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Productivity? Sweet www.office.com/setup Blogs: Office 2016 for Mac was a long time coming, but it brings plenty of new features and better feature parity with the Windows version than ever. Microsoft has done a lot to streamline the experience, with a customizable, collapsible Ribbon as well as cross-platform keyboard shortcuts, but with any major Office update, there's bound to be a learning curve. These tips for Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, and OneNote should come in handy, and if you're stumped about anything specific, let us know in the comments. Office 2016 is available for Office365 subscribers, with a wider release coming in September. Don't forget to save! This is probably our most important tip: Don't forget to save! When Apple introduced Auto Save and Versions into OS X, many Mac users started losing our ingrained habit of hitting Command-S often. Unfortunately, Office 2016 (except for OneNote-more on that in a bit) doesn't take advantage of Auto Save. So don't forget to save often. Versioning is also missing, but on the plus side, fans of Save As will find the command in its rightful place in the File menu. Store your files in OneDrive or SharePoint If you need access to your files from anywhere, Office 2016's built-in OneDrive & SharePoint integration makes cloud storage simple. To save to your OneDrive or SharePoint account, click the Online Locations button in the lower-left corner of a Save dialog box. Choose your existing account from the list, or click the Plus button to add another location. What's the difference? Glad you asked. OneDrive is a consumer product for cloud storage, like iCloud Drive. Aimed more at businesses, SharePoint acts like an intranet, letting teams share and collaborate on files. Office 2016 for Mac: Ribbon - www.office.com/setup See larger image Maximize your workspace The redesigned Ribbon in Office 2016 unifies the look and functionality across all platforms. It also takes up a lot of space, and c

www.office.com/setup Blogs: Microsoft Office 2016 for Windows has landed and it brings many smart new features, including co-authoring with real-time collaboration, simplified sharing, a great feature search engine called Tell Me, and much more. The Mac version of Office 2016 has actually been around for a few months already. If you have an Office 365 subscription, you can get it now for free and we show you how below.A Microsoft Office 2016 Preview: Smart & Subtle Changes A Microsoft Office 2016 Preview: Smart & Subtle ChangesOffice 2016 for Mac was just released and the Windows version will follow in the fall. We show you the new look and features of the world's most popular productivity suite. Will you upgrade?READ MORE Alternatively, you can buy it at the Microsoft store (different packages available and Microsoft has a guide for installing it) or your local retailer and if you're unsure, we have a guide for what Office suite to get. Note that if you're running Office 2010 on Windows 10, you can get a 50% discount on a one year subscription of Office 365 Home; simply use the Get Office app in Windows 10. Get Office - www.office.com/setup Before you overspend your budget, remember you can get Microsoft Word for free and you can choose from many free alternatives for the entire Microsoft suite.This Is How You Can Get Microsoft Word for Free This Is How You Can Get Microsoft Word for FreeDo you really want the entire Microsoft Office suite? If all you need is Word without the fancy features, Microsoft will give it to you for free. Here is how.READ MORE FIND OUT YOUR VERSION OF OFFICE Unsure whether you have an Office 365 subscription? You can look up your status. Open a file, any Office document, then navigate to File > Account and under you'll see whether you have an Office 365 subscription. Office 2016 Account - www.office.com/setup Here is a complete list of ways to check your version of Office from Microsoft. YOUR UPGRADE WILL BE FINAL Before you

