The Teach Yourself series from Via Graphics, designed to teach you to use your computer
the fast and easy way.
I'm Virgil Richey along with Leslie Thomas.
Organizing a busy day to day life can sometimes be difficult, but Schedule Plus makes planning
your calendar easy.
Schedule Plus is a simple to use time management tool that helps us keep track of appointments,
meetings and events, as well as important tasks and contact information.
We will learn to use the appointment book, which keeps track of the date, time, location,
attendees and description of an appointment.
We will use the date navigator, which easily changes the date being viewed in the appointment
book or the planner.
We will use the to do list, which tracks and manages information about important tasks
and projects.
We will learn to use the contacts list, which is a convenient place to enter and manage
information about business and personal contacts.
We will learn to use the events feature, which helps us keep track of special days and activities.
We will learn to use the planner, which lets us see when other Schedule Plus users are
available for a meeting.
And we will learn to use the meeting wizard, which organizes an appointment by sending
a meeting request over a network.
Next, we'll copy the sample files from the learning disk onto the computer's hard drive.
From the Windows 95 desktop, we click the start menu button in the task bar.
Choose programs and then open the Windows Explorer from the fly out menu.
Then we'll insert the VIAGraphics learning disk into the proper drive.
Ours is A. In the Explorer box, we double click the A drive icon.
And with the three and a half inch floppy drive highlighted, we grab the VIAGraphics
learning files folder by holding the left mouse button.
Then we drag the learning folder to the C drive icon and release the mouse.
Now we notice that the VIAGraphics learning files appear on the computer's C drive.
Let's click the close button to return to the Windows 95 desktop.
For the purposes of this training session, you should already have Schedule Plus, a standard
feature of Microsoft Office 95, installed on your computer's hard drive.
If you need assistance, please refer to the operating manual.
Now let's begin learning Schedule Plus.
To open the Schedule Plus program, we click on the start button from the Windows 95 task
bar.
We then open the program's fly out menu and select the Microsoft Schedule Plus icon.
The Schedule Plus greeting screen appears, followed by the group enabling dialog box.
The group enabling dialog box lets us choose how we want to use the Schedule Plus program.
We'll select the top choice so that we can work in the group enabled mode.
This means that our computer is connected to other Schedule Plus users by network.
If your computer is not linked to a network, you will want to choose the work alone option.
During this tutorial, we'll present the Schedule Plus program from the group enabled mode.
However, if you are using the work alone mode, the information in this video is still valuable.
All of the basic Schedule Plus functions will work the same, but you may not be able to
perform a few of the more advanced networking features.
After we have selected the correct option, we click on OK with the mouse pointer.
Next is the welcome to Schedule Plus dialog box.
Since this is the first time we have used this program, we are given three choices for
selecting a Schedule Plus file.
We will select the top choice to create a new schedule file.
If we had used the Schedule Plus program before and wanted to work in an existing file, we
would select the second choice.
Or if we wanted to work with a file from another computer, we would select the third choice.
To continue, we click on OK.
The select local schedule box will appear next.
At the top in the save in box is the default schedule folder.
This is the default setting where all of the Schedule Plus files will be saved.
The file name box is located at the bottom of the dialog box.
This is where we will enter the title of our new schedule.
For the purposes of this exercise, we'll enter the name Melissa Bertram.
However, you can enter your own name if you wish.
We can change where our file will be saved.
We'll keep the default selection in order to have our file saved in the Schedule Plus
folder.
Notice that all of the Schedule Plus files are automatically saved with the extension
SCD.
When all of the information is correct, we click on the save button.
The Schedule Plus window now appears with our new file heading.
You may pause the tape now to practice on your computer.
The Schedule Plus program provides a solid background and structure, along with user
friendly tabs and menus for easy operation and easy access to all of the scheduling elements.
In this section, we will provide a brief overview of the entire Schedule Plus window.
In the top left corner of the Schedule Plus window is the program icon, which is common
to most Windows 95 applications.
When we click once with the mouse pointer, a menu appears.
From this menu, we can perform the usual Windows commands that will affect the Schedule Plus
program, such as restore, move, size, minimize, maximize, and close.
