| 
  • If you are citizen of an European Union member nation, you may not use this service unless you are at least 16 years old.

  • You already know Dokkio is an AI-powered assistant to organize & manage your digital files & messages. Very soon, Dokkio will support Outlook as well as One Drive. Check it out today!

View
 

Our Top Ten Tips and Tools

Page history last edited by Jonathan Hall 14 years, 8 months ago

 

 This is a list of some of our favourite tips, tricks and tools.

 It is not a definitive list, not in any particular order and will

 change over time!  

 

 

 

 

 

Quicklaunch icons Use Quicklaunch bar to access most commonly used programs AND the desktop.
Alt-Tab keys Quick way to access any open window / program.
Open in New Tab Improve your access to web pages. Use new tabs to open web pages within the same window, rather than over-writing the current window or using multiple windows.
Keyboard Shortcuts Speed up your work by learning to use keyboard shortcuts rather than menus for commonly used functions.
Right mouse click Use the right click button on your mouse or touchpad to quickly access a range of functions.
Function Keys Using Function and Fn keys will avoid more trackpad / mouse work through menus, etc.
Outlook Exchange Use Outlook Exchange Server to access your Edumail - much quicker and more functional.
MS Communicator Use for voice and video call and instant messaging.
Microsoft One Note Fantastic place to keep notes and manage your files. (Need Office 2007).
Personalised Homepages Use a personalised homepage so that current information from your favourite web sites is delivered to you automatically. Saves you time visiting all the pages separately.  e.g. iGoogle, Pageflakes
   

 

Quicklaunch icons

Right click on the taskbar.

Select Toolbars.

Select Quicklaunch toolbar.

Customise your Quicklaunch bar by re-arranging icons in the order you like and by adding other shortcuts from your desktop.

To add other program shortcuts, add them to your desktop first and them copy them to the Quicklaunch bar.

Finish by removing any unnnecessary shortcuts from your desktop.

 

Alt-tab keys

Hold down the Alt key with your left thumb.

Now use the tab key to flick through all the windows that you have open.

Release the Alt key when you reach the window that you want to use.

(Great for toggling between two windows as it always takes you back first to the previous window you used).

 

Open in New Tab

When browsing Internet pages, use the right click button to "Open in New Tab". This saves you losing the page you are on and avoids opening lots of new windows. Easy then to flick back and forth between web pages.

 

Keyboard Shortcuts

Save heaps of time using your keyboard instead of the mouse.

Windows examples include - Ctrl+S (Save), Ctrl+C (Copy), Ctrl+V (Paste), Ctrl+Y (Undo last action), Ctrl+B (Bold text), Ctrl+U (Underline text), Ctrl+[ (decrease text size), Ctrl+] (increase text size)

Mac examples often use the same letters with the Cmd key.

Extensive list on Wikipedia - XP, Vista, Mac OS -  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_of_keyboard_shortcuts

 

Task - learn 5 new shortcuts per week.

 

Right Mouse Click

Use the right click button on your mouse or touchpad to quickly access functions such as editing / formatting functions, display settings, taskbar settings, accessing Internet pages.

Put the mouse pointer over different areas of your screen and within different programs then right click the mouse / touchpad button to see what optins are available.

 

Function Keys

The F1 - F12 keys are also useful shortcuts. What they do depends on which application you are using.

Useful Function keys include:

F1 - Help screen for the application you are in.

F5 - Refresh the page in Internet Browser or Run slide show in PowerPoint

 

Full list available on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Function_key

 

Fn + Function Keys

Use the Blue Fn key with a range of the F keys. Have a look at the blue symbols on the F keys - most are self-explanatory.

Useful ones include:

Fn+F7 - Toggle between laptop screen, data projector or both

Fn+F8 - Modify you trackpoint and touchpad settings

Fn+F12 - Hibernate (saves on battery power campared to standby)

Fn+Page Up - turns on / off the laptop light

Fn+Home / End - Increases / decreases display brightness

 

Full list of Fn+Function keys on http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/MIGR-62714.html

 

Outlook Exchange Server for Email

Outlook is a much more efficient and functional way to use and manage you Edumail account.

ALL teacher notebooks should be set up with Outlook by the technician at your school. If not, please let us know.

Outlook synchronises your email so that you can work on your laptop rather than having to access the Edumail web-site.

 

Heaps of advantages with Outlook, including:

  • Able to read, organise and compose emails offline
  • Auto-completion of recipients' names in new messages
  • The mail is stored on your laptop, so you don't have to refresh pages or wait for mail, folders, pages to load from the web.
  • Outlook can be left 'on' and messages will come to you - you don't have to login in or refresh you inbox throughout the day.
  • Much easier to create and manage contacts and distribution lists (e.g. for teams in your school)
  • Can store mail messages offline in archive or personal folders (saves oin your mailbox space)
  • Personal and / or shared calendar options
  • Manage your tasks using the task function

 

MS Communicator

This is a free program to DEECD employees and allows you to use voice and video calls and instant messaging with colleagues. (Similar to Skype but through DEECD). Great if you don't have phone contact between rooms. Some teachers have allowed students to use it for video conferencing, e.g. with studnets / teachers in other grades or even with the school principal.

 

If you use Outlook for mail, Communicator integrates with you contact list, so you can see who is online, rather than sending them an eMail and not knowing when they will check it.

 

Download from the Edumail Support page - accessed from the Edumail login page https://www.edumail.vic.gov.au/exchweb/bin/auth/owalogon.asp?url=https://www.edumail.vic.gov.au/mail&reason=0

 

One Note (in Office 2007 package)

Brilliant!!

Record and manage notes, files and information in you own electronic note book and filing cabinet. Great for record keeping on your students.

You can even record voice and video straight into One Note.

 

--> Have a look at our introductory video to One Note. One_Note_Intro_video.swf  This video was created on a teacher laptop using the free Jing software.

 

 

Personalised Homepages

Setting you Internet homepage to an account sucg as iGoogle or Pageflakes will allow you to see information from your favourite websites at a glance on a single page. You can then choose which ones to go to, rather that having to go to all of them each time.

You need to open an account with the provider that you choose. These sites are now developing more into social network sites as well.

 

Overview of personalised homepages on cnet T http://www.cnet.com.au/start-page-smackdown-netvibes-pageflakes-igoogle-and-live-com-339286371.htm

 

iGoogle introductory video - http://www.ehow.com/video_4441944_sign-up-igoogle.html

Pageflakes

 

Comments (0)

You don't have permission to comment on this page.