Executive Training Solutions

Have you ever noticed the gray area around your Microsoft Publisher documents? This area is called the scratch area and you can use when designing your pages.

You can drag items onto the scratch area where they will sit until you drag them back onto a page, or delete them. It’s a great way to keep track of different elements as you rearrange things, or decide which elements you want to use.

Anything placed in the scratch area will not print when you print the page. Even so, when you are done with a document it’s a good idea to delete anything left in the scratch area so that it doesn’t confuse the next person who opens your Publisher file.

To learn more about using Microsoft Publisher, attend one of our classes.  Our instructors love to share their knowledge with students!

Many years ago, when I worked on a school newspaper, we had to paste up each page individually. We used rubber cement and rulers and paper.  We often laid everything out on long countertops, and and would use the counter as a holding place for various photographs, columns and graphics.

The gray area around your Microsoft Publisher document is just like my old countertop. You can drop graphics and text boxes on the gray scratch area and have them available to you if you need them on a different page. It’s a great tool when you are trying to find the best place for that amazing photograph you want to include in a newsletter!

For more great tips and tricks on how to use Microsoft Publisher, visit one of our classes.  We look forward to teaching you soon!

In the publishing world, a bleed is when color extends to the edges of a document (think of a magazine, or a travel postcard.) This is impossible to do with most desktop printers, but for those times when you want to send your document to a professional printer, you can adjust your settings within Microsoft Publisher to allow a bleed.

If your final document will be 4 x 6 (like a postcard), set your custom page size .125″ larger. Create a custom page size of 4.125 x 6.125″.

(Note: You should always work with your printer for their specific requirements.  .125″ is equal to 1 / 8 of an inch, and is a common number provided by printers.)

Once you have your custom page size, be sure that the data that must be printed falls well inside that range. Place all text and graphics within a 3.875 x 5.875″ space so that nothing gets cut off your document.

For more tips on using Microsoft Publisher effectively, visit our website and choose one of our Publisher classes.  We look forward to seeing you soon!

A drop cap in a publication is a fancy way to draw the eye to the beginning of a story. Publisher makes it easy for you to create fancy drop caps.

• Click in the text box that holds the article where you want a drop cap. Choose FORMAT / DROP CAP to open the dialog box.
• Look through the available options, and choose the one that you like. You’ll see a preview within the dialog box so you have an idea how it will look when applied.
• Click OK to apply the drop cap option.

If you don’t like any of the options available, you can choose CUSTOM DROP CAP and create your own style. You are able to choose the position, size and text appearance.

For more fun tips in Microsoft Publisher, join us for a class! We’re saving a seat just for you.