WWW.OFFICE.COM/SETUP BLOGS: INTRODUCTION www.office.com/setup Blogs: PowerPoint is a presentation program that allows you to create dynamic slide presentations. These presentations can include animation, narration, images, videos, and much more. In this lesson, you'll learn your way around the PowerPoint environment, including the Ribbon, Quick Access Toolbar, and Backstage view. Watch the video below to learn more about getting started with PowerPoint. GETTING TO KNOW POWERPOINT PowerPoint 2016 is similar to PowerPoint 2013 and PowerPoint 2010. If you've previously used these versions, PowerPoint 2016 should feel familiar. But if you are new to PowerPoint or have more experience with older versions, you should first take some time to become familiar with the PowerPoint 2016 interface. THE POWERPOINT INTERFACE When you open PowerPoint for the first time, the Start Screen will appear. From here, you'll be able to create a new presentation, choose a template, and access your recently edited presentations. From the Start Screen, locate and select Blank Presentation to access the PowerPoint interface. Creating a blank presentation - www.office.com/setup Click the buttons in the interactive below to become familiar with the PowerPoint interface. www.office.com/setup Working with the PowerPoint environment The Ribbon and Quick Access Toolbar are where you will find the commands to perform common tasks in PowerPoint. Backstage view gives you various options for saving, opening a file, printing, and sharing your document. THE RIBBON PowerPoint uses a tabbed Ribbon system instead of traditional menus. The Ribbon contains multiple tabs, each with several groups of commands. For example, the Font group on the Home tab contains commands for formatting text in your document. Groups on the Ribbon - www.office.com/setup Some groups also have a small arrow in the bottom-right corner that you can click for even more options. More options in groups - www.office.com/setu

WWW.OFFICE.COM/SETUP BLOGS: INTRODUCTION www.office.com/setup Blogs: Many of the features in Office are geared toward saving and sharing files online. OneDrive is Microsoft's online storage space that you can use to save, edit, and share your presentations and other files. You can access OneDrive from your computer, smartphone, or any of the devices you use. To get started with OneDrive, all you need to do is set up a free Microsoft account if you don't already have one. If you don't already have a Microsoft account, you can go to the Creating a Microsoft Account lesson in our Microsoft Account tutorial. Once you have a Microsoft account, you'll be able to sign in to Office. Just click Sign in in the upper-right corner of the PowerPoint window. signing in to OneDrive - www.office.com/setup BENEFITS OF USING ONEDRIVE Once you're signed in to your Microsoft account, here are a few of the things you'll be able to do with OneDrive: Access your files anywhere: When you save your files to OneDrive, you'll be able to access them from any computer, tablet, or smartphone that has an Internet connection. You'll also be able to create new presentations from OneDrive. Back up your files: Saving files to OneDrive gives them an extra layer of protection. Even if something happens to your computer, OneDrive will keep your files safe and accessible. Share files: It's easy to share your OneDrive files with friends and coworkers. You can choose whether they can edit or simply read files. This option is great for collaboration because multiple people can edit a presentation at the same time (also known as co-authoring). SAVING AND OPENING FILES When you're signed in to your Microsoft account, OneDrive will appear as an option whenever you save or open a file. You still have the option of saving files to your computer. However, saving files to your OneDrive allows you to access them from any other computer, and it also allows you to share files with friends and co

WWW.OFFICE.COM/SETUP BLOGS: INTRODUCTION www.office.com/setup Blogs: PowerPoint files are called presentations. Whenever you start a new project in PowerPoint, you'll need to create a new presentation, which can either be blank or from a template. You'll also need to know how to open an existing presentation. Watch the video below to learn more about creating and opening presentations in PowerPoint. TO CREATE A NEW PRESENTATION: When beginning a new project in PowerPoint, you'll often want to start with a new blank presentation. Select the File tab to go to Backstage view. Clicking the File tab - www.office.com/setup Select New on the left side of the window, then click Blank Presentation. Creating a new presentation - www.office.com/setup A new presentation will appear. TO CREATE A NEW PRESENTATION FROM A TEMPLATE: A template is a predesigned presentation you can use to create a new slide show quickly. Templates often include custom formatting and designs, so they can save you a lot of time and effort when starting a new project. Click the File tab to access Backstage view, then select New. You can click a suggested search to find templates or use the search bar to find something more specific. In our example, we'll search for the keyword chalkboard. Searching for templates - www.office.com/setup Select a template to review it. Selecting a template - www.office.com/setup A preview of the template will appear, along with additional information on how the template can be used. Click Create to use the selected template. Creating a new presentation with a template - www.office.com/setup A new presentation will appear with the selected template. It's important to note that not all templates are created by Microsoft. Many are created by third-party providers and even individual users, so some templates may work better than others. TO OPEN AN EXISTING PRESENTATION: In addition to creating new presentations, you'll often need to open a presentation that was previ