This brings up an important point, shortcut keystroke combinations.
As you learn to use the Schedule Plus program, you'll discover several keystroke combinations
such as Alt F4 for close.
Although Schedule Plus is a Windows program, learning to use the keystroke combinations
can save valuable time.
You will no longer need to remove your hands from the keyboard to select a function with
the mouse.
Look for the quick key combinations as we use the program.
We'll press the escape key to clear this menu from the screen.
The blue area at the top of the screen is the title bar.
It currently reads Melissa Bertram, Microsoft Schedule Plus.
This is the title of the file we are now working on, followed by the name of the program.
In the top right of the screen are the standard Windows 95 boxes for minimize, restore, and
close.
Next, the gray bar located below the title bar is the menu bar.
The menus contained in this bar are just one way to control the Schedule Plus program.
The menu bar contains headings for the pull-down menu items.
These pull-down menus offer additional commands and information beyond the command buttons
which are used in the Schedule Plus program.
Let's take a closer look at the file menu for an example of how these pull-down menus
operate.
The different options in the file menu are used to open, save, import, export, and print
schedules.
Let's move the mouse pointer to the file menu and click once.
A pull-down menu will immediately appear below the file heading.
Notice that as we move the mouse pointer down the list, the options become highlighted with
a blue background and a white text, instead of the usual color black.
In addition, at the bottom of the window in the status bar is a description of what each
command will do.
For example, when the restore command is highlighted, the status bar reads, Restore data from a
previously created backup file.
To execute a command, we simply point to the desired option with the mouse pointer and
click once.
Let's now select the new command in order to create a new schedule.
The new project schedule dialog box is the same as the one we used to create the name
of the current document we have on screen.
In the file name box, let's enter a new name.
We'll call this schedule Diana Stokes and click on the Save button.
A new schedule window appears on screen with the new heading.
Notice that both of the schedules are still visible on the screen and that they are both
listed in the Windows 95 task bar with the current schedule that we are working on highlighted.
To open a menu with a keyboard instead of the mouse, we can hold down the Alt key and
press the underlined letter of the menu we want.
In this case, we'll press Alt plus F for the file menu.
We'll use the arrow keys on the keyboard to change the highlighted menu item to Close,
and then we'll press Enter to execute the already highlighted command.
The Diana Stokes schedule will now be closed.
Next, let's call up the file menu again.
This time, use the method that is most agreeable to you, either the mouse or the keyboard.
Another way to select a menu item is by pressing the underlined letter of the command we wish
to perform.
For instance, pressing the letter N will create a new schedule again.
Let's click on the Close box to return to the schedule.
There are three general types of commands in the pull-down menus.
Commands like Close and Exit will perform a particular task as soon as they are selected.
We can identify these command types by looking at the menu.
Other command types, such as New, Open, and Print, will pull up an additional pop-out
menu or dialog box when they are selected.
These two can be easily identified by looking at the menu.
Other commands, which are followed by three dots, will display a dialog box when they
are executed.
Examples of these commands in the file menu include New, Archive, Backup, Restore, and
Print.
We have already used the New command, so this time, let's select the Print option.
The Print dialog box will appear on the screen.
However, we won't use this box now, but we will learn more about printing later.
To clear the window, we click the Cancel button with the mouse.
Now let's call up the file menu again.
This time, we will concentrate on the commands which have a triangular arrow next to them,
such as Open, Export, and Import.
When we select the Export command with the mouse, an additional fly-out menu appears.
All fly-out menus operate exactly like the other menus.
Since we don't want to use this feature now, we'll close the fly-out menu by pressing
Escape.
By using the arrow keys, we can highlight the other menu headings in the menu bar.
And we can see the basic information and features in the other pull-down menus under each heading.
Let's close the menu by pressing Escape.
And then we'll deselect the Help menu by pressing Escape again.
It's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the power and features of the Schedule
Plus program by taking the time to move through and investigate each of the different options
available in the menu bar.
Besides the pull-down menus, Schedule Plus provides a toolbar and status bar for easy
use.
