Microsoft Office

Free up disk space
By freeing disk space, you can improve the performance of your computer. The Disk Cleanup tool helps you free up space on your hard disk. The utility identifies files that you can safely delete, and then enables you to choose whether you want to delete some or all of the identified files.

1. Use Disk Cleanup to:

• Remove temporary Internet files.

• Remove downloaded program files (such as Microsoft ActiveX controls and Java applets).

• Empty the Recycle Bin.

• Remove Windows temporary files.

• Remove optional Windows components that you don’t use.

• Remove installed programs that you no longer use.

2. Speed up access to data
Disk fragmentation slows the overall performance of your system. When files are fragmented, the computer must search the hard disk when the file is opened to piece it back together. The response time can be significantly longer.

Disk Defragmenter is a Windows utility that consolidates fragmented files and folders on your computer’s hard disk so that each occupies a single space on the disk. With your files stored neatly end-to-end, without fragmentation, reading and writing to the disk speeds up.

When to run Disk Defragmenter
In addition to running Disk Defragmenter at regular intervals—monthly is optimal—there are other times you should run it too, such as when:

• You add a large number of files.

• Your free disk space totals 15 percent or less.

• You install new programs or a new version of Windows.

3. Detect and repair disk errors
In addition to running Disk Cleanup and Disk Defragmenter to optimize the performance of your computer, you can check the integrity of the files stored on your hard disk by running the Error Checking utility.

As you use your hard drive, it can develop bad sectors. Bad sectors slow down hard disk performance and sometimes make data writing (such as file saving) difficult, or even impossible. The Error Checking utility scans the hard drive for bad sectors, and scans for file system errors to see whether certain files or folders are misplaced.

If you use your computer daily, you should run this utility once a week to help prevent data loss.

4. Protect your computer against spyware

Spyware collects personal information without letting you know and without asking for permission. From the Web sites you visit to usernames and passwords, spyware can put you and your confidential information at risk. In addition to privacy concerns, spyware can hamper your computer’s performance. To combat spyware, you might want to consider using Microsoft Windows Defender, which is included in Windows Vista, and is available as a free download for Microsoft XP SP2. Alternatively, there are other free anti-spyware software programs available.

5. Learn all about ReadyBoost
If you’re using Windows Vista, you can use ReadyBoost to speed up your system. A new concept in adding memory to a system, it allows you to use non-volatile flash memory—like a USB flash drive or a memory card—to improve performance without having to add additional memory.

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Further to reference guide, this is the interactive guide from Microsoft.

When you click the link below, the interactive guide will start. Once you’re there, rest the mouse pointer over an Outlook 2003 menu or button to learn its new location in Outlook 2007. To see an animation of the location of the command or button in Outlook 2007, just click it.

Start the guide

Notes

• This guide requires Adobe Flash Player 7.0 or later.
• This guide covers the most popular commands from Outlook 2003. For the complete list of command equivalents, see Reference: Locations of Outlook 2003 commands in Outlook 2007.
• The e-mail commands shown for Outlook 2003 are the ones you see when you’re using Microsoft Word as your e-mail editor. If you’re not sure which e-mail editor you’re using or how to tell, see Demo: Do more with Word as your e-mail editor.

The first time you use Outlook 2007 to create a new message (or open one that you receive), you’ll see part of the Microsoft Office Fluent user interface, the Ribbon. The Ribbon is a rectangular region at the top of the interface that contains tabs.

Wondering where your favorite Outlook 2003 commands are located in Outlook 2007? Or just want to explore the rich new design with a little guidance?

Reference: Locations of Outlook 2003 commands in Outlook 2007

Introducing the new interface

In Office Outlook 2007 in open items, the new Office Fluent user interface replaces some of the menus and toolbars from earlier versions of Outlook with a single mechanism that is simple and discoverable. The Office Fluent user interface is designed to help you be more productive in Outlook, and find the right features for various tasks more easily.

This article is designed for experienced Outlook 2003 users — Help desk personnel, IT professionals, and others who are already familiar with the Outlook 2003 interface — who want to find familiar commands quickly in Office Outlook 2007.

Office Fluent user interface

The primary replacement for menus and toolbars in new and open items in Office Outlook 2007 is the Ribbon, which is part of the Microsoft Office Fluent user interface. Designed for easy browsing, the Ribbon consists of tabs that are organized around specific scenarios or objects. The controls on each tab are further organized into several groups. The Ribbon can host richer content than menus and toolbars can, including buttons, galleries, and dialog box content.

Tabs that appear only when you need them

In addition to the standard set of tabs that you see on the Office Fluent Ribbon whenever you start Office Outlook 2007, there is another kind of tab which appears in the interface only when it is useful for the type of task that you are performing currently.

Contextual tools   Contextual tools enable you to work with an object that you select in the item, such as a table or picture in an open e-mail message. When you click the object, the pertinent set of contextual tabs appears in an accent color next to the standard tabs.

Menus, toolbars and other familiar elements

In addition to tabs, groups, and commands, Office Outlook 2007 uses other elements that also provide paths for accomplishing your tasks. The following elements are more like the menus and toolbars that you are already familiar with from earlier versions of Outlook. The Outlook Ribbon mapping workbook contains all of the mapped elements.

Microsoft Office Button    This button is located in the upper-left corner in an open item.

Quick Access Toolbar   The Quick Access Toolbar is located by default at the top of the window in an open item and provides quick access to tools that you use frequently. You can customize the Quick Access Toolbar by adding commands to it.

Dialog Box Launchers   Dialog Box Launchers are small icons that appear in some groups. Clicking a Dialog Box Launcher opens a related dialog box or task pane, providing more options related to that group.

Adding commands to the Quick Access Toolbar

Some Outlook 2003 commands are available in Office Outlook 2007 only from the list of all commands in the Editor Options dialog box. To use these commands in Office Outlook 2007, you first add them to the Quick Access Toolbar as follows:

1. Click the Microsoft Office Button , and then click Editor Options.
2. Click Customize.
3. In the Choose commands from drop-down list box, click All commands.
4. Click the command that you want to add, and then click Add.

   Repeat for each command that you want to add.

5. Click the Move Up and Move Down arrow buttons to arrange the commands in the order in which you want them to appear on the Quick Access Toolbar.
6. Click OK.

New locations of familiar commands

To find the location of menu and toolbar commands in Office Outlook 2007, open the Outlook Ribbon mapping workbook. Instructions on the first tab of the workbook provide tips for customizing, finding, and printing data.

Recommended: Outlook 2007: Calendar Printing Assistant | Office 2007: Demos