WWW.OFFICE.COM/SETUP BLOGS: INTRODUCTION www.office.com/setup Blogs: Excel is a spreadsheet program that allows you to store, organize, and analyzeinformation. While you may believe Excel is only used by certain people to process complicated data, anyone can learn how to take advantage of the program's powerful features. Whether you're keeping a budget, organizing a training log, or creating an invoice, Excel makes it easy to work with different types of data. Watch the video below to learn more about Excel. GETTING TO KNOW EXCEL If you've previously used Excel 2010 or Excel 2013, then Excel 2016 should feel familiar. If you are new to Excel or have more experience with older versions, you should first take some time to become familiar with the Excel interface. THE EXCEL INTERFACE When you open Excel 2016 for the first time, the Excel Start Screen will appear. From here, you'll be able to create a new workbook, choose a template, and access your recently edited workbooks. From the Excel Start Screen, locate and select Blank workbook to access the Excel interface. The Excel Start screen - www.office.com/setup Click the buttons in the interactive below to become familiar with the Excel interface. - www.office.com/setup WORKING WITH THE EXCEL ENVIRONMENT The Ribbon and Quick Access Toolbar are where you will find the commands to perform common tasks in Excel. The Backstage view gives you various options for saving, opening a file, printing, and sharing your document. THE RIBBON Excel 2016 uses a tabbed Ribbon system instead of traditional menus. The Ribbon contains multiple tabs, each with several groups of commands. You will use these tabs to perform the most common tasks in Excel. Each tab will have one or more groups. Groups on the ribbon - www.office.com/setup Some groups will have an arrow you can click for more options. Some groups have a menu for more options - www.office.com/setup Click a tab to see more commands. Tabs on the ribbon - www.office.c

www.office.com/setup Blogs: Productivity? Sweet www.office.com/setup Blogs: Office 2016 for Mac was a long time coming, but it brings plenty of new features and better feature parity with the Windows version than ever. Microsoft has done a lot to streamline the experience, with a customizable, collapsible Ribbon as well as cross-platform keyboard shortcuts, but with any major Office update, there's bound to be a learning curve. These tips for Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, and OneNote should come in handy, and if you're stumped about anything specific, let us know in the comments. Office 2016 is available for Office365 subscribers, with a wider release coming in September. Don't forget to save! This is probably our most important tip: Don't forget to save! When Apple introduced Auto Save and Versions into OS X, many Mac users started losing our ingrained habit of hitting Command-S often. Unfortunately, Office 2016 (except for OneNote-more on that in a bit) doesn't take advantage of Auto Save. So don't forget to save often. Versioning is also missing, but on the plus side, fans of Save As will find the command in its rightful place in the File menu. Store your files in OneDrive or SharePoint If you need access to your files from anywhere, Office 2016's built-in OneDrive & SharePoint integration makes cloud storage simple. To save to your OneDrive or SharePoint account, click the Online Locations button in the lower-left corner of a Save dialog box. Choose your existing account from the list, or click the Plus button to add another location. What's the difference? Glad you asked. OneDrive is a consumer product for cloud storage, like iCloud Drive. Aimed more at businesses, SharePoint acts like an intranet, letting teams share and collaborate on files. Office 2016 for Mac: Ribbon - www.office.com/setup See larger image Maximize your workspace The redesigned Ribbon in Office 2016 unifies the look and functionality across all platforms. It also ta

www.office.com/setup Blogs: Indenting text adds structure to your document by allowing you to separate information. Whether you'd like to move a single line or an entire paragraph, you can use the tab selector and the horizontal ruler to set tabs and indents. Optional: Download our practice document. Watch the video below to learn more about how to use indents and tabs in Word. INDENTING TEXT In many types of documents, you may want to indent only the first line of each paragraph. This helps to visually separate paragraphs from one another. - www.office.com/setup It's also possible to indent every line except for the first line, which is known as a hanging indent. - www.office.com/setup TO INDENT USING THE TAB KEY A quick way to indent is to use the Tab key. This will create a first-line indent of 1/2 inch. Place the insertion point at the very beginning of the paragraph you want to indent. - www.office.com/setup Press the Tab key. On the Ruler, you should see the first-line indent marker move to the right by 1/2 inch. The first line of the paragraph will be indented. - www.office.com/setup If you can't see the Ruler, select the View tab, then click the check box next to the Ruler. - www.office.com/setup INDENT MARKERS In some cases, you may want to have more control over indents. Word provides indent markers that allow you to indent paragraphs to the location you want. - www.office.com/setup The indent markers are located to the left of the horizontal ruler, and they provide several indenting options: First-line indent marker adjusts the first-line indent Hanging indent marker adjusts the hanging indent Left indent marker moves both the first-line indent and hanging indent markers at the same time (this will indent all lines in a paragraph) TO INDENT USING THE INDENT MARKERS Place the insertion point anywhere in the paragraph you want to indent, or select one or more paragraphs. - www.office.com/setup Click and drag the desired indent marke