The toolbar is located just below the menu bar on the Schedule Plus window.
Each button in the toolbar contains a picture, which indicates its function.
When we move the mouse pointer to the Open button, which has a yellow folder with an
arrow pointing it open, additional information will appear on the screen.
In a yellow box just below the Open button is a Quick Tip.
Quick Tips give us a brief description of a toolbar button's function.
Similarly, the status bar at the bottom of the screen also gives a description, much
like it did for the commands in the menu bar and pull-down menus, but with slightly more
detail.
The status bar now reads, display a specified user's appointment book or schedule file.
Notice that when we select the next button with the picture of a printer, the word Print
appears in the Quick Tip box, and the status bar information changes to read, Print's
schedule data.
In order to activate a toolbar command, such as Print, we simply click the button with
the mouse pointer.
The Print dialog box will appear instantly.
To close the box, we'll click on Cancel.
At the bottom of the screen, just above the Windows 95 task bar, is the status bar.
We noted earlier in the chapter that this bar can be used to view a brief description
of a command's function.
Still, it has another equally important purpose.
On the left side is the information on the time of day, day of week, as well as the date,
which includes day, month, and year.
And on the right side is a display of the current time periods that we have highlighted
on our appointment book.
You may pause the tape now to practice on your computer.
Chapter one covered a lot of information, so let's take a moment to review what we have
learned.
We learned how to log on to the Schedule Plus program and open a new schedule file from
the Select Local Schedule dialog box.
At the top of the Schedule Plus window, we learned about the Schedule Plus program icon,
the title bar, and the Windows 95 boxes.
Then we learned about the menu bar by opening the pull-down menus from the file heading
and creating a new schedule file.
We also learned about the different types of commands used in the menu bar, such as
the fly-out menu and the dialog box.
Finally, we learned how to use the toolbar, and we learned about the status bar.
Schedule Plus allows the user to choose from a variety of different views, depending on
the type of work that is being done.
In this section, we'll use the View tabs to change the appearance of our appointment
book, and we'll learn to customize the view options to better suit our working needs.
Along the left edge of the Schedule Plus window are the View tabs, which identify the different
views available to us.
The current tabs, Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Planner, To Do, and Contacts are the default
settings and are automatically displayed the first time a schedule file is used.
Each of the View tabs consists of various arrangements of one or more of the Schedule
Plus elements.
For example, the Daily tab that we have used so far contains the appointment book, date
navigator, and To Do list.
Each of these elements is shown in a different area and is separated by split bars.
If we want to resize the different areas, we simply drag the split bars to a new location.
The amount of information shown in each area will depend on the position of the split bars.
To change to a different view, we click on the desired tab with the mouse pointer.
When we select the Weekly tab, the Schedule Plus window appears to show the appointment
book divided into a five-day work week.
Next, we click the Monthly tab, which shows a calendar for the month.
Additional tabs with different views can be added to suit our needs.
From the View menu, we select Tab Gallery, and the Tab Gallery dialog box appears.
In the left-hand box is a list of available tabs.
We can use the mouse pointer or the arrow keys to scroll the list.
Notice that as we scroll, a display of the screen's appearance is shown in the preview
box, as well as a description of the tab's elements.
With the yearly calendar highlighted, we click on the Add button, and the yearly tab is placed
in the Show These tabs box.
Inside the Show These tabs box are the Move Up and Move Down buttons.
By clicking on these buttons, we can move the selected tab to a different location in
the list.
We place the yearly tab between the Monthly tab and the Planner.
In addition to selecting the order, we can also change the title that appears on the
tab.
However, we'll leave this selection on Yearly.
The process of removing a tab is done in the same manner.
We first select the tab with the mouse pointer, and then we click on the Remove button.
When we have finished making changes to the tab gallery, we click on OK.
The Yearly tab now appears in the row of View tabs, and we can click once with the mouse
pointer to display it in the Schedule Plus window.
If we have an appointment which occurs on a regular basis, such as a weekly meeting,
we can designate it as recurring.
When we schedule an appointment as recurring, we only have to enter it once.
