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Mark's Corner: From the Office Expert
FrontPage:  Getting rid of the white edges from clip art!
Internet:  Add a Google toolbar to Internet Explorer!
PowerPoint:  Adding interactivity
Windows2000: STC training in Windows2000 with Sam Conder

Do you simply hate it when you insert a graphic into your web page and end up with a big white background around it?  FrontPage 2000 can quickly fix that for you.  Here's how:

To remove a white background from a graphic (using FrontPage 2000):

• Select the graphic from which you wish to remove the white background.
• Choose the Set Transparent Color icon on the pictures toolbar.

• Place the cursor in the white area on the graphic and click.

FrontPage will remove the white background.   NOTE: Some graphics will still have a few white pixels around the graphic.

Go to http://toolbar.google.com/, and follow the directions to add the capability of instantly searching Google directly from your Internet Explorer toolbar!

Let’s say you want to make a map or sections of a picture clickable to other slides. What you need to do is make that section a transparent button, a hyperlink or both. (You can always make a section of text a hyperlink by typing the text onto your slide, highlighting the entire text or a word, go to the button on the tool bar and tell it to link to a certain page or website.)

Let’s create the button. Place the graphic you wish on a PowerPoint slide. Map out your slides so you know how your presentation should link/look when you are finished. (You won’t have to update the hyperlinks because you changed the order of slides or deleted a slide.)

To make your own button ( even if the shape is irregular) go to the menu bar, VIEW/TOOLBARS/DRAWING (be sure a check is next to drawing). The drawing bar is usually at the bottom of your screen. Select AUTOSHAPES/LINES/ and select the freeform tool .

With the tool, outline the area you wish to make clickable. When you are finished, the area will have handles around it. Don’t worry, these won’t show in your presentation. You can adjust the outline until you satisfied with it.

Now with this area still selected (handles showing), go to SLIDESHOW on the menu bar, select ACTION SETTINGS, MOUSE CLICK, and HYPERLINK to: select the slide that links to transparent button you just created. Notice you can add a sound.

Unless you have already chosen invisible for the shape (notice the area went to a green when we created the transparent button) we need to make the button transparent. Go to the MENU BAR, FORMAT/AUTOSHAPES/FILL PANEL. Next to COLOR click the drop down arrow and select NO FILL. Do the same thing for LINE/COLOR, select NO LINE. Then OK.

Now your button has no line around it and is transparent. To check your presentation, select F5 or VIEW/SLIDESHOW.

Have fun!

Here's a set of training modules with LAN/WAN manager Cam Conder, answering questions about Windows2000 Professional like:

• What happened to "My Documents?"
• If someone else logs in, the desktop changed! What happened?
• What if I want to share stuff between users?
• Where did Network Neighborhood/Windows directory go?

These modules are in streaming video format - give feedback on this pilot program!