The new Excel offers a rich set of charting capabilities that make creating and customizing charts simpler and more intuitive. One part of the fluid new experience is the Formatting Task pane. - www.office.com/setup Until now, precise adjustments to chart elements were made in the Format dialog box. The box sometimes obscured a portion of the chart, changes entered in the box were not visible until you closed it, and you had to select the exact element on the chart in order to see the options that were the best fit for the job. In the new Excel, the Format dialog box is replaced by the Formatting Task pane. The pane aligns neatly with the right or left side of the screen, so it's less likely to obscure the chart, and changes happen in real time, so you can immediately see how your choices affect the chart. The Formatting Task pane also offers an element selector so you can jump quickly between different elements without having to select one to modify. The new Formatting Task pane is the single source for formatting-all of the different styling options are consolidated in one place. With this single task pane, you can modify not only charts, but also shapes and text in Excel. USING THE FORMATTING TASK PANE The fastest way to open the Formatting Task pane is to double-click a chart element. You can also use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+1 while a chart element is selected. There are two other ways to open the task pane: The first way: On a chart, select an element. On the Ribbon, select the Chart Tools Format tab, then click Format Selection. - www.office.com/setup The second way: On a chart, select an element. Right-click, then select Format where is the axis, series, legend, title, or area that was selected. - www.office.com/setup Once open, the Formatting Task pane remains available until you close it. Since it always stays on the right or left side of the screen, the pane remains unobtrusive as you concentrate on other tasks. The

Part of the thrill of working for the Office Division is the opportunity to tackle thorny business issues on behalf of our customers while providing them with a road map for the future. That may be why an interesting article caught my attention this week. In it, the author examined some of the investments Microsoft is making in the unified communications space. While I didn't agree with all of the conclusions it contained, the article certainly underscored the interest in communications and collaboration and how to make people more productive.

When FHI 360 wanted to move to cloud-based business productivity services, the organization decided to implement a Microsoft cloud-based solution. We recently spoke to Douglas Wilkins, Director of IT Infrastructure at FHI 360, to learn how the company is benefiting: FHI360 logoQ: Please tell us about FHI 360. Douglas Wilkins: FHI 360 is a nonprofit human development organization dedicated to improving lives in lasting ways by advancing integrated, locally driven solutions. Our staff includes experts in health, education, nutrition, environment, economic development, civil society, gender equality, youth, research, technology, communication, and social marketing-creating a unique mix of capabilities to address today's interrelated development challenges. FHI 360 serves more than 60 countries and all US states and territories. Q: Why did you want to move to cloud-based services for messaging and collaboration? Wilkins: We had a diverse IT infrastructure. Employees in the US had different IT toolsets and Internet access than staff in countries like Mozambique. Subscribing employees to a single, cloud-based solution was the most expedient way to ensure that everyone had the same IT tools, to work efficiently regardless of location. Migrating our communication and collaboration technologies to the cloud reduced much of the time required by our IT staff to manage divergent IT infrastructures and connectivity options found around the world. Q: What criteria did you use to select Microsoft as your vendor for cloud-based business productivity services? Wilkins: We wanted a vendor that demonstrated a real interest in our mission and goals, and that offered online business productivity tools tailored for the enterprise space. The capabilities of the Microsoft Services Consulting team, and the work of Intellinet, the partner Microsoft introduced us to, provided us with that. We migrated our 4,300 staff members around the world from diverse platforms to a Microsoft Offi

Interesting move into the enterprise collaboration space

Makes FriendFeed into your virtual social workspace. Adds 26 communication multimedia and social sites with favicons in topbar of new friendfeed.