The Schedule Plus program will automatically enter all of the future occurrences for us.
Let's open the Insert menu and then choose Recurring Appointment to access the Appointment
Series dialog box.
In the description box, let's type Employee Evaluations, and in the Where box, we'll type
Mr. Fowler's Office.
Next, we'll select the Private option, and then click on the Win tab to set the recurrence
pattern.
In the This Occurs box of the Win tab, we'll select Monthly.
Notice that the box just to the right changes to reflect the new options.
If the meeting were on a particular day each month, we could use the top row to select
a date.
However, our meeting is not on a specific date.
It is on the first Thursday of every three months.
In the Duration box, we can select the Begging and End Date for when the recurring appointment
is valid.
Pressing the arrow button beside the effective date will bring up the Date Navigator.
When we have selected an effective date, we then click on the Until box to set the end
date.
If no end date is selected, the default setting will end the recurring appointment after one
year.
In the Win box, we can select the time of the recurring appointment.
We'll select the appointment to start at 3 p.m. and to end at 4 p.m.
Finally, in the Next Occurrence box, we can see the next date of our recurring appointment.
Then to set the appointment, we click on OK.
In the Yearly tab, we can see that the appointment is placed on the first Thursday of every three
months starting in September.
The dates in bold represent days where an appointment is scheduled.
The final way to insert an appointment is to simply type the appointment information
into the appropriate box.
Let's return to the Daily tab and move our appointment book to Friday.
With the mouse pointer, we'll select the 10 a.m. time slot.
To select more than a 30-minute section, we can drag the highlighted area with the mouse.
Notice that the specific date and time appears in the pop-up box beside the highlighted area.
Let's choose the hour from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. for our appointment.
Now we start typing.
We'll type production meeting and then click outside of the box to set the appointment.
All of the default features such as a reminder which is indicated by the bell will automatically
appear.
When an appointment reminder appears, it displays the time and date of the appointment in the
title bar as well as the location and description in the main body.
You may pause the tape now.
Now let's take a moment to review what we've learned in Chapter 2.
We learned how to use the view tabs to select a different window and how to customize the
view tabs with the tab gallery.
Also, we learned how to schedule an appointment using the insert new appointment button from
the toolbar and how to schedule a recurring appointment using the insert menu.
Finally, we learned how to designate an appointment as private or tentative as well as set an
appointment reminder and then respond to a reminder.
The to-do list is used to manage and track activities that are associated with specific
dates but not with specific times.
The entire to-do list appears on the to-do tab or we can view the active to-do list which
corresponds only to a particular day in the daily tab.
Below the date navigator is the active to-do list.
This area is used to display the tasks and projects which must be accomplished on this
day.
To see the complete to-do list, we select the to-do tab.
The to-do list is displayed as a grid with the column headings across the top corresponding
to the boxes in the task dialog box.
Notice that under the project personal chores, we have three tasks to be completed, bank
deposit, mow lawn, and pay bills.
To insert a new task, let's click on the insert new task button from the toolbar or use the
shortcut keystroke combination which is control plus T.
In the general tab of the task dialog box, we can set a variety of options for our new
task.
The active range box is used to specify if necessary when a task will begin and when
it will end.
Let's select the box next to ends to activate the range.
If we need help choosing a date, we can click on the down arrow button to view a calendar.
We'll choose Friday, September 8th.
Next, we must select the duration for the task.
We'll start the active range one week before the end date.
Also in the active range box is an option to mark the task as done after the end date.
This feature will automatically check the task as completed after the date that we specified.
Let's leave this option blank for now.
In the description box, we'll enter the message we want to appear for the task in the to-do
list.
Let's type pick up laundry.
Below the description is the project box.
This is where we will enter the project that we want to associate our new task with.
We'll click on the down arrow button to view the choices.
We can either select an already existing project from the list or we can create a new project
name.
Let's select personal chores.
Another option in the task dialog box is to select a priority for our task.
We'll leave this feature on three, which is the default setting.
In addition, we can also attach a reminder or set the task as private, just as we did
with an appointment.
However, we'll leave both of these options blank for now.
