The 5 Minute Bulletin Board
Issue # 7
July 2009 
Tips, tricks, & tools for a more efficient home office in 5 minutes or less
 
 In this Issue
 
 - Dates to Remember: July & August
 
 - Timesaver Tip: Add an E-Signature to Your Own Outgoing Email
 
 - Product I Like: The Notebook Portable LapDesk
 
- Quotation to Live By
 
Portrait for website
Dear Tiiu,
 
Welcome back to your 5-minute monthly read.
 
The 5 Minute Bulletin Board is so pleased to have you as a reader. I sincerely hope you enjoy this info-packed issue.
 
When you're done, why not hop on over to our new companion website? The link is just above your name and also at the end of this issue.
 
And feel free to leave a blog entry at the site, as well - I'd love to hear from you. Happy reading!
Upcoming Dates to Remember: June & July
JULY 2009
July 4        Independence Day
 
AUGUST 2009
none 
This Month's Time-Saver Tip! 
Add your "e-John Hancock" to Outgoing Email
 
(Remember that my directions will be for Microsoft Office version 2007; earlier versions will be similar but not exactly the same. If needed, access Microsoft's own tutorials at www.microsoft.com)
 
I was asked recently by a reader how to include a signature block on his own outgoing emails. It seems he gets mail frequently from others which includes their names, addresses, phone numbers and other information.
 
He wants to do the same, and his question prompted this month's time-saver article.
 
To set up your own signature block in MS Outlook, go to: 
  1. Tools > Options > and then click the Mail Format tab at the top.
  2. Click on Signatures.
  3. Over to the right, click on the drop-down menu next to E-mail Account, and choose the one to which you'll attach your signature.
  4. Click NEW.  It will prompt you to name it; this is to help you remember which is which (family, business, etc).  No one will see this but you.
  5. Type the information into the large text box as you want it to appear.  Your formatting buttons appear there as well.
  6. Click OK, and OK again.

To test drive your new e-John Hancock, do the following:

  1. Open up a new email and if you use more than one email address, you'll have an Account button beneath the SEND button.  Click and choose the one you assigned the signature to.
  2. Type a test email to yourself, and press SEND.  Voila!
Remember, too, you can personalize your emails further by using color and your favorite fonts in your signature.

Once you have this e-John Hancock set up, it's such a pleasure because you save valuable time that you could spend doing other things, instead of typing and retyping contact information.

It's fun AND efficient, so try it today.  
Products I Like

 

The Notebook Portable LapDesk by Targus
 
For about $15, I recently purchased this portable lap desk for use under my laptop computer. It's a hard plastic, vented stand which can be used flat (slightly raised off the desk) or folded into a V-shape that you can adjust according to the angle you prefer.
 
The ventilation channels prevent the excessive heat from building up beneath your laptop, which makes your computing more comfortable. It has rubber stops on its bottom side to prevent slipping, so it also stays put.
 
As I said it folds to several different angles, which is the way I'm using mine. Because it also folds flat, it is very convenient to take along on trips.
 
The specs follow:
  • Its folded dimensions are 11 x 11.5 x .65 inches.
  • Its unfolded dimensions are 11 x 22 x .4 inches.
  • It weighs less than one pound
I purchased mine at Office Depot but they can be found in other places as well. I've seen similar ones that cost MULTIPLE times what I paid - and this works wonderfully and inexpensively for me. 
A Quote to Live By

 

 Goals are dreams with deadlines.
 
 - Diana Scharf Hunt
Thanks For Visiting - See You Next Month!

 

As always, thanks for sharing a few minutes with me this month.

Be sure to be on the lookout for your Tip of the Week; it'll be a very short computer tip sent at the start of each week.
 
As a thank you for subscribing to The 5 Minute Bulletin Board, click to download the FREE Special Report below, entitled
 
 
If this was forwarded to you but you're not on our mailing list, please join! There's a red link at the bottom of this ezine; just click on it for instant access to free tips & helpful hints.
 
And while you're at it, share this with a friend. There's another link at the bottom for doing just that. They'll appreciate the info - and appreciate you for sending it.
 
With every wish for your small business success,
     Tiiu
  Tiiu K Garrett
 
 The 5 Minute Bulletin Board
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