office programs.
So I suggested another way to launch Word. I said to click on Start>Run and type WINWORD (Windows Word) into the box that would appear. Sue then clicked OK and Word opened properly, complete with her recent documents listed under the File menu. Likewise, Excel opened when EXCEL was typed into the box.
We don’t know why these items had disappeared from Sue’s program list, but here’s what we did to create Desktop icons for future use:
I told Sue to click Start>Search>All Files & Folders and to type WORD into the "Name or Partial Name" box. After clicking Search, Microsoft Word soon appeared. Then I said to right-click the name and choose "Send To>Desktop (create shortcut)." Sue then did likewise with EXCEL and now has Shortcuts to these programs on her Desktop.
Please Note: Capital letters are optional and used here for emphasis only.
Using Start>Run can also be handy for launching other programs. Typing in WORDPAD or NOTEPAD will open these alternative Windows text editors. If you’re into games, typing SOL will launch Solitaire.
Typing CALC will bring up the Windows Calculator. PBRUSH will open Windows Paint and CHARMAP will open Character Map, a program that displays special characters (such as £ ¢ ® © Ñ ¾ ¿ ¥ • and others) that can be inserted into your documents.
"MSCONFIG Startup Programs" Are Slowing Down Your PC
My main use for the Start>Run box is to type in MSCONFIG, which takes me to a list of "Startup" Programs, which, if checked, can slow down your computer significantly. Unchecking these "Startup" items simply means you will use them if and when needed, and not have them running in the background.
More about MSConfig and "Startup Programs" can be found
HERE and
HERE.
Windows Explorer (not to be confused with Internet Explorer)
Another way of launching programs is to access them via Windows Explorer.
Doing a right-click on Start and choosing Explore will produce a two-pane window with a "tree" view of all your folders displayed in the left pane. A plus sign (+) to a folder’s left indicates that other folders are inside it, some of which may have plus signs of their own. Click a plus sign to open a folder and click its minus sign (-) to close it.
Double-clicking the "My Documents" folder will open it to display your "My Music" and "My Pictures" folders within, which when double-clicked should display your songs and photos.
Within Windows Explorer files and/or folders can easily be dragged into other folders or onto your Desktop.
Finding Lost Yellow Stickies
Carol Tupper wrote to say all her "Yellow Stickie Notes" had disappeared from her Desktop.
I suggested doing a System Restore, by clicking on:
Start>All Files & Folders>Accessories>System Tools>
System Restore.
Carol followed the prompts and returned her settings to the day before her Stickies vanished. She quickly wrote back to say it worked perfectly and all her Stickie Notes had returned to the Desktop.
© Donald Ray Edrington - All Rights Reserved
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In Case You Are Unfamiliar
with Yellow Stickies...
Among the most essential tools in my bag of handy tricks is a "Yellow Stickie Note" program. It's the computer version of those stickies we use for scribbling notes which we then paste on the fridge or a file cabinet for later referral. The program is fast, easy to use, and can be freely downloaded from the Free Programs Page on this site.
Here's how it works: Let's say you're on the phone and are given an address you want to jot down. Click the "Stickies" icon on your Taskbar and type the info into the blank note that appears. If you find some important text online, highlight it and do Ctrl+C to COPY it. Then use Ctrl+V to PASTE the text onto a Stickie. All this can normally be done in less time than it takes to find a pencil and paper.
The note can be moved to anywhere on the your screen, and will stay there even when you turn off or reboot your computer. In fact, I rarely do "Save As" on Stickies, since they are usually for temporary storage of notes that will soon be deleted or, perhaps, copied into a more permanent file.
Yes, you could launch your word processor and type or paste notes into a blank page — but you can create several Stickies in less time than it takes for MSWord or WordPerfect to open.
(Screen Shot of an Actual Stickie)
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If you do want to give a Stickie a file name, you can right-click its header and choose Save As, whereupon you can save it as a Stickie file with an ".sti" extension or as a Notepad file with a ".txt extension.
When a blank Stickie first appears, it is small, but it expands as data is typed or pasted into it. Furthermore, you can grab an edge and widen a Stickie to suit yourself. As for relocating a Stickie, you can move it beyond any edge of your Desktop so that just part of it shows. Also, multiple Stickies can be overlapped and rearranged as needed.
Stickies Don't Have to Be Yellow
Although we usually think of Stickies as being yellow, you can choose any color you want. You can also make it semi-transparent so that overlapped items show through one another.
Missing Volume Control Icon
Some people wrote to say their Volume Control icon had disappeared from their System Tray (near the Taskbar's digital clock).
Well, icons in this area are sometimes hidden if used infrequently. However, they can be kept always in view by right-clicking the Taskbar, clicking Properties>Taskbar, and unchecking "Hide Inactive Icons."
If the Volume Control icon really has been lost, double-click Start>Control Panel>Sounds & Audio Devices, and click the box saying "Place Volume Icon in the Taskbar."
Alternatively, you can click Start>Search>All Files & Folders and look for "sndvol32.exe"; and put a Shortcut to this file on your Desktop.
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