There are two more tabs in the task dialog box.
The status tab is used to enter more information about the condition of the task, such as the
percent completed and the actual or estimated effort, as well as the contact and billing
information.
Meanwhile, the notes tab is simply used to add additional comments about the task.
We'll make no changes to any of these options.
Instead, let's click the OK button to create the new task.
Notice that the pick up laundry task is placed under the project personal chores and the
information we entered is listed in the to do grid.
Finally, when a task such as picking up the laundry is complete, we can mark it off the
to do list by clicking in the completed column.
The task will then be marked by a check mark and a line, which runs through the text.
If we have to create the same task on a regular basis, such as a weekly progress report, we
can set it up as a recurring task.
When we set a task as recurring, Schedule Plus will automatically place all future occurrences
of the task in the to do list for us.
From the insert menu, we'll select recurring task and the task series dialog box will appear.
The task series dialog box is very similar to the task dialog box we just finished working
with, and it is similar to the appointment series dialog box we worked with earlier in
chapter two.
In the general tab, we'll follow the same steps as we did before to set the series properties.
Let's set the duration to one week before the end date and then click on the mark as
done after end date box.
Then for the description, we'll type weekly progress report.
In the project box, let's create a new project name.
To do so, we'll place the cursor inside the box and then delete the words, personal chores.
We do this with the backspace key.
Now let's enter the new project name.
We'll call it work.
Also in the series property box, let's set the reminder for three days before the end
date and change the priority to seven.
Next in the when tab, we'll select the occurrence of the recurring task.
Let's leave the this occurs box setting on weekly and then set the day of the week for
Friday.
There's no need to change the default setting of the duration, so we'll click on the OK
button to create the task.
Notice that the project work now appears on the to-do list along with the weekly progress
report task.
Another important feature of the Schedule Plus program is the ability to copy a task
directly from the to-do list to the appointment book.
Let's select the daily tab, which holds our appointment book and active to-do list.
Then using the date navigator, we'll move the appointment book date to Friday, September
8th.
Now to set the appointment, we'll select the time slot from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.
We do this with the mouse pointer.
Then we click once on the weekly progress report in the to-do list.
Now from the insert menu, we select related item and then appointment from task.
The appointment dialog box will appear and we can add any additional information that
is needed.
When finished, we click on the OK button and the task is placed in the appointment book.
You may pause the tape now.
While grouping a to-do list, keep in mind that if a filter is applied, only those tasks
that meet the conditions and requirements of the filter will be displayed.
And if no group is selected, the tasks are arranged according to the order in which they
were entered.
Sorting the to-do list is another way to specify how we want to view our information.
If a sort is applied, it is performed within the group settings.
As many as three columns can be sorted at one time.
The columns which are currently sorted, such as description, priority, and ends, have an
arrow displayed in their box.
These arrows indicate whether the column is assorted in ascending order with an up arrow
or descending order with a down arrow.
To make any changes, we open the view menu and then select sort.
In the sort dialog box, we can choose the properties by which our to-do columns are
divided.
And we can select whether they are listed in ascending or descending order.
However, let's leave the current settings as they are and click OK to return to the
to-do list.
Let's take a moment to review what we've covered in Chapter 3.
We learned how to insert a new task into the to-do list using the insert new task button
and the task dialog box.
Then we learned how to mark a task as complete.
We learned how to insert a recurring task from the insert menu.
We learned how to copy a task directly from the to-do list to the appointment book.
And we learned how to change the appearance of the to-do list using the filter, group,
and sort features.
The events feature helps us keep track of special days and activities that are associated
with a specific day, but not with a specific time.
An event can be anything from a birthday or wedding anniversary to a special holiday or
business conference.
First, we'll select the daily tab and then use the go to date button to change the appointment
book to Monday, September 4th.
Notice at the top of the appointment book under the event symbol, we can see the first
line of the event description.
It reads, Labor Day, Office Closed.
If several events were attached to this date, a down arrow button would appear on the right
side of the events box, allowing us to access the rest of the list.
Also, notice that the event does not occupy a specific block of time inside the appointment
book.
