I’ve been having a frustrating Excel “moment.” All I want to do is enter (c) into a cell. But when I type the open parenthesis, the letter c and close parenthesis, I keep getting the copyright symbol—that circle with a tiny c inside. How can I stop that?

The problem lies with Excel’s AutoCorrect tool—an Office feature I suggest you become familiar with. Once you discover how it works, you’ll surely use it often, speeding your work and boosting your efficiency. Be aware that it does more than its name implies: It’s a tool that, with a couple of keystrokes, can generate customized technical names, frequently used phrases, titles, paragraphs and a multitude of special symbols. The tool is included in most Office applications (Excel, Word, Outlook, Access, OneNote, Project, Publisher and Visio). So anything you add, delete or change in AutoCorrect will also be active when you’re in any of those other applications.

Let’s get back to solving your problem. In Excel 2003, access AutoCorrect by clicking on Tools, AutoCorrect Options (see screenshot below). Under the Replace text as you type heading, cursor down to (c). When you click on it, it instantly moves under Replace, bringing © along with it.

You can simply delete the shortcut by clicking on Delete, but I would suggest you not eliminate it because you may want it in the future. Instead, consider giving it different shortcut keys. For example, you could keep the c but replace the parentheses with open and closed brackets and click on OK.

In Word 2007, access AutoCorrect by clicking on the Office button and then on Word Options (at the bottom of the screen that opens). If you’re in Excel, the message will be Excel Options. Then click on Proofing, AutoCorrect Options and follow the same steps as above (see screenshot below).

As you can see, the AutoCorrect tools are easily modified. Think of all the long, complex words or phrases or even sentences you frequently type; now, with a few shortcut keys, AutoCorrect can do the job for you.

Some of my colleagues place shortcuts of frequently used files right on the desktop—some of which may be confidential. Although I can see how placing shortcuts there makes them easy to access, I don’t like the idea of permitting passersby to see shortcuts to the files I work on. I somehow feel it’s unprofessional. What are your thoughts, and can you suggest alternatives?

 I can well understand your hesitancy, and I agree that access to such files should not be so publicly displayed. There are several things you can do to both maintain privacy yet allow easy access. One is to simply camouflage the target file and name it something vague or uninteresting. The downside to that solution is that multiple alternative desktop identifications can get confusing.

I think the most effective way, and it’s my favorite, is to put the shortcut right in the Start menu so all you have to do to access the shortcut is click on the Start menu. The procedure takes a few seconds. Start by placing a shortcut to the target file (or files) on the desktop and then drag it (right-click+drag) into the Start button. Now delete the shortcut on the desktop. When you click on the Start button, your shortcuts will be right there, ready for action (see screenshot below).

You can adjust the lineup of the shortcut by dragging (again, right-click+drag) up or down the menu.

Many of my Excel workbooks contain 24 or more worksheets, making it hard to find the one I want quickly because not all the tabs fit on the bottom of the screen. Do you have any suggestions for speeding my searches?

 I assume listing them in alphabetical or numerical order, or some other kind of predetermined order, doesn’t work for you. In that case, I would suggest a very simple keystroke shortcut that creates a vertical list of all the worksheets in a file (see screenshot at right). Then, clicking on an item in the list opens that worksheet.

To generate the list, place your cursor at the left side of the bottom of the worksheet screen, in the area of the black arrows, and right-click.

Sometimes I lose my cursor. It happens mostly when I’m in an Excel worksheet that’s crammed with numbers. But it can even happen in a long Word document. I have to wriggle my mouse around until I finally locate it. Is there some way to make it easier to find—maybe putting a flag on it?

 There are several things you can do to make your pointer stand out more effectively, and, yes, a flag is one of them. In Windows XP, go to Control Panel (by clicking on Start) and open Mouse, Pointer Options (see screenshot below).

Under the Visibility heading, place a check next to Show location of pointer when I press the CTRL key. When you engage that function, you’ll see an animated shrinking bull’s-eye aimed at the cursor; it can’t be missed.

There are other things you can do, too, to make the cursor more visible. When you engage the Visibility function, for example, a following trail of animated cursors will appear as you move the mouse. I personally find this too distracting, but try it out; you may find it useful.

While you’re in that screen, also notice a function called Hide pointer while typing. Although it won’t help you find the cursor quickly, it will clean the appearance of your screen when typing.

