Question: “I work for a rural hospital and struggle every year on the best way to track and file nursing competencies. Does anyone have any ideas on how to track nursing competencies easily by using software such as Excel?” — Tracy Fehd

Question: “Does anyone know how to stop pagination at a certain point in a Word document? I’ve had to do this many times, but every time is difficult and time consuming. I type multisection documents and in the final section, I need to stop page numbering. I know you must undo the “link to previous,” but I have to fight with it for a long time before I can get it to work. I’d like a simple, quick or easy way to do it, but I would settle for just knowing step-by-step how to do it right each time without having to fight with it for an hour or more.” — Diana

Question: “What is the best way to find out what is new in computer software used in most offices, since it seems to always be changing?” — Anonymous

Question: “Does anyone know of a way to always have the BCC field populate with a specific e-mail address?” — Anonymous

Question: “I am the assistant to our company’s CTO, who is very ‘hands on.’ She is constantly in meetings and on conference calls, which takes a toll on her e-mail inbox. I am tasked with helping to control the outrageous amount of e-mails that come in to her on a daily basis. I have become good at detecting the junk mail, but it doesn’t even put a dent in the total. Does anyone have any suggestions on e-mail management?” — Leslie N. Robus

Question: “What user-friendly database software can connect to Quicken Books?  The nonprofit I currently support has MS Access, but I don't know if that's the answer.  Is there a program that’s more user-friendly?” — Anonymous

Question: “I have been tasked with finding scheduling software for our company.  Sounds easy but I need software that will allow us to schedule different people, in different countries, on different schedules.  We need to schedule it so we know who can work in what country and what skill sets they have .The shifts are 12 – 21 days (varies by country) and we’d like to prepare reports so that we know who has worked where and for how long and, how much time off they have had (to meet individual country requirements).  In my dream world, it would also alert us when we have double scheduled or when we have a mismatched pair or have missed a scheduling slot. Since this isn’t your normal work week scheduling I haven’t found a software package that will allow us to track everything we need.  Has anyone found a software package that might work for us?” — Pam Cashwell

Question: “Has anyone used software programs to create a record retention program?  Specifically, has anyone used the Skupsky method?” — Anonymous

Question: “How trustworthy do you find Wikipedia? I hear people referencing it all the time (including in this Forum) but sometimes the articles read more like opinion than fact. Does anyone know of an alternate (free) resource for encyclopedic or general information?” — Lisa, New Jersey

Question: “I would like to explore the possibility of working as a virtual assistant on a part- time basis.  Has anyone had experience with this type of work?  What resources (skills and/or equipment) will I need?” — Anonymous

Question: “I use Microsoft Office 2003, and I need to keep a hard copy of BCC address lists. How do I do that?” — Anonymous

Question: “I am looking for easy to use software for maintaining address lists for a church office.  Ideally, it would differentiate members and "friends," list names, phone numbers, birth and anniversary dates.  What do you use?  How easy is it? And most important, how much does it cost?” — Anonymous

Question: I need tips for keeping up with my boss’s mileage using Outlook.  What’s recorded in Outlook is then used  to complete a mileage form.  I usually record meetings requiring travel in purple. But there are times when meetings are on the boss’s calendar in purple that she does not attend; she just wants to know the meeting is taking place. By the end of the month, it’s hard to remember if she did or did not attend those meetings.  Also, she wants me to accept meetings tentatively that she may or may not attend.  This shows meetings taking place at the same time or around the same time.  I need to keep track in a better way.  Should I print her calendar and highlight the meeting she actually attends? — Anonymous

Question: I’m searching for either a software program or service that will allow our company to send and receive faxes through e-mail, using our current fax number. We are a small office (8 people), but occasionally we need to send and receive large faxes and our fax machine frequently has line-quality problems.  Does anyone have any recommendations?  What are some factors to consider? — Atlanta

Question: “This question is about the Stationery feature for e-mails in Windows. In Windows XP, Outlook Express, I was able to set up many stationery options. But I now have Windows Vista, Windows Mail, and I have been unable to set up the stationery feature for my e-mails. Does anyone know how to do this successfully?”  -- Robbie

Question: "I keep a 'master calendar' for my boss that I want to be shared with her at all times. We currently use Microsoft Explorer to do this. Does anyone have any suggestion for software that would allow this?" -- Susan Marvin

Question: “Can anyone suggest a good software program or site where I can learn to create a web site?” — Ina Piner-Givens

Question: “I need to set up a scheduling/tracking calendar for conducting performance appraisals, so I’ll know when each employee’s appraisal is due. Any ideas?” —Anonymous

Question: We have 100 employees who switch workdays, take vacation leave, training, etc., and we’re having a hard time tracking them. Currently, we use a sign in sheet to update the record. We’d like to track employee leave via the computer and have everyone access it from his or her workstation. Can anyone suggest a good software program? — Jennifer Sparrow

Question: I have a problem when sending a recurring invitation in Microsoft Outlook that is set weekly for a specific day and time. When I instruct Outlook to change the date for only one specific week, the original invitation is still generated to all invitees. Does Outlook generate this re-invite only when specific date information is changed? — Ellen Golden

Question: I am building a Microsoft Access database, but I don’t know where to start?  I know what I want to do, but I don’t know how to begin. - Angela Thomas

Question: I have been tasked with project coordination for my boss’s home renovation, which is quite extensive.  I am looking for a user-friendly project-software program.  Has anyone used a project-software program that you can recommend? - Karen Kosmoski

Question: My company needs a simple way to share and update documents in real time, with 5-10 clients. We would like to customize the document for each client so it includes each client’s logo. Initially, we may use one or two Excel spreadsheets for tracking projects and later add Word documents. What would be the best and most economical method to accomplish this? - Chriss Shofner

Question: My boss needs a way to track tasks that he assigns to his direct reports. We tried using "task list" in Outlook, but once you assign a task to someone, they become the owner. My boss wants to see all the progress for his direct reports. Do you have any suggestions? - Rondallyn McKinzie

Question: I'm setting up a large distribution list that I will use to send an announcement. I’ll be using “Bcc” in Outlook.  What name should I use in the “To:” box?  Is there a generic name that I can use?  And what name will appear to the Bcc recipients? - Chierile