Use conditional formatting to format even and odd rows

• To format even rows only, use the conditional formula =EVEN(ROW())=ROW().
• To format odd rows only, use the conditional formula = ODD(ROW())=ROW().

1. Select the rows you want to format. To select the entire sheet, click the Sheet Selector (the gray cell that intersects the row and column headers).
2. Click the Home tab.
3. Click the Conditional Formatting dropdown in the Styles group and choose New Rule.
4. From the Select A Rule Type list, choose Use A Formula To Determine Which Cells To Format.
5. In the Format Values Where This Formula Is True field, enter =EVEN(ROW())=ROW().
6. Click Format.
7. Specify any of the available formats. For instance, to shade all even rows red, click the Fill tab, click Red, and click OK twice.

1. In Outlook select the Inbox.
2. Choose Arrange By from the View menu.
3. Select Current View from the resulting submenu.
4. Select Customize Current View.
5. Click Automatic Formatting.
6. At this point, several options are (probably) checked. Whatever options you leave checked will reflect the changes you make in subsequent steps. If you want to change the format only for unread messages, uncheck everything but the Unread Messages option.
7. Click Font.
8. Specify the formats you want to apply.
9. Click OK three times.
   
   It couldn’t be easier — it’s just a matter of knowing where to look for the right option. Don’t settle for defaults unless they’re really what you want.

There are a number of ways to insert a SUM() function into an Excel spreadsheet. The hard way is to enter the entire function manually. That method is prone to mistakes because you must know the cell references and then enter them correctly. If you like, you can enter =SUM( manually, highlight the range to avoid incorrect cell references, enter the closing ), and then press Enter. That method eliminates the problem with cell references, but it still requires a lot of steps.
There are two easier ways to sum values:

• Highlight the row or column, plus one blank cell for the result, and press [Alt]++.
• Highlight the row or column, plus one blank cell for the result and click AutoSum on the Standard toolbar.

For example, if you want to sum the values in cells B2:B5, you select cells B2:B6, and then press [Alt]++ or click AutoSum. Excel will display the sum in cell B6. You don’t have to enter a thing — just highlight and click or press.
Obviously, AutoSum is the easiest route, but the Standard toolbar isn’t always available, so knowing the [Alt]++ combination might come in handy. Most methods work with multiple columns and rows and noncontiguous blocks of values.

The easiest way to enter an em dash ( — ) is to let Word do it.  Simply enter two hyphen characters between the two words you want to connect, and Word will turn the hyphens into an em dash. If this doesn’t work for you, one of two possibilities exist:

• You’ve inserted space characters between the words and the hyphen characters. When you enter spaces between the hyphens, Word formats the hyphens as an en dash ( – ), which is shorter than an em dash.
• Someone has disabled the AutoCorrect option that formats hyphens as an em dash.

Now, this default won’t work for everyone every single time. If you occasionally need two hyphens instead of an em dash, you can press [Ctrl]+Z and Word will undo the em dash character and restore the hyphens. If you find yourself doing this a lot, it might be more efficient to disable the AutoCorrect option and enter an em dash, when you require it, manually. You can disable this option as follows:

1. From the Tools menu, choose AutoCorrect Options.
2. Click the AutoFormat As You Type tab.
3. Uncheck the Hyphens ( — ) With ( — ) option.
4. Click OK.

After disabling the AutoCorrect option, you’ll have to enter an em dash manually. Fortunately, there are three easy methods:

• Press [Ctrl]+[Alt]+-. You must use the minus sign (-) on the numeric keypad; if you use the hyphen character on the alphanumeric keypad, Word will change the cursor.
• Hold down the [Alt] key and type 0151 on the numeric keypad.
• Choose Symbol from the Insert menu, click the Special Characters tab, highlight the em dash, and click Insert.

Entering an em dash character is easy, whether you let Word do it or you choose to enter the character yourself.