MicroAssist

5 Ways to Make Your PowerPoint Presentations Fascinating

ejmoore — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 21:57:14 +0000

We've all sat through a mind numbingly-boring PowerPoint presentation and left unsure of what point the speaker was trying to convey, or unclear what action was called for, or were simply so bored that everything was forgotten the second we left the room.

PowerPoint still can't be beat for efficient communication of dense, verbal ideas - who reads memos anymore? - but that doesn't mean that it's easy to use effectively.

A good PowerPoint presentation should convince your audience to align themselves with your point of view. If you're looking to share data or a list of facts and figures, you don't need PowerPoint: you need Excel.

Here's five tips to keep your audience engaged and effectively convey your message. To learn more about these techniques, attend one of our Advanced PowerPoint classes.

Become an Excel Superhero: Macros Save the Day!

ejmoore — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 17:04:40 +0000

Have you ever spent too much time on a repetitive task in Microsoft Excel and known there has to be a better way? There is! Macros can be used in Excel for everything from automating common tasks to creating custom functions.

Excel has many features that can be created with a macro that aren't included in the program itself. Simply put, macros in Excel save you time, money, and effort. Let's look at some ways macros can make your life easier - then register for Excel Advanced to learn how to use macros.

Scenario: You regularly import sales data to maintain inventory levels. The data comes to you as a .csv or formatted text file with thousands of transactions, which you have to then import by hand, check the data's veracity and consolidate, and then update your inventory spreadsheet.

Build Your Own Web with SharePoint 2010

ejmoore — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 22:26:49 +0000

SharePoint 2010 is a tool we're really excited about because of all the ways it makes it easier for people to work together, enabling your staff to set up websites to share information with others, manage documents from start to finish, and publish reports.

What is SharePoint? There's a lot in the name: SharePoint is a tool for sharing information and providing a specific place for you to find and collaborate on information. No matter your position in your organization, SharePoint 2010 has something great to offer you.

Announcing Virtual Instructor-Led Training: Learning in Context

ejmoore — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 21:59:38 +0000

Virtual Instructor-Led Training: New from MicroAssist!

MicroAssist is now offering Virtual Instructor-Led Training in many of the same skills, tools, and technologies we've staked our reputation on over the last 24 years. Many of our clients have a dispersed workforce but have had travel budgets cut over the last few years, while the need for technical training never diminishes. Interactive virtual training makes it possible for individuals to get the training they need from their office, home, or anywhere with an internet connection.

With this easy to use virtual training platform, individuals around the world can now receive the quality training they need for the same cost as our local clients. Likewise, the interactivity of the virtual training environment allows our expert instructors to relate to students much in the same ways as in-person classes to ensure a positive learning experience. Unlike e-learning, the virtual training environment allows students to interact directly with the instructor during the course to ask questions, solve problems, and ensure they truly understand the material.

Team MicroAssist Takes Home First Prize in Knowbility's AIR Interactive!

ejmoore — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 21:52:00 +0000

Congratulations to Unchain My Art (AKA Team MicroAssist) for taking first place in the annual Accessiblitity Internet Rally! AIR-Interactive matches teams of web designers/developers with non-profit organizations to build new websites or enhance existing ones to make them more accessible for people with disabilities: the competition does an amazing job of increasing awareness of the tools and techniques that make the Internet accessible to everyone.

Pavel, Hiram, Jillian, and Ella Jane worked with Fito Kahn of the Austin Jazz Alliance to create a new website. The Austin Jazz Alliance began as a grass-roots organization started in an effort to help jazz musicians in Austin and Central Texas promote their music. It has since become an umbrella organization that brings together jazz musicians, jazz fans, and jazz related businesses. Check out the Austin Jazz Alliance's new website!

HTML5 Classes: 6 Reasons You Need HTML5 Training Now

ejmoore — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 22:10:32 +0000

Register for HTML5 Training Classes Today

MicroAssist has HTML5 classes scheduled on:

March 21st & 22nd
April 26th & 27th
May 23rd & 24th

HTML5 is the next major milestone in HTML, not just another incremental enhancement. HTML5 is a game-changer, an enormous advance for not just websites but modern web applications. HTML5 is such a big step forward that it prompted Vic Gundotra, VP of Engineering at Google, to say "The web has not seen this level of transformation, this level of acceleration, in the past ten years... we're betting big on HTML5." Here are six reasons why you should get trained in HTML5 and make the switch.

1. Save Money and Time with One Step Multi-Media Content

Save money and time with HTML5's new syntactical features, including the <video>, <audio>, and <canvas> elements. Before HTML5, developers needed to use tools like Flash, Silverlight, Flex or JavaScript to create interactive websites. Not only do these methods increase the complexity of the web application, they also require significant developer time and cost to create. These new elements make it very easy to integrate multimedia and graphical content to the web without using third party plugins.

New Crystal Reports Tips

ejmoore — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 18:32:11 +0000

Our instructors have sent over some new Crystal Reports tips. Check them out in our Resource Center!

New Half-Day Classes!

ejmoore — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 18:27:30 +0000

Looking to brush up your skills, but don't want to devote an entire work day to instruction? Are you familiar with Microsoft Office, but looking for new tools to work smarter? Come try one of our half-day classes! If you have a basic level of familiarity with the program, or have already completed an introductory course, you'll be ready to jump in to these classes. After just a few short hours of instruction, you'll be heading back to work, ready to implement your new skills.

For more information on these courses, give us a call at 512-794-8440 or fill out our pricing request form. When you're ready to register, check out our course schedule and download our registration form! Don't see a topic you need listed? Email us at training@microassist.com.

Advanced Queries - Microsoft Access

Creating a query; wizards, criteria, properties, calculated fields, totals and summaries
Query joins
Parameter queries

Team MicroAssist Brings Home the Prize!

ejmoore — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 22:20:15 +0000

Unchain My Art takes first prize at AIR Austin!

Congratulations to Unchain My Art (AKA Team MicroAssist) for taking first place in the annual Accessiblitity Internet Rally! AIR-Austin matches teams of web designers/developers with non-profit organizations to build new websites or enhance existing ones to make them more accessible for people with disabilities: the competition does an amazing job of increasing awareness of the tools and techniques that make the Internet accessible to everyone.

Jacob, Jillian, and Pavel worked with Alyson Curtis of Alyson Design, and Donna Blumberg, web designer and software developer extraordinaire, to create the Texas Inmate Families Association's new site. TIFA is an amazing non-profit based in Austin dedicated to breaking the cycle of crime by strengthening families through support, education, and advocacy. Check out their new website!

Storytelling

jmccarthy — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 22:32:47 +0000

In Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip and Dan Heath, the authors identify six techniques for making communication memorable. Storytelling is one of the techniques we use in online learning.

Click the heading below to view several stories.

COMPLETE A CHALLENGING FORM

When helping clients apply for enrollment in a medication program, case managers may encounter situations that make it difficult to answer questions on the application.