To create a new event, we open the insert menu and then choose event.
At the top of the events dialog box is the event starts and ends dates.
If we know the specific date, we can enter it directly or we can click on the down arrow
button to view the date navigator calendar.
Let's select Tuesday, September 5th.
An event can be placed on any day of the year or it can be designated to last for several
consecutive days.
To demonstrate, let's set the date ends box for Wednesday, September 6th.
In the description box, we can enter the information that we want to appear on the appointment
book.
Let's type sales conference.
Next, at the bottom of the dialog box, we can set a reminder or designate the event
as private.
Using the mouse pointer, we'll turn off the reminder and then turn on the private
box.
When we click on OK, the new event is immediately placed at the top of the appointment book
on Tuesday, September 5th.
And using the right arrow button, we can see that the event was also placed on the appointment
book for Wednesday, September 6th.
An event that occurs once a year such as a birthday or wedding anniversary can be placed
on the appointment book as an annual event.
With the mouse pointer, let's click on the event symbol and from the pop-up menu, we'll
select insert annual event.
In the annual events dialog box, we can enter the information in the same way as we did
before.
Let's select a date, enter a description, then set a reminder and designate it as private.
Then when we click OK, the annual event is immediately placed in the appointment book.
Now using the date navigator, we can see that the annual event is also placed on the same
date in 1996.
The contacts feature is a convenient place to enter, manage and track our personal and
business contacts.
A contact can be anyone that we communicate with on a business or personal basis.
In this section, we will learn how to add a contact using the contacts tab and we'll
learn how to group and sort our contacts list.
We've returned the appointment book back to September 8th, 1995.
To open the contacts list, we'll select the contacts tab with the mouse pointer.
Notice that the contacts window is divided into two sides.
The left side contains the list of our contacts while the right side shows the business card.
To change the business card to a different contact, we simply click in the button to
the left of the appropriate name.
To create a new contact, we can click on the insert new contact button from the toolbar
and then use the contacts dialog box.
Or we can enter the information directly to the contacts tab.
Let's select the button of an empty row in the contacts list.
A new empty business card will display where we can enter the information of our new contact.
Now in the top box, we'll enter the first and last name of the person.
You can either follow along and enter the information as we do or you can enter your
own contact information.
Displayed below the name box is the business tab.
Here we can enter the new contacts job title, company, department, office, assistant, and
phone number.
And if we want to call the contact at this number, we can select the dial phone button.
Next is the phone tab.
We can enter additional phone numbers such as a mobile phone, pager, or fax number where
the contact can be reached.
And in the address tab, we can enter the business and home address of our contact, including
the city, state, postal code, and country.
In the personal tab, we can enter the contact's birthday as well as the name of the contact's
spouse and the date of their anniversary.
If a birthday or anniversary is selected, it will automatically appear as an annual event
on the appropriate date in the appointment book.
Finally, in the notes tab, we can add any additional information that we want to associate
with the contact.
When we are finished entering the information, we'll click outside of the business card.
The contact's name will appear in the contact's list.
And when the contact is highlighted, we can access all of their information through the
business card.
Just as we did with the to-do list, we can also group and sort our contact's list into
a variety of different categories.
Let's open the view menu and then select Group By to bring up the Group By dialog box.
In the first box, we can click on the down arrow button to select a property for organizing
our contact's list.
We'll choose Company.
And in the second box, we'll follow the same steps to select Department.
When we click on the OK button, we can use the mouse pointer to expand and collapse the
list in order to display or hide the contacts we want.
Also, by grouping our contacts, we can use the Go To box at the top of the contact's
list to quickly jump to the entries listed under a specific group heading.
Sorting our contact's list can also be a very valuable time saver.
Notice that the columns for last and first names are marked with an up arrow.
This indicates that they are sorted alphabetically or in ascending order.
To change how our contact list is sorted, we can open the view menu and then select
Sort.
In the Sort dialog box, we can specify how we want to view the properties in the list.
Let's leave these settings as they are and click on OK to return to the Contacts tab.
In Chapter 4, we learned how to insert a new event and a new annual event into the appointment
book.