You also can change your cursor to a shape, design or color that attracts your eye more effectively. To do that, go back to the top of the screen and click on the Pointers tab. Then at the bottom, on the left, click on Enable pointer shadow. It produces a subtle shadow on the right side of the arrow, which makes the pointer stand out more distinctly.

Finally, when you click on Browse, at the bottom of the screen, you’re offered a cornucopia of pointer choices. When you click on the first choice—my favorite—a bronze pointer (3dgarro) will be displayed in the Preview box at the bottom of the screen (see screenshot at below).

Scan the selection for the one that stands out best for you. Consider these: a bold black pointer and a variety of cartoon hands; some are animated and either point up or reach out.

In Vista, the steps and functions are essentially the same. To access Control Panel functions, quickly go to the desktop and right-click to open Personalize (see screenshot below).

From there, click on Mouse Pointers, and you’ll see the same screen and function choices.

How do you set up a worksheet with alternating colored rows like the traditional columnar pad design?

 There are many ways, but the easiest, for both Excel 2003 and 2007 is with a Conditional Formatting formula. Follow these steps:

In Excel 2003, position your cursor at A1 and press Ctrl+A to select all the cells on the worksheet. Or, if you just want a portion of the worksheet to be alternately colored, highlight your target range and go to the taskbar and select Format and Conditional Formatting and under Condition 1, press the down arrow and choose Formula Is and in the next box enter =MOD(ROW(),2) and click on Format and go to the Patterns tab and select your color and click on OK.

Bonus: If you subsequently add or delete columns within that range, the color pattern will automatically adjust to the size you select. And if you replace the word ROW in the formula with COLUMN, the color scheme will be installed for every other column instead of every other row.

In Excel 2007, follow the same basic procedure. On the Home ribbon, go to Conditional Formatting and New Rule.

Click on Use formula to determine which cells to format and enter the same formula as above (see screenshot below).

Then click on Format, the Fill tab and select a color.

I’m told that Vista has a really nifty feature: It can provide a preview of a file in Windows Explorer. Is there some way to do that in XP?

 That’s right, highlight a file in Vista’s Windows Explorer and a snapshot of the contents appears instantly without opening the file. XP can do that, too, but it needs a little help from a small freeware program. You can download the program from www.uvviewsoft.com/index.htm.

Here’s what it looks like in Vista—with the file listing on the left and the preview on the right:

And here is what the preview function looks like in XP:

An article in the July issue (page 100) explained how you can not only send e-mails directly from Word and Excel, but you can also add a document or spreadsheet as an attachment. However, Connie Steinhart, CPA, treasurer at TIC International Corp. in Carmel, Ind., raises this caveat: If your organization encrypts attachments for outgoing e-mails as part of its security system, make sure that the attachments go out with encryption. Not all security systems let Word and Excel connect to them—thus allowing the attachment to be transmitted without security.

In the July issue (page 96), I suggested a technique for partially hiding numbers in a spreadsheet that you need to keep private— such as Social Security numbers. Steve Gordon, CPA, internal auditor at Northwest Natural Gas Co., Portland, Ore., pointed out a weakness in the idea. He said that the concealed data will come out of hiding if you simply copy and paste the information into another worksheet. One way to improve safety when you protect the sheet (Tools, Protection, Protect Sheet) is to be sure to deselect the checkbox next to Allow all users of this worksheet to: Select locked cells (see screenshot above). Recognize, still, that a determined person can usually find a way to overcome Excel’s security.

Alt+F4 (in a program): Closes the window

Alt+F4 (from the desktop): Opens the Windows Shutdown/ Restart dialog box

Alt+Spacebar: In the active window, this brings up the corner dialog box

Alt+Esc: Cycles between open windows in the order they were opened

Shift+Delete: Permanently deletes an item (rather than sending it to the Recycle Bin)

Ctrl+drag an icon: Copies that item

Ctrl+Shift+drag an icon: Creates a shortcut for the item

Right-click+drag an icon: Brings up a menu to copy, move, or create a shortcut for the item

Shift+F10: Displays a shortcut menu for an item (like rightclicking with the mouse)

Ctrl+Esc: Opens the Start menu 

Stanley Zarowin is a contributing editor to the JofA. His e-mail address is stanley.joatech@gmail.com .