How-To: Top 5 Most-Asked Help Desk Questions

Many of our customers start their calls with apologies about the stupidity of the questions that are to follow, but it really is unnecessary. No question is a dumb question.

Sloppy sorting can wreak havoc on data. That’s why it’s good to know the basics before you begin.

In this company’s 17-year history, its consultants have solved millions of software snags, from the most basic to the maddeningly complex. Recently, we took a look back to analyze what help our clients needed most.

Not surprisingly, the top five most frequently asked questions are all related to the three most heavily used applications — Microsoft Word, Excel and Access.

Here are the top five, with instructions if applicable. Bookmark and save.

No. 5. How to use query by form in Access (2002, 2007)

Query by form will allow you to enter a value on a form using a text box, check box, combo box, etc. You can then use this value as the criteria for a query, making the query far more dynamic. Use the steps below to setup a sample query:

1. Create a new form in Design view (you do not need to link the form to ANY data source).
2. Add the desired control to the form (textbox, check box, combo box, etc).
3. Right-click on the control and select PROPERTIES.
4. Click on the OTHER tab and enter a value in the name field (don’t use spaces or non-alphanumeric characters). For this example the control name will be: ctl_Criteria.
5. Save the form and give it a name (don’t use spaces or non-alphanumeric characters). For this example the control name will be: frm_Criteria.
6. Close your form.
7. Open the query you would like to apply the criteria to in DESIGN view.
8. Click in the criteria section for the desired field.
9. Enter the following: forms![frm_Criteria]![ctl_Criteria].
10. Close and save your query.
11. Open the form frm_Criteria in design mode.
12. Make sure your toolbox is displayed (Click on View | Toolbox). In 2007, this is shown by default on the Design tab when you have a form in design view, in the controls group; the controls wizard is too.
13. Make sure the CONTROL WIZARD is turned on (it is the Magic Wand button on the Toolbox)
14. Add a COMMAND BUTTON to your form.
15. Select the option to open the desired form, report or table that uses the query as a control source (for example, if you are using a form, you can choose from Form Operations, Open Form; for reports, Report Operations, Preview Report; and queries, Miscellaneous and Run Query).
16. Click Next.
17. Select the desired Form, Report or Query Name.
18. Click Next.
19. Continue through the prompts and select any customizations you desire (if opening a form choose to “Open the form and show all records”).
20. Save the form and close it.
21. Open frm_Criteria and enter the desired criteria then click the button you created.

No. 4. How to fix a damaged Excel file (2003, 2007)

There are a number of ways to approach this problem, and none guarantee you will retrieve all or any of your data. (The best way to ensure some recoverability is to make backup copies of important documents, or, if your company permits, to save such documents on a network drive that’s backed up nightly.)

Attempt an Open and Repair:

• In Excel, go to File | Open (or Office Button | Open in 2007).
• Browse to the damaged file, select it, and click the drop down arrow on the Open button at the bottom right of the dialog box.
• Select “Open and Repair” from the dropdown menu.
• You will see a dialog box asking if you want to repair the document or extract data. Choose “Repair.”

If no success, try this method:

Before starting, make sure you know the name and location of the problem file. And take note that this technique can be used in any version of Excel (including 2007), but does not recover formulas, only formula results.

• Click on the File menu, select Open, and click the folder that has the damaged workbook file. Make a note of the damaged workbook filename while you are here.
• Click the Cancel button.
• Click on the File menu, click New and click OK.
• In the cell A1, type an equals sign, followed by the workbook name in brackets.
• Follow the bracket with the worksheet name with an exclamation mark, and then the cell reference (A1 usually). For example, “=[test.xlsx]Sheet1!A1” without the quotes.
• Hit enter, and, if prompted to update values, browse to and select the damaged workbook.
• Click the fill handle of cell A1, and drag down the amount of rows to be recovered.
• Click and drag to the right the amount of columns to be recovered.
• Select all of the cells with values, press Ctrl+C to copy them.
• Click on the Edit menu, choose Paste Special, select Values, and click OK.

There are countless workarounds if neither of those works. And, of course, there’s always your company’s network backup, which, if available, will give you the most recent backed up version of your file.

No. 3. How to sort data in Excel (2000, 2002, 2003, 2007)

Microsoft Excel has a variety of tools for sorting and grouping data. One of the easiest to use is Sort, which appears on the Data menu. This feature will sort multiple columns while maintaining the correct relations across the columns. There is a built-in maximum of columns to sort by (Excel 2000, 2002, 2003: three. Excel 2007: more). You can work around the limit, but that’s a tip for another time.