We also learned how to add a contact to the contacts list using the Contacts tab and the
business card.
Also, we learned how to group and sort the contacts list.
From the Planner tab, we can view the free and busy time for ourselves and the other
network users.
In order to determine the best time to schedule a meeting, in Schedule Plus, a meeting is
an appointment in which attendees have been invited.
To open the Planner, we click on the Planner tab.
The information which appears in the Planner window is identical to what we viewed in the
Planner tab of the appointment dialog box in Chapter 2.
The Planner is used to quickly determine our free and busy time over several days.
And if we are in a grouped enabled mode, we can view the free and busy time of the other
network users who have published their information.
The vertical bars in the Planner indicate a person or resource's busy time.
The time slots which have no vertical bars are called free time.
In the bottom right of the Planner tab is the Attendees box.
The different colors on the chart are used to indicate a specific attendees free time.
For example, our busy time slots are displayed with a blue vertical bar.
A dark gray bar indicates the busy time of a required attendee.
A purple bar indicates the busy time of an optional attendee.
And a green bar indicates the busy time of a resource.
Also, notice that the attendees are listed by category with our name as the meeting organizer
at the top.
If a check mark appears next to a person's name, that means the person's schedule is
shown on the Planner.
A question mark indicates that a person's schedule is not shown.
And an X means the person is busy during the selected time slot.
When operating in the standalone mode, the Invite button will not appear.
And the Request Meeting button will be changed to a new appointment button which opens the
appointment dialog box.
There are many ways to schedule a meeting.
It can be done from the Planner tab or even the appointment dialog box.
But the easiest way is using the Meeting Wizard.
To send a meeting request to another network user, the attendee must also use Microsoft
Exchange and both computers must be connected to a mail server.
We can schedule a meeting from any of the View tabs by clicking on the Meeting Wizard
button in the toolbar.
In the opening window of the Meeting Wizard dialog box, we are asked to choose a few preliminary
options.
We'll click in the box beside the first choice, Required Attendees Who Must Attend.
And in the third box to select a location.
When finished, we click on the Next button.
In the Required Attendees window, we'll select the Meetings Required Attendees.
If we know the names, we can enter them directly into the box using semicolons to keep them
separated.
Then we can click on the Check Names box to confirm that the names we typed are accurate
with our address book.
If we do not know the names, we can click on the Pick Attendees box to view the address
book.
We'll highlight the name Jim Hayward.
And then click on the Required button to place it in the next column.
When finished, we select the OK button and then choose Next.
In the Location window of the Meeting Wizard, we can select the name of the meeting location.
Let's type Conference Room.
If multiple locations were entered, the Schedule Plus program would choose the location that
worked best for the invited attendees.
We'll click the Next button to continue.
In the Meeting Length window, we can specify the duration of the meeting and the travel
time required going to and coming from the meeting site.
The Travel Time Buffer ensures that all of the attendees can arrive on time.
In the next window, we can select the Acceptable Meeting Time.
This is the time specification that the Meeting Wizard will search in for an available time
slot.
We'll leave this option set on 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
In the free and busy time planner, we can view the schedule of the required attendees,
just as we would in the Planner tab.
Also, we can approve the proposed meeting time.
In the next available time box is the date, time, and location of the first available
meeting slot.
If for some reason this slot is not agreeable, we can click on the Pick Next Time button,
and the Meeting Wizard will select another time slot.
In the Close Wizard window, we are given the instructions for sending the meeting request.
When we click on the Finished button, we are taken directly to the Meeting Request dialog
box.
Let's complete the request form by typing the subject of the meeting and any notes which
we want to attach.
Meeting requests and meeting responses are received in the Microsoft Exchange inbox,
and they can be distinguished from the other messages by the Schedule Plus symbol.
In addition, when we schedule a meeting or respond to a meeting request, the Schedule
Plus program will automatically place it into our appointment book.
In Chapter 5, we learned how to view a person's free and busy time in the Planner tab.
We learned how to check an attendee's availability in the Attendees box.
We learned how to schedule a meeting using the Meeting Wizard.