Keep in mind that sloppy sorting can wreak havoc on data. That’s why it’s good to know the basics before you begin.

To sort by up to three columns:

• Select your data. If there are no blank rows or columns in your data, you can simply click on one cell in the range, and Excel will automatically select a contiguous range. If there are blank rows or columns, you will need to actually select your range of data.
• Click on the Data menu (Excel 2007: Data tab) and choose Sort.
• At the bottom of the Sort dialog box look at the “My list has” or “My data range has” section (Excel 2007: “My data has headers” is a checkbox in the top right). If Excel concludes that your list has a header row and it does, then the text you used for headings should appear in the drop-downs. If you do not have a header row but Excel guessed you did, click the “No header row” option, which will ensure that all the rows of your data are sorted. The drop-downs will now refer to the column letters in your data such as Column A, Column B, etc. Excel may not recognize your headers if they are formatted the same as the data; just make sure the setting on the Sort dialog correctly shows whether you have header rows.
• In the “Sort by” section, click the top drop-down and select the column you want to sort by first. So, if you want to sort your data by last name, choose that column from the top drop-down.
• To the right of this drop-down, you have radio buttons marked Ascending and Descending (Excel 2007: Order column). Ascending will sort in standard alphabetical order, lowest number to highest or earliest date to latest date. Descending will sort the opposite way.
• If you want to also sort by a second or third column, choose those from the remaining drop-downs and set the sort order for each.
• Click the OK button when you have completed your selections.

No. 2. How to import data from another source in Access (2003, 2007)

To import data in Access, you use the import wizard, which is located in File | Get External Data in 2003 and earlier, and in the Import section of the External Data tab in 2007.

The problem many users encounter with importing into Access is rarely with the wizard (which is easy to use); rather, it’s often the result of one variable that’s off. And the variables are many, including the actual data, the database size, the source file type, column headings, errant characters, and more.

Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all guide to importing data into Access. The best approach, should you get an error message, is to call an expert.

No. 1. How to complete a mail merge in Word (2003, 2007)

Mail merges make even the most nimble users shudder. That’s because merges fail so often. The most common type of merge involves taking data stored in Excel and bringing it into Word. Here’s how:

STEP 1: Set up data source in Excel.

• Enter what will become your Merge Fields in Row 1 of your Excel worksheet (for example, Fname, MI, Lname, etc).

NOTE: You will want to enter punctuation in the cells of the Excel sheet if there will be blank entries (Middle Initial field, for example) so you don’t have a blank next to punctuation in the form letter once merged.

• Enter names, addresses and any other information for mail merge data source.
• Save data source in a location you will remember and with a filename that makes sense.

STEP 2: Create Main Document

• Open the form letter you have created in Word.
• On the Tools menu, go to Letters and Mailings and click Mail Merge Wizard.
• Click “Letters” in the Mail Merge pane.
• Click Next in the Mail Merge pane.
• Choose “Use the current document,” click Next.
• Choose Use an existing list, Click the “Browse” hyperlink.
• In the Select Data Source dialog box, select the file that contains the variable information that you want to use, in this case the Excel file you created, and then click Open.

NOTE: You may get a Select Table box. Simply choose the sheet contains your data.

• Click OK on the Mail Merge Recipients box.
• Click Next in Mail Merge pane.

STEP 3: Insert Merge Fields

• Check for an “Insert Merge Field” button on your toolbar. If you do not have one, we must add it.

1. Go to View, Toolbars, Customize.
2. Click on the Commands Tab.
3. Select Mail Merge in the Categories section.
4. Drag the “Insert Merge Field” button from the Commands section to a toolbar at the top of the window.

• Type or add any text and graphics that you want to include in your letter.
• Each time that you come to a place where you want to insert information from the data source, click “Insert Merge Field” on the Mail Merge toolbar, and then click the merge field that you want to use.

NOTE: Make sure that you type any spaces or punctuation that you want between two merge fields or after a merge field. You can also format (apply bold or italic formatting to) the merge fields, just as you would with regular text.

• When you finish editing the main document, click Save or Save As on the File menu. Name the file, and then click Save.
• Go to Step 4: Perform the Merge.

STEP 4: Perform the Merge

• Click Next in Mail Merge pane. This displays the first page of your letter.
• If everything looks good, click Next.
• Click the “Edit Individual Letters” hyperlink.
• Click All, then click OK.
• You are now looking at the complete merge document. It can be edited if necessary and then printed.

NOTE: You may save the merged letters to a new file name in case you want to print them later.

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