And we learned how to send out a meeting request.
We can use the Print command to print out appointments, to-do lists, and contact lists.
In fact, Schedule Plus provides a variety of layout choices and paper formats so that
we can print only the information that we need in the format that's most convenient
to us.
We'll select the Print button from the toolbar to open the Print dialog box.
In the Print Layout box, we can select the elements of our schedule that we want to print.
With the mouse pointer, we'll choose the Daily Dynamic option.
Below the Print Layout is the Paper Format box where we can choose the correct paper size.
We'll leave this at its current setting for Full Page and continue on with the Schedule
Range box.
Here we can select the starting date and duration of the schedule that we want to print.
Let's click on the down arrow button and then select Friday, September 8th.
Next we'll click on the Preview button to open the Print Preview dialog box, which displays
the page format we just specified.
If we need a closer look, we can use the Zoom In button to magnify the image.
Then when we've finished, we click on Close to return to the Print dialog box.
To print the Schedule Plus file, we simply click on the OK button.
Another important feature of Schedule Plus is the ability to change the default settings
of our schedule file.
This allows us to customize our schedule to the way we work.
Let's open the Tools menu and then select Options.
In the Options dialog box, we are given a variety of choices for our schedule.
In the General tab, we can change the name of our active calendar, select the day we
want to appear first in the date navigator, and select the time that our day begins and
ends.
We'll change the day the week starts on to Monday.
And using the arrow buttons, we'll start our day at 6 a.m. and end our day at 3 p.m.
Also in the General tab, we can select the time scale and drag drop time of the appointment
book.
We'll adjust both of these to 60 minutes.
In the Defaults tab, we can specify the default setting of our schedule file, such as the
time that a reminder is displayed and the priority of a new task or project.
Since our office is small, we'll change the automatic appointment reminder time to 5 minutes.
In the Display tab, we can select the display features of our schedule file, such as the
background color and the font size.
With the mouse pointer, we'll click on the arrow beside Planner and change the background
color to light blue.
Also, let's select the box next to Show Week Numbers in the calendar.
This will add the week number for the year to the date navigator.
In the Time Zone tab, we can identify a primary and secondary time zone for our schedule.
We'll leave the primary time zone on central time.
To activate the secondary time zone, we click the box to the left.
By clicking on the arrow button, we can scroll and select any time zone from around the world.
Let's choose Pacific Time for the West Coast region.
In addition to choosing a time zone, we can also change the current time and date and
automatically adjust for daylight savings time.
Finally in the Synchronize tab, we can specify the interval that our schedule plus file is
synchronized with other users on the network.
We'll change the top option to Synchronize Every 30 Minutes.
If we want to synchronize our schedule file now, we can press the button at the bottom
of the screen.
To accept the new default settings, we click on OK.
It is obvious immediately that the schedule plus window has changed.
When we switch to the yearly tab, notice that the first day of each week is now Monday and
that the week numbers appear as well.
It's a good idea to regularly back up your schedule plus file.
Then if a problem occurs, we can retrieve the file from the safety of our backup disk.
On the File menu, we'll choose Backup to open the Select Backup File dialog box.
In the Save In box, we can use the mouse pointer to choose a destination and drive directory.
Then in the File Name box, we can type a new file name.
When finished, we'll click on the Save button.
By default, the backup file is saved with the extension SCD.
And just like the regular schedule file, it is protected by a password.
Finally, to quit the schedule plus program, we'll open the File menu and then choose
Exit.
This will close all of the schedule plus windows and any reminders that we have will no longer
be displayed.
In Chapter 6, we learned how to preview and print a schedule file.
We learned how to customize the default settings using the general default, display, time zone,
and synchronize options.
Then we learned how to backup our schedule file and how to quit the schedule plus program.
That concludes this introduction to Microsoft Schedule Plus for Windows 95, Version 7.
We at VIAGraphics would like to thank you for choosing our company for your computer
training needs.
And remember, if you plan to learn Schedule Plus for Windows 95 or any other computer software,
there is no better way than through video training with VIAGraphics.
Thank you.